Erin and Sara Foster’s favorite gifts of 2024

At some point, we all run out of gift ideas for our loved ones. Nothing may feel sentimental, unique or exciting enough to buy them for the holidays, leaving you roaming stores or scrolling websites for hours. If you need some inspiration, I talked to Sara and Erin Foster, the founders of Favorite Daughter and executive producers of Netflix’s “Nobody Wants This” series, about their go-to holiday gift ideas. (They’re currently working on season two.)

Given the success of the show, they recently partnered with PayPal to curate an actually useful gift guide for the holidays — and you won’t find a candle anywhere near it. “We want to help people find things they might not naturally think of, and give them ideas they might not have on their own,” says Sara Foster. “Not that there’s anything wrong with candles, but we all know where to find them.”

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Aura Carver Digital Picture Frame

“This is something everyone should have,” says Sara Foster. “It’s such a simple concept, but when you think about it, it really is so innovative, cool and thoughtful.” Your giftee can pair the Wi-Fi-enabled digital picture frame pairs with the brand’s app and upload an unlimited number of photos and videos to it. They can also invite others to add content to their library. “My husband is always uploading like 60 new pictures of our daughter to his grandma’s frame because she watches it all day,” says Erin Foster. “She’s only met her great granddaughter once, so now she gets to look at all these photos of her and it makes her life better.” The frame’s 10.1-inch screen has a vibrant HD display and built-in speakers and automatically adjusts screen brightness and photo cropping. Plus, it turns off at night.

Pizza Girl Pizza Grill

“I feel like everybody wants a pizza oven, but they’re usually huge and you need outdoor space,” says Erin Foster. “Pizza Girl makes a really cute one that’s small, compact and easy to use. We use it to do pizza nights with the kids or friends, and it’s a fun way to change up inviting people over for dinner since everyone can make their own pie.” Pizza Girl’s 12-inch electric pizza oven is about the size of an air fryer, says Erin Foster. It cooks pies in about six minutes, comes with a removable pizza stone and has knobs your giftee can use to adjust its heat settings.

Byredo Les Mains Blanche & Gypsy Water Hand Cream Set

Byredo is one of the Fosters’ favorite body care and fragrance brands that sells great practical gifts. “This is such elevated stuff, and when someone gifts you this kind of thing, it’s actually useful,” says Erin Foster. “You immediately think to yourself, ‘This is going in my guest bathroom. I’ve been meaning to get something nice that looks pretty and smells nice when people come over, and I just haven’t gotten around to doing it.’”

This set comes with two of the brand’s hand creams, which are made with shea butter. They have a rich texture and floral scents, and come in aluminum tubes with a detachable tube roller to help your giftee squeeze out every last drop. Everything is packed inside a decorative box, making it easy to throw in a bag with some tissue paper.

The Sette Blue Gingham Tablecloth

“One of the things that’s kind of become a tradition in our family is combining holidays,” says Erin Foster. She converted to Judaism when she married her husband, so she now celebrates Hanukkah, but grew up celebrating Christmas. “We decorate the Christmas tree, make latkes and light the menorah.”

When she’s hosting family gatherings, Erin Foster sets the table with linens from The Sette, which is one of her favorite small businesses. “I found them during Covid and I started buying things from them for tablescapes because they have really special pieces.” She especially loves the brand’s linen Blue Gingham Tablecloth, which she uses during Hanukkah. “It’s not directly Hanukkah, but it’s got blue and white, so it’s nodding to it in an elevated way,” she says. The machine-washable tablecloth comes in small, medium and large sizes.

The Bouqs Co. 3 Month Subscription

“People want flowers in their home because it makes them feel better and livens up their space, but sometimes, they don’t have time to go get them,” says Sara Foster. “So if someone gave me a floral subscription like this one as a gift, I’d think it’s the best gift ever. It feels very thoughtful.” You can choose to send your giftee three months of roses, flowers from the brand’s farmer’s market collection or blooms from its classic collection. The bouquets come in original, deluxe and grand sizes, and you can pick what date your giftee receives each one.

I’m a reporter at NBC Select whose written gift guides since 2020, including the best gifts for pets, coffee lovers and bakers. To write this article, I spoke to Sara and Erin Foster via Zoom about their favorite gifts for the 2024 holiday season.

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