SUPPORT THE HOLIDAY ECONOMY!: The Grapevine’s Last-Minute Gift Guide

We get it: You’ve got a lot on your mind. You forgot to get gifts. It’s December 21st. So let us lighten your metaphorical holiday load with the official Grapevine gift guide. We’ve got choices that everyone on your list is guaranteed to love. And if they don’t, do you really want those losers in your life?

Photo by Art Bicnick

Pastel Flower Bouquet
Pastel Flower Studio, Hverfisgata 50
Flowers die but a dried flower bouquet from hidden gem Pastel Flower Studio will last forever. The runner-up of Grapevine’s 2020 Best of Reykjavík Hidden Gem award, Pastel is a charming little studio that creates unique (and incredibly trendy tbh) arrangements that reference classic Icelandic nature in unexpected and innovative ways. So for that aspirational Nordic style moment, grab a bouquet of muted jewel tones, put it in a very minimalist vase and present it to your stylish friend with a bottle of natural wine. Bonus points if you add a round trip ticket to Berlin for when 2020 ends.

Photo by Art Bicnick

Fischer Solid Perfume
Fischer, Fischersund 3
From packaging-free shampoo to a special perfume section, Grapevine-favourite Fischer serves up a sensory, highly aesthetic shopping adventure. To be frank, basically, everything they offer would be a stunning gift, but there’s something about the personal, long-lasting nature of perfume that really makes our heart melt. All of Fischer’s perfumes are vegan, alcohol-free, paraben-free and made with organic ingredients—more importantly, said ingredients will remind the recipient of your eternal love and superior taste every time they use it. While we’re fans of all their scents, we’re particularly enamoured by n.8, which, among other things, is supposed to smell like “Arctic wind blowing through hair in a damp pine forest.” Mom’ll love it. Pick it up in store or at the Grapevine online perfume boutique.

Picture provided by Ragnar Axelsson

Ragnar Axelsson ‘Arctic Heroes’
Bookstores around Reykjavík & shop.grapevine.is
‘Arctic Heroes’, the latest photography book by Ragnar Axelsson, or RAX, is an intimate 40-years-in-the-making documentation of the Greenlandic sled dog. That said, even referring to the project as a “photography book” feels reductive. Ragnar spent decades getting to know Greenlandic hunters and hearing deeply personal stories about their intimate relationships with their dogs—a select few which were put in the book alongside hundreds of photographs. Flipping through the pages is truly a visceral experience, allowing you to enter a remote world that feels lost in time. Hopefully, we will all be able to travel again soon, but until then, indulge in some canine escapism. Woof. Pick it up in store or at the Grapevine wolf boutique. You can also read more about the book here.

Picture provided by Farmers Market

Farmers Market Socks
Farmers Market, Laugavegur 37 & Hólmaslóð 2
What could be better than giving someone the gift of warmth? Everyone loves to receive socks for Christmas and these ones from Farmers Market are the perfect stocking stuffer. We all know somebody who walks around with holes in the bottom of their socks—and cold feet really are the worst—so why not help them out and set them up for a warmer 2021. They’d appreciate it a lot, trust me. The designs of these Farmers Market socks are also wholesome and folksy af, and with their vintage vibes, they’re the perfect accent to any cosy outfit. Pick them up in store or at the Grapevine sock boutique.

Photo by Art Bicnick

66ºNorth Recycled Backpack
66ºNorth, various locations
This backpack is made with leftover fabric, meaning it reduces waste and is better for the planet. We love to see it. This is the perfect gift for your friend or relative who is so conscious of their carbon footprint that they carry around zero-waste cutlery, a reusable coffee cup and cruelty-free vegan hand soap at all times. What better way to show them you support their virtuous plight than by gifting them something they can carry it all around with? The backpack comes in 10 different colours, including stark neons, silver and black—so there’s something for everyone, including you and your cyber-goth squad.

Note: Due to the effect the Coronavirus is having on tourism in Iceland, it’s become increasingly difficult for the Grapevine to survive. If you enjoy our content and want to help the Grapevine’s journalists do things like eat and pay rent, please consider joining our High Five Club.

You can also check out our shop, loaded with books, apparel and other cool merch, that you can buy and have delivered right to your door.