Gifted items.
Christmas is around the corner – well, a few more weeks left until then. This is the best time to think about your Christmas gifts (if you have not started yet) because you can avoid rush, low stocks and it gets you into a festive mood just like Christmas baking and decorating.
This year I’m kicking off the season with my Christmas Gift Guide with these sustainable and ethical Christmas gifts for grown ups. I don’t do his, hers… it’s just grown-ups.
I’ve got fantastic items coming from indie brands and small businesses, and most of them are also either eco-friendly or ethically produced – or both! Shopping local and with online small businesses are important for me and for all of us. They play an important role in communities and they have a major economic impact. As for the green and ethical aspect, these are very important issues for me. I’d like to create awareness, because making conscious choices when deciding about a purchase is more possible than ever these days. We can do better, by making positive choices for people and planet. Money is a vote which you can use every time you go shopping. By using your spending power wisely you can help to create a better, healthier and greener world.
With this guide I wish you a very merry Christmas season. We’re all here to make a difference and spread kindness. Peace & love.
Reusable Zip Top Container Set
Nearly New Cashmere Fingerless Gloves
These wonderful, soft yellow fingerless gloves are made from discarded jumpers – they are super cosy, very practical and long enough to keep wrists warm too. 100% Cashmere, one size, there are lots of other colours and designs available.
Nearly New Cashmere recycles and restores 100% cashmere so that cashmere lovers can shop nearly new without compromising on quality. It’s sustainable, zero-waste, cheaper way to buy beautiful cashmere products but without compromising on quality.
RRP: £28
Panda Joy Christmas Cards
Panda Joy®™ is a minority and family-owned Oxfordshire-based publisher of sustainable and eco-friendly greeting cards. They produce 100% tree-free greeting cards, consisting of 75% bamboo and 25% cotton linter to eliminate the use of virgin trees.
What’s more, a third of profits are donated to environmental and community good. Every time a Panda Joy greeting card is purchased, a portion of the profits goes towards supporting environmental and social organisations, including the Micro Loan Foundation and Lend with Care.
More than 1 billion Christmas cards are thrown in the bin every year – and that’s just Christmas cards, not counting any other occasional cards. To the Ashiru family, this didn’t seem like the right way to be spreading Joy. And so Panda Joy was born, with a big vision and an even bigger mission.
RRP: from £1.50.-
Moshulu x National Trust Collection
Moshulu is an indie footwear designer based in Devon that specialises in well-made and incredibly comfortable options for your feet. This is their first women’s collection with the conservation charity, National Trust, and it’s their most environmentally conscious collection to date, with carefully selected sustainable materials used, including 100% recycled plastic bottle imitation suede, organic cotton and recycled EVA.
Alongside the National Trust, they’ve created an exclusive coastal print, featuring seaweeds, plants and shells native to Britain, which is used throughout the collection to celebrate the UK’s coastline.
Through sales of this collection, Moshulu will contribute a minimum of £10,000 to the National Trust to support their continued work caring for over 780 miles of coastline in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
This pair is the Indigo Coastal Print
RRP: £39.- (currently on sale for £32.-)
CHARITY Give a Homeless Young Person a New Beginning with a Centrepoint Gift
Last winter, over 29,000 young people faced homelessness, with numbers expected to rise this year due to the ongoing cost of living crisis. For many homeless young people, Christmas can be isolating and upsetting – a reminder of what they don’t have.
Some may have never experienced a home-cooked meal, surrounded by friends and family. They may never have exchanged gifts or taken part in other traditions many of us take for granted. For others, this time of year can bring back memories of spending Christmas in an unsafe environment.
Sometimes even a small gift, when it is needed most, can be a new beginning for a homeless young person. Give the greatest gift this year through Centrepoint Christmas gifts. Ranging from £10 to £1,500, any donation small or large will make a meaningful difference.
