37 Gifts You Can Send To Friends Celebrating Birthdays On Lockdown
The Zoom birthday chat is about to get lit.
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1. A dozen Magnolia Bakery cupcakes with frosting so buttery and decadent they'll be gone within the hour, whether your friend is socially-distancing with family or all on their own.
Each birthday dozen comes with six vanilla and chocolate cupcakes with vanilla icing, complete with assorted birthday decorations and sprinkles 🧁.
Get a dozen from Goldbelly for $65.
(I feel it is my duty as a dessert consumer to inform you that you can also buy a giant vat of Magnolia Bakery's famous banana pudding for $54, if that's more your friend's speed.)
2. A truly iconic tortilla blanket so the Chipotle fan in your life can achieve the greatest aspiration of them all: becoming a human burrito.
Promising review: "I never write reviews but thought I should after buying this funny tortilla blanket! Very surprised. It's a lightweight blanket that's still very fluffy and super cozy. I think it's perfect. Washed it and still super soft. No pilling but I washed and dried it alone. It's holding up well, both in feel and in shape. The trim is sewed on well, so no problem there either. This is the BEST purchase I have ever made. I’m recommending this to everyone I know!" —Amazon Customer
Get it from Amazon for $36.99 (available in seven styles, including waffles and pizza).
3. A fast-growing birth month flower grow kit that will thrive indoors just like the rest of us finally getting through our Netflix queues — plus, once it gets big enough to plant outside, your friend can use the glass grower as a beautiful vase.
Promising review: "Daughter-in-law is a tad difficult to buy for--she's very undemanding and pleased with anything. I wanted to get her something that showed I was thinking about her specifically, and this flower grow kit was perfect for that. It was personal in that it was tailored to her birth month, and also worked well because her home is filled with plants. When I saw her recently, she was pleased that the flowers had already started to sprout, and I could tell she really enjoyed the gift." —Virginia
Get it from UncommonGoods for $34.
4. A five-year One Line A Day journal so your friend who keeps starting journals and then abandoning them can finally find something that sticks — one line a day is *super* low commitment (and imagine how satisfied they'll be looking back every year!).
The book comes with 365 pages, each of which has lines for five days, so they'll write on the same page each year when the date comes around again. It's a really cool way to reflect on their ~journey~ — kind of like those "this time last year!" things your phone or Facebook does, except they're the ones in control of what gets written and saved.
Get it from Amazon for $16.44 or from Bookshop (to support local bookstores) for $15.59.
5. A birthday cake in a mug complete with its own candle, so your friend can light it and boomie it for the perfect #StayHome birthday 'gram, and have the ideal mug for all future microwaveable cake needs.
Promising review: "THANK YOU UncommonGoods for getting these items out so quickly to my local friends isolated at home due to self-quarantine on their birthdays this month! My friends loved them & the Birthday Cake Mugs really cheered them up. Now I am ordering them for my friends across the country who I can never be with to celebrate on their birthdays. What a great gift!" —UncommonGoods Customer
Get it from UncommonGoods for $20.
6. A personalized Disney cup because birthdays are great, but glitter-filled hydrated birthdays are better. (Although I personally would not judge any birthday-haver for using this for bathtub wine.)
Promising review: "Such good quality. Better than expected and she put the most adorable little Micky mouse confetti and matching tissue paper. Presentation with packaging was unexpected and so cute. I love it so much. Bought for a friend and I already know she's gonna love it." —Shelby
Get it from Lillybelle On Main from Etsy for $19+ (available in Mickey and Minnie and two different font styles).
7. A tiny milk frother to make everything they drink taste like it was lovingly handcrafted by a barista.
A true godsend for anyone who recently got into that whipped coffee trend. Plus, it's teensy for storing and cleans with a quick stream of hot running water! We love a convenient appliance!!
