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I’ve recently been opened up to the world of #bookstagram (go follow my full-time #bookstagram!) and all things bookish and let me tell you, I love it.
From bookish candles to literary teas, they’ve got it all and I’m here for it. Once I realized all these awesome things existed and tried them, I was so excited I decided I needed to share them with you. These are some of the best bookish gifts for the avid readers in your life.
I’ve tried a lot of things on this list, but if I haven’t, I’ll let you know. If I haven’t tried them, they are things I would like to try at some point. Quite a few shops overlap on categories like tea, candles, and bookmarks so you’ll be seeing a few of them more than once.
**A lot of things linked here are on Etsy and may be sold out. It is also almost all small businesses run from people’s homes (not all of them) and product offerings may change between updates of this post.**
This may be overwhelming because there are so many cool bookish gifts out there. You can always control +F a series to curate your own themed gift box (Harry Potter, Alice in Wonderland, ACOTAR are three that come up a lot, even just library-themed).
Another option is a little bookish bundle (pictured above) with a book, a Bookbeau, a candle, and a bookmark or two.
A lot of the shops, especially the candle companies, can have long processing times, like 2+ weeks sometimes, so make sure if you’re getting anything for a holiday or event that you order far enough in advance.
Just remember, these are all smaller shops run by one or two people out of their homes, not Amazon.
Bookish Candles
I’m a candle gal through and through, even if I try to deny it, I love them. Like, maybe more than I should. This is how I was first introduced to the world of bookish things and boy am I glad. Some of them are a little pricey, but they’re totally worth it.
Check their Instagram pages for rep codes to get a small discount. I like to get the 4-ounce sizes for first tries so I can make sure I like a scent before committing to more.
Some offer 2-ounce sizes for this specific purpose, but they may not fill a room with as much scent. My favorites so far have been:
Wick Wish Candle Co. – They offer tons of different scents and products all the time and have monthly releases, too, that you can only get that month.
The Daisy (from Great Gatsby) was my favorite from them so far. Overlook Hotel, Eat The Rude, Central Perk, and Stars Hollow are other favorites. Veronica is one I would love to try.
Scents on offer change all the time and the ones listed may not be available all the time. She does tons of updates on Instagram though.
Novelly Yours – They have tons of general bookish candles (TBR, currently reading, bookstore, things like that) as well as fandom scents. They offer 2-ounce tester sizes.
They have The Night Circus, The Raven Cycle, Sarah J. Maas, and Harry Potter candles, to name a few. Use SAVE15 for a discount at checkout. Not valid on boxes.
Rose and Adder – My favorites, but she is only open with very limited quantities and usually seasonally now. I’d follow on Instagram for more updates.
But that’s just a few. Here are some other awesome bookish candle companies:
Frostbeard Studio – I loooove the ones they have with leather scents. Bookstore and Oxford Library are delicious. Also, they’re Minneapolis based, so that’s pretty awesome.
Wick and Fable – Their Harry Potter candles were SO GOOD, but they’re narrowing down their offerings. I’d still recommend them though because the ones I tried smelled pretty strong.
Library Lights – I haven’t tried these yet, but they have some Harry Potter and Hunger Games ones I’d like to try.
A Court of Candles – They have a good Harry Potter candle selection. I really like almost all of the ones I got from here. They usually have glitter in them, too!
The Melting Library – I loved the two of these that I got (A World with Octobers and Restricted Section) and would definitely try more.
Aurora Candle Co. – Based in Canada, shipping is a little more expensive, but there are a bunch I would like to try once my current supply gets lower hah.
Literary Teas
I’m a coffee gal, but I also love tea. Like, a lot, and I’ve found all kinds of literary teas out there. Most tend to be for more classic literature (think Jane Austen or Shakespeare) but Alice in Wonderland and Harry Potter have been the two that I have seen the most outside of those classics.
There are plenty of others out there too, though. They are almost always loose leaf tea, so you’ll need a tea diffuser if you don’t already have one. I haven’t tried most of these but will at some point and I’ll update it.
Literary Tea Co. – This is for the classic book lover in your life where you can find Agatha Christie, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemmingway, Charlotte Bronte, and the like. Each tube makes about 30 cups.
The Literary Tea Company – They don’t offer just any literary tea here, but literary tea you can get in tubes, tins, and bags. You’ll find fairy tale, classic, Harry Potter, and Alice in Wonderland inspired flavors.
The Simply Bookish Co. – They offer a few different bookish things, including tea. I’ve got The Burrow and Wonderland, but I haven’t tried them yet. I’ll report back ASAP.
Rosie Lea Tea UK – The Etsy shop offers tons of Literary teas including the usual classics, Peter Pan and Sherlock.
9andthreequartersco – Not only do they offer Harry Potter-inspired tea but Harry Potter-inspired coffee! This shop is at the top of my list of things to try.
