Christmas Gift Guide
Gift guides are all over the places with so many ideas for the perfect present and with Christmas only 25 days away. If you still need to find that special gift or just something for a friend or your favourite aunt or colleague look here for some inspirations.
A silk scarf (or pocket squares, or twillies) is always a great gift, because silk scarves are so versatile and they always jazz up an outfit, a hair style or an accessory. Tidings is a beautiful Irish brand where designer Niamh Gillespie has taken inspirations for her creations when she found during a walk along the beach, a message in a bottle. Her gorgeous scarves have colourful patterns and little messages like “Be Kind” or “Be-You-Tiful” or “Old Friends They Shine Like Diamonds”. The all come in a lovely box so ready to be gifted straightaway. www.tidings.ie
For the luxury fashionista who loves to go to sample sales but also loves to shop from home without renouncing the big discounts a sample sale holds, nothing is better than a Priority or VIP membership to Showcase.co, the company specialised in luxury sample sales with incredible prices and brands to die for. With one flagship store in Regent Street and an outlet at the Icon O2 in Greenwich, as well as a strings of online sample sales, having a Priority or VIP membership will entitle the holder to book a slot before the general members can participate. The VIP membership allows the holder to participate to private sample sales held by big names in the fashion industry where only staff can generally have access. Just to whet your appetite some of the names that have been sold at Showcase.co events have been Valentino, Sergio Rossi, Desmond & Dempsey, Theory, Helmut Lang, Reiss and many more. Give the gift of fashion this year. www.showcase.co
Gifting a fragrance is always a bit tricky but if you have an adventurous friend or relative who likes to experiment with new scents. Vines House Parfum has got a range of seven fragrances all vegan and animal cruelty free. The material used for the scents is of the highest standards and no artificial colours are used. It is possible, actually strongly suggested, to refill the fragrances using the bottle bought originally so to save on packaging and also you save on money because you pay 20% less that the original price. Vines House Parfum is mainly online even if they have very few selected stockists. www.vhparfum.com
If you know the birth stone of a loved one or you know someone who loves gemstones and charms to be added to a bracelet or necklace look no further than Merci Maman. Despite the French name meaning “Thank you Mum” the brand was born in London by a lovely French lady, named Béatrice de Montille. The collection is mostly silver and gold plated but there are some pieces in 18 carat gold. I love the “Buy a Gemstone” where you can create the perfect pendant by choosing the colour of the metal like yellow gold silver or rose gold, you can choose the stone and then decide if you want to add a necklace or just have the pendant. My favourite is the Labradorite pendant because it is my favourite stone. Prices are very good and for all the budgets. www.mercimamanboutique.com
I fell in love with Una de Monaco handbags when I saw them at a fashion event. They are colourful, with lovely shapes and they are sustainable. In fact they are made of vegan leather and the logo is made of wood. Handles are wrapped in scarves and they have that vintage look that reminds me of all those 1950/1960 sit coms in TV. This green beauty is the Great Gatsby Neon Green bag; round with a sweet handle but roomy enough to store your essential when out and about in the evening. Hurry to discover the full collection and order in time for Christmas (or maybe New Year) at www.unademonaco.com
We are becoming very conscious of using single use plastic and now an insulated water bottle is a regular essential that everyone is carrying in their bags or rucksack. First of all we save money instead of buying expensive bottled water and also we reduce the use of plastic bottles that would go to the landfill. Paperchase has got this Midnight Floral bottle with a Ginko leaf pattern in gold and that can keep your drink cold for 24 hours or hot for 12 hours. Perfect for your teas, coffees made at home with your preferred blends and for water. It comes in a matching gift box and it is the perfect gift for anyone, also good for a Secret Santa. Its capacity is 550ml and I can tell you from experience that these kinds of bottles are never enough. One can be used for a hot drink and one for a cold drink so it will be always well received. www.paperchase.com
After 18 months of being at home because of the pandemic, our style has changed selecting comfortable and luxurious fabrics while working from home and generally chilling out. During one of my visits to fashion events I have seen the Mary Ching brand and I loved those 100% cashmere slippers that come in a matching gift box. The Mykonos lilac slippers have little crystals details and they come in sizes from XS to L so from size 34 or 1 to size 41 or 8. They are available in 5 colours and they are perfect to put your feet up and relax. www.mary-ching.com
Another classic Christmas gift that is always very welcomed even if you have many already is a nice candle. Personally I love to light up a candle when I work at home and I love to find new scents and blends. Bath House is a sustainable company based in Cumbria where they make skincare and room fragrances, using all natural ingredients, trying to minimise the use of plastic and excessive packaging, they are currently studying new options to remove for example the pumps from the dispensers and in their shops located in North England it is possible to refill the bottles with new products. This Patchouli and Black Pepper candle is blended also with vanilla and vetiver, it comes in a cardboard box and glass votive so it is fully recyclable and it doesn’t contains parabens, aluminium, sulphates, petroleum, mineral oils, silicones, SLES, TEA, SLS, DEA, MEA or artificial colours. www.thebathhouseshop.co.uk