Promising review: "I’m a barista at Starbucks so obviously I know how I like my coffee. For a while I was using an immersion blender to froth my milk for my morning cup of coffee but it just wasn’t doing what I wanted it to do. I finally bought this frother and I’m so so happy with it!! It doesn’t need to be plugged in so it takes up way less space. It is a lot quieter than the blender, and I can use any size cup I want because the frother is so small. Not only can I heat up my milk for a hot coffee, but I can also use it just the same with cold milk for my iced coffee!! Highly recommend this product!!" —Heather Michael
Get it from Amazon for $19.95 (available in 10 colors).
8. A Friends photo frame mug that lets you put a pic of the two of you in it — a way of saying 🎶I'll be there for you 🎵even when you gotta say it from afar.
A perfect gift for when your friend has to "PIVOT!!!" their b-day plans.
Get it from Firebox for $19.
9. Plus a birthday celebration tea — one full of rainbow sprinkles, and the other full of POPPING CANDY. The ideal quaran-tea to sip on your day of birth.
10. A personal library kit so they can streamline their massive book collection (*and* rest assured their buds will give them back that loaned copy of Bossypants).
Promising review: "This little set is so cute! You can attach a library-type pocket to your books and then sign them out and stamp a due date on the included 'library' sign-out card if friends borrow your books! Really cute idea, the set is just like the library pockets and due date like you used when you borrowed books from a library, back before e-readers, Kindles or tablets came along." —Nurse Nell
Get it from Amazon for $16.51.
11. A birthday card full of confetti, because nothing says "love" quite like glitter-bombing your unsuspecting friends.
12. A leak-proof sphere ice mold to make everything they drink feel so top shelf and fancy they may just spend the rest of quarantine writing a self-insert James Bond fan fiction.
Promising review: "These spherical ice cube makers are a lot of fun. Given that they're pretty cheap, I really wish I had bought them earlier! I was able to get significantly clearer spheres of ice when I boiled tap water before freezing (I poured it into the mold while it was still hot)." —dyanecek
Get a set of two from Amazon for $9.99 (available in eight shapes).
13. A "because social distancing" wine glass they can use to toast to everyone in the Zoom birthday chat after y'all sing "Happy Birthday" in nine different (but no less enthusiastic!!) keys.
Get it from Red Lines Designs on Etsy for $7.99+ (available in 35 colors, including *glitter* options!).
14. A "White Paw" dog toy you're legally obligated to gift to anyone who has uttered the words "No Laws When You're Drinking Claws" regardless of whether or not they have a dog.
Promising review: "My dog is a soft-toy destroyer. She usually tears them apart in five minutes, stuffing everywhere. But for some reason she has not gotten these apart yet! The fabric seems a little more durable but I think it also helps that there are no hanging pieces like a tail/ears, etc. She loves to toss them around. Squeaker isn't in an area she bites all the time so it's not overly annoying. Was super cute to post a picture of her with it and me with my own White Claw :) They were a little pricey but I had to get them!" —Stacy Laake
Get a set of two from Amazon for $22.95.
15. A super soft Baby Yoda T-shirt that is, quite truly, a big BFH (Birthday From Home) mood.
16. A personalized long-distance BFF keychain to remind them you're not just thinking of them on their special day, but every day y'all are apart ❤️.
These keychains are super customizable — you can get messages like the one above, or get creative with inside jokes or cheeky phrases like "I hope your day is as nice as your butt."
Promising review: "I absolutely loved this! It came out very neat and my boyfriend cried when I gave it to him. Thank you so much for making this lovely personal gift!!" —vctigie
Get it from Bees Hand Stamped Gifts on Etsy for $14.76+.
17. A Baked By Melissa birthday cupcake pack perfect for anyone whose favorite cake flavor is "all of them."
Each 25-pack of cupcakes comes with your choice of an assortment of Baked By Melissa's vast flavors of cupcakes (may I aggressively recommend PB&J, chocolate chip pancake, and cookie dough, which will be the names of my three firstborn children).
Get it from Baked By Melissa for $42.
18. A zodiac sign ring dish to add a little bit of ~twinkle~ from their very own star sign to their nightstand.
Promising review: "I love this. It was exactly what I needed. I wanted something cute to catch any bobby pins lying around my bathroom, and this was a perfect match! I also am thinking about giving these to my friends as their Christmas gifts!" —Rachel G
Get it from Amazon for $11.98 (available in all 12 zodiac signs).