Bookish Mugs
To go with all that literary tea up there, you may need a cool bookish mug and some bookish mug rugs to go with it. I know I love mugs, especially fun and weird shaped ones, so here are some bookish mugs for all that tea and coffee you’ll be drinking now.
Leaf and Lore – Leaf and Lore has a nice selection of book-inspired mugs, ceramic and metal camp mugs. They have some for classics, Lord of the Rings, and Outlander as well as a few others. You can also find shirts and a couple candles in the shop.
I haven’t found as many bookish mug shops, so here are some fun mugs I found on Etsy that I would totally get:
Harry Potter House mugs – They only have Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, which is a bummer, but they’re still really cute!
The Minerva Mug – from the same shop as the last, you can get this cute clear Minerva mug!
This Hedwig Mug – This is a cute little mug that’s actually handpainted.
Alice in Wonderland Tea Cup and Saucer Set – If you want to feel like you’re at the Mad Hatter’s tea party, try this cute mug. Or this one.
Drink Me Mug – This mug is decorated with polymer clay and is such a fun Alice in Wonderland mug. It can be used for hot or cold beverages but is not microwave or dishwasher safe.
Indoorsy Mug – This might be my favorite because it’s hilarious and so true (even if I do like being outside, too).
Minimal Bookshelf Mug – This is the perfect cute mug for people with more minimal taste. I love this one, too.
Literary Lip Balm
I’m a chapstick addict and like to try new ones all the time. When I found out there were literary lip balms, I signed right up. The two from Wick Wish I’ve tried, I love. Sometimes the little tins are hard to open but I would get them again.
Literary Lip Balms – This Etsy shop offers tons of literary lip balms. I would love to try some of the Harry Potter ones, but they also have Disney, classics, and modern fiction inspired scents.
The Story Gift – This shop has a few general book inspired lip balms in various scents.
Book Inspired Scarves
For those of you that live in cooler climates and get to celebrate fall and winter, a book inspired scarf is perfect. Not only will you be warm, but you can rep one of your favorite books anywhere you go.
Storiarts – Here you can find some book inspired scarves, but they’re not just inspired, they have text and illustrations from the books on them.
Here are a few other general bookish scarves. A couple are for specific books but different styles.
Library Scarf – This one is perfect for fans of libraries and the Dewey Decimal System. It’s available in quite a few colors.
Classic Children’s Stories Scarf – This would be a great gift for a teacher or school librarian, I think. It’s got book covers of classic children’s stories all over it.
Banned Books Scarf – If you want something a little different, try this banned book cover scarf. It’s similar to the children’s stories scarf, but banned.
Pride and Prejudice scarf – For all those Pride and Prejudice fans out there, this one’s for you. It’s a nice, light, feminine scarf inspired by the story.
Literary Tote Bags
For that bag lady in your life, you’re going to want to grab a tote bag or three and maybe fill one with all kinds of other bookish gifts making it the ultimate bookish gift and you, their new favorite person. Plus, they’re great for grocery shopping and library trips.
Not Very Lady Like – Here you’ll find some mugs as well as some pretty cute Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings tote bags. They also offer a zipper pouch and a blanket.
I found a bunch of cute literary tote bags on Etsy and some of the shops have a few designs, but I wanted to share some of my individual favorites.
Bibliophile tote bag – This is a great option for any reader, but especially the writers, too.
Library Card tote bag – I saw a few library card tote bags but this one was my favorite since it has more checkouts on it. This one would be great for library lovers.
Alice in Wonderland tote bag – This tote bag is more book-shaped and looks like the spine of the book and open pages. They have other stories as well.
Luna Lovegood tote bag – Luna Lovegood is my favorite and I need this bag. It’s got her Quibbler glasses and says “You’re just as sane as I am.”
Too Fond of Books tote bag – This is such a cute but simple reading quote tote bag.
Book Sleeves
I have a new found love for book sleeves. These are particularly good for people that like to keep their books in very good condition.
I like using them to carry stuff around with my books, like in my kindle sized one, I can have my kindle, phone, ID, credit card, chapstick, and sunglasses. Very convenient. Smaller stuff fits in my bigger book-sized one when I have a book in there, but not as much.
Book Beau – They have four sizes and regularly improve the design. I don’t love them as much as the ones pictured anymore but they are waterproof and I know even more popular now.
Paper and Word – These are my absolute favorites! I went from one to still not enough (like, 30) in a year and even joined the Secret Society this summer. They’re beautiful and super soft and cushy.
Etsy also has quite a few book sleeves available but I haven’t gotten any of those to compare to the BookBeau (which I LOVE), but here are some I would consider getting for myself:
Harry Potter book sleeves – There are so many awesome prints, but here are a few awesome Harry Potter book sleeves: Mandrakes, Marauders Map, or Quidditch.
