if on a winter's afternoon a traveler

looking for a present, came across this post

Nov 19, 2023

A note about a few upcoming events:

This afternoon at 2 p.m. US Eastern (this evening at 7 Irish time) I will give the first of two lectures as the Annulet Inaugural Linkages Lecturer, a talk entitled “When you get someplace new, learn to read the landscape like an alphabet”. This talk will be broadcast online, for free. To register, please click here.

On November 21, I will read and talk with Majed Mujed and Hua Xi as part of the Trinity College Literature & Resistance Series, in the Trinity Long Room Hub. You can book a place here (in-person only).

On December 10 at 2 p.m. US Eastern I will give the second of the Linkages Lectures. I will give a talk entitled “On the line”. This talk will be broadcast online, for free. To register, please click here.

Once these are done, I am never doing anything in public again. For at least a month. But I’m sure by the start of the new year I will be full of vim again. If you’d like to have me to read or speak at your university, school, class or organization in 2024, please drop me a line.

This week, something a little different to what I usually do here, at least in some ways.

The world is hard. It is also full of beauty. Looking for beauty doesn’t mean ignoring the hardness and pain of the world; we can hold the facts of devastation together with the facts of late roses in the autumnal dark. Beauty—the richness of ordinary life—is a reminder of why we go on, and what we go on for. Maybe it is even simply why we can go on, and how. Ordinary beauty is a signal of what we want for one another. It’s a sign of care, pleasure, warmth, safety, complexity.

A long time ago, I ran a small press called MIEL that made books as well as other things. (The name of the press means HONEY. I chose it for its sweetness and its made-by-bees-ness and its cultural properties and its color.) One of the things I did as part of bring the work of the press to readers was to write a blog about interesting, enchanting, desirable, unusual, and beautiful things that other small presses, artists, and craftspeople made. I loved to scour the much earlier internet for things that would surprise and delight both giver and receiver. I tried to look for things that were not mass-produced and that were made with care, the kinds of things that might mean giving just one present, but a very well-made one.

This month as I’ve written about books and reading, I thought about MIEL and those blogposts, and decided that in place of this week’s essay I would look for and write about pleasing things. Maybe you are looking for or thinking about presents at this time of year; maybe not. Either way, I hope there is some reminder of how rich and beautiful the world of made things is.

Most things I’ve collected here are either made by the person who sells them, or sold by someone who runs a small business. In the case of books, I’ve linked to secondhand sites or independent bookshops if possible. The makers and sellers are spread across the world, so if buying from shops and makers in your city or neighborhood matters, consider these categories of interest or ideas. I’ve indicated a couple of places where shipping may require special attention. If I can vouch directly for the object (because I’ve bought it or been given it), I’ll say so. No one has paid me or offered me anything to write about any of this. Whether or not you celebrate Christmas or any other present-oriented winter holiday, I hope you’ll enjoy my recommendations of beautiful, practical, and pleasant things.

Finally, if you are in a position to do so: there are about 191,000 children in New York City who do not have a place to live. Some of them celebrate Christmas. The organization The Sled makes it possible for us, strangers, to buy one of those children a present they’ve asked for. You can do that here. (When I posted this elsewhere, someone replied that they were going to share this with their PTA. If you have that kind of connection, too, please share onward.)

For artists and writers

There is no recent book I can recommend more highly than Christina Sharpe’s Ordinary Notes (link to purchase in the EU; in the UK). It is complex, intricate, exacting—and enacts, across its several hundred pages of text and image, a vital definition of beauty as “method”. This book thinks about seeing, about how to live together, about memory and memorials, about artmaking. It’s also about what Saidiya Hartman calls the “afterlife of slavery”, and for Sharpe that’s not unrelated to the practice of beauty as a method, or to the documentation of and sharp attention to all of ordinary life. If you have a writer, thinker, or artist in your life who hasn’t read this book, give it to them.

