HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE {UK edition}
Eco + Conscious Living, Gift Ideas
Each year I LOVE putting together a list to help you shop the way I would without the stress of having to think of options yourself. I curate this list…
I’m here to make conscious, thoughtful holiday shopping a bit simpler, and more fun! Each year I LOVE putting together these lists! I fall in love with my favourite companies all over again as I write to help you shop the way I would, just without the stress of having to think of options yourself. I make these lists from companies, products and people we have experience with rather than just ideas that look wonderful. I research hugely before I buy anything and I really believe in the power of where we spend and how we gift in the power that it has to do good, so here are some ideas for those in the US to help you shop.
Let’s get gifting:
a few of the links in this post are affiliate links so I make a commission if you shop through them. Honestly, there are fewer affiliate links in here than ever before because I want the right gift guide not the one with the most commission. And this year, that meant fewer affiliate links. I’m still very grateful when you shop through them cos the ones that are affiliate links make this possible and give me more room to help! It also means I can donate $1 from every Beautycounter holiday set bought through my links to No Kid Hungry which I’m excited to get to do!
Search for a gently used item from Vinted or eBay!
This can be a great option for a lower budget, getting more for your money, or just embracing the value of not buying new! I like to search ethically producing brands still (I got Jared a Nudies black jacket last year and it was such a win!) and I search things like patagonia, ABLE, Veja, Sezane for fun pieces at a fraction of the cost! If you’re worried about it being used you can search for things “new with tags” and there are still some real bargains, but I just embrace going second hand and write a note explainging the value behind it in terms of the planet and ethics, then I think it can be really thoughtful. For kids we also love lego bundles used from eBay!
In places I’ve picked one item from a brand to show on the list – but use the website and shop around – there are so many options beyond the ones I’ve shown here. There are some fantastic B corp certified brands where everything is done to a high standard of ethics – you can see where I’ve noted to shop the whole brand!
Happy shopping!
Invite them on, or gift, an experience
We do this a lot with my family! For my sister’s birthday I took her on a winery tour, and for another sister and brother in law we all agreed to do no gifting but go on a fun double date dinner together. Both were so special! You could do this as a gift voucher for them to use, an invitation to go together, or all deciding together to do something in lieu of gifts.
Put together a thoughtful “date night” gift basket
I love doing a date night gift basket for a couple or a family! A jar of un popped bulk popcorn is really budget friendly but fun as a gift (this is a HUGE non GMO paper bag for $30 it would make a lot of little gifts at a great price then keep the rest for the year for you!), then some chocolate or a bottle of wine or another drink, and an iTunes gift card for a movie (do it digitally and print it so you can get a $10 one, for a physical one it must be $25+).
You could keep this on the budget end or adjust for any budget. Go to charity shops and buy a basket, search out some fun mugs and include hot chocolate mix, add another gift card for door dash, buy socks for them to put on for the movie, or add in a voucher for you do babysit kids if you have that relationship. It takes a bit of creativity but can work out really well for a thoughtful family gift on a budget. Especially good with kids of various ages if you don’t know what to gift and want the ease of giving one gift!
Stasher Bags: 25% off sitewide
More and more I like to gift practical needed, but nice things to people! Things that aren’t essential so they’re still fun to get, but aren’t unnecessary “stuff”. These are on my own list and I’m so exciting about having more for my kitchen! They’re SO useful, and they’re safer than plastic as well as longer lasting. If silicon does end up in landfill/oceans it doesn’t break down to harmful micro plastics making it safer from start to finish. Buy one and fill it with a few things for a teacher gift, pair with a recipes book for a bigger gift – so many ways to make it fun!
Find them all HERE on Black Friday sale!
Olive and June press ons: Great budget pick : Under $20 || 25% off use PARTY25
I reluctantly fell in love with these earlier this year! I wanted to try some recycled press ons (which these are) and they shocked me with how easy, fun, and non-press on looking they were. Everyone was shocked they weren’t real or professionally done!
Find them all HERE with safer polish and advent calendars too! Use KeziaA20 for 20% off your first order.
