“I want money, chocolate, a new winter coat, and a driver’s license.”
Althea Sullycole, 18, Student
Citron coat, $260 at Comptoir des Cotonniéres , 155 Spring St., nr. Wooster St.; 212-274-0830.
“Artwork. I love abstract wire or metal sculpture, and my favorite painter is Marc Chagall.”
Patricio Witis, 26, Actor
Art print, Zemphira, Costume Design for Aleko (Scene I), by Marc Chagall (1942), $25 at MoMa Design and Book Store, 11 W. 53rd St., nr. Fifth Ave.; 212-708-9700.
“A new drum set. I already have one that is all white, and it’s really stupid. I want one with flames, skulls, ghosts, everything.”
Joey Buckler, 11, Student
Drum set, $599 (custom work available) at Sam Ash Music, 159 W. 48th St., nr. Sixth Ave.; 212-719-2661.
“Snowpants and snow boots … and a trapeze.”
Katie Van Winkle, 23, Dramaturgy Fellow
Pendant pant by Burton, $179.95 at Burton, 106 Spring St., at Mercer St.; 212-966-8068. Moncler Nible boot (available in black), $540 at Barneys New York, 660 Madison Ave., at 61st St.; 212-754-7940.
“Nice glass tiles for my new kitchen and bathrooms, and tap-dancing lessons!”
Linda Partland, 65, Real-Estate Broker
Glimmer mosaics, from $31 a foot at Sicis the Art Factory, 470 Broome St., at Greene St.; 212-965-4100.
“iPod speakers, a guitar amp, drum heads, and a skateboard.”
Jacques Touroul, 13, Student
Eddie board, $222 at Uncle Funky’s Boards, 210 W. 10th St., nr. Bleecker St.; 917-597-0054 (by appointment only).
“A Lego pirate set and the Star Wars Lego game, and a miner’s helmet.”
Zoel Boublil, 6, Student
Miner’s helmet, $10 at Toys R Us, 1514 Broadway, at 44th St.; 646-366-8800.
“Studded Bess jeans, anything Jeremy Scott, an Obesity and Speed hoodie, and a carton of non-fire-safe cigarettes.”
Aaron Kolfage, 22, Shop clerk
Flannel hoodie by Obesity and Speed, $115 by special order at Seven New York, 110 Mercer St., nr. Spring St.; 646-654-0156.
“Furry slippers, a cool apron, an endless supply of bacon, and an automatic cat-litter box.”
Charmaine Baechle, 34, Chef
Apron, $60 at Roberta Roller Rabbit, 1019 Lexington Ave., nr. 74th St.; 212-772-7200.
“A traditional Japanese kaiseki meal. They’re meticulously presented, beautiful, rare.
Darren Patrick, 24, Urbanist
Traditional kaiseki meal, from $120 at Rosanjin, 141 Duane St., nr. W. Broadway; 212-346-7807.
“A scratching post for our cat. I am not a scratching post!”
Gregorio Pedroza, 31, Concierge
Imperial Cat cat scratcher, $46 at PS9 Pet Supplies, 169 N. 9th St., nr. Bedford St., Williamsburg; 718-486-6465.
“Two-inch Cuban heels, fitted white shirts, skinny black jeans, and Amartya Sen’s Development As Freedom.”
Paul Cowie, 23, Student
Shoes from Mambo Shines, $150 at Worldtone Dance, 230 Seventh Ave., nr. 23rd St., second fl.; 212-691-1934.
“Rich, velvety wallpaper like the kind at Sweet Ups, a bar that I’m obsessed with.”
Kiley Kneib, 20, Model
Velvet wallpaper by Astek, $99 per single roll (by special order) at Janovic Paint & Decorating Center, 161 Sixth Ave., nr. Spring St.; 212-627-1100.
“I want action figures—ninjas with masks.”
Benjamin Asbury, 6, Student
G.I. Joe Ninja-Ku Leader, $11 at Forbidden Planet, 840 Broadway, at 13th St.; 212-473-1576.
“Membership to a yoga studio, and a year’s worth of mocha Frappuccinos.”
Kareem Williams, 19, Sales Associate
A year’s worth of daily Frozen 88s (on a no-maximum gift card), $1,806.75 at 88 Orchard, 88 Orchard St., at Broome St.; 212-228-8880.
“Good wine, new art supplies and a KitchenAid mixer. I love to cook and paint.”
Lars Malmberd, 70, Retired
Château Léoville Barton Saint-Julien 2004, $60 at Sherry-Lehmann Wine and Spirits, 505 Park Avenue, nr. 59th St.; 212-838-7500.
“Flamenco-dance lessons, an acoustic guitar, and costume jewelry.”
