Valentine's Day Gift Guide
I’ve been a self proclaimed hopeless romantic since middle school (probably earlier) which mostly manifested in chasing after emotionally unavailable and toxic men throughout my teens and twenties while avoiding actual love and intimacy at all cost. I spent many Valentine’s Days listening to Dashboard Confessional and reading Sylvia Plath but have always been partial to the holiday nonetheless.
One year when I was working as a pastry cook on Valentine’s Day, I had a bouquet of flowers sent to my station from a secret admirer at the beginning of my shift. That night ended up being hell. Every single person who came into the restaurant got a plated-to-order dessert as part of their pre fixe menu which is quite a few more desserts than an average night, as you can imagine.
One of the line cooks came over to try to help me at one point and I essentially told him to ‘fuck off’ because I was so deep in the weeds, I didn’t have time to explain to him how to quenelle blood orange sorbet. It turned out he was the one who had bought me the flowers. Oopsy!
Anyways, Valentine’s Day is much chiller now that I’m older and wiser, don’t work in restaurants and am in a functional relationship. Phewww. I thought for this weeks newsletter I’d do a sweet little collection of things you might want to buy for your lover, mother, friend or self this February 14th. Or any day for that matter!
At its worst, Valentine’s Day is a cheugy hallmark marketing scheme. At it’s best, it’s an excuse to support local small businesses and artists and do something nice for ourselves and the people we love. I vote for the latter.
So without further ado, my Vday gift guide:
Handmade Jewelry from Larkwood Rose - Based out of Los Angeles, Taylor of Larkwood Rose makes custom handmade jewelry. I met Taylor working in a restaurant in Silverlake and fell in love with her work. DM on instagram or check out her website to place an order.
Twizzler Pipe or Mini Cake from Maddie Cake Ceramics - Madelyn de la Rosa, one of my favorite youtubers and overall creators, makes handmade decorative ceramic cakes and super cute twizzler pipes for your pot loving lover.
Handmade Mug from Carmen Ceramics - Based out of LA, Carmen makes wheel thrown mugs, goblets, cups and vases. Check out her Valentine’s Day collaboration with Donni for extra sweet sipping.
Tattoo from my boo Maxwell Becker - My very own Valentine is a tattoo artist in the LA area. Nothing says I love you like permanent body art. Book with Max through the form linked on his instagram. He works out of two shops in LA, Queenshead in Koreatown and Blxckhaus in West Hollywood. He’s also very cute. If you’re not in the LA area, you can order a piece of artwork from Max on his website to be shipped.
Broc Cellars Love Wine - Bay Area based winery Broc Cellars makes super sippable organic wines. Back when I lived in the East Bay, I never went to Berkeley Bowl without snagging a bottle. They also have some special Valentine’s Day deals on their website.
That’s Amore Sticker Pack and more from Marianna Fierro, LA food illustrator. Marianna or mnnfrr as you may know her on instagram is a much admired artist in the LA food world and beyond as she creates tantalizing images of the things we (I feel like I can speak for all of us here) love the most like mortadella, martinis and BLTs. Read this article about her food illustrating career on Eater and check out her website to work with her and/or order a mortadella towel.
A Book - Aminder Dhaliwal’s Woman World, a cheeky graphic novel about an imaginary world without men, and the book of poetry, If Not Winter, Fragments of Sappho are both books that I’ve gifted to women that I love and will probably buy again for myself because I enjoyed them so much. Support your local bookstore!
Custom Garment or Nude Portrait from Hannah E Brown - Check out Hannah’s website to order a custom garment or portrait for Valentine’s Day or any occasion. I met Hannah working at a restaurant in Silverlake as well. She has impeccable style and I’m obsessed with everything she makes.
Vintage Ashtray - You don’t have to be a smoker to appreciate a cool ceramic or glass ash tray. I use mine to hold a stick of palo Santo or incense. Seth Rogen has a company called Houseplant that makes vintage inspired ash trays, vases and lighters that are super fun and great for gifting. We also have a bunch of really cool ashtrays at my partner’s mother’s vintage store, The Hang. Go by the shop or DM to purchase.
Cake! - Last year I sold some mini creamsicle heart shaped cakes for Vday which was actually really fun even though I definitely didn’t charge enough. (Have you seen the price of eggs?) I’m laying low this year and keeping a look out to see what my favorite cake makers are doing. Check out: @mitrakim, @ibakemistakes, and @chulitocakes if you’re in the LA area and want to eat cake with your lovers!
Cake photo curtesy of Kassie from @ibakemistakes - she’ll even write a naughty message on your vday cake (the only time of year she writes on cakes - mad respect)
That’s it for now! And yes this is basically just a list of artists I love and think you should support. Comment any other creators you think should be added to the list! You can comment directly on this post or DM me on instagram.