Cotopaxi Bumbag: 25% off fall + winter favourites
Cotopaxi is a fantastic ethical brand that guarantees its products for life. I’ve been eyeing this bumbag for years and a friend has it – it’s wonderful. I wanted to go used and couldn’t find it used so I went for the Patagonia one below but this one would make a beautiful thoughtful gift!
Shop it here in a few colours and browse the whole brand
Apolis Customized Market Totes
Someone you know needs this gift! This is SUCH a beautiful piece to customize and gift. Perfect for a parent with the places their children live, the coordinates of an event, or a statement about who someone is. “Gigi’s Market Bag.”
It’s also one they can send quickly so a last minute option too if you need one!
Find the whole gorgeous range HERE
ABLE Gold Filled Studs: up to 75% off sitewide
I LIVE in my ABLE studs, and this is one of the best of the best brands doing everything. They are the only brand I know who publish wages of employees and strive for the deepest transparency, and security for their manufacturers. “Made by women who overcome” is their tagline on jewellery, helping women secure employment in Nashville. It’s a beautiful company. And you can use KEZIAHOLIDAY40 to save 40% on your order!
Find them HERE and shop the whole fantastic site!
Nisolo Chelsea Boot + Lori Bag: 30% off sale
All I want for Christmas is… these. We both have their Chelsea boots and LOVE THEM but these are on my list for everyday life. They’re classic, gorgeous and so well made. I’ve had the Lori bag for 5 years as my “diaper bag” and it’s perfect and timeless. Nisolo is a beautiful B Corp brand where everything is made ethically and to be long lasting which is another major factor in waste creation. And check out their Ethical Marketplace too! – it will take care of so much of your holiday shopped list!
Ethically made. B corporation. Climate Neutral. Leather Working Group. 1% for the planet. Shop the whole brand HERE
RNLI x Finnesterre Collection
This is an English B corp brand but they ship to the US and we LOVE it. They have some great items like their collab with DAME period products, a well priced wet bag for ocean adventurers, and a collection with RNLI where 10% of the profits go. I love this wool beanie, the boots socks, and organic cotton hankie.
Finnesterre x RNLI collection ($10 shipping, free over $150)
Yeti Wine Tumblers + Wine: Under $30- free gift with purchase
Maybe more of a summer item but a PERFECT gift and throw in a bottle of wine. We got these in the summer and have used them… a lot. If you know people who picnic with wine? Take wine to the pool? Hike with drinks?! They’re perfect. And bonus they have a magnetic close on the top so they can take a little bit of real life! Pair a couple with a bottle of wine for a GREAT couple gift! Another B Corp we love.
B corp. Find the range HERE
Tartine Bread Book: Under $30
Ok, I know sourdough was very 2020 for lots of people but it’s also for everyday bread baking to save money!
The recipes in here are my every day go to for a perfect loaf and they’re easy to follow which not all sourdough recipes are!
Find it HERE on Amazon or HERE on World of Books
Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven (+all their cast iron!)
A gift that lasts actually forEVER. You can’t destroy a good cast iron piece. And that’s a huge reason I use it. It saves so much waste from landfill. But it’s also a teflon free, safer way to cook, that done right is still non stick, naturally. This one will sort your home cook family member, creative friend, baker, it’s an essential for taking bread baking to the next level. You could pair it with some dried sourdough starter and it’s an EPIC gift! Or the tartine book I use for all my sourdough.
My go to skillet – you can run a kitchen on just this pan || This is the dutch oven for a bread baker gift ||
My book: The Green Edit: Home: Under $20
In 2019 I was asked to write a book for this Green Edit series and I said yes so you could read it and gift it to everyone! But really, I wrote this for you. It’s not just a list of things to do, it’s a walk through a no judgement zone of a journey towards a more ethical sustainable home without being complicated.
Snag it HERE on US Amazon
Animal Vegetable Miracle Book
Best book I’ve read in a long time. It’s a thought provoking and fun read about a family who moves states and learns to eat locally along with the challenges and joys that come with that. I blew though it and loved every page from the gardening memoirs, to the dives into the socio-economic factors affecting food and eating in America. A brilliant gift for anyone who things about where their food comes from and its impact.
