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‘Tis the season … to be thinking about menus, travel logistics, gifts, and finishing up 2019 goals before January 1st! It can be a lot. But, hopefully this list will give you a little bit of help figuring out one big holiday stressor: presents! Today, I’ll share my nine favorite holiday gift ideas — both…
The holiday season can be super stressful, and coming up with holiday gift ideas is a big contributor to that stress. My top tip for gift giving is this: know your recipient and what they will enjoy. As you read through this list, think about who in your life will appreciate what! Today’s list builds up by price; the first few items are quite inexpensive, while the last couple of items are more of a splurge.
Artwork is a gift that you should consider if you’re certain of your recipient’s taste and you feel confident in your abilities. If you can check both of those boxes, then — by all means — move forward!
There are plenty of inspirational art tutorials here on the TPK website, including:
Rubber stamps are shockingly easy to make! Just come up with a design, scan it into your computer, and upload the image to rubberstamps.net. Less than a week later, your custom stamp will be waiting at your doorstep. I’ve given my friends rubber stamps of their names written out in calligraphy, the “DO NOT BEND” design, and fun little flourishes like the seahorse pictured below!
I know that this is a great gift because someone sent me a set of handmade greeting cards earlier this year (hi, Brenda!), and they came in *incredibly* handy! Everyone has the occasion to send out a card at some point, so this is a gift that could suit a wide variety of people. Don’t forget to pair your cards with some nice envelopes (I like the ones from Cards & Pockets)!
Unless you’ve got a lot of free time, it’s best to give cards that can be created quickly! Here are some of my favorite quick TPK concepts:
Cookies are always a safe option and tend to transport well as long as you package them securely! Some of my favorite recipes include chewy chocolate chip cookies and pecan sandies. If you can, make your cookies in the morning and send them out in the afternoon!
If your gift recipient loves to draw, paint, or letter, consider giving them a Shinola sketchbook! The sketchbooks are high-quality (with heavy 100 lb paper), reasonably priced, and can be monogrammed. I discovered this sketchbook through Jessica of Greenleaf & Blueberry, who is a true connoisseur. She assured me that this is her “Goldilocks sketchbook”, and it quickly became mine as well!
If you know that your recipient has a passion for art or calligraphy, consider giving them at TPK gift certificate! Here’s how gift certificates work: you choose the credit amount on the order page. Once you place the order, you will receive an email with a code and a printable gift certificate! You can either provide the recipient with the code directly, or you can print of the gift certificate and write in all the information for an impressive presentation.
Flow Magazine is a splurge item, especially if you don’t live in The Netherlands, where it’s published. Ah, but what a wonderful splurge item it is! Inside, your recipient will find thought-provoking articles, fantastic paper goods (like wrapping paper and notebooks), and tons of artistic inspiration.
If you live outside of The Netherlands, you can purchase your subscription on the Flow website. (As a side note, France and Germany have their own versions of the magazine.)
If you know that your recipient is interested in calligraphy, try getting them a starter kit! We at TPK offer what I’m convinced is the very best calligraphy starter kit out there. Note that our current starter kit is only suitable for right-handed people, but we should have a lefty kit by the end of this month!
To learn more about the process behind our starter kits, you can check out this article.
If you want to give an oh-so-impressive gift to your recipient, try a Greenleaf & Blueberry watercolor palette! I believe their most popular collection (and the one that I use the most) is the Adventure Set. They’re out of stock right now, but subscribe to the newsletter, and you’ll receive a restock update!
These watercolors are truly little treasures — and priced accordingly — so make sure you give them to someone who will appreciate their quality! If you’ve been especially good this year, you can do as I did in 2015 and get a palette for yourself. (FYI: I still use that palette on a weekly basis! They were spendy, but they really do last forever.)
If you plan on giving gifts this year, I hope that this list helps to spark some inspiration! Figuring out gifts can be tough, so just do the best you can to give to the best of your ability. If you’d like to organize yourself, feel free to use out TPK’s free holiday gift organization printables, which can be found in this “vintage” TPK blog post!
Happy holidaze, and thanks very much for reading!
Warmly,
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