Gift Guide 2015: For the Architect

For the hard-to-please architect in your life, our gift picks.

Above: Lego for the architect–Home is a 3-D puzzle comprising 17 pieces. Once you dismantle the house, you can rebuild the shapes into furniture, buildings, or even create a town; €59 ($64) from Cingpoints.

Above: Seattle-based designers Fruit Super have turned the symmetrical plus sign and X into attractive brass Lift Coasters. And when not on coaster duty, they can act as paperweights in the architect’s office; $68 for a set of four from Meta44.

Above: I discovered the Palomino Blackwing 602 Pencils this summer (I’m following in the footsteps of John Steinbeck, Quincy Jones, and Stephen Sondheim). When Eberhard Faber discontinued the pencils in 1998, cult fans were seeking the pencils out on eBay for $40 each. Thankfully, Palomino was convinced to reissue them in 2010 and a box of 12 can be purchased today for $21.95. A pencil of this caliber requires its own Blackwing Long Point Sharpener with instructions for use as well (architects love that type of thing); $7.50.

Above: You might already be familiar with the popular Ito Bindery drawing pads that come in kraft and white papers. With the stark contrast of the coal-black mount against the pure white paper, the Special Edition Ito Bindery Drawing Pads make perfect companions to the Blackwing 602 pencils; prices start at $27 at Ode to Things.

Above: Cutlery and chairs are where good design come together for an architect (it’s all about the balance between aesthetics and function). A limited-edition hand-pulled screen print of renowned British cutlery designer David Mellor’s Minimal Cutlery would be welcome inspiration on any architect’s wall. For more on David Mellor flatware, see our interview with his son Corin Mellor who was–you guessed it–an architect before he took over the family business in 2009; £55 ($83) from Such & Such.

For more ideas, see all our Gift Guides 2015.

Christine is also the writer of the new lifestyle and wellness blog My Contents Have Shifted–A Fabster’s Musings on Being 50 and Beyond.