We don’t normally shop for holiday gifts quite this early in the season. And in the past, we haven’t directed our search for gifts specifically toward Black-owned businesses, organic, sustainable and handcrafted gifts. This year, is different, and we’re doing all that.
What began as a deep-dive into shopping Black-owned home decor this year has been, for me, one of the most rewarding endeavors I’ve taken on — and never saw coming. It’s been a silver lining for me in this year of 2020.
What started out as a small goal: raise the voices of Black-owned businesses, here on this blog and in my own work in the home decor space — has — wow — become an obsession. I now have a hard time narrowing down the things I love most and have my carts full of the amazing goods from Black-owned businesses in the home decor space. I am genuinely having so much fun sharing them with you as I discover them myself, and now I’m also finding them to be a great source for genuinely heartfelt and meaningful gifts this holiday season approaches!
From cute little mugs and travel carafes, to candles and throws, accessories and other home decor that’s perfect for holiday gifting, we’re finding our favorites among them, from all these great shops.
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1. Natural Annie Essentials | Be The Change Candle
For all the people who live this truth every single day — this is a beautiful gift. Let’s start with our teachers….Locally, they’ve shifted gears to an entirely virtual platform — and they’ve added complicated, necessary subject matter on race and social justice to standard math lessons on inequalities, and how elections actually work to the standard teaching of state capitals and abbreviations. In many places outside of our city, teachers are putting themselves at risk every day, in real life person. We’re not sure how exactly we’ll gift teachers this year, because it won’t be at a big holiday party with more than 100 people gathered in a school cafeteria, but we can at least start with a Be The Change candle for each of them, just to let them know that we see them burning bright, every day, and that we appreciate them.
2. For The Culture Tees| Minding My Own Black Business Mug
This one makes me smile, again and again. And I’m sure there’s at least some one person in your life who will also get a good healthy smile out of it.
3. Bespoke Binny | A Beautiful Way to Light It Up
Or a lesson in how to throw beautiful shade:) This lamp shade is a great way to add more light to a life, but just enough soft light to warm their space.
4. Legend Influence | ,La Travel Wine Cup
If there’s a woman I’d like to take a distanced walk, wine mugs in hand with right now, it’s ,la. This might be my very favorite girlfriends gift this year-in solidarity, hope, and celebration.
5. Black Mom Magic | Nothing Can Stop An Idea Whose Time Has Come -John Lewis Quote Journal
This, other than the candle above, is my favorite among all of these little gifts! Inspire those around you to keep on keeping on with all their beautiful ideas! AJ, my 12-year-old has a friend who lives just a block away with whom he loves to talk books. One of my favorite moments this week was when he told me how excited he was because he was looking forward to a read-aloud of her writing to the class. Apparently, in addition to being a voracious reader, she’s also a great writer. Outwardly, she’s a bit shy; she’ll grow into herself one day—no doubt. For this Hanukkah, she’s getting this journal as a reminder for her to keep speaking and writing her ideas and her truth.
6. Hortiki Plants | Grow An Organic Kitchen Garden
Food is love. Grow some in your own kitchen for life, for health and for hope. All of Philadelphia will be doing so by the time our work is done here. Group distance greens growing—it’s a new thing—you heard it here first. This year, gifts will be dropped in cute packaging at local friends’ stoops, with a quick ring of the doorbell, and a wave and air hug from 12 face-masked feet away. One thing for sure us East Coast city dwellers miss when the seasons go cold, is seeing green, so our local friends are all getting an Organic Kitchen Garden this year, obviously.
7. Made By Rheal | Cement & Cork Hand Poured Moon Phase Coasters
Such a pretty set, especially paired with a bottle of wine and 4 stemless drink glasses. And also a great message about change and cycles, through the moon. Cards will be written continuing the theme on being the change, things coming in cycles, things changing in time, things larger than us, and the meaning of it all. And not all of our local friends will actually appreciate the leafy greens garden idea, but seemingly, they do all love the grape juice.
8. Uniquely Bath Co. | Homemade Soap
Wash your hands #2020. I haven’t started the search yet, but I bet I can find some cute hand towels to pair with this for an even fuller gift. Taking suggestions starting now if you have any.
9. Kingsley Leather | Leather Bookmark (with an apt message)
This leather bookmark reads, “Reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are.” The end. This year, gifts are going to need to be sent to friends who live far away and we can’t visit for a multitude of reasons. We will need extra time to order books from shops like Bookshop.org, have them delivered to us, and then specially wrap and send them off, packaged with this beautiful leather bookmark. The end. #perfectdistancegift2020
10 | Special Throw Blanket
Something uniquely special for someone uniquely special in your life, to warm their world right back. We can all use a little bright spot in our everyday, this is a great starter to that end.
More Of Our Fave Black-Owned Home Decor Businesses
Gifts are going to take more time this year, and we might have to get a little creative and put a little more thought into them. Now is the time to intentionally start that work, so that come this holiday season, we can cuddle in our own homes, with our immediate families, knowing that we shared the best we could, under these specific world conditions, with everyone else that we love all over the world. Here are more of our favorites among our favorites in home decor from Black-owned businesses, and specifically, and specific selects as gifts from each of them:
The Black Home | Candle | Noir
Hello there, Neffi! Check her out and then we can all swoon together! From her own site, where you can find this candle among so many, many other beautiful goods: “Neffi Walker believes life should be designed beautifully and a beautiful life is one designed with intention. As a mother of five, business owner and principal designer of The Black Home, Neffi Walker bridged the gap on family, creativity and business in ways that are enviable. Her approach on life to highlight the overlooked or undervalued beauties can be mirrored in the way she approaches design.“
Yowie | Book | Home Alone
Shannon Maldonado’s home and life shop YOWIE features an extraordinarily beautiful curation of artisan gifts and goods! The storefront is located at 716 S. 4th Street in Queen Village, Philadelphia or you can click the link to shop online.
Goodee | Bedroll | Perfect For Lounging At Home
Goodee is a relatively new mission, from two industry, not-so-new guys, Byron and Dexter Peart. The twin brothers have moved their success into meaningful, sustainable solutions for modern living, and they couldn’t have a better edit of those kind of Good(ee)s. Keep on, you two, we’ve got our eyes on you with love and adoration!
Clare | Paint: For The Environment – For Your Environment
Hi, Clare! And actually, Nicole, the brains behind it all. Paint shopping simplified, for a happy home. What gets better than that? Nicole’s picks, I can’t decide which I love — the color or the name of — most. Right now though, I think my own favorite is Current Mood. Enough said.
Bole Road Textiles | How To Make Your Bed Like You Mean It
Hello, Hana. Read about Hana here. She produces the most beautiful pillows I’ve laid eyes on in some time. Brooklyn-based, Ethiopian born, and a thoughtful design genius if ever there was one. And for all those who’ve been asking how to make a bed? If you want a serious answer, Like Hana does, right here.
Send some love and appreciation, to all the folks who inspire you toward hope, toward change, and toward the light. Burn bright. xo,
A
PS: Follow along with me on Pinterest for more Home Inspiration and other random distractions via pretty visuals. xo A
And this one’s for the pinners….
