By Lindsay Kastroll, Master’s student in Biological Sciences, University of Alberta
Ideas for holidays, birthdays, and just-because kinds of days.
Let’s face it: with kid-focused products saturating the dinosaur market, it’s difficult to shop for adults without defaulting to the same movie franchise merchandise every year. With gift-giving season in full swing, you may be worrying about what to get that dinosaur-loving adult in your life, but never fear! BLOGOSAUR is here!
I, Lindsay Kastroll, a palaeontology student at the University of Alberta, have searched far and wide to find the most interesting books, baubles, and brands for your perusal. All the items on this list have been suggested by real palaeo-professionals, who have either been eyeing them for years or maybe have already gone and purchased them. If the experts think it’s cool, I can guarantee you that your loved one will too!
General Suggestions
I’d be remiss not to not instantly recommend supporting your local museum through your gift-giving. Many museums are charitable or non-profit organizations, and by spending your money with them, you are also supporting their educational missions. Treating your loved one to tickets to the museum or museum special events is a thoughtful purchase in and of itself, but if you plan on going with them, it shows that you buy into their interests, as well. Plus, you get to spend time with them, at a museum! Call that a win-win-win.
Museums often offer annual memberships for individuals, families, grandparents, etc. that include free admission, discounts on museum merchandise, and additional perks. If you aren’t a Wembley local, check the website of your loved one’s local museum for membership information and pricing. If you are a local looking to support the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum, you can learn more about their memberships here.
Museum stores also typically carry fun and interesting merchandise, from interesting art and decor to stylish clothing and accessories. You can often find their products available online, too, to make your shopping more efficient. The Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum and Royal Tyrrell Museum are both great places to find dinosaur-themed merchandise in Alberta. I particularly like the Tyrrell’s clean and classic Death Pose line of accessories.
Pictured, left to right: the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum’s Borealosuchus and Champsosaurus print by KT Lindblad, and the Royal Tyrrell Museum’s Death Pose watch.
Finally, to round out my general suggestions, I encourage you to support small businesses in your shopping. Not only does it make you a good samaritan, but small businesses often have more unique items to offer, as well! A lot of the brands suggested below are small businesses or artists’ guilds, and I highly recommend you check them out. Palaeoartists often have merch shops of their own, as well, so if you find an artist who you think makes wonderful art, check their website for a place to buy things like stickers, prints, or hoodies. Support artists!
For The Collector
The venn diagram of dinosaur-enthusiasts and collectors is nearly a circle. There are an endless array of things out there that people like to collect, but fossils and models are some of the most common in this community. I cannot condone most purchasing of genuine fossils, not only because the laws surrounding the transport and sale of fossils in various nations often prohibit such a thing but also because fossils sold at a price reasonable to the general public are often heavily modified to make them look more impressive. Fossil replicas are a great alternative to the real deal. Prehistoric Planet Store offers a wide variety of affordable replicas, while brands like Scaled Beast and Fossil Crates specialize in high quality, smaller scale replicas.
Models and decor make great gifts for dinosaur-lovers who aren’t so interested in fossil replicas. Palaeontologists regularly laud dinosaur figures by Beasts of the Mesozoic, Eofauna, and PNSO as both accurate and attractive. The LEGO Natural History Museum model is a fun alternative if they enjoy hands-on experiences, as well as the laser-cut dinosaur skeletons from Wonder Artistic Models. Should they prefer to collect something a bit more cuddly, Paleozoic Pals and PaleoFloof are both highly recommended by my palaeo-colleagues for having charming but still well-researched plushies.
Pictured, clockwise from top left: Prehistoric Planet Store’s Acheroraptor temertyorum replica, Wonder Artistic Models’ Diplodocus 3D Wooden Puzzle, PNSO’s Brian the Pachyrhinosaurus figure, and LEGO’s Natural History Museum.
For The Fashionista
Dinosaur apparel is easy to find, but unique items are a bit harder to track down. As mentioned previously, many palaeoartists will sell t-shirts and hoodies with their work on it, but if you don’t want to track down individual artists, 252MYA features a variety of artists’ work on a variety of products. I also like Geopetal Fabric for their lovely prehistoric prints, though they’re non-dinosaur by design.
In terms of accessories, pins are an easy gender-neutral gift, and you’re spoiled for choice. My favorites are PaleoPins and Paleo Press (are you starting to see a naming convention, yet?). Skull pendants are also popular amongst all genders, and the brand Fire and Bone comes highly recommended to me. The Etsy shops Scientifiques and Ontogenie produce jewelry of all varieties, as well as items like bolo ties and belt buckles. Another Etsy shop, Cyberoptix, makes fine ties, cufflinks, pocket squares, pashminas… I was gifted their dinosaur scarf, pictured below, some years ago and I have to tell you, it’s lovely.
Pictured, clockwise from top left: Cyberoptix’s Dinosaur Scarf, PaleoPins’ Parasaurolophus hard enamel pin,and Geopetal Fabric’s Kansas Cretaceous paisley high tops.