If you are in the UK (shipping elsewhere may be prohibitive), the Royal Academy shop often has older exhibition posters for sale, some very cheaply. Be sure to check the dimensions; some are deceptively small, some deceptively large. (Last year I ordered two posters for my office where I work and was surprised when they came—they are the really big ones that would be posted outside to advertise an event. They were carefully packaged for shipping and the paper is a nice heavy weight.)

Jamie Kinroy’s prints and zines are strange, spooky, and often very funny. He’s based in the UK. For young and old, but maybe an especially nice present for a teenager who likes to draw weird things. I know Jamie and his work, and have given several of his zines as presents.

Wah-Ming Chang is making a moving, poignant series of books and booklike objects in a series she’s calling Hand, Held as she works on a biography of her father, an artist. She sells them via contact on Instagram, and you can find them here.

Printmaker and photographer Andrew Schroeder has been collecting images of ordinary life for as long as I’ve known him. Working as a photo tech for colleges means he comes across the paraphernalia of past ways of making images, and he’s recently begun collecting those, too, making photographs of slides, negative carriers, and other ephemera. I love how in his photos what might be overlooked or discarded comes to the center of my vision.

For people with children and their children

Arra Lynn Ross’s slender book Day of the Child (UK) is a long poem in short pieces. It deftly captures the day-to-dayness of living with others and what Roland Barthes called “idiorhythmy,” a state in which people, living together, make space for multiple tempos and experiences of time. It’s a great example of a work made by many small returns to the page, and as such might be meaningful to anyone struggling to balance the demands of a domestic life with those of an artistic life. (Full disclosure: I provided a blurb for this book—and have read it several times, given it to others, and talked about it elsewhere. It’s good!)

Mitsumasa Anno’s books—of alphabets, numbers, animals, and imaginary and real places—are beautiful to look at for children and adults alike. A selection of used copies is generally available on eBay. I treasure the copies I have from my childhood.

Uguisu has a collection of paper balloons that are charming and will delight anyone under the age of 100. You may also be able to find these in a shop near you, especially a Japanese department store, a Japantown, or an art supply store. (On a related note though in a different shop altogether: Here is some exceptionally cute washi tape with designs of Japanese folk toys on it.)

I have ordered things from Uguisu in the past and they always arrived safely and well-packed, often in beautiful envelopes!

Speaking of toys, Nadia Cardoso’s risograph print of the Fisher-Price telephone is perfect. She also makes very adorable ceramics, most of which sell out immediately. She’s based in Dublin and often exhibits at Dublin Comic Arts Fair, which is where I encountered her well-made and carefully packaged work.

Finally, the easiest presents are sometimes the ones that can go in an envelope and fly across the sea. I remember the sheer pleasure of a sheet of stickers from childhood (and, ahem, more recently). Meowashi on Etsy sells extremely cute stickers you may have trouble making decisions about. Consider yourself warned.

For color-lovers

There are several shops on Etsy—most that I can find seem to be based in Ukraine—that sell vintage glass ornaments. The above image is from Vintage Glass Decors. Most ornaments are priced between €5 and €15—not cheap, but if you’re looking for something unusual, or just want to look at the pretty shapes and colors, worth a browse.

Simply for the charm of them, spun-cotton mushrooms. The Etsy shop Caramelos usually has several colors in stock. I have ordered from Caramelos in the past and always had good experiences.

Derwent Inktense blocks give saturated color and can be used to draw or used wet as paint. They are really pleasing to work with. In Ireland here; in the UK here; in the US here, or ask at your local art store. They can be purchased individually or as sets in a tin. Anyone who loves color will enjoy these.

For people who sew

Miss Matatabi has a collection of soft cottons with subtle plaids, good for garment sewing. (I haven’t ordered any of these but I’ve ordered from Miss Matatabi many times over the years and have always found the shop to have good service.)

The block-printed fabrics at Cotton Weavers are really nice. They are lightweight, have a (to me) pleasant smell from the production process when they first arrive, and I have had excellent experiences with this shop’s shipping.

In Ireland, The Fabric Counter has a nice range of 100% linen fabric. It’s good quality—may seem a little shiny when it arrives, but the sizing washes out and the hand is very soft and supple after that. Great for garment sewing. I can’t vouch for shipping as I’ve only purchased in the shop. They do ship outside of Ireland.