Gold Kintsugi Repair Kit by Humade
Available at Sugru, this is a perfect mindful gift for anyone. Celebrating the beauty of imperfection, the ancient Japanese art of kintsugi (meaning gold repair) originated in the late 15th century when broken ceramics were repaired with visible gold or silver seams resulting in beautiful, unique treasures. With the handy Gold Kintsugi Repair Kit by Humade, you’re able to mend any of your special objects made of ceramic, glass, wood, marble or hard plastic. The kit contains enough material for up to 10 repairs.
1 x Gold Kintsugi Kit by Humade, which contains:
- Two component glues
- 4g (approx. 0.14oz) gold powder
- Brush
- Bamboo stirring sticks
- Gloves
- 10g (approx. 0.35oz) filling putty
- Step-by-step detailed manual
RRP: £23.99.-
better. Recycled Material Beanie
better. was founded in 2016 and offers ethically made fashion and lifestyle accessories for adults and kids. Especially knitwear accessories & bags made from recycled materials, produced right here in the UK.
– using waste to make something new – helping to reduce pollution & resource use
– timeless and durable styles that last
– not about fast fashion and mass production but pieces to treasure
– small production runs
– preserving traditional crafts and industry
– dedicated to make fast fashion become a thing of the past
– made in the belief that buying fewer but better products is more sustainable
Wildjac Homegrown Distillery Naturally Dry Gin
Wildjac creates premium botanical spirits with natural ingredients foraged from the Wyre Forest and surrounding land. Carefully hand picked, selected and blended finest botanicals into most amazing drinking experience for consumers. Evolving traditional distilling techniques and embracing state of the art technology Wildjac have been able to reduce their carbon foot print and produce truly sustainable, eco-friendly spirits.
This natural gin with classic notes of Juniper berry is lifted by locally sourced and foraged Thyme, Douglas Fir and lemon balm. The botanical notes are rounded by chamomile & angelica with the late additions of fresh orange and lemon lift this gin to a beautiful refreshing finish.
RRP: £29.95.-
me instead Revive Bar and Diatomite Tray Kit
Giving you the same great wash but without the waste, our ylang ylang & rose geranium shampoo bar treats dryness and frizz caused by the stresses of everyday elements, chemical treatments and heat styling with deeply penetrating essential oils and natural plant extracts.
Simply remove the bar from your shower or bath and store it on the diatomite tray in-between uses. Poured not pressed, it’s the gentlest, most nourishing shampoo bar yet.
- Extra-large 100g bar
- Concentrated formula lasts on average x3 as long as liquid shampoo
- Includes our unique diatomite storage holder to soak up excess moisture
- Breathe life into your hair with repairing ylang ylang and nourishing rose geranium
- Leaves hair soft, strong and manageable – even without conditioner
- Lathers like your favourite liquid shampoo
- Naturally derived ingredients
- Hand-luggage friendly
- Free from plastic, sulfates and preservatives
- Gender free
- Vegan friendly and cruelty free
RRP: £20.-
Go Emu Sustainable Towel
Ideal for sport, travel and everyday life Emu’s sustainable range of colourful towels will be your friend when you want to combine packing light, functionality and sustainability. Made from 100% recycled post consumer plastic, 50 bottles = 1 towel.
RRP: £28.-
Critically Endangered Socks
Critically Endangered Socks and baby socks are made from GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certified organic cotton. These are high-quality materials, meaning that they’ll have a long life and a low environmental impact. By creating socks that are an investment and are built to last, we’re fighting against fast fashion.
I received a pair of The Hawksbill Turtle socks. A partnership between Critically Endangered Socks X WWF. By purchasing these socks, you’re helping WWF protect hawksbill turtles by preserving their habitat, monitoring their populations and reducing the threat of turtle by catch.
