Nobody on Your List Needs an Air Fryer
Tis’ the season to start recklessly filling and abandoning your digital shopping cart, looking for the perfect gifts to put under the tree this year.
This Christmas, my family and close friends can look forward to unwrapping thrifted antiques and locally handmade goods from my adventures digital nomad-ing across Europe. (If you thought regular Christmas shopping was hard, try doing most of it in July and then having to drag it around in your single suitcase for the rest of the summer.)
While I will be gatekeeping some secrets in the name of Christmas morning surprises - I wanted to share some of the great finds I’ve gifted in Christmas’ past.
Every single one of these gifts is a real thing that I’ve put under the tree. Most of them are available with a glimmer of creativity. Almost all of them are from small, independent producers.
Not a single one of them is sponsored or an affiliate link, because I really, truly want you to shop small this year, and it makes me feel like a modern Mother Teresa to gently usher you in this direction without making a single penny off of it.
It’s just a good practice to avoid buying Christmas presents from any multi-billionaire who owns a phallic rocket ship, I think.
12 Creative Christmas Gifts from Small Businesses
Custom Photo Puzzle
Perfect for: Grandparents who already have everything. Newlyweds who love puzzles. Families that take coordinated outfit Christmas card photos.
Turn a cute family photo, a wedding portrait, a pet snapshot, or a deeply embarrassing blackmail-level photo of your brother into a memory that they can revisit for years to come.
A few years ago, I gifted each of my grandmothers with custom puzzles that featured an old photo of their kids on Christmas morning.
(Warning: One of my grandmothers gave up on finishing her puzzle, because the black-and-white photo I used of her three sons in matching white pajamas didn’t have a lot of color variation.)
Non-Toxic Jar Candles
Perfect for: Eco-conscious sisters. Teachers. Moms, aunts, and best friends who can’t resist a good winter scent.
Did you know that the Winter Candy Apple and Vanilla Bean Noel candles you’ve been stockpiling during every Bath & Body Works semi-annual sale are toxic? (Sorry to Grinch this up for you.)
The good news is that there are a ton of great small-batch candle makers out there who use 100% plant-based waxes (beeswax, soy, or coconut!) and far fewer chemicals to keep the fire burning.
I can personally vouch for the ones from Eight Hands (linked above) - a small, family-owned company that started on Etsy and just opened an adorable storefront n Pennsylvania. (They also sell natural soap, wax melts, and lip balm.)
In previous years, they’ve had an option around the holidays to buy a set of 4 smaller candles, so you can choose a flight of flavors. I got my sister a set of holiday scents - and then I gifted myself a set, too.
Ombre or Hand-painted Taper Candles
Perfect for: The aunt hosting Christmas dinner. The friend who loves to throw a dinner party. Stylish pyromaniac cousins.
This is the home decor gift equivalent of an “elevated basic.”
It’s a little bit nicer and more exotic than the plain taper candles people keep on hand, but it’s also easily used up in a dinner party or two or three, so there’s no pressure for it to be in total alignment with someone’s personal dining room aesthetic.
If you do have a good handle on someone’s style, gift these with a pair of vintage candlesticks so your friends and family can keep their dinner table dressed up long after these specific candles have burned to the bottom.
Engraved Map Wooden Coasters
Perfect for: Your travel buddy. Family with fond memories of a family vacation spot. Friends that have moved away.
Commemorate the city where it all began, a destination you hope to never forget, or a set of places you’re dying to visit soon. (All while protecting your furniture from hot and cold beverages!)
I gifted a set to a friend in honor of a few years of spring break trips - and I can verify that they look gorgeous on a coffee table. They’re machine-carved, polished, and oiled, and you can buy them individually or as a set.
Pollinator Wildflower Seed Kit
Perfect for: Gardeners. Eco-warriors. Friends with good backyards.
Save the bees, baby! These wildflower seed packages make for a great stocking stuffer, or pair them with a pair of gardening clogs or a potted succulent to amp up the gift-giving volume.
If you’re an even thriftier gift-giver, you could make a few sets of these by hand. Pick up pollinator mix at your closest garden center, and get crafty decorating your own seed pouches.
Another pro - these are great gifts for friends and family that won’t be home for the holidays. They’re lightweight, small, and easy to send through the mail. (Although it should be noted that you should not ship seeds across foreign borders!)