HERE on Amazon
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds: Budget friendly
Seeds make a really fun thoughtful gift! I’m really careful about the seeds I buy, and this is my top choice for the US being organic, open pollinated and open sourced and having a huge variety!
Idea: Grab a budget friendly terracotta plant pot and fill it with a few veggie or plant seeds for a fantastic gift! Add chocolate or a bottle too if you want or keep it simple.
Find them HERE
Gua Sha Tool From Lanshin: Under $40
When I take the time for some self care – this is the little tool I pull out and I can’t recommend it enough. Follow @treatmentbylanshin on instagram for amazing little videos to follow – they relax me like nothing else!
Find it HERE
For the coffee drinker: Temperature controlling Ember Mug: sale on various items
Who do you know who drinks cold coffee or leaves half empty mugs around cos they’re not hot anymore? Yeah this is what they need! It’s over $100 so club together with other people to make it work and still get the epic gift! I was given this years ago and it’s the BEST gift!
Find it HERE or HERE on the Ember Amazon store
Beautycounter On the Go Makeup Set: Under $40 with the code below: 20% off sitewide
*I’m donating $1 from every Beautycounter holiday set bought though my links to No Kid Hungry!* Such a fantastic little clean beauty, well sourced and formulated set! A cream eye shadow in a warm taupe that’s so easy to swipe on and use, a lip gloss with organic ECOCERT vanilla from a women owned cooperative, and a mascara (in a recycled plastic tube!) Plus very strict ingredient selection for safety, screening for heavy metals… and three things I use and love! This would make a PERFECT gift!
Female founded. B corp. Find it HERE, shop the whole brand and use CLEANFORALL20 for 20% off your first order
Stunning Sparkling water machine + Glass Bottles
Sparkling water is my love language… but shipping water is not a love language for the earth and the cost is not one for the budget. So, make your own! Yes it’s pricey BUT have you added up how much you spend and the footprint of buying?! When I did this seemed WAY more affordable! A refillable cartridge (exchange via post or local store) turns tap water into perfect bubbly water in a glass bottle. AMAZING. If you buy 2 bottles of sparkling water a week on average this will pay for itself in a bit over a year without thinking about the environmental savings. Plus it’s beautiful. It’s a great gift or one to put on the list for you too!
Find it HERE and the glass bottles HERE and on Amazon HERE
Vitae Watches
Best watch company ever. They’re everything I want them to be and oh how I’ve searched for ethical watches. SEARCHED. I mean, ones that look nice. They have a higher price tag, but not a higher price tag than buying one every year because they break… These are stunning, classic, ethically made, a company built around doing social good, black owned and just a DREAM find.
Black owned. Ethically made. Social good. Shop the whole brand HERE.
MAHA Leather Jacket from ABLE: up to 75% off sitewide
This is the most expensive item on this list, but it’s something I was gifted years ago that’s a timeless lifelong gift. And it comes with a lifetime guarantee. Their whole lines is very ethically made, and it’s a business existing for good and to bring change to women and the clothing industry. They’re taking industry strides in being size inclusive to the point of offering size swaps. And this is a buttery, beautiful, show stopper gift.
Find it here and use KEZIAHOLIDAY40 for 40% off!
Pela Sunglasses: buy one get one
They. Are. Amazing. They’re made from recycled materials stopping them going to landfill, and you can return hem them to be made into other products by Pela too when you’re done with them. Add in blue light lenses when you buy sunglasses and they’re interchangeable making it a great two in one. We’ve gifted so many of these!
Biodegradable. B corporation. 1% for the planet. Shop the whole brand HERE.
Nudies Denim + accessories
A gift card might be a good one here – and it would make an epic lasting gift: The ultimate denim that’s really truly backed with values. Ethically made, from organic cotton, and each pair comes with free repairs for LIFE to reduce waste. They’re pricey, but not for what you’re actually getting. Nudies is a company that really cares about the impact of the clothing industry and they’re really working (and succeeding) at finding the clothing sales model with the most positive impact and we love them! Great gift for any deeply committed to eco ethical clothing
Find them here and the rest of their clothing line too with some smaller accessories like belts and Ts.
