Unique gifts for the poets you love that they will delightfully use on the regular.
If someone you know (and love — of course, because who wouldn’t love a poet?) writes or reads poetry, there are plenty of actually useful gifts out there — and no, we aren’t going to suggest a thesaurus (although everyone should own and use a thesaurus, simply because language is beautiful).
Writing — and reading! — poetry is a magical, even occult, experience. And it should be treated as such. So, here are a few gifts — ranging from the physical to the immaterial and educational — that recognize the poet’s desire to translate and beautify the world around them.
A Language Class
Learning a language can help you appreciate and know your own, find beauty in another, and even help you find a way to appreciate poetry in translation. A language class is perfect for the poet who wants to invest time in an activity that isn’t
If you want your poet to study at their leisure, you can gift them a subscription via many online learning tools and apps, like Duolingo.
An Emily Dickinson Tote Bag
This glorious tote bag not only pays tribute to one of the most important woman poets of all time, it carries a beautiful reminder to poets — have hope, especially when your life (or art) is not going smoothly: ““Hope” is the thing with feathers -/That perches in the soul -/And sings the tune without the words -/And never stops – at all -.”
Death Poems edited by Russ Kick
It would be silly to understate the poet’s interest in death. All poets, in some way, write about death — be it literal or metaphorical, or the transition from one phase or era to another. In this book, poems of death are catalogued by theme, with various styles and voices. A must-have for any reader, macabre or not.
Euphonics: A Poet’s Dictionary of Sounds by John Michell
Poetry is about the words on the page, but it’s also about the sounds they make, a poem’s musicality, and the way those sounds connect to our bodies and emotions.
In Euphonics: A Poet’s Dictionary of Sounds readers are treated to a whimsical look at the “incantatory power of the sounds of the English language,” such as the “deadly effects of ‘D’, the ghastly glint of ‘G’, the jolly jangle of ‘J’, the binary bulge of ‘B’ and seductive slippery ‘S’.”
(The company that sells this also sells tons of other fun poetry gifts).
A Baron Fig Journal
Sure, there are plenty of notebooks out there, but none as cool as the ones Baron Fig are making — for a variety of reasons.
Be sure to pick up their new Oracle pencil set — it’s literally a pencil that can tell your future.
For one, the indie stationary company is based largely off community feedback, which we find very cool, being people with strong opinions about what makes a good notebook. They also plant trees — in fact, they’ve planted more than 170,000 of them. They’ve got dream journals, a ‘clear habit’ journal, and plenty of other really beautiful empty journals for writing. Some of their products even include collabs and art.
A Poet’s Coffee Mug
Any poet waking up early to edit a manuscript or to submit work to a contest needs a big cup of something to kickstart the day. Why not have it in an Eat, Sleep, Poetry, Repeat mug? You can even fill it with wine at night. No one will judge you.
Salt Lamp
A salt lamp has nothing to do with poetry, this is true — but it does have to do with ambiance. Many poets rely heavily on environment and atmosphere to write. Candles, curtains, windows open, music on — it’s all part of coaxing the muse. One of the softest and most ambient forms of light is the glow of a salt lamp. Portable, beautiful, and like your own personal moon right in your bedroom.
A Day To Write
One of the best things you can do for a writer