19. A Tom Nook plush for the friend who is celebrating their birthday on a virtual island and can't be bothered to cut any birthday cake until they've assembled enough bells to pay rent.
*sighs* Time to go catch myself a few red snappers...
Get it from Box Lunch for $16.90.
20. A rose gold rechargeable electric lighter your candle-loving friend can use to replace all their old gas ones. This one is not only chic as heck, but completely flameless, and made with a long stem so they can use it to light gas burners and larger candles.
This also comes in other pretty colors, but I am especially partial to this one because I bought it for my parents (their kitchen is entirely pink and one of my favorite places on Earth), and this was SO EASY to use — not to mention super safe! I'm a big weenie about fire (lol, self-preservation) so I've always stuck to extended arm gas lighters, but this is much better for the environment (plus cuter), so I feel a lot better about using it.
Promising review: "Wow. This thing is amazing. Small and so easy to use. My husband kept saying it won’t actually light anything and was blown away when it did. We lit candles and paper to use as tinder with absolutely no effort. No fuel needed. Just a quick recharging. And no waste in throwing away those huge and never easy to use butane sticks. Love love it. Easy buying process so I would recommend everyone buy one." —Diane Bold
Get it from Amazon for $15.99 (available in five colors).
21. A little astrology-based book on self-care tailored to their sign, so they can unwind however the stars intended (*crosses fingers that "watch Netflix in the bath tub" is included*).
Each book starts out with an explanation of what self-care is, what the different types of it are (and aren't!), and how it relates to astrology before diving in deep on all the ways each sign can take care of themselves and the people around them ✨.
Get all 12 astrological signs from Barnes & Noble for $12.99 each.
22. A confetti glitter birthday soap with a UNICORN in it 🦄that you can fully customize, from the type of scent to how strong the scent is to whether or not you want glitter in it (my answer to that is either "yes" or "HECK YES").
Promising review: "These are absolutely adorable!! I let her pick out my scents and she did great! They're both beautiful and smell yummy! Recommend!" —Carrie
Get it from Cindy's Bath Creations on Etsy for $7.99+ each (available in 39 scents).
23. A gorgeous pastel paint-by-number with an end result so beautiful they'll want to frame it in the front hall 🌸.
Each set comes with a detailed numbered outline, three brushes, and a set of numbered acrylic paints with extra to spare.
Promising review: "I couldn't be happier with this set. I haven't done paint by numbers since I was a kid and it's so much fun. It's so relaxing and the set comes with everything you need." —RR Mom
Get it from Amazon for $16.59.
24. A sophisticated whiskey tumbler with a map of their favorite city etched on it.
Well Told is a New Hampshire-based Etsy shop established in 2009 that specializes in personalized drinkware and gifts.
Promising review: "Bought as a Mother’s Day gift for my mom, and she loved it! Map is easy to see and the glass is very well-made and designed." —Timmy
Get it from Well Told on Etsy for $16 (available in 248 cites).
Psst — these also come in wine glasses and pints.
25. A mesmerizing handblown glass birthstone wine stopper, so when they pop a bottle open on the Zoom party, they can seal the leftover Pinot in style.
26. An assortment of Milk Bar cookies from the iconic New York-based bakery, aka the ultimate birthday bragging right — ordinarily you have to stand in line for a bajillion years for one of these!
This set comes complete with *takes a deep breath* one Compost Cookie, one Cornflake-Marshmallow-Chocolate-Chip Cookie, one Corn Cookie, one Blueberry & Cream Cookie, one Chocolate-Chocolate Cookie, and one Confetti Cookie. I would fight you for any one of them.
Get a set of six cookies from Milk Bar for $20.
27. A customizable Glossier Balm Dotcom trio gift set full of ultra-hydrating, gorgeously subtle colors you can hand-pick for your friend — including a sparkly *birthday* balm.