Christmas Krampus bath bombs
Perfect for: Funny kids and German cousins.
Feeling impish?
These Christmas Krampus bath bombs are a fun, “naughty-list” surprise for Christmas morning.
Because I am incapable of missing an opportunity to troll my family, I wrapped mine in kraft paper and masking tape, hand-stamped using this stamp, to make it look like Krampus himself had left them under the tree.
(I will warn you: In the true spirit of Krampus, this bath bomb will leave a glittery black residue on your bathtub and your legs. Use it BEFORE you already planned to clean the tub.)
Prison Mike air freshener
Perfect for: Fans of “The Office.” Teenagers with fresh driver’s licenses.
Not sure you need to bring The Office with you on your commute? (… Why are you the way that you are?)
There’s also a “grumpy Inauguration Day Bernie Sanders,” a smiling Justin Bieber, a Post Malone, and at least 7 different Harry Styles’ to choose from.
Bloody Mary Kit
Perfect for: In-laws who love a boozy brunch. Hostesses with the mostess-es.
The best thing you could do for the host or hostess of a big family Christmas celebration would be to put a tall Bloody Mary in their hand the moment all the relatives are heading out the door to go home.
The second-best thing is to gift them with all the ingredients to make one themselves.
This is another easy DIY if you’ve got the eye for a good gift basket - but I’m a big fan of the Stone Hollow Farmstead kits.
Snag your favorite mix: Ordinary Mary, Scary Mary, Loaded Mary, Dirty Mary, Quirky Mary - and then choose accoutrement like pickled okra, hot peppers, or infused salts.
(If you’re really on your gift-giving game, you’ll throw in a bottle of vodka, too!)
“Prison Ramen”
Perfect for: College students. Your prison pen pal.
Okay, this is a gift that isn’t technically from a small business - but it can easily be DIY-ed with local finds.
During my brother’s freshman year of college, I paired the book “Prison Ramen” (brownie points for finding it at a local bookstore and not Amazon,) with a noodle cooker (admittedly, from Walmart…) and a jar of Momofuku chili crunch.
If you’re committed to the “Prison Ramen” theme, you could also gift it with an overflowing box of Top Ramen, or an assortment of ingredients from the recipes inside - Doritos, Fritos, Funyons, etc. - all meant to be easily found in a prison commissary.
If you’re into the Ramen, but maybe not as into the Prison theme - you could gift with a hand-painted ramen bowl (like this, this, or this!) or a gift card to the local sushi joint.
Beaded Pet Portrait Ornament
Purrfect for: Pet parents.
What’s cuter than a beaded replica of your pet on the tree? Nothing.
Better yet - when you buy from this shop, you’re supporting a small business owner in Ukraine.
Each ornament is made-to-order out of glass beads, based on 2 or 3 reference photos of your pet. She’ll even embroider their name on the felt back of the ornament!
(Note that because each item is customized to look like your pet and the war has elongated shipping times - you’ll need to place your order with plenty of time before the holiday rush!)
Stovetop Potpourri
Perfect for: Long-distance friends and family. People who want their entire home to smell like a Christmas tree.
I gifted this all-natural, pine-scented stovetop magic to cousins that weren’t able to travel to us during the holiday season last year.
Each jar comes with a dried blend of pine, cinnamon sticks, cloves, pinecones and simple instructions to simmer on low heat to release the most heavenly, Christmas tree scent. According to the tag, it can be used up for four times, and will continue to release pine scented goodness for up to 4 days each time.
I also highly recommend the seasonal dried potpourri mixes from Widdershins. (These go in a decorative bowl - NOT on the stove!)
If none of these strike your fancy, I recommend checking out the following for great gift ideas:
Etsy (for vintage treats, artisan handmade goods, and custom orders)
Local thrift shops, flea markets, and antique stores
Local restaurants (for gift cards, bags of coffee, etc.)
Local breweries (for gift cards, 6-packs)
RubyLane (for vintage collectibles, art, and jewelry)
Chairish (for one-of-a-kind and vintage decor)
Tiny Showcase (for affordable, limited edition art prints)
Have a brilliant idea to add to this list? Tell me! So I can steal it! 🎄