It’s the most wonderful time of the year—and the most obnoxious. Trying to figure out gifts for nerds is hard, because they usually buy themselves whatever toys or movies or books they want. What to do? Here’s what—you read this gift guide, which compiles more practical gifts that the geekily-inclined in your life will still love.
POP CULTURE ART
Age of Ultron by Matt Needle Character Posters
Man, there were so many characters in that movie. These stylish posters give each of the heroes (and Ultron) a chance to shine on your walls. You can order them at Hero Complex Gallery for $35 each.
DC Bombshells Harley Quinn Art Print
Harley Quinn was made for the retro pin-up style of DC’s Bombshells line. This is our favorite of the collection. It’s $14.95 at Qmx.
http://qmxonline.com/products/dc-bombshells-harley-quinn-gotham-or-bust-art-print
“Robot” by Darren Rawlings Print
This lovely image from artist Darren Rawlings depicts “a Robot’s inner struggle with nature” according to the official description. Any io9 reader should be happy to give it some wall space. It’s $20 at Think More.
http://thinkmore.storenvy.com/collections/38103-all-products/products/150245-robot-print
“Not Sure If Art” by Aled Lewis Print
Futurama’s Fry might be confused, but we’re not. This print may come very close to Treachery of Images territory, but it’s still definitely art. It’s also available for $90 at Gallery 1988.
http://nineteeneightyeight.com/products/aled-lewis-not-sure-if-art-print?variant=214998016
Imperator Furiosa by Ricardo Lopez Ortiz Art Print
Who wouldn’t want to pay tribute to one of the best movies of the year with this amazing art of its most badass character? There are three sizes available at Inprnt: the 8×12 is $15, the 12×18 is $20, and the 15×24 is $40.
http://www.inprnt.com/gallery/rlopezortiz/imperator-furiosa/
Various Star Wars Canvas Prints
These Star Wars art pieces a bit pricier than a poster, but 1) they’re on canvas, and 2) they are awesome. Seriously, the AT-AT/AT-ST one is pure perfection. They are $79.99 each at ThinkGeek; there’s also a fourth, Dagobah-centric piece available.
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/hrvt/
The Boxtrolls by Tom Whalen Poster
Whalen’s art captures the sweetness of Boxtrolls with a wonderful economy of color. Each screen-printed poster is 18×24, and comes numbered and signed by the artist himself! It’s $45 at Mondo.
http://mondotees.com/collections/posters/products/the-boxtrolls-whalen-poster
He-Man “HEYYEYAAEYAAAEYAEYAA” by 100% Soft Print
The artist known as 100% Soft has drawn the most adorable Masters of the Universe ever, based on the most insane Masters of the Universe YouTube video ever. It’s only $30 per print, but there are only 30 of them available at Gallery 1988, so don’t dawdle.
http://nineteeneightyeight.com/products/100-soft-heyyeyaaeyaaaeyaeyaa-print?variant=5605291649
Firefly I Want to Believe Poster
I’m betting the overlap between X-Files fans and Firefly fans is pretty large; this would be perfect for either. It’s $19.95 at Qmx.
http://qmxonline.com/products/firefly-i-want-to-believe-poster
Various Art Prints by Josh Ln
Whether you want to celebrate specific movies, TV series, the ‘80s, or video games, Josh Ln’s artwork are all great and all economically priced! The 8×10 prints are $15 and the 12×15 are $20 at Inprnt. There are several other “topics” available, so make sure to check them out!
The Fly by Jonny Dombrowski Poster
Seth Brundle makes a connection in this amazing 24×26-inch print. If only the original The Fly poster had been this good! It’s $40 at Mondo.
http://mondotees.com/collections/posters/products/the-fly-johnny-dombrowski-poster
Space Jam by Marco D’Alfanso Print
Not to give anything away (it’s okay, my family doesn’t read my work) but I’m seriously considering this for my brother, since we drove our parents crazy with Space Jam when we were younger. If someone in your life did the same, may I recommend this 14×22-inch print? It’s available for $40 at iam8bit.
http://store.iam8bit.com/collections/space-heroes/products/space-jam-by-marco-dalfanso
“Jacked 66 Batmobile” by Barry Blankenship Print
Some days you just can’t get rid of a bomb. Some days you discover one of Gotham City’s countless villains has stolen your wheels and left the Batmobile on blocks. This 20×16-inch print is $45 at Gallery 1988.
http://nineteeneightyeight.com/collections/themed-tv-shows/products/barry-blankenship-jacked-66-batmobile-print?variant=677056933
SCIENCE ART
“The Science Guy” by Kate O’Hara Art Print
Here are a few things for the purely scientific minds out there, beginning with this tribute to our favorite science guy. Bill here comes in two sizes over at Inprnt; the 8×9 is $15, and the 12×15 is $20.
http://www.inprnt.com/gallery/kateohara/bill-nye/
Retro Science Art by John W. Golden Print Set
This best part about this set of five prints, celebrating these five sciences? It’s that Golden lists them very specifically for being For Boys’ Rooms and Girls’ Rooms. The set costs $86 and gets you the five 8×10 prints above; they’re available at his Etsy store.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/120949721/art-for-girls-room-art-for-boys-room?ref=market
International Space Rockets Poster
That’s quite a lot of rockets.
