Hellobee

Like I mentioned in my gift guide for moms and mothers-in-law, after 7+ years of marriage, I’m finally figuring out what and how to gift our parents. Today I’m sharing with you my gift giving tips and ideas for the dads and fathers-in-law in your life.

My basic rules of thumb for my dad & father-in-law:

• no clothes that require me to guess a numerical size (I can usually guess letter sizes in men’s attire);
• extra focus on practicality – in my experience, dads simply don’t use things they don’t have an immediate use for;
• again, whenever possible, give tangible gifts – I always try to avoid just giving a gift card, although with dads sometimes I have to settle for gift subscriptions.

Here are 10 gift ideas, at various price points, for the dads and fathers-in-law in your life (price listed subject to change and hopefully drop during this week’s big holiday sales):

1/ Dollar Shave Club gift set + membership (starting $55) – I’ve heard nothing but good things about Dollar Shave Club and am planning to gift a membership (with a starter set to wrap and put under the tree) to several Dads in my life this year.

2/ Luminoodle ($20) – I read about this nifty waterproof light rope on another blog and really couldn’t think of a guy in my life who wouldn’t like it, or at least get good use out of it (seriously read the reviews!)

3/ Aeropress Coffee and Espresso Maker ($30) – Just this morning, my mom suggested somebody buy my dad a real coffee maker (since, despite claiming he only likes iced tea, my dad drinks coffee anytime it’s hot and available). Bonus points if you include dad-friendly instructions on how to brew the perfect cup with the Aeropress. Double bonus points if you pair it with a coffee subscription to Craft Coffee, Blue Bottle, or Misto Box, for the perfect, thoughtful gift for any coffee-loving dad. If your dad prefers his coffee and his tea both ice cold, consider a cold brew coffee maker instead.

4/ KeepCup Reusable Coffee Mug ($26) – Speaking of coffee, these reusable mugs look ultra-cool and get rave reviews.

5/ A thoughtful & masculine photo gift ($25) – Photo gifts for dads are a little trickier than for moms (otherwise you risk looking like you really bought a gift for your mom but gave it to your dad instead … or maybe that’s just me). This understated yet tasteful wood block print would look great on any dad’s desk. Print out a handful of your favorite grandkids with their crazy grandpa photos, and you have the perfect photo gift customized just for him. Artifact Uprising has several other dad-friendly photo gift ideas including this wood calendar and this brass desk calendar.

6/ Box of chocolate & booze flavored candy ($28) – Who knew such a perfect edible gift existed for the dads in our lives? All the bonus points for pairing it with a bottle of your dad’s booze of choice.

7/ A carry-on suitcase that charges his beloved iPhone ($225) – Both my dad and my father-in-law live in different states and thus spend a lot of time in airports and traveling to visit the grandkids. This carry-on suitcase gets rave reviews and most importantly charges any USB device. Pro tip – if you don’t want to lug a suitcase to your holiday gathering this year, consider one of the pre-packaged gift sets from Away that come with a curated set of TSA-approved travel essentials and a gift card for dad to pick out his own ultra high-tech and fashionable suitcase.

8/ Echo dot ($50 but will be on sale for $30 on Black Friday) + really nice bluetooth speakers ($179) – I’m not going to lie, I’m still a little confused about Amazon’s various Alexa/ Echo options. But I have figured this out – pairing an Echo dot with really nice bluetooth speakers gives you a more versatile, portable version of the full-sized Echo with much better sound quality. And dads often appreciate good sound quality (or at least think they do). This combo is at the top of my list for a really nice gift for dad.

9/ A Patagonia better sweater vest ($100) – What dad doesn’t love a sweater vest? Seriously though these vests get rave reviews and come from an ethical, easy-to-love company.

10/ NorthFace eTip gloves ($45) – Any dad who lives anywhere cold (or routinely visits his grandchildren anywhere cold) needs these gloves. They allow him to snap blurry photos of his grandsons pummeling each other with snow balls without even taking his gloves off. What could be better?

Bonus ideas for long distance dads and fathers-in-law – If your dad or father-in-law lives far away and you won’t be getting together for the holidays, gift subscriptions are a great idea. My favorites for dads include: Audible (I recommended this for moms too); Cairn outdoor gear boxes; and Hot Sauce of the Month.