Shopping for a popular colleague can be dicey. It's totally appropriate to get something for the cool boss, your hard-working underling or your "work-wife/husband" in the cubicle next door who shares your everyday trials and tribulations. But you don't want to go overboard, and you want to keep it classy. Or at least classy-ish. Consider things that will help them in their professional lives, make their workdays easier or pass their hours of toil with a little fun.
CARD CASE
Handcrafted in Montana, this wallet is both professional and practical, making it ideal for the popular coworker or favorite boss you want to impress. Men and women alike get tired of searching through bulky bags and overstuffed wallets when they meet an important contact or need to pay for parking or a cup of coffee real quick. With one pocket for credit cards and another for business cards, this diminutive leather gift is surprisingly sturdy, easy to stash somewhere handy and guaranteed for life from the folks at TLS Wallets. $23 • Cello Gallery • 415 W. Main
BROOKLYN FLASK
A flask is a great gift for the coworker you might actually hang with outside the workplace, or for those company parties where the bar just isn't up to snuff. These ceramic flasks look sharp, have a sturdy latch, and (probably) won't set off any pesky metal detectors. $13 • Atticus Coffee & Gifts • 222 N. Howard
DESKTOP CATAPULT
Finding a good friend over the cubicle wall can be important to keeping your sanity at that corporate job or telemarketing gig. This Desktop Catapult is a perfect way to pass some mindless hours through good-hearted aerial warfare — or to send a quick note when your instant messaging goes down. $8 • Uncle's Games • 404 W. Main
THERMO-POT
Got a friend whose lunch hour seems to be a daily trial of multiple trips to the office microwave? Gift them the Black+Blum Thermo Pot, a stylish food-storage unit, inspired by the cork-stopped thermoses of yesteryear, that keeps food hot for six hours. And the stainless-steel spoon magnetizes right to the side. $40 • Wollnick's General Store • 421 W. Main ♦
