It’s that time of year. Yes, it’s time for you to start your holiday shopping. What’s that, you say? It’s way too soon? Actually, no. It’s about to be too late. That is, if you want to give your loved ones something truly special, bespoke, unusual or hand-made. True luxury takes time. And that means you had better get moving. Now. But don’t stress – we’ve got you covered. Our holiday luxury gift-giving series will showcase truly special products and experiences that will delight your beloved. We’re showcasing incredible items and experiences that you can order now. That way, when the holiday season actually arrives, you can go to parties, drink eggnog, look cute and be generally just totally chill. Sounds like a dream? If you want to kick it like that this year, read on.
Our first suggestion for an incredible gift this year comes courtesy of our dear friends, the luxury experts at Cool Hunting. Launched in 2003, Cool Hunting creates original content to inspire the creative and the curious. Co-Founders and Co-CEOs Josh Rubin and Evan Orensten are among our Luminaries here at Dandelion Chandelier. They’re among the most inventive and tasteful people we know. They have a killer network of fellow taste-makers. They’ve collaboratively designed dozens of products over the years, and their annual holiday gift guides have become an invaluable tool for those who seek truly special items.
Oh, and they’ve also conceived of one of the best gifting ideas we’ve ever seen, full stop: The Cool Hunting Omakase Collection.
Omakase is a Japanese word that means “expert’s choice.” It usually refers to a meal at a Japanese restaurant, where guests don’t choose their food; the chef sends out what he or she feels is the best possible selection. You put yourself in the hands of the expert, and if you’ve chosen the right person, you’re in for a series of delightful surprises.
Cool Hunting has cleverly adapted the concept in the gift-giving arena. Their Omakase package is a set of limited-edition gifts commissioned by them and curated for each gift-giver and recipient. What’s really special is that the products are completely new, never-before-seen, pre-release and collaboratively designed gifts. The team uses their inside access to cutting edge products, up-and-coming designers and innovative brands to find things that mere mortals like us would never know about. Then they package them beautifully, and deliver them in time for a holiday surprise. No one except the curators knows exactly what’s coming. All you know is that it’s going to be good.
Cool, right?
There are three price tiers from which to choose: $1,000, $10,000, and $100,000. At the upper levels, the Omakase boxes have even more of a personal touch from the Cool Hunting team, and could include custom, money-can’t-buy experiences as well as products. Corporate gifting is an option, too. Part of the fun is that not everyone’s box is the same.
What’s in the boxes, you say? We can’t ruin the surprise. But we can share a little about what the 2016 collection was like. It featured 40 products in limited editions (ranging from one to one hundred). Each gift recipient received 11-15 items, hand selected based on their interests. There were items from each of the core categories that Cool Hunting covers editorially all year long: design, travel, art, technology, food and style.
Highlights in 2016 included hand-picked Katazome-covered sneakers made in partnership with Cole Haan; pre-release Master & Dynamic speakers, Askinosie “Dirty White and Vintage Cocoa” chocolate bars from a family-owned company in Missouri; a special-edition Tumi backpack; a newly-reengineered Herman Miller Aeron chair (it didn’t hit the retail market until months later); a Goby high-performance electric toothbrush; a tote from cool apparel brand 3×1, made of selvedge denim woven in New York on antique looms from Japan, the US and Italy; Warby Parker + Tom Fruin Drinking Glasses (plus a gift certificate for a pair of Warby Parker eyeglasses); and a Uniform Wares C40 Wristwatch.
If someone on your list (or you, for that matter – self-gifting is A Thing, and it is totally allowed) loves to see the new, the next, the limited-edition, the custom-made, this is an excellent way to tap into a stream of new artisanal products and experiences that no one else has seen.
Here’s where prior planning is your friend: Omakase packages are sold on the Cool Hunting website during the summer, so that there’s ample time for curation and delivery before the holidays. You can order Omakase as a gift to yourself; a gift for one lucky recipient; or to use as the starting point for your holiday gifting, with each item destined for someone on your list.
Once you purchase a package, Cool Hunting follows up with a brief questionnaire to determine which of the products and experiences will be right for you or your gift recipient. At the higher tiers, there’s even more research to plan the right gifts. You receive the box in November, with ample time to distribute various items, or to deliver the entire lot to one person.
Simple, no? We love this idea, and having seen the packaging, the items from last year and having been granted a sneak peek at what’s coming for 2017, you can definitely count us in. There’s sure to be a delightful surprise in store. And you might be surprised at how much fun the holidays can be when the shopping is done long before the leaves begin to fall. Just make sure our box includes chocolate. Lots of chocolate. Doumo arigatou gozaimasu. Happy Holidays!
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