- 85% GOTS certified organic cotton, 10% polyester, 5% spandex
- Each pair is packaged in a bespoke recyclable cardboard box
- Model is 5’7 wearing a size small
- Includes recycled fact sheet
RRP: £12.-
CHARITY SEED Madagascar – Stitch Sainte Luce
These handmade, embroidered products offer ‘one of a kind’ pieces this Christmas, created by a woman’s sewing cooperative in Madagascar.
Made from recycled cotton, each individual item is totally unique and offers a stunning present with real purpose. Made by the women of the Stitch Sainte Luce cooperative, the items’ sales bring in valuable income for families in Madagascar; who need our support now more than ever, as 1.15 million people on the island face starvation, due to the world’s first climate change famine.
Stitch Sainte Luce, supported by the charity SEED Madagascar, has taught embroidery, as well as business skills in maths, sales and English language, to over 100 women. Alongside value incomes, the cooperative has also helped empower women, giving them a creative and social outlet and building self-confidence.
ARRAN Sense of Scotland Gift Set
ARRAN Sense of Scotland who have recently launched their new ARRAN Naturals collection – a brand-new sustainably focused wellbeing collection.
Indulge in 100% natural, vegan and cruelty-free therapeutic fragrances and care products direct from the Isle of Arran. As part of this, Arran has launched new products including pulse points, bath salts and deodorants as part of the collection. Uniquely designed around the wellbeing found in the nature that surrounds ARRAN Naturals’ Island home, the Mindful, Awaken and Calm expressions bring the outdoor elements together in harmony to transport customers to a moment of tranquillity.
This beautiful set of Lochranza shave stone & soap with an elegant and fantastic quality shave brush make a lovely gift. Modelled on a pebble from Whiting Bay, the Arran Shave Stone is a traditional shave bowl with an island twist. Partnered with Lochranza Shave Soap, this product allows you to create a rich lather to soften bristles and promote a clean shave.
RRP: stone and soap £25.- and shave brush: £22.-
Lost Years – Wandering Turtle Rum
Lost Years is the spirits brand with a purpose – a range of exceptional rums devoted to saving endangered sea turtles.
Every drop of Lost Years rum saves baby sea turtles. Working with charity partner, SEE Turtles, they help fund community-based conservation at key nesting sites across the Caribbean & Latin America. In their first year alone, they raised enough money to save over 31,000 sea turtles, but with your help they will save over 1 million in the next few years!
From Lost Years, the rum brand devoted to saving endangered sea turtles, comes a new range of premium spiced rums inspired by the wandering sea turtles of the Caribbean. For the Gold Spiced Rum they’ve married gloriously smooth rums from Jamaica, Venezuela and Nicaragua with beautifully sweet queen pineapples and tropical spices. The Silver Spiced Rum features a beautiful silver rum from sun-kissed Antigua, married with moreish toasted coconut and exotic spices.
RRP: £32.95.-
Danilo – Royal Horticultural Society Family Organiser 2023
I rely on my organisers heavily, I know, when it’s added to the organiser, I can then offload that mentally so I don’t feel overloaded trying to remember everything.
Official Royal Horticultural Society Product. Each month features imagery from the world’s finest collection of botanic art, and includes up to 200 themed stickers for you to add to your calendar throughout the year. This official organiser has five columns so you can write your family’s itinerary for 2023 plus there is a pocket at the back of the calendar to store all your notes, vouchers and receipts.
RRP: £10.99.-
CHARITY Earthwatch Book Club
Recently launched Earthwatch Book Club, a subscription book club supports the work of Earthwatch Europe. For £10 a month, they send out an environmental-themed book every other month and then have an online live Q&A with the author in the following month.
The Book Club is a great way to get your hands on new environmental titles, read some new books that maybe you wouldn’t have tried before and discuss the books with the authors and other club members.
Earthwatch Book Club is available as a gift certificate option and would make the ideal Christmas present for a nature-friendly alternative to tired, traditional gifts.
Earthwatch Europe is an environmental charity with science at our heart. We connect people with the natural world, monitor the health of our natural resources, and help people take action to have a positive impact.
