Christmas Gifts was the opening image of an editorial spread on gift giving published in the 1936 December issue of House Beautiful. In the early twentieth century, the type of modernist photography aesthetic practiced by Paul Outerbridge Jr.—which emphasized patterning and a tight crop—was actively promoted by magazine editors, including Frank Crowninshield, editor of Vanity Fair from 1914 to 1936. The public’s positive response to these high-style, artistic images served to popularize the trend.