Mini Fragrance Set: Under $30
Fragrance is a minefield. Most of them are made with artificial fragrance ingredients, often derived from oil and those are linked to many potential health concerns. These are fully plant derived, and natural, making them free from those health concerns and a fantastic gift! I think these could even be split up to make mini gifts for a girls group, gift club or little teacher gifts. Pop one in a mug with chocolate or another little item!
Find the set of 8 HERE at Credo, another great marketplace for clean beauty
Boden socks + apparel: sitewide various sales
A good catch all brand for dad, mother in law, kids pajamas, so many options there. Boden has been around in the UK for ever and lots of people don’t know it’s a more ethical clothing brand! You can read about their factories, and commitment to nothing going to landfill HERE. Did you know they give you a £4 credit when you send back a used item?!
Shop all Boden’s ethically and sustainably made range HERE
Everlane Way High Drape Pants: up to 50% off sitewide
You probably know I’ve been back and forth on my relationship with Everlane. They’ve always been transparent in production and they’re doing well on impact and closed loop production but they’ve had some internal storms over the years. However, they do make a great stepping stone for people to move away from fast fashion with a FAR more positive impact and they do well on a wide range of sizes, making more ethical shopping possible for a wider range of people. I think their wide and high pants this year plug a hole I’m seeing recommended a lot from fast fashion non ethical brands so, take a look!
This link gets you 20% off the whole Everlane store!
For Kids: Hazel Village Dolls
I’ve researched dolls more than I’d care to admit and this is the one item I couldn’t bring myself to get second hand. These dolls and animals are the winner for me with organic materials, ethical production, a reasonable price (for this kind of item, trust me), they actually look gorgeously human, and they have multiple skin tones.
Find them HERE (and for shipping to Canada and beyond see the “where to buy” page) and you get 10% off for signing up to their email so do that!
Beautycounter Plastic free hand cream trio: Under $20 split up! 20% off sitewide
Top tip – buy these and spilt them up into 3 gifts! Add a bar of chocolate or just tie it onto an envelope for a more budget friendly gift!
I always have a hand cream in my bag. And these are ones in luxe metal tubes keeping them plastic free. They’re safely formulated like everything Beautycounter does, and gorgeous gentle natural scents, with fully disclosed ingredients for transparency.
*I’m donating $1 from every Beautycounter holiday set bought though my links to No Kid Hungry!*
B Corporation. Woman founded. Leaping bunny certified. Carefully selected ingredients. Shop the set HERE. US + Canadian Shipping and browse the whole brand
Luxury “Best in Clean” Skincare Collection: 20% off sitewide
*I’m donating $1 from every Beautycounter holiday set bought though my links to No Kid Hungry!*
This would make a stunning gift! It’s a moisturizer, peel, serum for maturing skin, vitamin C serum, mascara and lip gloss! $16 an item in a gorgeous gift box bundle! All formulated for safety and sustainability with EWG, Leaping Bunny, and B corp certifications and multiple award winners in there! I’d go in with siblings for a mother, or give it as a whole depending on the price you do for gifts! Or tell someone you want it for you! If you want a custom shoppable cart like THIS to send to “Santa” yourself with your dream items I can create one with anything you want in the cart just email me kezianeusch@gmail.com or 254 354 4440!
Skincare and makeup dream set and use CLEANFORALL20 at this link for 20% off your first order!
Rothy’s Recycled Plastic Shoes: 75% off archive event selling old styles
I was given a gift card for Rothy’s last year and I’m an instant convert and was so impressed by the company. The shoes are made from recycled plastic bottles, pulled from within 30 miles of coastlines. All ethically made and thoughtful in every step – the sole are eco friendly rubber and the shipping is all carbon neutral by offsetting, and used biodegradable paper and a ribbon of recycled materials. I was so impressed and happy opening the box. They now have a recycling program too to keep all shoes out of landfill.
