The Best Gifts Our Editors Have Ever Received, Hands Down

It's the season of gifting, and nothing sticks with you quite like receiving an amazing—or an amazingly bad—gift. Our goal is to help you avoid the latter and perfectly tailor a gift to its recipient, whether it be your grandfather, your friend who has everything, or your hard-to-please tween.

While we at The Spruce pride ourselves on giving excellent gifts this time of year, we love recalling the gifts we've received that truly touched our hearts. From staple pieces of cookware that will never leave our collections to sweet gifts that let us explore our hobbies, we're sharing the most thoughtful gifts our editors have ever received, hands down—and of course, now you can shop them too.

We hope some of these gifts are the perfect fit for any tricky person on your list.

AeroGarden Harvest with Gourmet Herb Seed Pod Kit

"I nearly shed tears upon opening this gift from my boyfriend two years ago. I have the hardest time letting go of summer because it means saying goodbye to gardening, which is by far my favorite hobby. This mini indoor garden allowed me to grow fresh cherry tomatoes and basils right on my countertop, which is so incredibly cool. A tip is to buy the seed pod pack that you can insert your own seeds inside—this opens up a world of possibilities for what you can grow indoors." —Mia Ingui, editor

Crosley CR8005F-PS Cruiser Plus

"This is probably the trendiest little gift I've ever received—thanks to my mom. I always loved the aesthetic of having a vinyl player on display in my home and I couldn't be more in love with this neutral one. Now I have a cute vinyl collection and this player on display and it's a great conversation starter. Plus now my friends have an easy gift to give me—you can never have too many vinyls." —Aliyah Rodriguez, associate editor

Rifle Paper Co. Garden Party Fabric Journal

"One of the nicest gifts I ever received was a Rifle Paper Co journal and matching mechanical pencil. It was such a surprise and something that I could use daily. I write everything down, so I'm a big paper fan. Plus, everything Rifle Paper Co. makes is very cute and prompts people to ask you where you got it." —Meg Lappe, senior editorial director

Le Creuset 5 1/2 qt. Round Dutch Oven, Chambray

"After I graduated college, I got really into cooking and I mainly had hand-me-down kitchen supplies, so my grandma gifted me a Le Creuset dutch oven to start my collection of nicer cookware. This dutch oven truly lives up to all of the praise that the brand receives. I love using it to cook everything from soups to pasta, and it's such a pretty piece of cookware, that it can sit on my cooktop in my small kitchen without being an eyesore." —Emma Phelps, associate commerce editor

KitchenAid Professional 5 Plus Stand Mixer

"It's incredibly cliché of me, but I've always dreamed of having a teal KitchenAid stand mixer on my kitchen counters—in the perfect spot for weekend baking endeavors. My husband surprised me with one a couple years ago, and it's still my pride and joy. The Professional series works a bit differently in the sense that, to get the bowl out, you lower it and then pull it out from its holder versus tilting the head of the mixer. I find it so easy and enjoyable to use when mixing up dough for banana breads, cookies, and more." —Marisa Viglione, senior commerce editor

Instant Pot Duo Plus 9-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker

"Since I'm a trained chef, the thought of using a non-traditional cooking tool went against the grain. I have always resisted the idea of using a trendy product, but I was gifted the Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cooker. I love how easy it is to use without any guesswork, and using it during the workweek is perfect for those quick meals. It's been a lifesaver more times that I care to admit!" —Joe Morales, senior commerce editor

Amazon Basics 3-Tier Rolling Utility or Kitchen Cart

"I have a limited amount of space on my vanity counters, so when I was gifted this rolling cart, it gave me so much more storage space which I could use to streamline all my items. Since there are three tiers, I organize my makeup on one, my hair supplies on the second, and all my miscellaneous stuff on the third. It makes it really easy to roll it around whenever I'm getting ready and adds a playful pop of color to the rest of my room." —Jane Kim, associate editor

Marshall Acton II Bluetooth Speaker

"The sound quality on this BT speaker is fantastic, and I've never had one that looks so chic as well! I love the retro aesthetic it has." —Candace Madonna, senior visual editor

Birthdate Candle

"This personalized gift combines two things I love: candles and astrology. Birthdate Co uses the stars to design 365 candles to represent each day of the year. The beautiful candles come in a chic glass jar and has tons of information about your sun sign, so you can learn a bit more about yourself as you light your candle and set a mood. The candle also features a custom tarot card, ruling number, ruling planet, and a scent to match the signifigant day. I adore this brand for personalized gifting. It won't break the bank, feels personal to your giftee, and makes beautiful decor in any space. I have mine displayed on my bookshelf and I will probably never use it fully so I can always look at it and remind myself of my strengths according to the stars." —Julia Fields, associate commerce editor

Nespresso Essenza Mini Espresso Machine

"As a mom and a coffee drinker, I use this gift I received for my birthday a few years ago almost every day. I love how it takes up very little countertop space, and it's fairly easy to pack as well, so I bring it with us on family vacations. I've since bought one for other family members when I wanted to give them an extra special gift. I think it's a great gift for someone who loves espresso or lattes, but doesn't have the time for a complicated and hard to clean machine." —Jenica Currie, commerce editor

Mackenzie Childs Tea Kettle

"My roommate and I love drinking tea together, so I found it so thoughtful when my mother bought us this tea kettle for our apartment. We already had a shared tea kettle, but this is so much more elevated and stylish than our old one. We love the pop of color it adds to our kitchen and it's truly such a timeless design. There are a few different designs, but we love the blue checkered one. It's also really sturdy and well-made, but we mainly love how gorgeous it looks displayed on our stove!" —Bianca Pineda, commerce writer

Ninja Hot & Iced Coffee Maker

"My spouse and I gifted this hot and iced coffee maker to ourselves last year, and it's been an absolute game changer. We both switch it up between hot and cold coffee drinks depending on the weather, and this machine has all the right features to suit both of our coffee preferences year-round— it even does iced coffee well, which is the unicorn feature of coffee machines, I swear. One of my friends even bought the same machine for her house after having a drink I made her. The particular machine we have is a Target exclusive, but there's another model that's available on Amazon, too." —Dena Ogden, commerce writer

Great Jones Little Hottie

"When Great Jones first gained popularity, I had coveted their gorgeous, brightly colored bakeware. I dropped a few hints and was gifted one of their cute Little Hotties! The 8-inch square pan has been my go-to kitchen companion for making butter mochi, little sheet cakes, and even as a mini casserole dish. I love that the ceramic stoneware is scratch-resistant and so easy to clean. (No stuck brownie bits here!) Plus, it's oven-safe, microwave-safe, and dishwasher-safe, too. And it's such a timesaver that this dish is so pretty—you can instantly take it straight from the cooling rack to your next potluck party!" —Michelle Lau, commerce editor

Plant Embroidery Kit (Design G)

"One of the best gifts I ever got was a finished embroidery project from my mom. She knows I love plants, so she got an embroidery kit on Etsy, did it, and gave it to me in the hoop so I could hang it up on the wall. It blew me away. I love the design and that she made it for me. And I actually like doing this kind of embroidery, so the kit alone would've been a great gift, but to get a finished embroidery project by someone close to me was even better." —Jenny Hughes, senior editor