Stab’s 2025 Holiday Gift Guide — Wearables & Accessories Edition
For you, or the surfer in your life.
Editor’s note: Every piece here was hand-selected by a Stab staff member under one criterion: add only your favorite items that you use or wear regularly. We don’t get any kickbacks if you click those links — they’re just to make your life easier.
P.S. this is just the wearables + accessories edition… surf essentials coming soon.
Stab HQ used to be a full-blown cat walk back in the ‘bum-rubber’ (one of Jordy Smith’s greatest lines) era.
However, now it’s mellowed. A little.
Which to be honest, isn’t necessarily a bad thing (wearing your girlfriend’s jeans was a weird phase we had to go through). There’s still some stylish gents and gals amongst the ranks though, and, some proper gear-heads who love putting their threads through hell and back before they endorse them.
If you’re looking for some sartorial inspo to slide under the tree for a significant other in your live, come and browse the racks of team Stab.
Steko Hat
“I like this hat,” Shin, Stab’s chief taste-maker/Creative Director says. “It’s Steko. I think Kolohe is onto something and I feel like this bespoke cap is a sign of good things to come. The brand feels youthful and optimistic, and I really do wish the best for them navigating this noisy landscape that is apparel.” If Shin doesn’t like, Shin doesn’t wear. I’ve known Shin for well over a decade and I’m yet to see him anything less than immaculately dressed, and rarely without a headpiece too. Truly advice you can trust.
Colourful Standard Beanie
A beanie, you ask? Me too. But after a little clicking around the Colourful Standard site, their mastery of (organic) staples is undeniable. “I got this as a gift last year,” Buck says. “It was a nice hat, but I’ve already lost it. I remember wearing it once in the past month, because I was about to have a call and my hair looked very bad (still does). I was self-conscious about wearing a beanie indoors so I immediately and aggressively addressed the fact that my home is uninsulated. The other person just kind of shrugged. I still have the feeling that it will reappear, and I’m likely wrong about that.”
Soft on head, mother earth and comes in every colour imaginable.
Adidas Samba
Some products become classics out of inertia. Others necessity. The Adidas Samba is neither — perhaps an anomaly in the space. Born in the 1950s as a football trainer, the Samba has become one of the most functional pieces of footwear in the modern age. “I’ve yet to find something you can’t wear with these shoes,” says Mikey C, who wears shoes roughly five days out of the year. It’s a pair that says, I know what’s going on, but I’m not trying to impress anybody.
Over the bar, under the radar.
Crosspath XC GORE-TEX Shoe
In our world, this is shoe of the year. Simple. Great silhouette, tech out the wazoo, whether you’re trekking mountains or charging the city streets, doing it in a combination of GORE-TEX and Vans’ considerable expertise is a sure thing. “Favourite outdoor shoe is the Vans Crosspaths,” says another senior filmmaker Will Stiles, whilst disappointingly failing to supply his “indoor” shoe of the year in parallel. “I have never slipped walking around.” Guess we’ll go ahead and cancel his Life Alert subscription.
Lusso Cloud Scenario Slide
Remember when Crocs made you a laughing stock? Well now it’s a US$4 billion business… and Shin (see above) wears them. But when it comes to rubber slip-ons, Lusso Clouds rein supreme at Stab’s Byron HQ. “Had ’em for just shy of two years and flog them constantly,” says Nat Johnsen, another recent addition to the Stab Team. “Still as comfy as ever after countless hours of gardening, travel etc. Cheat code: leave ’em in the hot sun then wear to get the perfect foot mould.”
Stab’s co-owner Tom Bird echoes the sentiment. “I pretend to be self-conscience about my feet, my wife thinks they’re revolting. However, since owning Lusso Clouds I have an elevated perception. They were $140 and the best money I’ve spent. I’m yet to bed my wife in them, however, I feel like I’m etching closer every day; wading for a bite.”
Crocs for, grownups?
Birkenstock Natural Leather Boston Clogs
Your humble scribe lives in the tropics and has been scratching his head for over a year re: slips-ons that aren’t rubber landfill clobber. Finally pulled the trigger on a pair of these and couldn’t be happier. Gammy knees and ankles are whistling, you can wear ’em to dinners, the cafe etc and not feel like an English backpacker. I even just went Kurtz-deep into the Thai/Myanmarese boarderlands in ’em and saw a villager pal, boozed up on local rice liquor, run them over with his truck (both wheels) while I was having a dip in the creek. Structurally in tact, if anything it made them look cooler. Pro tip: avoid the suede and go natty leather.