Find them all HERE with $20 off
All Birds Wool Runners: up to 50% off
I was so happy when Rothy’s came out with this men’s line, I love the look of the shoes and they’re so practical knowing you can throw them in the wash. They’re pricey (not so pricey for well made ethically created shoes but still) but you can save $20 with the link below.
Shop the line HERE
Wildflower Honey with Matcha: under $20
This is one of Oprah’s holiday favourites too! I’ve sent these as gifts and love them! Zack and Zoe is a family run business and anyone who’s working with bees as a family now has my highest respect – we need it more and I love supporting them and gifting a gorgeous product.
Family owned small business. Black owned. Plastic free. Find them HERE.
Onxy Coffee: Under $20
A coffee brand thinking about everything from growers to fuel use to packaging. A great gift for a conscious coffee lover. The entire roastery and production area are off grid operating fully on solar powered energy – part of making it a carbon neutral roastery. Then transparency, each coffee is accompanied by its pricing and trade data. So you can see what was paid for it, who it was bought from, and other details. And the prettiest packaging for gifting, right?
Order it HERE
Evolve Gold Bio-Retinol Mask: 25% off sitewide
Evolve is my UK go to for skincare but you can get it via Credo in the US and Bio-Retinol is a favourite ingredient! This gold mask is so great for maturing skin and such a fun one to gift!
Find it HERE via Credo Beauty (also a great spot to browse cleaner beauty for gifting!)
Uncle Nearest Whisky
Another Whisky with a beautiful story. We won’t get into this but reading into the history of distilleries in the US, slavery, slave owners and how the industry really is the creation of the African American slaves makes me only ever want to buy black owned whisky!
Black owned. Find it on Reserve Bar HERE for the US or locally and other platforms.
Clean Wine from Secco: Under $30
PERFECT gift for the ingredient and eco conscious friend… who also wants a glass of wine at the end of the day. (hi, that’s me!) This is a company I so miss from living in the US! Secco makes it so easy to shop wine with all the nasties (and there are a lot) out, from a great family company, that are really delicious. They have a subscription or you can buy by the bottle. We used to get three bottles a month and it was such a treat.
Family company. Great ingredients. Better for the environment. US only. Shop them HERE.
ABLE Stacking Rings: Under $30: up to 75% off sitewide
These will always be on every list!
I’ve given these little ring for lots of little gifts, that feel special from a great company! I love them and they’d make a great stocking stuffer.
Ethical. Women driven. Social good. Find them HERE! Use code KEZIAHOLIDAY40 for 40% off!
Terrazzo cheese + wine range by ABLE: Under $40 – up to 75% off sitewide
I’ve gifted these and LOVE the look! This is your gift for a great host or hostess! they have a cheese board, knives, coasters and a dish. I feel like these are the hosting items that will actually always get pulled out now stuffed away.
Find them HERE from ABLE! Use KEZIAHOLIDAY40 for 40% off!
ABLE Personalised Coasters and Coffee Sleeve – up to 75% off sitewide
I feel like these would knock someone else off your list that might be hard to shop for! Personalise or don’t, you choose. They’re in two colours and you get 4 in a set. And all ABLE made with the values that are in everything they do.
Find them under home gifts HERE and knock someone else off your list with the coffee sleeve too!
Fountain Pen: Under $20
A life long, waste saving, handwriting enhancing friend and a great gift to ask for or receive! I like ones that have refillable cartridges rather than where you need to buy cartridges but the ones we have are adjustable and can be used for both. They come in a range of prices so they can be an heirloom larger gift or a more everyday item that still lasts forever.
Waste saving. Cost saving. Find it HERE.
In every stocking always: Panda bandaids – Up to 50% off package free store
Every year: these. The Package Free Shop is a personal fave and GREAT place to scroll and knock out lots of gifts at once! Honestly I’ve taught my kids there needs to be a lot of blood to get a plaster so we don’t use many but still, no parabens, pthalates, biodegradable and fun for kids! Highly recommend and a needed item but also fun to throw into a stocking!
