It’ll be here before you know it. Our annual 12 days of Dappered gift guide covers one item/idea each week-day for the next dozen days. All will be reasonably affordable, and at the same time they should (hopefully) appeal to someone who might drop on by this corner of the internet. So if you’re looking for ideas on what to give a decently dressed (yet budget conscious) fellow, or, if you’ve got friends/family struggling for ideas on what to get someone (you) who’s hard to buy for, check back in as this year’s 12 Days churns on. You’ll also find the growing archive here.
This might be the wrong thing to say as a website, but…
It’s a good idea to turn off all your screens every once in awhile.
Between the laptop, the tablet, the smartphone and whatever’s on the TV, we’re a society that’s over-pixelated. By giving someone an honest to goodness dead-tree book, they won’t be tempted to check twitter, the latest sports scores, or even drop by their favorite affordable men’s style website. They can just… read.
And bonus points of it’s a vintage edition of a favorite novel, series, or bit of nonfiction on a topic that they enjoy (music, history, a certain President, whatever…). Two of the best gifts I’ve ever received were old books that the givers knew would be right up my alley.
The first was a collection of James Bond novels that are at least a few decades old. They’re not first editions or anything, but sitting down one with of them instead of the Kindle just felt more relaxing. And they certainly look better sitting on the shelf.
The second was a very old copy of “The Bedside Esquire”, which is a collection of the best pieces ever published in Esquire Magazine. Includes The Snows of Kilimanjaro by Ernest Hemingway, some Steinbeck, and George A. McNamara’s “Essay on Jiggling”. Consider a collection of short stories / previously published works like this for someone who might not be the most voracious reader, but still likes to read a few pages before turning in for the night.
Ever hunt down a vintage book for yourself or someone else? Any tips for browsing at Used Bookstores and on Ebay? Leave it all in the comments below…