Promising review: "Buy this! Buy them all! I got the original to begin with and ended up buying the trio set days later because of how amazing it is. Now I have fourt tubes in different scents and I regret nothing. Even my husband is in love with the original and the mint! The birthday is super subtly shimmery and the rose is a barely there tint (honestly BARELY THERE). A little does go a long way so don't worry about the price tag. You will be using these tubes for a while and loving every second of it." —Devon
Get it from Glossier for $30 (originally $36; available in eight shades).
28. A ticket stub collecting notebook so they have somewhere to store their favorite memories from concerts, movies, or theater shows, plus a little note section so they'll always have context for why it was so special.
Promising review: "This ticket album was just what I needed for all of my concert tickets and memorabilia. There was plenty of room for multiple ticket stubs/guitar picks/other memorabilia in each slot on the page. The ticket album arrived quickly and in good condition. I am very pleased with my purchase and would definitely recommend." —Amanda
Get it from Amazon for $10.45+ (available in spiral-bound or hardcover).
29. A sloth tea infuser, since they'll be spending their birthday just ~hanging around~ the house anyway.
This heat-resistant, slow brew infuser also is designed to seal tightly so loose tea leaves don't escape (*Trelawney voice* "My dear ... you have the GRIM!!").
Get it from Aerie for $9.95.
30. A cocktail subscription box so they can craft themselves a birthday drink so perfectly-tailored to their tastebuds that it'll rival anything they could have gotten out at a bar.
Each kit comes with ingredients to make four servings of a craft cocktail, with a different theme and surprise ingredients every month. (Psst — April's box includes a mashup that bourbon + apricot fans will love!) You can opt to get one box as a gift, or gift them with several boxes as part of a subscription!
Promising review: "I got my first box (the ginger orange with mezcal and gin martinis) the drinks were easy to prepare and, frankly, the best part was that despite the fact that it was 7 p.m., I was in my PJs, in my living room, toddlers finally put to sleep, taking a sip of the drink (out of a plastic cup instead of a proper glass) transported me IMMEDIATELY back to my previous life as a decked out, dressed up, single twenty/thirty-something with a social life at the cool & and amazingly interesting bars and restaurants of NYC. I never thought I'd have that experience again — of having a really, really interesting and delicious drink just because I felt like it — and yet, here I was, re-experiencing my previous life in the comfort of my own home, without even having to hail a cab, hire a babysitter. Really fun and tasty. Thank you!" —Rebecca S.
Get one box from Cratejoy for $27.99 without the alcohol, and $37.99 with the alcohol included.
31. A pack of 18 colorful Dylan's Candy Bar chocolate squares, so they can kick back all through their birthday month with flavors ranging from S'mores to Milk Toffee Crunch to Dark Raspberry.
The full flavor lineup includes Caramel, S'mores, Cookies & Cream, Milk Toffee Crunch, Dark Raspberry, Hazelnut, Almond, Dark Espresso. No, YOU'RE crying.
Get it from Dylan's Candy Bar for $25.
32. A personalized bracelet from BaubleBar you can customize with a message up to 12 characters (I personally recommend making four that say BEATS, BEARS, BATTLESTAR, and GALACTICA, but to each their own).
Get it from BaubleBar for $36.
33. A Birchbox x BuzzFeed limited edition beauty box, which comes with all the skincare, haircare, and beauty bargains they need to make FaceTime a time for their face to shine.
Get it from Birchbox for $62 (a $205 value, plus get $10 off when you use the code BUZZFEED at checkout!).
Here's everything the lucky birthday boss will get:
💫 Amika Soulfood Nourishing Mask (travel size): a treatment for dry or damaged hair that you can apply in the shower to get those luscious post-quarantine locks — especially now that most of us aren't blow-drying or styling our hair as often! (Retails for $12.)
💫Smashbox Cosmetics Photo Finish Foundation Primer (travel size): a primer that helps minimize pores whether or not you're wearing makeup, and will help products roll on more smoothly. (Retails for $15.)
💫First Aid Beauty Arnica Relief & Rescue Mask (full size): A moisturizing treatment for dry indoor skin — time to socially-distance any uncomfy dryness from your friend's face! (Retails for $32.)