Pepa Bauza, 24, Radio Host
Earrings by Alan Anderson for House of Lavande, $950 at Henri Bendel, 712 Fifth Ave., nr. 56th St.; 212-247-1100.
“I collect chairs— I have 38 of them … Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier … my favorite is my Aldo Rossi. I would like the tube chair by Marcel Breuer.”
Mico Sopic, 65, Artist and Architect
Wassily chair by Marcel Breuer, 1925; miniature version (pictured), $270, regular size, from $1,600, both at Design Within Reach, 142 Wooster St., nr. Houston St.; 212-471-0280.
“A Schwinn Varsity ten-speed, a metal General Electric fan, and an heirloom tomato, all made in the USA.”
William Emory, 55, Photographer
Schwinn Varsity bike, $350 at Frank’s Bike Shop, 553 Grand St., nr. Lewis St.; 212-533-6332.
“I want a sweater. Also, theater tickets and a movie credit card.”
Joseph Weimer, 73, Retired
Cloth Logic sweater, $85 at Court, 178 Mulberry St., nr. Broome St.; 212-925-1022.
“An iPod touch, a laptop, and Edward or Jacob from Twilight. Edward is my dream guy.”
Cristina Caceres, 16, Student
Twilight boxed set, $83 at Barnes & Noble, 33 E. 17th St., nr. Broadway; 212-253-0810.
“A neat, old Cartier watch. I hope my husband is reading this.”
Pat Sullivan, 59, Gift-shop Manager
Cartier Tradition Tank Cintré watch, made in Paris circa 1966, in eighteen-karat yellow gold, price upon request at the Cartier, 653 Fifth Ave., at 52nd St.; 212-466-3459.
“A buckly, fringy boot, Lasik eye surgery, and a new bag. And vitamins, so I know I’m staying healthy.”
Ross Higgins, 18, Model
Grain-leather captain tote, $375 at Jack Spade, 56 Greene St., nr. Broome St.; 212-625-1820.
“A tattoo of a birdhouse with the name Bob under the door and a goldfinch peeking his head out.”
Adam Rihacek, 27, Teacher
Tattoo by Stephanie Tamez, price upon request at Brooklyn Adorned, 376 Bedford Ave., nr. S. 5th St., Williamsburg; 718-782-0007.
“A dog, but one that isn’t a hyper, crazy, energetic mutt like my mom’s.”
Mark Yagos, 24, 3-D Modeler
Obedience classes, $230 for six weeks, at Empire of the Dog, 415 Grand St., nr. Keap St.; Williamsburg; 917-723-5233.
“Race cars, games for PlayStation, and chocolate.”
Isiah Warren, 4, Student
Wooden speedway race car, $11.50 at Kidding Around, 60 W. 15th St., nr. Sixth Ave.; 212-645-6337.
“Baby gear and clothes. We just had a girl.”
Leann Littlewood, 24, New Mom
Ergo organic baby carrier, $120 at Flying Squirrel, 96 N. 6th St., nr. Berry St., Williamsburg; 718-218-7775.
Pee Wee Trumpette socks, $26 at Belly Dance Maternity, 548 Hudson St., nr.
Snowsuit by Ralph Lauren, $145 at Ralph Lauren Children’s, 380 Bleecker St., nr. Perry St.; 212-462-1020.
Ape hanger, $20 at Babesta, 66 W. Broadway, nr. Warren St.; 212-608-4522.
“Dirt from Yankee Stadium, in a jar, with the date on it. And, blue low-top Prada sneakers.”
Brendan Spadaro, 15, Student
Black-and-blue leather-and-nylon sneaker, $495 at Prada, 724 Fifth Ave., nr. 56th St.; 212-664-0010.
“Shoes and handbags—a girl can never have enough of those.”
Latoya Alexander, 24, Receptionist
Vintage Versace bag, $300 at Rewind, 335 Ave. U, nr. West St., Gravesend; 718-333-2288.
“An etymological dictionary, an espresso machine, and colorful briefs.”
Dane Stalcup, 26, Graduate Student
Baby Rib men’s briefs, $12 each at American Apparel, 712 Broadway, nr. Washington Pl.; 646-383-2257.
“Samantha. She’s an American Girl. And a Barbie Party Cruise.”
Nara Cowing, 6, Student
American Girl Samantha doll and book, $90 at American Girl Place, 609 Fifth Ave., at 49th St.; 212-371-2220.
“A DM9 marker—another term for a paintball gun, but they call it marker because it’s not traditional warfare.”
Marshall Brockley, 15, Student
A day of paintball at Cousins Paintball, $50, 2727 Arthur Kill Rd., nr. Bloomingdale Rd., Staten Island; 718-227-9783.
“A wood-burning fireplace, a record player, and a Morrow snowboard.”
