Gifts for people who love vintage

The hard part of buying for someone who loves vintage is that they already have opinions and probably already own the obvious thing. A sealed jar sidesteps it: you are giving them the sorting, not a specific piece, and the jar says on the outside what is inside it, so the gift explains itself without you having to.

By budget

Under €30: Coastal Drift at €24 (18 pieces) or The Midnight Reader at €28. Around €35: Gold-Tone Glamour at €29 or Vintage Silver — Classic at €34, which is the one most people mean when they say 'a jewellery jar'. Over €50 the shipping is free, which puts The Collector's Jar at €48 in an awkward spot and Vintage Silver — Deluxe at €69 in a good one. Gemstone Grand at €149 is a serious present.

By what they are actually like

Somebody who wears jewellery: the silver lines. Somebody who collects, restyles or makes: the volume jars, where the per-piece price is the point. Somebody who likes objects more than jewellery: the themed mixes — Desk Ritual is stationery, Midnight Reader is a second-hand novel and what surrounds reading one, Coastal Drift is sea glass and brass.

What to tell them

That it is sealed and neither of you knows what is in it, that the number on the jar is exactly how many pieces are inside, and that opening it is the entire product. The jar does the rest of the work — it is a better object to hand over than a box.

Practicalities

Dispatch is within two working days, delivery 2–3 working days in Spain and 4–8 across the rest of Europe, so order with a week of margin. Shipping is €4.95 flat and free over €50. Unopened jars can be returned within 14 days, which makes it a safe gift to get wrong — but once it is opened, that is that.