Tea lovers
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| Image sources: David's Tea, Bodum |
David's Tea makes tea so fun and accessible whether you're young, old, new to tea, or a little further along. They have tonnnssss of gift sets right now for all sorts of tea lovers, but I managed to pick out a few favourites: the adorable Penguin Tea Party Nordic Mug ($23 CAD) and the Tea Of The Month kit ($26 CAD), which includes a nice assortment of teas.
To make more than a single serving of tea, I have a Bodum Chambord French Press ($55 CAD for 17oz), well-built and meant for coffee but works great for tea: tea leaves get plenty of room to open up and release flavour, and the mesh filters out even teeny, finicky tea leaves like rooibos. But I just found out about the Bodum Chambord Tea Pot ($40 CAD) and it looks really cool. You get the roominess of the French Press, but with the option to remove the tea leaves when it's done brewing.
For the kitchen
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| Image sources: Old Faithful, Bed Bath & Beyond, Indigo |
I asked a good friend, who is a very talented cook and baker, what someone like him would want for Christmas (hi, D!) He mentioned Silpats ($24.99 CAD), which are actually pretty great: they eliminate the need for parchment paper in baking, and provide a non-stick surface to knead dough. He also mentioned battery-operated salt and pepper mills and I was all, "really dude??" And he sent me a picture of this Cole & Mason Mill Set ($69.99 CAD) he uses every day. This would be a nice small luxury for the cook in your life, and also D makes awesome food on the regular, so what do I know anyway.
For the person who is a perfectionist about both cooking and organizing, there's the Rifle Paper Co. Tin Recipe Box ($38 CAD), which comes with recipe cards and dividers to organize them. I keep something similar with a plastic black box and index cards, but this option is obviously way prettier and gift-worthy.
Cozy homes
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| Image sources: Umbra, Squishables, Saje |
I love collecting bunny things, so I couldn't resist adding this Umbra Anigram Bunny Ring Holder to the list. For $8 CAD, this would be such a cute stocking stuffer, and it comes in white enamel too.
Saje has quite a few nebulizers models to choose from, but Saje AromaGem ($69.95 CAD) is the most gift-able because of the modern and pretty faceted design and the mid-range price. The AromaGem expels a superfine mist of water and essential oils to gently perfume a home, without using heat. It's kind of like a candle you can refill again and again. (There is also a holistic aspect, if your giftee is a believer of the power of essential oils.) There's a pretty good range of Saje diffuser blends to choose from; the scents tend to be natural and earthy, perfect for someone that doesn't like anything that smells super artificial or cloying.
Gamers
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| images source: amazon.ca |
Yo-Kai Watch for 3DS ($49.95 CAD) is also a new release and is touted as "the Pokemon killer" because of its similar concept of taming and collecting monsters, but in a fresh new package. Rather than battling for glory and badges, you stop meddling spirits from disrupting the lives of townspeople. It looks like a game for kids, but I'm an adult and would love this. (Plus it's made by Level-5, who have made Ni No Kuni, Dark Cloud, and Professor Layton, all games I love.)
"Gamers" include tabletop gamers too, you know! :P Pandemic ($41.54 CAD) is unique because it's a cooperative board game--as a team of CDC medical emergency specialists, you need to work together against the game itself to cure four diseases before they overtake the world. Winning takes a lot of communication, logic, and coordinating with each other (board game fun without the desire to take revenge on everybody that crossed you!) Alternatively, if you know a Pandemic superfan, spoil them with the recently-released Pandemic Legacy ($49.07 USD), which is intended to be a version that takes place over 12 months--real-time!--with permanent character deaths. There's a good explanation of it here.
If you want to double down on the geekery, the Game of Thrones adaptations of Monopoly ($69.95 CAD) and Risk ($84.95) are pretty cool too.
If you want to treat a PC gamer, a good gaming mouse might be a good idea. I don't have any recommendations because I don't play PC games that really need a gaming mouse (ex. StarCraft, League of Legends, etc), but this guide seems pretty solid.
On a budget?
Surprise someone with homemade hot chocolate mix in a decorated jar. There are lots of options for putting something together that makes a hot chocolate just as decadent as the fancy $$$ ones, for way less (recipes here, here, or just Google "homemade hot chocolate mix".)For someone that has more jewelry/makeup/stuff than storage space, check out some tutorials on making DIY tiered cake stands: this one only needs epoxy glue; this one requires a power drill but seems like it would be more sturdy. Lurk a thrift store or dollar store for cute pieces (bonus if they're charmingly mismatched) and add a tea cup to the top tier for extra adorable-ness. Also a good idea for holding, you know, actual baked goods or whatever, I guess.
Love doing makeup and nails? Treat someone by giving them an at-home makeover or manicure. Being taken care of by someone else is always a lovely feeling, not to mention looking and feeling fabulous afterwards!
That wraps up this post. I have one more gift guide to go, but I wanted to quickly switch gears and get this thought off my chest: even though there are lots of gift guides floating around this time of year (and I'm contributing to them :x), don't forget that in the end, it's just stuff. If you're on a tight budget this year, or can't figure out what to get, don't stress out so much. There is no gift as precious as spending quality time with your loved ones.
2015 Gift Guide:
Beauty
Home, Gaming, DIY Ideas
Men