Beauty and the Beast book sleeve – If you’ve got a Disney fan in your life, this is a great option. Here are some other Disney print book sleeves: Peter Pan, Mulan, vintage movie posters, Alice in Wonderland, and Disney villains.
Animal and nature book sleeves – For all the nature lovers out there, check out this bee book sleeve, flowers, dinosaurs, and llamas.
Book cover laptop sleeve – If you’d rather get a laptop sleeve, check out some of these book cover laptop sleeves. I really like the Handbook for the Recently Deceased one. Just make sure you get the right size.
Bookmarks
Infinite and Darling – This is a UK based company with some really pretty bookmarks. They can be purchased individually or as sets.
The Simply Bookish Co. – Along with tea, you can find some pretty cute bookmarks on here. They have specific book-themed ones (Harry Potter or Alice in Wonderland) as well as general bookish bookmarks.
The Story Gift – Not only do they have lip balm, but they also have some cute bookmarks and other bookish gifts like mugs, coasters, and greeting cards.
SJWonderlandz – If you want a lot of bookmarks to choose from, this is the shop. They have 127 (as of the time of writing) to choose from and they range from specific books to general #bookstagram. I want pretty much all of them.
BookBookOwl – Like SJWonderlandz, BookBookOwl has about a million bookmarks and I want all of them. If you like ACOTAR, Harry Potter, Caraval, Shatter Me, or anything along those lines, check this shop out.
Here are some specific bookmarks and bookmark sets on Etsy that are also really cool:
Wire bookmarks – If you want a personalized gift, consider one of these wire bookmarks. I’ve never used a wire one but they do look cool.
Mystery bookmarks – If you like a surprise, check out this set of 9 surprise bookmarks! I think I’ll try these at some point, too.
Nature bookmarks – For the nature lover in your life, check out these landscape watercolor bookmarks or these planet bookmarks or these bee and flower tassel bookmarks.
Fandom bookmarks – There are bookmarks (and sets) out there for every book series imaginable. check out these sets: Six of Crows, Harry Potter, ACOTAR, Red Queen, and Night Circus to name a few.
Leather bookmarks – If you want something a little fancier and more heavy-duty, these leather bookmarks are perfect. There are tons of styles of leather bookmarks out there to choose from.
Subscription Box
If you want a bookish gift that keeps on giving, consider a three-month box subscription. There are sooo many book subscription boxes out there to choose from, but these are more for bookish merch than actual books.
Fabled Merch – This is the part of Wick and Fable (from the candle section) that does the subscription boxes. They have a deluxe box and a more basic, smaller box but they will include 7+ items under a specific theme. I got one of these and really liked it!
A Court of Candles – I got one of these and really liked it! They have new themes every month.
Novelly Yours – They also offer themed monthly boxes that include candles of various sizes and some pretty cool merch to match that months theme.
Owl Crate – This is a themed box that revolves around a specific book (that is included) every month. There is plenty of merch to go with each book and they have limited edition boxes occasionally, too.
Bookish Perfume Oils
Wick Wish – They don’t have them listed right now but they will be returning in the fall with a makeover. I got a sample of Ours is the Fury and it smells very good.
Nerdy Potions – While these aren’t actually perfumes, they will make your room smell nice. These essential oil blends are inspired by some of your favorite book series like Harry Potter, ACOTAR, Outlander, and Throne of Glass.
ForageCandle – This Etsy shop has some bookish candles, but they also have book-inspired perfumes, like actual sprays, not just oils. I will say, I don’t know anything about making perfume, so I can’t speak for quality or anything when it comes to ingredients.
Bookish Prints
SJWonderlandz – Not only can you find cute bookmarks here, but they also have some really cute prints.
Infinite and Darling – To go with your other bookmarks, you can also buy some really cute and unique book inspired prints here. I like these a lot.
Here are a few specific book-inspired prints on Etsy that I really enjoy. A lot of the prints coming up are digital downloads, not something you physically receive, so keep an eye out for that when you’re shopping.
Library Location print – This one is so cute and I love it. Like, I might actually have to get one of these soon. This is perfect for the library lovers or even just for someone that has a ton of books in their own little library at home.
Roald Dahl quote print – This is great for fans of Roald Dahl, but it is printable, you don’t receive a print in the mail.
Harry Potter prints – These Harry Potter prints are really cool since they’re on the book pages. Here are a couple more: Christmas at Hogwarts and Mandrakes.
Well, that’s it. Hah, that’s it like this isn’t 3,000 words with way too many options. Hopefully, this at least helps a little bit and helps you get the best bookish gifts ever for your bookworm buddy. I know I would be happy to receive anything on this list as an avid reader myself. If you would prefer to get them books, here are some of my favorite books I’ve read so far.
What are your favorite bookish products? Do you have a favorite book-themed subscription box? Do you want any of these things?
