Best Items for Each Category?

[Variable Why]

Based on the cramped inventory size and the variety of requests your paleofolk have, what are the best items to stockpile for when they ask you to recommend an item to them? I want to reduce the number of unique items in my storage so that I can freely experiment with shop layouts and such, or stockpile enough resources for requests.

[Koankitsune]

It's not just about each Profession category, but also each Descriptor Tag and Size you want covered. This is gonna be a long post, but should help.

-For Ice, I like Tundra Table. [Carpenter]
-Gemstone you basically need to go Swanky Smilodon [Artisan] (Framed Fruit -Basket uses twice as much Gold).
-Sap I use Fierce Fire Pit. [Gardener]
-Stone I like Squish-n-Squasher. [Chef]
-Wood you'll always have several to cover it, but Twirlygig [Gardener] has good value and also covers Small.
-Bamboo you can use Brachio Bongos [Musician] and also cover Large.
-Glass can be easily done with Compact Vanity [Carpenter].
-Food is easy, just use any Chef recipe that uses Wheat, since Wheat is plentiful. I like Personal Pizza.
-Feather AND Shell can both be covered by the Happy Little Palette [Artisan], though Poet's Tools [Scribe] are also worth crafting to use up excess Feathers.
-Fiber I use Pangaean Panel [Scribe]. I think Maple Friendship gives this.
-Starstone I use Literature Lamp. [Scribe]
-Paper... take your pick of any number of Scribe items (you'll need to sell 15 Novellas for a Quest). Triceramarker [Scribe] is cheap and easy.
-Metal you can easily just use the Sturdy Scissors [Stylist] OR Slice-n-Dicers [Chef]. Pretty sure both are required for Quests.
-Claw is most easily done with Scute Scratcher [Stylist].
-Plant is easily covered by Scratchy Towel [Carpenter], but there are oodles of items for that. In the mid to late game I prefer Paleocene Potpourri [Gardener], which also covers Clay.
-Clay is easily handled with Dinky Jug [Chef], but you can eventually phase that out for the aforementioned Paleocene Potpourri [Gardener] if you're buying Leaves from Atlas everyday when your pockets are full (never shop with pocket space available, so that your purchases always go straight to storage).

It's worth having at least one more Large item on standby, since the Bongos take 10 Bamboo apiece. I use Leafy Lamp and Indoor Greenhouse. A few of the things I listed are Small, so you'll be set there. Medium is always easy to cover.

Avoid cosmetic Stylist items like the plague, unless they're Quest requirements or something you genuinely want to wear; they don't stack at all, and all lack Descriptors. Stick with the basics like Scute Scratcher and Scratchy Stone.

I think that covers every Size, Profession, and Descriptor Tag. The later you get in the game, the more often you'll get Gemstone requests, so get used to mining Red Stone. Red Stone Bricks and Cactus make the Prickly Pear (Willow Friendship) and it's honestly the best use you'll have for either of those resources... neither Red Stone nor Cactus see much use.