Imperfects Courier Pant
We’re all pretty unique from the waist down, so if the thinking man finds a pair of pants that fit, wear and last to their satisfaction, they stack the closet. Just like another Stab Staffer with an incredible name, Matt Venezuela (I swear they/we are all real). “The Courier Pant from Imperfects has served me incredibly well over the past year,” Matt says, between designing graphics for our upcoming SITD with Slates. “I own a few pairs now, they’re a hard-wearing utility pant that I rarely go more than a couple of days without wearing. The fit is great and the details are thoughtful: coin pocket that was perfect for traveling in (coin-heavy) Japan, also the right size for AirPods. They’re even double-pleated at the knees with a french buckle in the back, if you’re into that sort of thing.”
Pilgrim Salute Twill Climbing Pant
“As you age, it’s nice to find a style and just stick with it,” says Stab Chieftain Sam Mcintosh. “Sizes balloon in and out as fashion cycles spin, but there’s a quiet dignity at playing your own hits. Which brings me to Pilgrim Surf Supply’s climbing pants. I’ve bought three identical pairs, all in the same colour, all three are the same quality. And so far, none have been stolen. $365.”
More pants!
Fairly Normal Big Pants
And now, a word from our European correspondent with enough sense not to wrap up a tree and call it a ‘present’. “While the industry wages its tiresome war over boardshort inseam length, I’ve decided to retire them from my wardrobe unless I’m surfing in latitudes that don’t tolerate anything else,” says another Stabber with a great name, Pedro Ramos. “Instead, I’ve spent every season (all two of them that remain recognizable) in these. They perform the essential service of not just obscuring my chicken legs but also making my lower half look quite decent. Beach to bistro requires nothing more than a quick towel-off, without the what-to-wear existential dilemma, and way more pocket space.”
The pants lobby has clearly infiltrated the editorial process.
Ritual Vision
Ritual Vision slithered straight into the gap in the (mainly Australian) market where kids want fun, affordable throwback styles, but still want to keep their retinas in tact. Reasonably priced, high-quality materials, and styles that look like you got ’em in the petrol station, just designed with a little more nouse and care. “Light-weight, good lenses, no light leaks in my sensitive eyes, and a good price so I don’t have to stress if the grom scratches the fuck out of them or I lose ’em,” says Nat J. Can’t say fairer than that.
Cheap good sunnies/expensive servo sunnies, you decide.
Raen x Stab Kwela Sunglasses
“For an elevated pair of sunglasses that might even increase your chances of getting laid, Mikey Feb’s Raen collection has a little bit of everything,” says Garrett. In fact, we liked MF’s Raen silhouette the Kwela so much that we decided to put our own spin on them, all in celebration of Mikey piloting our latest Electric Acid Surfboard Test. Custom shade of black, bespoke ‘dune’ lenses: absolute chef’s kiss.
Taste the fabric of our fibre.
I-Sea Kensington Sunglasses
“I like these glasses for two reasons,” says Editor in Child Section Mikey C. “1. The guy at the kiosk said that MGK has been wearing them pretty regularly. I have no idea whether or not that’s true, but it did make me feel cool. 2. I don’t believe there’s a better value sunglass brand on earth. The weight and quality of these things for a $34 price tag is just insane.” As someone who’s lost multiple pairs of designer sunglasses during his younger years, I can attest to the merit of finding a brand a few tiers down that work for you, and hitting that source time after time. If the hinges feel heavy for less than fifty bones, then you quite literally can’t go wrong.
Make sure you peel the price tag off before you slip ’em under the tree.
Channel Islands Essential Backpack
Channel Islands’ hardware game is seriously underrated. Sure you’ve probably owned/encountered a bomb-proof coffin stacked with crafts, however, their backpacks/travel bags are just as elite, the latest of which being the beauty above. “I thought I was gonna be DB for life, but this backpack has changed the way I travel,” says Mikey C. “It’s big but not bulky, has all the crucial carve-outs (water bottle holder, laptop sleeve, hidden internal pocket for high value items), and all the materials are water resistant, including the plastic zippers which will never corrode in salt air.”
Yeti 12L BACKPACK
It’s not hard to include partner gear in an honest list when they churn out market-leading fare like Yeti. The Stab minions zip-zap across the globe like drug smugglers, so when they throw their weight behind travel bags, you know they’ve been stress tested on the road. The Yeti 12L Backpack in this fetching shade (“cape dark taupe”), is staffer Coral’s bag of the year. “Another MVP, which doubles as a duffel,” she says. “Security buzzed me in Australia (narcs), but instead of dumping everything out, they just unzipped the middle zone, had a quick look, then waved me through.”
Waves and Beaches: The Powerful Dynamics of Sea and Coast
We all know that practical learning reigns supreme when it comes to the ocean, and the semester’s eternal. However, a little added theory never hurts. Especially when it’s stringently researched and readable, like Waves and Beaches, one of Buck’s ’25 picks. “If you’re a beachbreak cuck like me, perhaps it would be helpful to know why the sand has changed rather than just knowing that the sand has changed,” he says. “Perhaps that way you’d stop going to the same beach you’ve had some luck at before, despite having a full awareness that has been shit for approximately two years.”
