The holiday season is here, and while that may mean family time, Hallmark movies, and the Mariah Carey song “All I Want for Christmas Is You” on heavy rotation for some, it also means shopping.
As you scour the stores for festive gifts, don't forget about stocking stuffers for the cannabis connoisseur in your life.
From books on cannabis culture to newfangled paraphernalia to smoke out of, Leafly Senior Editor David Downs shares the top pot products on the marijuana market this year.
What are the best gifts for those on a budget?
You can find some doodads and gadgets that you would normally see in head shops that … help you with your kit. For example, [for those] redoing their cannabis stash kit, you might be able to get a new tray that lights up and is powered via USB. You might [also] be able to get a joint container that will also hold [a] lighter. There's a lot of good books these days that are running under $25 that capture cannabis culture, [including] from a feminist weed farmer perspective.
Accessories for cannabis kits like rolling trays and joint containers are some low-cost weed gifts to give this year, says Leafly Senior Editor David Downs. Photo by Shutterstock.
What is the top cannabis book to give this year?
The one that stands out is “How We Roll: The Art and Culture of Joints, Blunts, and Spliffs.” It's a small book and it's got a lot of great illustrations. I think the act of rolling a joint — which is the most common modality for consuming flower cannabis — can be a little intimidating to people and anyone can use a fun guide that helps them get over that initial learning curve of rolling a joint for the first time.
It's also fascinating to learn that there are professional joint rollers that work for people like Snoop Dogg. They make tens of thousands of dollars a year just creating these products and they take many shapes and sizes.
The book “How We Roll: The Art and Culture of Joints, Blunts, and Spliffs” is a great gift to give newbies. It dives into topics like rolling a joint, says Leafly Senior Editor David Downs. Courtesy of David Downs/Leafly.
What about gifting flower?
I feel like there are top 10 strains in the world that are going to be safe bets for people, and cannabis is something that's a nice splurge for somebody. You can go into a dispensary and ask a “budtender” what is the top shelf brand here, just the way you would for a special liquor or like a whiskey, and hopefully get pointed to something that the loved one in your life might not necessarily spend on themselves.
I think the holidays are a great time to show your love for somebody by giving them something that normally would be outside of their budget. That includes a designer cannabis flower from brand like AlienLabs, Cookies, Ember Valley, or Seven Leaves that is sitting up there on the top shelf, generally out of reach for that person.
What is a gooad gift to splurge on?
I want to shout out a Los Angeles company called Puffco. They are really leading the world in cannabis accessories, especially around extracts or hash. This year Puffco debuted the Proxy, which is a dry hash pipe. The cool thing about it is it's an electronic rechargeable hash oven that'll vaporize that hash and turn it into a fragrant, potent vapor. The extra cool thing about the Proxy is that it's designed to work with any number of bases. So the Proxy has become a platform for all these glassmakers to make every type of glass base imaginable. I've seen ones that look like saxophones, dinosaurs, or a Gandalf style — an extra long pipe.
Leafly Senior Editor David Downs suggests pulling out your wallet and splurging on Puffco’s Proxy, a dry hash pipe. Courtesy of David Downs/Leafly.
What is the best gift for the health-conscious person?
This year, go get a Pax 3. It’s a flower vape so it doesn’t burn cannabis — it gently heats it like it’s in a toaster. You get all of the active ingredients of marijuana, the smell, and the flavors, but you don’t get any of the harsh carcinogens or damaging hot smoke.
Go easy on your lungs and give a Pax 3 to the health-conscious cannabis lover in your life this year, suggests Leafly Senior Editor David Downs. Courtesy of David Downs/Leafly.
What is a unique cannabis gift to give?
A subscription box from the California company Nugg Club. We're getting to the point, not only with cannabis delivery, but with gifting, where you can buy a box of cannabis and ship it to someone's house,
So you can email Nugg Club and order a subscription box of flower, edibles, or extracts for a loved one. Assuming they're over 21, you can pay for it and have them sent to that person's house or they can sign up for it, and it's a nice surprise for them.