Sustainable. Biodegradable. Vegan. International shipping. Plastic free. Find them HERE via Package Free Shop.
Eco Lunch Box via Package Free Store – up to 50% off
This was my exact Christmas gift 6 years ago and it’s still going strong! Eco Lunch Box is a fab brand and this is perfect for taking lunch to go or bringing home leftovers from a restaurant. It’s got a sealable tin that clips over another one of the same size, and a tiny one for dressings or a piece of chocolate!
Find it HERE via Package Free Store or HERE via Amazon
Parker Clay Belt: 30% off
Jared wears this all the time, it’s beautifully made from responsibly sourced and tanned leather and it would make a beautiful gift.
Parker Clay is another B corp brand just doing things so well and using business for true true good.
Find their range HERE and browse the whole brand
Stocking Stuffer: Zkano Socks: Under $20
My all time best and favourite socks. For kids and adults too, they’re really high quality and thick enough to darn if they get a hole making them long lasting and truly sustainable. Made with organic cotton grown in the US, spun and dyed with low impact dyes. Made ethically in a family milll. They repurpose and recycle old socks too.
Recycled polyester. Organic cotton. Sustainable. Ethically made. US shipping only. Find them HERE with 10% off.
Patagonia Hat
There’s a Patagonia hat for everyone! So many different styles, we both own them and have gifted many as they’re a nice price point for a B corp, well made and useful gift! I have a cap and a recycled wool beanie, we gave my dad a gardening and hiking hat, and there are so many more. Such a great catch all!
Find it HERE
Timeless gift for kids: Patagonia jacket
A great one to ask for/buy if you want a well made, B corp, heirloom gift for kids. We asked for these early on and they look brand new after many seasons and 3 kids. Join a birthday and a Christmas together, club together with family or give/ask for money towards one. Buying one larger gift that lasts can be so much better than multiple smaller things!
Shop Patagonia jackets HERE. International shipping.
For family: Artifact Uprising Personalised Calendar: Under $40 – 20% off
We gift this calendar every year (or just the refills now!) and it’s a much loved gift that our family now asks for! It’s printed on FSC paper and clips on a reclaimed wood board with a magnet for the fridge.
Find it and customise your own here
Eco Temporary Tattoos for all ages!
We LOVE these! They’re really high quality, plastic free temporary tattoos. They’re more pricey than the cheap and plentiful ones with thousands of small tattoos, but I’d rather have fewer of these one. And the quality and art is perfect for kids and adults alike.
The Adventure Challenge! – 40% off
We’ve done this one for people this year and I’m excited! It’s a fantastic, highly reviewed, loved by Anthropologie and all over guided date night ideas! Or family date ideas, there are a few. It gets RAVE reviews from people where it’s turned family or couple dates around and there are different price points but we’re excited to gift them this year! They also have an Advent Calendar on my list!
Find it HERE with US/Canada/Australia/UK shipping
Plan well, keep it simple, do what you can!
Don’t be overwhelmed. Make a list, plan your budget, work out what budget you can allocate to gifts and divide it up roughly between the gifts you need to buy, the stockings, the friends and family and work out how much your’e working with in each area. Look out for sales and shop for people when you see the right things, then check them off.
Go second hand where you can for earth and budget. Or invest in well made and sourced options like the ones above!
Some helpful spots to browse and check off multiple great gifts with one cart:
- Nisolo and their Ethical marketplace (B Corp, ethically made shoes and accessories)
- Package Free Shop (Everything you can imagine for lower waste living!)
- ABLE, Use KEZIAHOLIDAY40 for 40% off! (Clothes, leather and accessories made ethically with more widely accessible sizing options.)
- Beautycounter and use CLEANFORALL20 for 20% off your first order with this link. (B corp skincare and makeup with ethical sourcing and transparent ingredient.)
They all have a range of beautiful gifts for various people you need to shop for, and everything on their site is produced with the values of caring for people and planet which just makes shopping easier! Happy browsing!
