By: Rachel Brown
We’ve survived Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but we still have a lot of gift items to check off of our Christmas shopping lists! Friends are so fun to shop for but sometimes there are so many good gift options that it’s hard to choose just a few. We’ve narrowed down some of our favorite gift items for friends and shared them below. Take a peek and let us know if you have any clever ideas to add to the list.
Artifact Uprising Photo Gifts
We’ve taken so many photos with our friends, but most of them live on the pages of our social media accounts and in the albums on our phones, so let’s get these images off of our devices and into the hands of our pals. Artifact Uprising, a company that is “inspired by the disappearing beauty of the tangible,” has so many creative gift options. Their softcover books are super affordable, and the Instagram-friendly books allow you to upload your photos right from the app. The wood block + prints set makes a classy gift that is so neutral that it fits in with anyone’s aesthetic or taste. It would be fun to receive a customized postcard pack, too!
Gift Certificate for a Class
Treat your friend to an experience of some kind, allowing her to savor the memory of the adventure long after the outing is over. Cooking classes are so much fun, and they’re offered at many local grocery stores, markets, or specialty food shops. Wine-tasting + painting classes are always a hit, and workshops are all the rage these days, popping up all over the country, allowing you and your friend to try calligraphy or jewelry-making or pottery.
Looking for a gift that gives back? We partnered up with Parker Clay to create this premium leather wrap bracelet. Parker Clay creates economic and social empowerment through the sales of their products, all of which are made from genuine Ethiopian leather, hand woven scarves, and other interesting materials. Like it says on their website, each of these bracelets, designed from Ethiopian leather and upcycled artillery, sends one Ethiopian woman through a prostitution prevention training program. Amazing, right?
These gift boxes are definitely a splurge but they’re so special and beautifully curated that we think they’re worth the price! Each box is customized with the consumer in mind, and items are sourced locally, ensuring that each product supports the small business that makes it. We like the Mini Sweet Box – add on fresh flowers if you’re in the Los Angeles area to make the gift even sweeter.
We love these fun prints by Oh My Deer, and you can’t beat the prices, which range from just $10 – $12 – how great is that? We love the neutral palettes of white, black, and gold (with a pinch of pink on a select few of the prints for good measure), and we’d be stoked to see this Hey Babe piece or the Be A Good Friend print on our walls.
These are our favorite candles! Produced by a couple based in Los Angeles, all of the candles are made using domestically grown soy wax and delicious-smelling fragrance oils. We love Teakwood & Tobacco, Golden Coast, and Spiced Pumpkin. We think the packaging is great, too. If you don’t want to order directly from the company, P.F. sells some of their scents through big-name stores like Madewell and Urban Outfitters. Your friend will think of you every time she lights her beautiful candle.
Do you have any great gift items to add to our list?
Photo Cred: Chelsea Stellar
Rachel is the Director of Project Development for Touch A Life, an organization committed to the rescue and rehabilitation of children who have been exploited and trafficked in West Africa and Southeast Asia. Though she loves working in the non-profit world, Rachel has always been passionate about writing, pursuing opportunities to put pen to paper outside of her day job. Aside from writing for Darling Magazine, she maintains a personal blog, Coffee & Tacos, where she connects with others through food, travel, faith & community. Rachel lives in Dallas, TX, with her husband and their adorably large English mastiffs.
