This is the Friday post at Downtime, a feel-good weekly roundup of recommendations and delightful distractions. If the email cuts off, you can view it on the web.

Happy Friday!

As the end of the year approaches, so do the “best of” lists. The one that caught my attention this week was The New York Times’s 10 Best Books list (*gift link). I was delightfully surprised to find Good Material by Dolly Alderton on there—a rom-com on the NYT list! Who would’ve thought.

It’s inspired me to brainstorm my own bestbooks of the year, and I’d love to know: what were your favorite reads of 2024?

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Speaking of lists, today I’m wrapping up another kind—our gift guides! Whether you’re still checking off names or looking for inspiration, this newsletter has plenty of ideas to help you finish strong. Consider it my final gift-related hurrah.

And ICYMI, here’s a roundup of all the gift guides from Downtime this year:

• Ask Downtime: Answering Readers’ Gifting Questions, Part One

• Cozy Gifts Under $50

• Bookish Gifts That Aren’t Books

• Gifts for the Homebody

• Even More Gift Ideas (Most Under $100)

• Gifts for the Home Cook

• Gifts for Parents & In-Laws Who Have Everything

And if that’s not enough, I’ve answered a few more reader-submitted gifting questions below. Happy gifting—and feel free to share this post with someone who could use a little nudge. :)

—Alisha

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P.S. Are you in our new Geneva chat? There are lots of readers looking for others to join them in IRL book clubs and meetups. Paid subscribers, please see this post for details on how to join.

First, a quick shoutout to today’s sponsor, Sephora:

Now is the perfect time to grab those last-minute gifts: Sephora is offering 20% off purchases for all Beauty Insider tiers and 30% off Sephora Collection. (If you’re not an Insider yet, it’s free and easy to sign up.)

I personally swear by a lot of products from Sephora, so let me share a few of my ride-or-die favorites:

• This nourishing face oil is a winter lifesaver—it layers perfectly under makeup and helps me look glowy and dewy. You can apply it after cleansing at night, too. (I do both!)

• I’ve loved everything I’ve tried from the brand Elemis lately, but their cleansing balm and gentle resurfacing pads are standouts. The latter makes my skin feel instantly refreshed and radiant.

• Tower28 is one of my favorite brands for solid, affordable products. Their hydrating jelly lip gloss is my everyday go-to, and their SOS facial spray is a miracle worker for soothing irritated, angry skin.

• I never blow dry my hair without this smoothing spray—it’s a game-changer for shine and frizz control.

• This is the best scalp scrub. Period. It smells great, lathers up nicely, and washes out all leftover product and gunk. I’ve tested two other popular (and pricier) brands, and neither came close.

• Lastly, after experimenting with less expensive options, I’ve learned my lesson: this Vitamin C serum is worth every penny. It’s more potent.

If you’re curious, you can check out my full Sephora list here and my beauty wishlist below on what I want to try next…

• This depuffing face mask for mornings when my face feels extra tired.

• A cream-to-powder eyeshadow that’s perfect for busy days—no brush needed!

• This fragrance that I smelled in-store and haven’t stopped thinking about since…

• And this dry shampoo with a genius little brush applicator.

Thank you for supporting the brands that support Downtime!

Ask Downtime: Your Toughest Gifting Questions, Answered — Part 2

I couldn’t cover all the amazing reader-submitted questions earlier this week, so here’s part two of this year’s gift guide to tackle even more of your thoughtful gifting dilemmas. Thank you for sharing your biggest conundrums—because let’s be real, stressing over the perfect gift is its own (often overlooked) love language.

🎁 Missed part one? You can find it here.

Gifts for sleep-deprived new parents.

“Gift ideas for my brother and SIL who are overwhelmed new parents. I want to get gifts for them as individuals and not just for the family/baby, but not something that feels like a burden to do or make or find time for in this hectic season of life.”

As a mom to a fifteen-month-old, I feel uniquely qualified to answer this. (Some days, I still feel like an overwhelmed new parent myself.) Those early newborn days are such a blur, so I love that you’re focused on giving them something that feels like a treat rather than a task. Here are a few ideas:

Starting with the obvious here, but: food!

Homemade meals were a rare luxury for us early on. Even a simple lasagna, meatballs, or roasted veggies can be a lifesaver.

If you aren’t able to make and deliver the food yourself, check out Ipsa for frozen meal delivery. If you’re fancy, Culinistas is also a service that will send a private chef to cook healthy and delicious meals for the week (it’s available in select states/cities). A gift card to Doordash or local spots that deliver is welcome, too.

(Try to) help them get quality sleep.

This washable silk sleep mask is a favorite of mine (it’s plush, soft, washes well), but any good light-blocking mask will do. I often recommend these PJ’s for new moms; not only does the material feel luxurious and slinky, but if she’s breastfeeding, the wrap-style means it’s easy for nursing. I’m certain any luxurious PJ or robe will be appreciated.

