HOLIDAY GIVING 2020: THE GOOD ANCESTOR WAY
The holidays are the perfect opportunity to use our spending power to support artisans and small businesses that are doing good in the world. Whether that means using sustainable materials and processes, ethical, fair trade practices, or giving back to the planet and to those in need, there are so many wonderful companies out there that we can all help to lift up. If you want to brighten up your loved one’s home this holiday, here are a few ideas that will make everyone feel great!
HOLIDAY 2020 GIFT GUIDE: PART 1
COCONUT BOWLS:
Yes, Coconut Bowls! We love these because they are super sustainable, they have a cool, organic look, and are fun to eat from! And of course they remind of us of our happy place, Hawaii, which is always a good thing. We have been using the regular bowls at our house, but the Shadow Boho Bowl recently caught my eye and will soon be joining the lineup in our daily smoothie bowl routine!
Check Them Out: Coconutbowls.com
Gifting Idea: Gift a set a bowls and make it more meaningful by including a few of your favorite smoothie, ice cream or soup recipes (clearly we love Earthy Andy’s recipes!) plus a jar of your favorite toppings like granola, pumpkin seeds, shredded coconut… you get it!
A NON-PLASTIC SOAP DISPENSER + A SUBSCRIPTION TO A SUSTAINABLE SOAP REFILL
With the high frequency of hand washing these days, there’s no reason it shouldn’t be a lovely experience! This means upping your bottle & soap game and making some good choices while you’re at it. While we do love a fancy bottle of soap, we don’t love that most of them still come in plastic bottles. Replacing plastic with glass or ceramic will look beautiful while making the earth, artisans & small businesses happy. And now a-days there are so many great sustainable soap companies, there is no reason to keep up the bad habit of plastic hand soap bottles coming and going (into landfills). Here are some ideas to get your family and friends saying Adios to Plastic soap bottles and Hola to a more meaningful hand washing experience!
Gifting Idea: Choose a Bottle (or more) that you think your loved one will like and pair it with a tablet subscription or large bulk sized bag of sustainable soap. Throw in a good looking, organic hand towel and boom! Instant bath room or kitchen sink upgrade for your loved one.
BEAUTIFUL BOTTLES TO LAST:
RAIL 19
Finding a sustainable, beautiful, high quality glass soap dispenser is surprisingly not as easy as it should be, so we were thrilled when I came across Rail 19, a company focused on providing hand crafted, recycled glass dispensers that are truly great looking. Not only is the glass top notch but one of the big reasons why we love this brand is for the variety of styles and finishes you can get the pumps in. They have brass, polished nickel, copper, bronze and more that will totally elevate the look and allow you to get custom, which is lovely when you’re balancing finishes in a space like a bathroom (designer pals you will love that!)
Check them out here and find your perfect bottle: https://rail19.com/soap-dispensers/
HANDMADE CERAMIC DISPENSERS
For the pottery lovers out there, a handmade soap dispenser is a dream and will immediately elevate your bathroom or kitchen. We don’t know why (yet) but most of our favorite ceramic artists (see below) do not make them, but we have found a few beautiful options from talented artisans on Etsy that we are loving.
We love this Vanilla Bean beauty by Clay Path Studio
These Made to Order lookers by 3 Points Pottery
This fresh little Hand Thrown cutie by BTR Ceramics.
And there are many more where these came from, all on Etsy, the rulers of celebrating small businesses and artisans. Just search “ceramic” or “handmade” soap dispenser and click away! OR you can harass your favorite local ceramic artist to make one for you… we snatched up one of the few that Gopi Shaw Ceramics made a while back and cherish it! Maybe if you ask her to make more she will! ;)
RE-FILL STATIONS
We believe it’s only the beginning for re-fill supply shops and the future of how we should all be consuming, so if you have one in your area or the area of the gift receiver, definitely include that info along with the bottle. For our local people, here are some great spots in the Southern California area, but for those of you elsewhere, just google “refill supply stations near me” and hopefully there are plenty in your area!
Los Angeles: https://sustainla.com/refill-station
Ventura: https://therefillshoppe.com/
Manhattan Beach: https://www.thewastelessshop.com/
Santa Ynez: https://www.forageflorals.com/
BLUE LAND
Personally a branded bottle isn’t our top choice (aesthetically speaking), but we will say that Blue Land does have the coolest looking branded bottle out there, and we love how truly low impact their concept is. Along with the dispenser, you get a pack of foaming soap tablets in compostable packaging. Fill the bottle with water, drop in the tablet and you’re done! It’s pretty cool and the soap works great. Our little girls love the “foamy fizzys!”
You can get the bottle here:
And Re-fill packets here:
HAND MADE CERAMICS
Whether a bowl, plate, vase, cup or pitcher, we think a beautiful hand crafted ceramic piece is always a good idea. We will dig more into why ceramics are so wonderful for our homes and for the earth in a future post, but for now if you need a reason to believe, think: abundant minerals from the earth, crafted by human hands, adding organic, soulful character to your home. Not to mention they are durable and non-toxic, and pretty sure a cup of coffee out of a hand made clay mug is always a moment to be treasured!
Gifting Idea: If you choose a vase, pair it with flowers (fresh or dry), mugs pair with a great bag of coffee or tea, a pitcher with a bottle of fresh juice or sparkling water and limes, a bowl pair with fresh picked fruit from your (or your neighbors?) garden… you got it! Adding a little something extra to enhance your gifting gesture will deepen the meaning and also remind your loved one that their ceramic piece is not just to be looked at but to be used and loved.
Here are some of our favorite studios:
(PS Click on the name of the studio for more info)
Purchase Here
GIFT GUIDE PART 2 COMING SOON!
