Mystery awaits: Long Island shops selling 'Blind Date with a Book' experiences

Scrolling through social media, you may have come across an unboxing video where the mystery and anticipation of discovering what's inside is the most exciting part. Long Island boutiques and local crafters are joining the fun and creating their own mystery bundles for bibliophiles and lovers of astrology, crystals and the spiritual world. The Blind Date With a Book and Blind Date With a Tarot Deck experiences allow shoppers to bring home a fully wrapped book or  deck of cards with the intention of it being a surprise. 

After receiving a Blind Date With A Book as a gift, Cynthia Prydatko decided to buy a few at The Little Nook Bookstore in Wading River.

"I thought, ‘What a great idea for part of a Christmas gift.’ So, I made up a little holiday bag and I put anything you would need to have a cozy night of reading," says Prydatko, 57, a retired teacher who lives in Rocky Point. "I received one, I loved it so much and I loved unwrapping it: It had a little bookmark, a little tea bag and a record keeper of books that you read."

Some Blind Date with a Book bundles will include the genre or the first sentence of the book displayed on the wrapping for readers to get a clue about what's to come when they open it. 

The bundles also have themed accessories like bookmarks, tea bags, stones, pens, stickers and other goodies based on the topic. 

"It’s like a blind date because you’re opening the book and you don’t know what it is, what it looks like. It’s a surprise," says Stephanie DiSanto, owner of the Little Nook Bookstore, whose Blind Dates with a Book can be either hardcover or paperback ($24) and always include the genre of the book on the outside.

Some of her stock comes from Karen Daly, a Long Islander who sources used books in pristine condition for her company, Dog Ear Book Shop. Shoppers can also purchase the bundles at AJ Sunflower Boutique in Center Moriches.

"She wraps them and makes them really cute and decorates them according to the time of year, the holiday, whatever," DiSanto says. "On the back of the book, it will say the genre of the book and the first sentence of the book."

DiSanto also carries a second collection of Blind Dates with a Book from Kaitlyn Powell, DiSanto’s best friend, who wraps them in brown paper with a vintage vibe and sells them exclusively at Little Nook. Like Daly, Powell creates the bundles as a side business. 

"There’s vintage-type stickers on them and they come with a bookmark and tea bag," DiSanto says. "She puts little accessories on there as well, but they’re more neutral-based whereas the ones from Karen are more decorated for the holiday."

Since opening a year ago, DiSanto says she's sold many "Blind Date" bundles, which make great gifts and are also a big hit for people who like suggestions on what to read next.

An avid reader, Prydatko was excited to discover a new author through her "Blind Date" who’s written a series of books.

"I’m going to definitely check out some of his other books," says Prydatko, adding, "Sometimes you don’t know what to read, you don’t want to make a decision, so it’s something fun; it’s something different."

ELEMENT OF SURPRISE

A mecca for all things metaphysical, Amityville Apothecary offers Blind Date with a Tarot Deck, Blind Date with an Oracle Deck and Blind Date with a Witchy Book — bundles featuring books on astrology, crystals, angels, body/soul, nature or tarot.

The idea is to open yourself up to a chance to try something new, explains Amityville Apothecary owner Dina Rosenberg, who has sold thousands of "Blind Dates" over the past few years.

"We wrap the book or deck and fill it with all sorts of fun accessories," says Rosenberg."We include all these fun extras and then we wrap it with some twine and then we seal it with a wax seal, so the wrapping is really beautiful."

When she learned about the apothecary's "Blind Dates" through its TikTok shop, Kanela Sisko became obsessed.

"I think I bought every one of their subjects," says Sisko, 51, who owns optical shops and lives in Flushing, Queens. "Every time they add a subject, I order that, too, so it’s like a little surprise. It’s so much fun. It’s such a great idea."

Sisko loves the wrapping and all the goodies that come with the book and has given many of them as gifts.

"Every time, it’s something different," Sisko says. "Sometimes I just order a Blind Date with A Book just to see what the extras are going to be."

COZY READS AND CUSTOM EXTRAS

After selling handcrafted items two years ago online and at in-person markets on Long Island and in Manhattan, Lavender Moon Designs expanded into Blind Date with a Book last year, offering titles from major literary genres, including historical fiction, fantasy, thrillers, mystery and young adult.

"Lavender Moon Designs has also put our unique spin on Blind Date With a Book in that we wrap each book in colorful wrapping paper according to the different genres and we hand make many of the accessories that we include, such as the bookmarks and the stickers, some of which are my original artwork and some that we license from other artists to support others in the community," says owner Gabrielle Beatley.

Lavender Moon Designs recently introduced "Cozy Fall Reads" with a specially curated selection of books set during the autumn season. In addition to the regular accessories, the curated books come with a gel pen and mini notepad. This season, they’re selling Winter Reads.

"Our Winter Reads are wrapped in white and light blue wrapping paper, with a matching gel pen in various winter colors and the notepad is either a snowflake, penguin, snowman or polar bear," Beatley says.