Skullcandy Dime Evo Wireless Earphones
“In a noisy office, or on noisy planes, being able to drown out the people next to you is essential,” says staff writer Ethan Davis. “I know fuck-all about audio tech, but I do appreciate the user-friendly, high-quality sound of the Skullcandy buds. And, as someone who loses everything, I appreciate the clip so they can be strapped to me at all times.” Great branding, great tech, great colour, great design and easy(ish) on the wallet. Top tier gifting right there, and a nice point of difference in the vast sea of AirPods.
Buck the trend.
KanuLock Lockable Tie-Downs
Give these to a 14 year old and they’ll probably cry, but gift ’em to a 40 year old and they’ll likely jump across the room and smooch you on the lips, regardless of your relation to them. “I put these on the gear guide last year and I’ll put them on the gear guide next year,” says Garrett. “These are hands-down the best tie-downs in the biz. If you think otherwise, you clearly haven’t used these yet.”
O&E Home Boardrack
An absolute essential for any garage-owner, O&E doesn’t miss when it comes to surf-specific hardware that, whilst not exactly the sexiest thing on the market, lasts and functions just as it should. “Recently installed one of these to house all my boards in a neat, safe way,” says Jimmy Wilmott. “I’ve also put a shelf next to it that has all my other essentials: sunscreen, wax, wax combs and fins. A one stop shop with everything in one spot so you’re never looking around while the wind gets up.”
Dry, boring even, but a hell of a gift for the old man.
Living in Sunshine Spirit Rack
Now here’s something nifty for the renters. “Not to big-dog my new pal Jimmy, but I fear there’s an innovation in the surf rack game that must be shared,” says Mikey C, a man, as yet, unable to drill holes in the walls of his abode. “I put this LISS board-holder together in sub-six minutes, with no tools or screws, and it has an in-built drawer for sunscreen, wax, wax combs and fins. Progression comes at ya fast.” Perfect for bedrooms, lounges and garages alike, depending on your living sitchu (no power tools necessary).
Nifty gifty, with a little discount for Stab readers.
The Brick
Ah the endless scroll: the source of endless stories and endless wasted hours, the two disciplines endlessly blending into one with no clear answers as to how, in the surf media game, the perfect yin/yang work/life balance is to be achieved. However, this neat little gadget is a good start. Set up which apps bleed your time the most, then, when you need to get something out the door, tap your phone on The Brick, those apps slam shut until you go through the deliberately arduous (but not really) process of unlocking them again. Clever! “To keep me off socials when I’m trying to get work done,” says the ever-insightful, ever-deadline-heavy Will Stiles.
Slowtide Quickdry Changing Poncho
“While no one wanted their name attached to it, on cold mornings many a Stab staff member has been caught entering the office in Slowtide’s warm embrace,” says Mikey C, before adding: “Can pull CCTV footage if necessary.” Sure changing ponchos do have a bit of a gear-dork stigma attached to them, but most changing ponchos don’t look like Slowtide’s (as mentioned earlier, we used to wear our GF’s jeans fam, get over yourselves). Also, look at this drink of water pictured above. Guaranteed he’d do better chatting to ladies in the bar in that poncho than any of you in your Sunday best.
Practical, high quality, surf rat gifting.
Support Your Local Surf Shop
Will’s gotten a bit of stick throughout this year’s Santa-list for his curt descriptions, but he’s onto something with this rec. “Whenever I don’t have any gift ideas, I’ll hit the local surf shop,” he says. “My favorite is ET SURFBOARDS in Hermosa Beach, CA.” If your local bricks and motor is still standing in ’25 then A) They’re doing something right, and B) They deserve your support more than ever. If it’s Xmas Eve and you’re still scratching your head as to what to get the shredder in your life, just walk into your local surf shop, ask the gang in there what they’d want as a gift (within your price range, of course) and chances are they’ll put you onto the money.
Hear hear.
Stab Premium gift card
Did you wait so long that even a trip to the local surf shop is out of the question? Here’s our final lifeline. Buy your partner, bff, step mom etc a year of Stab Premium and grant them access to…
– Daily editorial, news, and culture, including competition coverage, interviews with some of the most influential figures in the game, travel features, and more.
– Premium surf films, long form documentaries, and weekly video content.
– Live events, including Stab High, Surf100, and beyond.
– Exclusive access to merch, discounts for events, and board and gear giveaways. More of this coming in 2026.
Just $79.99 USD for an all-access pass to Surf Narnia.