Tessie Dotty Print Pyjama Trousers – Made with Liberty Fabric
Independent Wine K. Martini Maturum Lagrein Riserva | Gries Cru | Alto Adige DOC 2018
This premium award-winning Italian wine of K. Martini Maturum Lagrein Riserva | Gries Cru | Alto Adige DOC 2018 – a dark and powerful Lagrein from the Gries cru, with tastes of sweet black cherries, dark Darjeeling tea, black pepper and dark chocolate. “Best in Show” award at Decanter 2020.
Lagrein wine is dark and deep. It’s known as Dunkel – dark- in German. It’s because it has the highest level of anthocyanins (a type of tannins responsible for dark ruby colour) among all Italian grapes. Lagrein is a late-ripener that needs a lot of warmth, and a very finicky grape with unstable productivity. So it’s only cultivated by the most dedicated and hard-working winemakers who dare to go the extra mile.
Grapes are picked by hand in the first week of October. Back in the day, Lagrein wine was known for its bitter aftertaste. But now any unpleasant flavours are avoided thanks to modern techniques such as cold fermentation. Lucas Martini, the winemaker, ferments grape must for 20 days in stainless steel tanks, at a controlled temperature of 25°C. After malolactic fermentation, the wine is placed in 1500-litre French oak barrels for eighteen months, for ageing and refinement. Ultimately, the wine is lightly filtered, bottled and left in the cellar to rest for at least seven months, where it finished developing while the flavours integrate.
RRP: £33.45.-
Evolve Organic Beauty The Smooth and Sooth Duo
This pretty pink exfoliating Rose Quartz Facial Polish blended with organic Rosehip Oil and organic Hibiscus Extract will smooth and buff away dead skin cells leaving your skin looking crystal clear. Follow up with Daily Renew Facial Cream to nourish, hydrate and soothe. What a treat! They come in a beautiful paper box.
Evolve Beauty products are lovingly handmade in small batches in Hertfordshire to ensure the freshness of the precious antioxidants in the natural oils, butters and extracts. All their products are vegan, cruelty free and eco-friendly.
RRP: £29.-
CHARITY The North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR) Gifts
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR) has created a first-class Christms gift guide for 2022 for the train lover in your life. With options including stocking fillers such as the Herdy Mug Set or Exclusive Locomotive Socks, to the ultimate experience, a scenic ride on one of its steam trains with a delicious Signalman’s Buffet Lunch, perfect for spoiling the family!
Read about the charitable aims are here.
EVAMOSO Thriller Leggings
The Eva Thriller Leggings are made from highly technical compressive fabric, ECONYL® (a regenerated nylon from landfill waste around the world) they boast excellent recovery power and muscular compression. This is aimed at decreasing the build up of lactic acid, which boosts quicker recovery of energy when exercising.
A high waisted legging that is designed to make you feel fully secure and guarantees superior comfort and support. Don’t be surprised if they make you feel like you’re wearing a second-skin.
Perfect for running, yoga, sweating, pilates and drinking rosé.
RRP: £75.-
Tracklements The Cheese Collection (vegan and gluten free)
Tracklements believe in business as a force for good, protecting the environment as they go and have been awarded B Corp accreditation. They’re committed to make the most planet-friendly condiments possible by minimising their environmental footprint through using recyclable packaging, their own water treatment facility, and over 10,000 square feet of solar panels, which enables the company to generate 100% renewable electricity that is also fed into the national grid at weekends through Good Energy.
Tracklements The Cheese Collection (vegan and gluten free)
- Apricot & Ginger Chutney, 220g
- Apple & Cider Brandy Chutney, 220g
- Caramelised Onion Marmalade, 250g
- Green Tomato Chutney, 220g
RRP £17.15.-
Made By Coopers Wellness Products
Made by Coopers only use natural, organic and plant derived ingredients to create our artisan line of beauty and wellness products.
