PURE CONTEMPORARY's Guide to Modern Gift-Giving!

Creating a gift guide for lovers of modern is no small feat. First, buying any gift is an extremely personal activity. Secondly, modernists -- well -- they are a breed unto themselves. They tend to like what they want -- and they want gifts that reflect their personalities.  Mass-market items are going to be a tough go for this crowd. So what Caroline and I did was put together a list of types of people that we all have in our lives. We then chose items for them that tickled our imaginations -- if not the American Express card. What could be more luxurious or intimate than the Scirocco towel heater packaged with two plush towels?

We started taking note of interesting gifts early last year, and compiled a rather lengthy list. We sharpened our pencils and started critically examining each. We bumped those items that had limited distribution, were too pedestrian, and those we knew had manufacturing problems. Some late entrants onto the list were actually older products such as Achille Castiglioni's retro crystal Paro vessels and Bang & Olufsen's speakers.

Finally, we thought long and hard about price points. While for many readers price may be no object, we objected to having only high-ticket items on the guide. Four gorgeous knobs for a bathroom cabinet would be heartfelt, personal and highly regarded by the recipient.

Still, we know there are those “big”presents that are for the entire family to enjoy. We were tipped off by a reader to Quench's breathtaking stainless bar, and saw the BeoLab 8000 speakers in just-out red -- hot for any home theater.

We hope you like our choices for this year's Modern Gift Guide 2005