Anything that helps the parents feel a little bit like themselves again is a big win.

I can’t quite speak for dads/men (would love ideas in the comments!), but for new moms, nourishing skincare could make a great gift. Check out this moisturizing nighttime mask, this easy in-the-shower moisturizer for people low on time, or this super hydrating face oil. Lastly, this might be a tough sell given her new time constraints, but getting gifted a blow dry at a salon, a mani-pedi, or a massage feels so luxurious for a new mom.

Other ideas they’ll love:

• An audiobook gift card from Libro.fm or Audible. I leaned hard into audiobooks during those early feeding-around-the-clock days.

• Comfortable loungewear. (I like LAKE or Vuori for gifting.)

• Just a whoooole lot of Jeni’s Ice Cream, delivered to their door.

• Sandra Boynton’s coffee collab. New parents run on caffeine and Sandra Boynton is a fun IYKYK type of reference. We’ve gifted this before to rave reviews. “This smells heavenly,” our friend texted us. (I can’t take credit for this idea, it’s from A Thing or Two!)

Gifts for friends who don’t want more stuff.

“I need ideas for dear friends who don’t want more physical items—but something more personalized than a restaurant or experience gift card.”

This feels like the theme of the year. If your friends are anti-clutter, here are a few thoughtful, consumable, or experience-based options:

• Baked goods, like cookies! Maybe an obvious choice, but sweet treats are always, always appreciated. These sparkling shortbread cookies look easy and festive.

• Books from a local bookstore. It’s technically a physical item but books don’t count as stuff. ;)

• If they have access to outdoor space, some starter seeds and a pretty pot could work as a mindful gift. Even better if you buy the same “kit” so you can share texts sharing your garden growing progress.

• Any consumable, like condiments or fancy chocolates or olive oil that they will actually use (check the food and food-adjacent gift guide for lots of ideas) is a win.

• A craft you’ve made. Years ago, a friend cross-stitched me a bookmark that says “Prose Before Bros” (lol); I love it and still think about her whenever I use it.

• If you’re in the same city, how about something the two of you can do together? Maybe tickets to a museum you’d both be into, tickets to a concert, a movie theater gift card, or even a gift card to a local fitness studio.

• Pick out an audiobook you can both listen to and start a mini book club for two! (I like Libro.fm; they support indie bookstores)

• A good notebook paired with a great pen. The brands Papier and Appointed make pretty, personalizable notebooks. These are bound to get used.

• If you truly want to avoid “stuff,” a donation in their name to a cause they care about is always a classy move.

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Gifts for a parent navigating treatment.

“Father traveling often for chemo and currently undergoing stem cell treatment - seeking either nice/useful distractions or items for comfort and ease!”

First, I’m so sorry your father is going through this. Focusing on comfort and small distractions feels like a thoughtful way to support him. Here are some ideas:

• Comfortable loungewear or pants for travel. (These are my favorite for men.)

• Compression socks for travel—or just good socks, in general. I’ve had a great experience with Bombas.

• If he is a Wordle or Crossword dad, the NYT merch store always has some solid options.

• For travel — noise-canceling headphones paired with an audiobook gift card.

Readers: What are your ideas?

If you’ve navigated a similar situation or have a thoughtful suggestion, please leave a comment.

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A post shared by @englishhomemag

• “The Official Christmas Movie Good-Bad Matrix” — I agree that Hot Frosty was Bad-Bad. (What To Cook When You Don't Feel Like Cooking)

• What are your favorite holiday traditions? (Teresa Wu) — Ours is picking out our tree the morning after Thanksgiving, holiday music playing in the car.

• 'Wicked' and The Cost Of Black Girl Magic (Mia Brabham Nolan) — “It’s embarrassing to say, but all those years of adoring Wicked and seeing it on stage, I never connected the dots about the implications of Elphaba’s skin color.”

• An interview with Sally’s Baking Addiction (Embedded) — “I started to get followers who weren’t people I knew; they were strangers coming to my website. I remember I had like 100 page views in one day and it was so exciting to me.” I always love reading about internet icon origin stories.

• A great list of holiday romance reads (Becca Freeman) — I’ve got The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter on my list!

• This is the library browser extension that I love and everyone needs. It will show you books available at your local library while you browse sites like Bookshop, Barnes & Noble, and more. GENIUS!!!

✨ DOWNTIME SUBSCRIBER GIVEAWAY ✨

Every week, I’ve been giving away something special as a thank-you to the incredible paid supporters of Downtime. Congratulations to Joan H., who won last week’s Hotel Lobby candle giveaway!

This week’s giveaway features two woodsy candles I love from The New Savant: Library in a Forest and Hellbound Heart. I’ll randomly select a winner from our pool of paid subscribers who’ve been part of the community for at least six months.

If you’d like to join our paid community and be eligible for giveaways and other perks, click here. Thank you, as always, for reading and supporting Downtime.

Thanks for reading! Hope you have a cozy weekend. x Alisha