What’s Left Newsletter

Look, I get it: Gift guides can be annoying. And expensive. So, in the interest of offering some more economical options and not just stuffing something full of affiliate links, I’ve rounded up more than two dozen things I think would make great gifts — and all of them are under $100. These are all designy and fun — not Amazon stuff, but fun things that are well-made! I even included some items made by people I admire that are one-of-a-kind.

Every time I talk about estate sales on social media, I am hit with at least one comment chiding me for “shopping from the dead.” But that’s the whole reason I do it. When we die, we all leave behind a collection of who we were — tangible, physical representations of the lives we lived. The clothes we wore and danced in. The lipstick we put on and kissed in. Shoes we ran in or worked in or tripped and fell in.

It’s no great surprise that I am enamored by Pierce & Ward, the dynamic design duo comprised of Emily Ward and Louisa Pierce. They inspired the first of my thrift the look series, in which I offer tips on what to look for when shopping secondhand to get a similar romantic and layered look.