Christmas should be about bringing light into the darkest part of the year, not buying a load of tat that's been shipped halfway across the world that will end up in landfill or washed up on a beach in the global south.
So, in the true spirit of Christmas, here's our round up of gifts that are not only lovely to receive but are also a vote for doing capitalism a bit differently.
All these small businesses, indie brands and makers have featured in one of our book boxes. You can rely on all them all to be ethical and eco-conscious. Show them some love!
Substantial Stocking Fillers!
A trio of chocolate £18.50
A gift box containing three full-sized milk chocolate bars from UP-UP, guaranteed slave-free chocolate made with Single Estate 35% cacao sourced from ‘El Rosario,’ a farm in Colombia’s Necocli region. They also have giant buttons and vegan options.
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Handmade award-winning soap £12
Winner of “Best Eco Soap Bar” at Beauty Shortlist 2023 Eco Lifestyle Award made with Himalayan pink salt, organic coconut oil, raw organic shea butter and French green clay. No ordinary soap.
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Reusable cotton pad starter pack £32
A great gift for any teens in your life who are into skincare. This pack from LastObject includes 21 reusable rounds, a laundry bag and a case made from recycled Ocean Bound Plastic.
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Stationery + Accessories!
Mini 2025 desk calendars £12
These dinky desk calendars are made from offcuts of papers left over from the manufacture of other stationery products, all handmade by Ozge and Anil in their Hertfordshire studio and shop.
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Pigeon post letter packs £7.50
A lovely gift for anyone who hates communicating via text and WhatsApp. With a pack of Pigeons they can gently unfold the illustrated paper to reveal the perfect frame for their thoughts. Each pack contains six folding letter/envelopes and there are loads of great designs to choose from.
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Packs of 6 Christmas cards £14
For the style conscious and anyone who likes a non-traditional look at Christmas, these packs of cards from fashion and textile designer Elvira van Vredenburgh are just the ticket. She also has notebooks, wrapping paper and notecards.
Visit the Elvira VV Designs website
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Tote bags for book lovers £32
The makers of our favourite padded book sleeves, Paper + Word, have a fully stocked Christmas shop this year with everything from socks, wax melts and drinking chocolate plus a range of sturdy canvas bags, which are made in the UK and come in a variety of colours.
Visit the Paper + Word website
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Workshops + Classes!
Risograph printing workshop £60
Learn how a risograph printer works, play with inks and paper, and take home ten of your own prints. No experience necessary. Run by worker-owned co-operative printers, Calverts, who are based in London. Lasts 3 hours and the price includes all materials and refreshments.
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Learn to paint from £47
Artist Gabriella Buckingham offers online painting classes via her website From a Place of Wonder. Guaranteed to spark joy and inspire new creativity, why not give a potentially life-changing gift to an aspiring artist in your life?
Visit From a Place of Wonder website
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Learn to make your own clothes from £10
There are one-off projects and a monthly subscription option, all devised by award-winning couture designer and dressmaker, Mette Baillie of Freja Designer Dressmaking.
Visit the Freja Designer Dressmaking website
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Customised + Hand Made!
Customised pencil sets from £2
Pencil Me In is a design-led stationery store based in Elgin in the far north of Scotland who hand stamp cheeky pencil sets on all manner of subjects - the ones above are for the biscuit-lovers amongst you. If you can't find a set that suits, you can customise your own.
Visit the Pencil Me In website
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Customised chain stitched accessories from £16.50
Unique embroidered patches and bandanas featuring authentic vintage chain stitch embroidery created freehand using an original Singer vintage chain stitch machine from 1929. Laura at Pineandbear, who is inspired by the nostalgia of vintage camp life and the great outdoors, also hand makes a range of pins, pennants and ponchos.
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Handmade clothes using vintage textiles from £30
Jo Carey is the creator/maker behind Patchwork Park. She resurrects vintage textiles and transforms them into new clothing and accessories. Every piece is handmade and a completely unique one-of-a-kind item.
Visit the Patchwork Park website
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Custom pin badges from £4.50
Sootmegs exists to make life easier for people by creating badges that challenge unhelpful assumptions and spread awareness with sensitivity and humour. There are lots of sets and single badges to choose from or you can choose your own colour and wording to express exactly what you need to say.
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Gifts With a Social Conscience!
Charity candles £35
The UK candle industry is worth nearly £2 billion a year and Good Candles wants a piece of that market so they can raise money for charities that fund change and second chances. They give 10% of every sale to good causes and their candles are delightfully silly into the bargain.
Visit the Good Candles website
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Drinking chocolate and mug set £12.99
Refuge Chocolate is a social enterprise in Northern Ireland that raises money for a local anti human trafficking charity. They have a range of delicious chocolate products including drinking chocolate mix, brownie kits, chocolate spread, marshmallows and more.
Visit the Refuge Chocolate website
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Art
Art prints by Rebecca Strickson from £25
A great gift for anyone who loves art and politics. Artist and illustrator Rebecca Strickson is inspired by the traditional imagery of trade union banners and protest placards and uses eye-popping, psychedelic palettes to create work that harks back to the 1960s, the golden age of civil unrest and positive change. Loads of different prints in a variety of sizes and price points.
Visit Rebecca Strickson's website
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Limited edition prints by Esté MacLeod from £87
Florals, landscapes, fantasy scenes and still life works by painter and colourist, Esté MacLeod, all available as limited edition prints in various sizes.
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Original paintings by Sophie Abbott from £650 to £3,600
Really push the boat out with a spectacular original painting by Brighton artist Sophie Abbott on paper or canvas or, if your budget doesn't quite stretch that far, she also has beautiful limited edition prints from £160.
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Subscriptions!
Subscription to UPPERCASE Magazine £58
A quarterly magazine for the creative and curious inspired by craft, design, typography and illustration. Ad-free, with high-quality production values and a unique design aesthetic, the content of each issue is eclectic and inspiring.
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Subscription to Delayed Gratification Magazine from £48
A quarterly publication that revisits the events of the last three months to offer in-depth, independent journalism. A great gift for anyone who's become cynical about mainstream media and wants a more thoughtful approach.
Visit the Delayed Gratification website
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Drift + Focus from £44.99
And last but not least, we couldn't miss off our own perfect Christmas offering.
Buy a Drift + Focus book box for the avid and lapsed readers in your life. They'll get an intelligently curated parcel of reading delivered just in time for Christmas and you'll get major brownie points for thinking of such a great and unusual gift.
⭐ Gift One Box - arrives mid-December
⭐⭐ Gift Two Boxes - first box arrives in mid-December, the second one follows in March
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Gift Four Boxes - a full year of quarterly deliveries starting with the Winter box arriving in mid-December