It’s the season of shopping and most families lists are long including teachers, neighbors, friends and more… so here are a few tips to keep costs down and creativity high when it comes to making those around you feel special this Christmas.
Give the Give of Time Together: Glice Skating & S’mores at Fairmont Grand Del Mar
Whether you have out of town guests that can’t bring that much back with them or older kids that are hard to find gifts for, the gift of time together is something they will always remember. From making s’mores by the fire pit to something unique like glice skating, we love the idea of making memories together as a gift. One of our favorite spots is the Fairmont Grand Del Mar. The Fairmont has a eco-friendly Glice Skating rink. A beloved winter activity, the rink is ecofriendly and allows our guests to enjoy the outdoors even more. Check their site to for availability and to reserve your tickets.
We also love that the Fairmont has an amazing outdoor set up with their Social Club. One of the many perks of being located in San Diego in the year-round weather. While many cities become colder and have limited outdoor activities, guests and locals alike can enjoy the fire pits and cabana experiences. From wood fired pizza and drinks to s’mores after skating, we love that we can refuel or those that don’t want to skate can still enjoy the evening from the fire pit. In addition to skating, the Fairmont’s outdoor activities also include family friendly activities such as games and live music. This is a great spot to meet up with family or friends!
Creative Kits: Rifle Paper Co.
When it comes to gifting we love to start with a staple item and build around… think about a festive tea towel and pair it with a whisk and pan, Nutcracker cupcake toppers with a box of your favorite mix. Christmas placemats with recipe cards sharing all your go-to meals. Or a beautiful mug with hot cocoa powder or an array of matching items for the traveller. We turn to Rifle Paper Co to help achieve all these creative kit ideas:
BAKING KIT – We love pairing it with a tea towel, a baking mix and a couple tools of the trade. Rifle Paper Co has some of the cutest tea towels. We especially love the Nutcracker one. Add a fun tag like this one we found from Crisp Collective.
BON VOYAGE – While you might not be giving someone a trip, you can give them accessories that will make their trip memorable. From a checklist so they don’t forget items, to passport holder or even a trinket dish for when their mementos. Pair it with this fun boarding pass template from Barley and Birch to personalize the gift.
Elevated Hot Cocoa – Whether you drink coffee or cocoa, everyone loves a festive holiday mug. Pair it with artisan hot cocoa and even some candy canes for stirrers and the recipient is sure to enjoy the sweet treat. We love these Nutcracker mugs from Rifle Paper co.
The Ornament Tradition: Old World Christmas
From computers and coffee to sports, travel and classic holiday, we absolutely love Old World Christmas. With more than 1500 beautiful glass-blown ornaments, it’s so fun to select ornaments that reflect our family personalities for our Christmas tree.
Also the tradition of giving an ornament is really fun and we say, step it up and get creative when you give… especially when it comes to teachers, neighbors, friends and more. Think about their favorite sport or hobby, a place they like to travel, or celebrate their occupation… it’s a keepsake a gift that has a story behind it waiting to be shared every time it’s seen.
Plus Old World Christmas has a whole wooden Christmas ornament collection where they have cottages and all these amazing train cars that can actually connect and be display on a mantle or shelf. At Old World Christmas, it all started with a few antique German ornament molds passed down through the generations. Today, they create their collections with even more attention to detail than those produced 100 years ago.
Shine Bright and Share: Bridgewater Candles
We love gifts that give back so these candles from Bridgewater candles are a great gift option. They come in all different sizes styles and scents like Christmas Bliss and Festive Frasier. There even have a noteable line with encouraging sayings. We love that the not only do Bridgewater Candles smell amazing, they look fabulous too! Pair the candle with these cute little tags from Artsy Mama and your gift is ready.
Bridgewater Candles started in 1998 in in Spartanburg, South Carolina creating clean burning candles and other fragrance products. From the very beginning they had a vision of wanting the business to be more than just a means for profit. Their vision was to be able to give back and even the employees enjoyed being able to make a difference. What started as giving to a number of non-profits, grew into a long-term partnership with Rice Bowls™. Today, they are committed to the Light a Candle • Feed a Child™ program. Bridgewater donates a portion of each jar candle sold to Rice Bowls™, a non-profit whose mission is to feed orphaned children worldwide. Each candle sold provides an orphaned child with three meals. To date, they have helped provide more than 13 million meals.
