In this edition of The Gift, we’re sharing some beautiful, frivolous accessories that make good outfits great and have given us a sunnier frame of mind. Plus: The best sandals for spring.A friend of mine recently went back to work after welcoming her second baby, and, as a poor stand-in for an in-person pick-me-up, I sent her a few pairs of fun-colored socks. She gushed about them mightily, and about a month later, her partner texted me asking for the link. I’m not sure I’ve ever given a lower-effort, higher-reward present. They’re beautiful, unnecessary, and one-size-fits-all — the platonic ideal of a gift.Accessories of all kinds — stately, expensive, cheeky, cheap — offer an immediate rush of joy. And that feels especially welcome right now, when my clothes, mood, and life are stalled in the same middle ground as the weather.Lots of aspects of my day-to-day feel intractable (in a good way!), but when I saw a cool mom in town wearing this beaded, daisy chain necklace, I suddenly saw an off-ramp to a sunnier frame of mind. I got myself a seed bead and freshwater pearl necklace as an affordable alternative. As I’m swanning around in my new fineries, I can’t help but think: The only thing that would make this better is if I passed this same optimism along to a friend.Even though the weather continues to be temperamental, my colleagues are making the transition to spring with the help of a few smart accessories of their own:Style writer Frances Solá-Santiago is wearing her silk scarves again, after being inspired by the spring Celine show. If you’ve got the patience and a keen eye, it would be worth poking around for a timeless Hermès piece on secondhand sites. Here on the gifts team, we love these abstract-print cotton scarves, which are big enough to double as a sarong once summer comes around.Many of my colleagues swear by plastic claw clips for perfectly mussed updos. But to my eye, even the nicest ones often look cheap. Exactly the opposite vibe is this rich lady French barrette that gifts writer Samantha Schoech turned me on to. While it’s delightfully delicate, the spring clasp is still hefty enough to hoist up a pretty good pony.Don’t underestimate the power of a great zip-up hoodie. Social editor Hali Potters told me that she was loving this cropped number, and then I saw my kids’ cool Gen Z babysitter wearing the same one in a handsome mellow blue. That’s kismet! It’s boxy in a good way and made from a heavyweight fleece that makes it feel elevated.When my third grader told me her teacher was always misplacing her glasses, we gave her this puffy, patterned sleeve to help her keep track. Head of newsletters Sofia Sokolove puts hers to good use, too. Her secondhand sunnies don’t often come with a case, and this brightly colored pouch protects even her most oversized shades. When she’s feeling fancy, she pairs her sunglasses with this classic straw hat, which she bought after admiring the one her mom has had for 30 years.If you spot someone in Brooklyn hotstepping in these delightfully odd little sneaker ballet flats, it just might be our very own newsletters editor Isoke Samuel, who just got herself a pair in cream. They’re a perfect transitional shoe, when socks start to feel oppressive and sandals are a stretch. (They also come with satiny ribbon-like laces if you want to go full ballerina.)Style writer Hannah Frye brings her lunch to work in her mini boat tote all year round, but on warmer days it’s also her go-to for a weekend stroll: “It’s so tiny, but it fits everything I need: phone, wallet, keys, book, sunglasses, and a snack.” It reminds me of this mesh mini that I’ve been eyeing, which is a smaller, see-through version of what I consider to be the most useful tote around.