The Raw Linen is one of many Lithuanian linen sellers on Etsy. They sell finished objects, but what I’ve bought from them in the past are bundles of scrap fabrics. You can specify colors and they are really good about making sure you get what you ask for. The fabrics are very high quality, 100% linen. Great for someone who makes or would like to make quilts or toys or small objects or patchwork of any kind.

If you have someone in your life who likes to sew, Gütermann makes 100% cotton threads that are a treat to work with. Here is a place in the UK that sells ‘30’ (a slightly heavier thread, good for hand-sewing especially). Here is a place in Ireland selling a lighter weight 100% cotton thread. Gütermann threads are widely available in the US and elsewhere; ask your local fabric shop.

For the pleasure of everyday life

How To Wrap Five Eggs: Traditional Japanese Packaging by Hideyuki Oka and Forms of Paper by Hiroshi Ogawa are simply beautiful objects to have around. They will give you new ways of looking at your everyday surroundings and of thinking about the composition of the world.

Not cheap at all, but Uguisu has some unusual candles in very appealing colors and shapes, as well as cast-iron candle holders.

I have ordered beeswax candles from this company in the US and they were good quality. Beeswax candles are such a nice present; if you have a local farmer’s market or similar shop, there is a good chance someone there is selling them. Ditto to un- or lightly scented soap. I am sure I’m not the only person here whose favorite ‘department store’ as a child was Walgreens? Soap, tealights, chocolate, and stationery still make good presents.

We gave a newlywed couple a pair of brooms made by Redmond Philbert. They loved them. We bought them in this shop when we lived in Maine. There may be a traditional broom-maker near you, or maybe you’re near one of these upcoming markets.

I only recently came across Another Place Press, but their calendar looks like it would be a delight every month.

For music-lovers

The album Two Small Songs (2020; digital only): gentle lyrics, thoughtful playing. “Night/Words” is one of my favorites of Matthew Houston’s songs. Full disclosure: he’s my partner. And he’s also a really good musician.

A lot more raucous is So Said So’s 2022 release Evil Wants You (digital, on cassette, and CD). Made by a trio comprising Matthew Houston, Cory McWilliams, and Dominic Grosso, this album is a call to pay attention to and care for the world around us, the people in it, and the art we make. My favorite track is “When My Sister Called Me”.

Jake Xerxes Fussell’s album Good and Green Again (2022, on vinyl and CD) is beautifully picked US folk: melodic and slightly melancholy, it does sound green to me.

Ichiko Aoba’s atmospheric and delicate music is sure to delight. She has many albums, so have a listen on Bandcamp. Some are solo guitar, some are with electronics, some are with other players. Some releases are digital-only; others have physical media.

Everything Meitei makes, I love. Great music for train journeys, for evening listening, for writing (if you write with music/sound). Complex and layered and endlessly interesting. Some releases are digital-only; others have physical media.

For pretty much anyone

And last but not least, one of the best purchases of my year was Gentle Laundry, a zine from Late Night Copies Press. (Note: they only ship once a week, or sometimes once a fortnight, and they use media mail. So order from them early if you have a deadline!) Gentle Laundry is informative, interesting, well made, and took me back to the pleasure of reading early issues of Martha Stewart Living. The press (and the artist who made this zine) makes/does a lot of stuff I like, and this zine is a hands-down winner. For anyone in your life, including yourself, who would be curious about chemistry, home economics, what to do with smelly clothes, and how to use (and make) non-petroleum-based washing detergents. (And what the differences are between a soap and a detergent, too!!) Can you tell I’m very enthusiastic about this? For $10+shipping, your clothes-washing life will change.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this catalog of pleasures. I’m interested to know if there is something made by a small press, an artist, or a craftsperson that you’ve loved or would recommend.

And finally—
Let all beings be free, safe, beloved, and well.
Stop the bombs. Swords into ploughshares. Free Palestine.

See you in a week.