The World of Programming Poster
The heroes and heroes of the computers are chronicled in this poster by acoreyj. The unique 14.67×18.67-inch print will only run you $12.50 on Zazzle.
http://www.zazzle.com/the_world_of_programming_poster-228189375193363356
“Behold! The Dinosaurs!” by Dustin Harbin Art Print
Behold! It’s an awesome poster. Inprint has a variety of sizes and prices: 8×10 for $20; 12×15 for $25; 19×24 for $40; and 24×31 for $80.
http://www.inprnt.com/gallery/dharbin/behold-the-dinosaurs/
Bacterium 2 Print
This poster is actually created from a chromolithograph of the 1800s. Be the first kid on your block to have blown-up images of centuries-old bacteria on your walls! The poster comes in a wide variety of sizes and prices, beginning at 8.25×6 for $7.50, at AntiqueWallPrints’ etsy store.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/179768065/bacterium-2-antique-prints-science-art?ref=shop_home_active_1
Home Decor
Zenguin Mugs and Ghostbusters Stay-Puft Face Mug
Your loved ones already have all the art they need? Then it’s time to think about getting them something extra for their home. We begin with these adorable Zenguin mugs by Patricia Carlin; this set of four runs $48 at Uncommon Goods. If peaceful penguins aren’t needed, consider an angry marshmallow instead with this mug of the noggin of Ray Stantz’s unique choice of destroyer from Ghostbusters. It’s $14.99 at ThinkGeek.
http://www.uncommongoods.com/product/zenguin-mugs-set-of-4
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/iith/
Firefly Pint Glasses and Viking Drinking Horn
The cancelation of Firefly is still driving some people to drink, and those people should clearly be drinking out of one of these two Firefly pint glasses from Qmx (the set of two is $14.95). A cheerier option would be to take a swig of mead from this awesome drinking horn by the WhereTheGodsLive Etsy store. This small version costs $25, but there are many more styles and sizes available.
http://qmxonline.com/products/firefly-pint-glasses-set-2
https://www.etsy.com/listing/254490078/small-sized-viking-drinking-horn?ref=shop_home_active_6
AllTru2U Geeky Tea Light Boxes
These things are just amazing. Each two-inch box can be customized with faces representing your favorite characters, shows, comic, cartoons, and more! The boxes are only $9 and each individual (and awesomely geeky) face is $4. See the many, many, many other designs available at their AllTru2U website!
Game of Thrones Sigil Blanket and House Pillow
Winter is coming, and you’re going to need to stay warm. Out advice? Cuddle up in bed under this awesome blanket covered in the sigils of the major houses of Westeros as seen in the HBO show. And since you’re in bed anyways, why no rest your head on a matching sigil pillow? Your choice of House, of course! Both products are available at the HBO store; the
sigil blanket is $64.99 and each throw pillow is $29.99.
http://store.hbo.com/game-of-thrones-sigil-blanket/detail.php?p=917030&v=hbo_gift-finder_our-top-picks_decor
http://store.hbo.com/game-of-thrones-house-stark-direwolf-throw-pillow/detail.php?p=452366&v=hbo_gift-finder_our-top-picks_decor
Doctor Who TARDIS Towel and Shower Curtain
The Doctor is in… your bathroom? Help him (or any Who fan) feel at home with these bath decor products based on the Time-Lord’s beloved method of travel. Each TARDIS towel set is $49.98 while the shower curtain is $29.98; both are available at at the BBC Doctor Who Shop.
https://www.bbcdoctorwhoshop.com/en/doctor-who-tardis-bath-towel-set?green=E9F188B0-C54C-59C1-A447-BEB5DF26E1DF
https://www.bbcdoctorwhoshop.com/en/catalog/product/view/id/1001?green=E9F188B0-C54C-59C1-A447-BEB5DF26E1DF
Star Wars R2-D2 Measuring Cups and Star Trek Enterprise Sushi Set
Okay, we can envision an astromech droid helping someone cook, so we can wrap our heads around this R2-D2 Measuring Cup Set ($19.99), which include four cups ranging from 1/4 to 1, as well as four measuring spoons. But the U.S.S. Enterprise Sushi Set ($34.99)—where the saucer flips to be used as a soy sauce dish—is just absurd. Awesome, but absurd. Both come from the good folks of ThinkGeek.
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/11be/
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/f375/
Additional suggestions by Mika McKinnon.
Contact the author at [email protected].