Nutrient rich plant oils, therapeutic grade essential oils, flower hydrolats and botanical actives are used throughout, to give you a skin care line that harnesses pure plant power. Each product has an aromatherapy element to it: Calming, Balancing, Uplifting, Energising and Passion. Drawing from the Ayurvedic philosophy to treat the body as a whole, we believe to nourish the skin, nourish the mind. All products are always 100% free from: Parabens, SLS’s, Mineral oil, Sulfates, Artificial colours and Synthetic fragrances. 100% vegan friendly and cruelty-free.
Grapefruit Passion Cleansing Oil
Deeply cleanse, remove makeup and unclog congested skin.
A detoxifying blend of bioactive plant oils, infused with grapefruit and black pepper, to gently cleanse the skin.
- Organic Grapefruit – helps remove toxins & clear oily, congested skin
- Passion Flower Oil – rich in omegas & amino acids, nourishes the skin & strengthens lashes
- Jojoba Oil – naturally mimics human sebum, balances oil production & clears blocked pores
RRP: £28.-
Reduce Fine Lines & Promote Cell Turnover
A beautifying and nutritive blend of precious oils to nourish, repair and balance the skin.
- Argan Oil – Softens the skin and reduces fine lines and wrinkles
- Rosehip Oil – Stimulates collagen production and cell renewal
- Evening Primrose Oil – Maintain healthy cell structure, increased blood flow to the skin
The blend of these three essential oils helps to reduce signs of ageing while improving the skin. Use daily for a brighter, smoother, more refined complexion.
RRP: £25.-
The Oxford Artisan Distillery Dam Sloe Gin
CHARITY Buy Dinner or a Toy for a Foster Dog
Animal welfare charity, Miracle’s Mission is offering a wonderful opportunity to sprinkle some Christmas good cheer for the needy rescue dogs and cats that are waiting to be fostered; to buy them a special Christmas dinner or toy. It’s the ultimate present for the dog or cat lover in your family, who will receive a certificate as their gift…
You can buy a Christmas Dinner or a toy for a dog or cat, which comes with a certificate. And with so many hungry mouths to feed at Miracle’s Mission, your gift will make a massive difference to the quality of life of a dog or cat at this time of year.
Christmas Dinner for a dog or cat costs £5 and a toy for a dog or cat also costs £5. You can purchase your gift from www.miraclesmission.org, where you can also find out about fostering or adopting an injured or disabled animal.
Sniffe & Likkit Natural Dog Grooming
Fun, fabulous & fragrant, these multitasking products have been specially formulated to deliver top quality grooming results at home by Sniffe & Likkit.
Made in the UK, their grooming range uses a 100% natural aromatherapeutic scent alongside natural, active and botanical ingredients that are vegan friendly and pH balanced for dogs skin and fur. Their tasty treats are hand-baked in small batches in the heart of the English countryside.
Dog Cologne RRP: 14.-
Dog Treat Tin RRP: 7.-
Fab Paw Protection Balm RRP: £14.-
Gift Set of 4 Friendly Soap Bars
Friendly Soap Gift set including:
- Lavender bar
- Aloe Vera bar
- Cocoa Butter bar
- Shea Butter bar
All full size.
Packaged in plastic-free, recycled and recyclable boxes, Friendly Soap has earned a ‘Best’ rating with the Ethical Consumer, so you can enjoy a spotlessly clean conscience too.
- No harmful preservatives or foaming agents
- Palm Oil-free
- Vegan-friendly and Cruelty-free
- Biodegradable
- Zero-waste and Plastic-free
- Handmade in the UK
- Ethical Consumer Best Buy
Started in 2008, Friendly Soap’s mission is simple: create high-quality products that tick as many ethical boxes as possible.
Their range of soaps contain no animal products or by-products and have never been tested on animals. The ancient cold-process method they use means the soaps are totally biodegradable and free from by-products too, so there’s literally no waste.