For The Bookworm
Books! Books about dinosaurs come in a wide variety of forms. Encyclopedia-style books that list and illustrate dinosaurs are ever-popular, but there are far more than that! If you want something unique but still academic, one of my friends suggests Birds of the Mesozoic by Juan Benito and Roc Olivé, which its publisher describes as “a field guide for birdwatching in the Mesozoic.” I personally recommend The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs by palaeontologist Steve Brusatte; despite being written by a scientist, it is an enjoyable and easily digestible account of dinosaur history. Another interesting option is All Yesterdays by John Conway C.M. Kosemen, and Darren Naish, which challenges readers to think more creatively about the life of dinosaurs.
Fiction-lovers are spoiled for choice, too. Although dinosaurs are featured in lots of fictional stories, I’ve chosen two to highlight. Dinosaur Sanctuary by Itaru Kinoshita and Shin-ichi Fujiwara is a recent manga series about park staff attempting to save a struggling dinosaur zoo. I really like this book, because not only are the story and art super charming, but it’s also very well-researched! For something a little more fantasy-oriented, legendary artist James Gurney’s classic Dinotopia is the “journal” of a man who discovers a utopian society of humans that live alongside dinosaurs. You can even get it signed by Gurney himself!
Pictured, left to right: Dinosaur Sanctuary by Itaru Kinoshita and Shin-ichi Fujiwara, and The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of Their Lost World by Steve Brusatte.
For The Gamer
Speaking of fantasy, there are lots of ways to treat gamers to dinosaur-inspired gifts. Fans of tabletop roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons may like dinosaur-inspired or even coral fossil dice to play with, or dinosaur miniatures to fight on their battle maps. Fans of card games would be delighted by the adorable game Happy Little Dinosaurs by Unstable Games. Video game enthusiasts might enjoy various dinosaur park builders, or perhaps something a bit cozier like Paleo Pines or Amber Isle. And of course, if they’re Pokemon fans, there is plenty of fossil Pokemon merch available from the Pokemon Center.
Pictured, clockwise from top left: The Pokemon Center’s Shieldon “Sitting Cuties” plush, CustomizeDiceCrafts’ coral fossil dice, Unstable Games’ Happy Little Dinosaurs, and Dungeons & Dragons’ Triceratops miniature.
For The Hobbyist
Dinosaurs have infiltrated many hobbies. Dinosaur planters and savage garden gnomes are available for gardeners. There are many books and kits that cater to the crafty, like Origami Dinosaurs for Beginners by John Montroll or dinosaur crochet kits by The Woobles. For artists, an elaborate coloring book like Dinosaurs: A Smithsonian Coloring Book illustrated by Rachel Curtis may suffice, but if they are more serious about their work, perhaps Mark Witton’s Palaeoartist’s Handbook would do.
Pictured, left to right: The Woobles’ Fred the Dinosaur crochet kit and Mark Witton’s Palaeoartist’s Handbook.
For The Foodie
Again, there are tons of dinosaur-related kitchen accessories, from tea infusers, to cookie cutters, to chopsticks. There are so many that I can’t even pick specific ones, because the market is so saturated! If you’re looking for something more specific and even sophisticated, the brand Cognitive Surplus makes elegant drinkware, from standard glasses to stemware, all decorated with beautiful science-inspired prints. And since this is a gift guide for adults, I should mention something to put in those glasses: many breweries make palaeontology-themed beer, like my friends’ favorite Dinosour by Phillips Brewing & Malting Co. If whisky is more their speed, I was recommended one by the Isle of Raasay Distillery that has imprints of fossils in the bottle.
Pictured, left to right: Cognitive Surplus’ Stratigraphy Core Sample drinking glass, and Phillips Brewing and Malting Co.’s Dinosour Jurassic Pack.
For The Aspiring Palaeontologist
Maybe your loved one isn’t just a dinosaur-enthusiast. Maybe they’re a lot more serious about palaeontology than their parents had hoped (in case my parents see this, this is a joke). Then in that case, to round out the end of this list, here are some practical equipment suggestions to help improve their field kit.
Basic field equipment for palaeontologists include things like brushes, awls and chisels, and some sort of hammer/pick. A popular choice of rock hammer by Estwing has the best of both worlds, both a hammer and a pick! Good gloves are important to protect their hands from sharp rocks and cacti, and safety goggles are good to protect the eyes from flying debris. To see small details, a hand lens (also called a jeweler’s loupe) is useful and compact.
Of course, palaeontologists aren’t just whaling on rocks the whole time they’re in the field. They’re taking notes, looking at maps, and doing other fancy scientific things. A good compass or handheld GPS would be useful, as well as a good notebook. The industry favorite is Rite in the Rain’s all-weather notebooks, which keep notes safe in any condition for decades and decades. For something a little less outdoorsy, if you want to just get them a nice notebook, Cognitive Surplus has some beautiful ones.
Pictured, clockwise from left: Cognitive Surplus’ Dinosaurs Dark Matter Notebook, an Estwing rock pick, and a standard hand lens.
And there you have it! That was The Ultimate Gift Guide for Dino-Loving Adults. Follow these palaeo-professional faves and your loved one is sure to get the perfect gift for holidays, birthdays, and just-because kinds of days.