This is part of the LA Times 2021 Gift Guide. View the full guide here. If you make a purchase through one of our links, the LA Times may be compensated.
Everyone’s internet experience is different, meaning there isn’t one way to be “very online.” This gift guide is our attempt to address that. For some, online-ness means a nice laptop and phone case. For others, it means being involved in social justice goals and supporting meaningful organizations. And in many cases, that means they’ve seen all the good memes for you. Here are 13 gifts to show your appreciation and encourage people to rest their eyes once in a while too.
Forvr Mood candles
Influencer merchandise can be hit and miss, but YouTube star Jackie Aina’s fun and flirty candles — with names like Thotumn and Bad and Boozy — are perfect for friends or loved ones who learned how to do makeup on YouTube.
$35+ | 👉 Buy here
a cameo
Literally anyone who is a little bit famous or just past their 15 minutes of fame on Cameo. If you’re looking for the type of person who has everything they need, surprise them with something good zero real value except maybe a good laugh. While a cameo from pro skater (and ‘Masked Singer’ star?) Tony Hawk costs $250, a video by William Knight, which went viral for his TikTok meme “there’s no such thing as a coincidence,” costs $99. He’s been expecting you.
Varies | 👉 Buy here
‘Crying in H Mart’ by Repairs Club
This memoir by Michelle Zauner, a singer-songwriter known as Japanese Breakfast, began as a popular New Yorker essay about grief, mourning, and Korean growing up. Soon it will be a movie. And while it may seem counterintuitive to get a book from a brick-and-mortar bookstore for an online person, stores like LA’s Black-owned Reparations Club host many of the IRL and virtual book readings and speaking engagements that online people like to be the first to know. be aware.
$26.95 | 👉 Buy here
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Use the internet for a good sweatshirt from the Mayfair Group
The aesthetic of the Mayfair Group is a combination of positivity, vulnerability, a bit of humor and a lot of fashion awareness. Gift this to someone who regularly craves a less toxic internet culture in their Instagram captions.
$108 | 👉 Buy here
Smiley ring from NYZ Accessory Shop
Generation Z may have said the smiley emoji is for old people, but this stainless steel, 18kt gold plated ring is still cool.
$50 | 👉 Buy here
Food Is Personal/Political tote bag from Now Serving
For the person who wears their hearts on their sleeves and their politics on their cotton canvas tote bags, get this bag from LA cookbook store Now Serving. And if the gift recipient has been reading recipes online in the past 18 months, maybe throw in an old-fashioned physical book too.
$42 | 👉 Buy here
Rickey Thompson Wildflower iPhone Case
If you’re reading this, the person you’re shopping for probably spends a fair amount of time on their phone. Why not give them a trendy looking gift? Wildflower, an LA-based women-owned company, often collaborates with influencers on limited edition phone cases. We love their recent collaboration with Rickey Thompson, who became famous for his viral comedy videos on Vine and Instagram.
$35 | 👉 Buy here
Love Without Reason Dad Hat from LaRayia’s Bodega
LaRayia Gaston’s Westlake bodega doesn’t just offer inexpensive $1 meals and snacks to the community — there’s also a collection of crystals, jewelry, shirts, housewares, and hats, including this 90s-style dad hat.
$33.33 | 👉 Buy here
Chemex starter pack from Canyon Coffee
I personally spend a lot of time online and a lot of time drinking coffee, and that’s how the two bonded with me. Reading about different ways to make coffee, different tools I can use, and how different beans from different parts of the world taste is my take on quarantine sourdough. If you know someone like me (or if you really know me!), get this Chemex starter kit, which comes with a bag of LA roaster coffee.
$72 | 👉 Buy here
Go Get Em Tiger coffee subscription
If your coffee lover already has all the tools and gadgets you can think of, just get them more coffee. We love this three-month subscription of LA’s Go Get Em Tiger, but there’s also goodboybob, Patria Coffee, and YesPlz.
$112 | 👉 Buy here
Polaroid Go starter set
iPhone cameras have come a long way (I’m told I’m still on the iPhone 7), but sometimes it’s nice to put your phone down and go home with a physical copy of the photo.
$119 | 👉 Buy here
Copper Dry Brush from Nourish by the Now
The Now, a massage parlor in LA, created its dry copper brush to “combat the environmental stressors of modern life while improving your beauty and wellness routine.” Dry brushing is not a panacea, but its benefits include exfoliation and boosting circulation.
$42 | 👉 Buy here
Home & Away Lotion Kit from Supergoop!
A lighthearted gift that says I love you, go outside now.
$77 | 👉 Buy here
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