OK, the largest version of these octagonal marble bowls rings in over $100, but the two smaller sizes don’t, and one could use them for everything from serving nuts to holding jewelry, change, and what have you on a bedside table.

Just a really handsome handmade walnut cutting board, which one could easily utilize as a cheese board too.

This Orla Kiely vase has a deco-ish feel I like a lot, and green in general is just a good, versatile color for a vase to be.

These dish towels would brighten up any kitchen; I also quite like these.

I am such a big fan of this Roland pine candle from Soap & Paper Factory—it smells just like a December hike in the woods.

These smoked pint glasses would be just as good for serving a morning smoothie as a beer.

Such a cute little floral wireless charger from Rifle Paper Co.

A cheese dome is an awfully grown-up thing to own, and not something a person is likely to purchase for herself, making it an ideal gift.

A ceramic match striker that’d be the perfect gift for a friend with a fireplace, or maybe just a serious candle habit.

This 16oz. canteen keeps drinks hot or cold, and couldn’t be a whole lot cuter.

A leather oven mitt is awfully sophisticated.

I might order these salt and pepper grinders for myself: they’re so nicely minimal.

Puzzles are apparently all the rage at the moment, and this one from Christian Lacroix is especially pretty.

A ceramic berry bowl is another gift one would be unlikely to purchase for herself, and it really does come in quite handy.

Garlic lasts a lot longer when you place it in a pot like this, and I think it’s great-looking too.

And finally: you can’t go wrong with a classic Stendig calendar.

I first saw this cute pillow from Lucky Fish at Lost & Found, a Santa Monica store I visit whenever I go to L.A. I didn’t buy it when I was there, but it stayed on my mind, and I just ordered it the other day. I love how graphic and Lichtenstein-esque it is.

Mostly I’ve been cooking for myself lately, but from time to time I crave sushi—which I dare not prepare on my own. I like the idea of serving it on this cool plate set.

This wall mirror looks like a brilliant flea market find.

I own enough quilts and don’t need more, but I do like the idea of this yellow one, which would look great in my primarily grey and white bedroom.

My newest coffee table book is Mag Men: Fifty Years of Making Magazines, and I recommend it highly to all of you print nostalgists out there. It’s by superstar graphic designers Walter Bernard and (the recently departed) Milton Glaser, and is such an inspiring look at the inner workings of early New York magazine, and other publications they worked on.

Because sleep problems continue to dog me, I’m thinking of going for this Diptique lavender candle to burn for a half-hour before bedtime. It’s the best lavender scent I’ve ever come across, and believe me, I’ve looked.

This cylinder planter would be a nice pop of midcentury design in any home.

How appealing is an old-school flip clock? I think it’d be aces on my nightstand.

My bath towels are looking a bit worse for wear, so I’m thinking of pulling the trigger on this leopard print specimen, which is kind of appealingly Mrs Robinson-ish.

“Scrub Daddy!” exclaimed my nephew Abe at the beginning of the summer when my mom came home from the hardware store with one of these. Apparently their inventors were on Shark Tank—a show I do not watch but also do not judge—and he was quite thrilled by the purchase. And, after using it for the better part of a summer, I’m sold too: just as the box says, it’s soft in warm water and firm in cold water, and if you use it dry, it works in much the same way as an SOS Pad, but without the mess. Plus, it doesn’t get scuzzy the way traditional sponges do. And it’s also pretty cute, no?