Matt Burns, 24, Actor
Englander wood-burning stove, $1,299 by special order through Homedepot.com.
“A pop-up book and a two-wheeler bicycle!”
Oskar Palma, 4, Student
Yellow Square pop-up book, $20 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Store, 1000 Fifth Ave., at 82nd St.; 212-570-3894.
“For Christmas this year, I want power tools—an air compressor is my newest desire. And a pre-CBS Stratocaster, and training shoes that fit.”
John Soughan, 48, Insurance Executive
Porter-Cable three nailer–compressor combo kit, $299 at Home Depot, 980 Third Ave., nr. 59th St.; 212-888-1512.
“I want a white dog, a roller coaster, lip gloss, and a bus stop.”
Courtney Marie Bellinger, 3
Dizzy Fun Land, $50 at Mary Arnold Toys, 1010 Lexington Ave., nr. 72nd St.; 212-744-8510.
The Exit Poll
From 182 responses, some interesting trends emerge.
The Teenage Fantasy List
BOYS
“A punching bag and boxing gloves, especially ones that are custom-made.”
“A concave skateboard with a lot of pop.”
Anything D.J.-related: “Serato Scratch Live”; “concert tickets to Chromeo”; “gift certificates to Karmaloop.com”; “D.J. lessons at DubSpot.”
“A roll of Texalium fiberglass”—for surfboard repair, duh.
GIRLS
“Poster of Edward and Jacob from Twilight.” Failing that, “a poster of Shia LaBeouf.”
“A lifetime supply of Caramel Fraps.”
“Spray paint.”
“Anything Marc by Marc Jacobs or Juicy, please.”
“Any kind of gadget— laptop, digital camera, iPod—as long as it comes in pink.”
The Best Gifts Ever Given
1. “A DVD set of Monty Python’s Flying Circus for my brother.”
—Kevin Mcentee, 42, cabdriver
2. “Vacuum-packed pastrami from Katz’s Deli, for my sister.”
—A. Celik, 33, actress
3. “For my parents: TiVo. They still tell me it changed their life— every time they see me.”
—Katie Bosworth, 29, editor
4. “I give my friends back home imitation bags from Chinatown that I pretend are real.”
—Ross Higgins, 18, model
5. “A pair of adult-size red fleece footie pajamas for my boyfriend.”
—Maura McNamara, 20, student
The Best Gifts Ever Received
1. “Someone adopted a whale in my name once. Pretty rad.” —Nick Courage, 26, publisher
2. “A grocery-store tab from my parents— perfect for a poor student.”
—Aaron Kolfage, 22, student
3. “A vintage record player and old jazz records.” —Althea Sullycole, 18, student
4. “A big white down parka to the floor, from my ex. Not everyone can pull off looking like Nanook of the North.”
—Meredith Petran, 38, marketing
5. “A 100-piece rock- and-mineral collection. I’m an Earth-sciences geek.”
—Natalia Vargas-Caba, 19, cosmetology student
The Sky’s The Limit Pick
“A rich, sweet husband who’s normal.”
—Baranaca Olivio, 42, registered nurse
The Ten Choicest Stocking Stuffers
1. Cash and kumquats.
2. Mini bottles of hard liquor.
3. Champagne splits.
4. Tickets! Rangers tix, concert tix, theater tix, etc.
5. Pez dispensers.
6. An engagement ring.
7. Fancy mechanical pencils.
8. Fancy tea.
9. A chocolate orange and a lotto ticket.
10. One hundred guitar picks.
1 Person Wanted a Televised Apology from George W. Bush
13 People Wanted to Learn
They asked for classes in: modeling, Spanish, dance, surfing, cooking, tap-dancing, kayaking, photography, computers, Web design, driving, yoga, Pilates, printmaking, sculpture, and painting.
47 People Asked for Money
The Top Eight Equine-Related Requests
1. “A horse.”
2. “A pony.”
3. “A cute mini- horse, like from the ‘Mini-Horse Madness’ episode of [TV show] Rob & Big.”
4. “Pony-riding equipment.”
5. “A pony-riding outfit.”
6. “A Great Dane named Pony.”
7. “Dr. Dre’s headphones, paint, underpants, and a pony.”
8. “Un caballo de pura raza española.”
The Most Specific Wish List (from Darren Patrick, 24, urbanist)
1) A small-to-medium Eames desk for my home office.
2) A pair of classic, shiny—but not patent-leather—lace-up black boots.
3) A trip to Iceland.
4) Blogging classes.
5) A traditional Japanese kaiseki meal.
6) A twelve-piece set of cast-aluminum pans. I already have cast iron, and I don’t like stainless steel.
Photographs by Hannah Whitaker/New York Magazine