💫Saturday Skin Pretty Pop Probiotic Power Whipped Cream (full size): This cloud-like moisturizer comes encapsulated probiotics that will help skin feel firm and supple, so your friend can get that coveted ~Zoom glow~. (Retails for $57).
💫Glamsquad The Untamed Texturizing Finishing Spray (travel size): A residue-free hairspray that not only adds texture and volume to your hair, but will strengthen it — all your friend has to do is spray and tousle. (Retails for $12, or $22 for the full size.)
💫Kevyn Aucoin The Precision Liquid Liner: An easy-to-use, opaque eyeliner that stays in place — no smudging, skipping, or streaking during all those at-home mini workouts, and perfect for practicing the perfect cat-eye. (Retails for $35.)
💫Bumble and Bumble Hairdresser’s Invisible Oil Primer (full size): A super light leave-in hair treatment that not only de-frizzes and detangles dry or damaged hair, but also protects it from heat and breakage. (Retails for $28.)
💫Glamglow Bubblesheet Oxygenating Deep Cleanse Mask: Y'all, this mask FOAMS, so it's like giving your face a bubble bath. Except this bubble bath also deep cleanses your skin and leaves your face feeling totally refreshed. (Retails for $9.)
💫ColourPop Cosmetics Lippie Stix in Love Life: A matte red lipstick with a pen-like applicator to give a little pop of color and instantly turn any "blah" day into one full of colorful birthday selfies abound. (Retails for $6.)
34. A pair of snuggly USB-powered heated slippers to keep their toes toasty during their Everything Cozy Forever And Always-themed birthday party.
Promising review: "Got this gift for my significant other, who is a profound puppy lover. She adored them very much and uses them a lot more than she thought I might. They heat up a lot more than expected and although they are very large, the footbed is as snug as a glove." —heverlybills
Get it from Urban Outfitters for $31 (originally $35; available in three styles).
35. A Tamagotchi, so they can channel their birthdays of '90s yore and celebrate by mopping up after a tiny digital creature that fits in the palm of their hand.
Promising review: "These bring me back!!! So glad Urban Outfitters is carrying these. I love the one I got and since they're all unique my friends and I all have different ones." —blondielala
Get it from Urban Outfitters for $20 (originally $25; colors vary).
36. A cold brew coffee maker so gloriously easy to use that all they have to do is stick their favorite ground coffee in the filter, seal the airtight lid on top, and pop it in the fridge overnight. Boom, four cups of cold brew.
Promising review: "I have been drinking caffeinated beverages everyday for half my life. Usually brewing hot then cooling it down with ice which was quite a process to do every morning. Then I came across this cold brew pitcher and thought I'd give it a try. It's great, easy to use and clean, very convenient, lasts for a couple weeks, I love it! Making a pitcher of coffee take less time than a normal brewer and makes enough for at least one cup a day for about a week, depending on how much coffee concentrate is used. I haven't used my normal coffee or espresso machine since I got this cold brew system. The coffee seems to taste better as well, not a huge difference but it's somewhat noticeable." —Birnbaum
Get it from Amazon for $15.99.
37. A pair of glowing light saber chopsticks to bring balance to the Force *and* to their sushi — whether they're repping the dark side or the light.
As you can see from the above GIF, I bought these for myself, and I love them to pieces. TBH, I use them as decor every bit as much as I use them to eat. Sometimes I just keep them in my work area to light them up during the day to feel fancy. They toggle back and forth between a bunch of different colors, like red, blue, yellow, purple, and multicolor, so you can either make them match *or* have a red and blue one together and bring ~balance~ to the Force.
Promising review: "I purchased these for a friend's birthday present (he is a sushi waiter) and these are flippin' AMAZING. I ordered two sets by mistake, but I am totally keeping the second pair for another gift (or for myself!). These are sure to be great conversation pieces and attention-getters. Way to go!" —T. Redwood
Get two pairs from Amazon for $14.97.
Your grateful BBFF (Birthday Best Friend For Life) after you surprise them with one of these thoughtful gifts:
Reviews have been edited for length and/or clarity.
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