I HAVE SO
MUCH STUFF!! Have you ever woken up one day, looked around your house and
though ‘my God I have a lot of crap,’ and then realised that Christmas is right
around the corner and you will inevitably get a crap load of more crap! Now to be
fair, not all of my stuff is junk, some of it I appreciate very much, but I
just seem to have so much of it and as I am desperately trying to downsize in
time for moving house, I am finding Christmas gifts from two years ago that I
have yet to even use. Which is why I have been looking into making my Christmas
shopping mean something this year.
I have been looking for the brands that give
back or give you the opportunity to give a gift that will help others, be it
animal, environmental or human. In my search I was pleasantly surprised by the
huge range of affordable, ethical gifts that are out there now, so I made you
all this list of where to look if, like me, you want Christmas crap to become
life changing gifts.
RSPCA -
So you may know that the RSPCA has
charity shops dotted all over the country, but did you know they also have a
fantastic online shop full of homeware, stationary, Christmas decorations and
gifts perfect for pet lovers. The more you shop, the more you are contributing
to a charity that protects our furry friends from abuse, exploitation and abandonment.
Oxfam -
Second hand books are a guilty
pleasure of mine, especially when they are ‘like new’ quality as much of Oxfam
stock is. But it would be criminal to overlook Oxfam’s fair trade handmade
items too, including quaint Christmas decorations, diaries and amazing Devine
chocolate advent calendars. Everything is high quality for low costs and you
know you are supporting artisans and crafts people around the world thanks to
their Fair trade commitments. Oxfam also has gift aid donations where you can
support the health, education, clean water or farming efforts of those in less
developed countries.
The Body Shop -
Now, I’m a little bias here, as I
have recently got a Christmas job at the Body Shop, but since joining them, I
have been blown away by all the incredible, ethical and charitable things that
the brand does that I never knew about. Their awesome Christmas gifts actually
go to support the safe play areas for Syrian refugee children, (at no
additional cost to you,) plus they have a ton of healthy, natural body care and
beauty items that are never tested on animals and often feature vegan and Fairtrade
ingredients.
Etsy -
Are you sick and tired of seeing
your friends and family open the exact same gifts mass produced from a massive
super store? Etsy is the cure to this; with millions of perfect, handcrafted
and custom made gifts from artists, crafters and expert makers all over the
world, you support small businesses and artisans whilst finding an adorable,
unique gift that you cannot buy off the shelf anywhere else.
WWF -
I remember a series of Christmases
when I was a child where a lion was top of my Christmas list, (a legit real
lion, I seemed to think that was a totally doable gift!) The awesome thing is
WWF enables you to fulfil this wish… sort of. They have adopt an animal gifts
where you can adopt an endangered species on behalf of a loved one, not only do
they know that their gift is supporting the animal, but they also receive an
adorable cuddly toy of that animal, a fact pack, stickers and regular updates
on the conservation efforts for the animal.
Ethical Superstore -
If you’ve ever been frustrated by the desire
to be more ethical in your shopping but having no idea what brands are
eco-friendly then you are gonna love this site; the Ethical Superstore has done
the research for you and only represents brands who have a high standard of
environmental, fair trade, non-cruelty or vegan values. Offering a massive
range of products across food, beauty, fashion, homeware and many more you can
shop here in the reassurance that all of the featured brands are taking a stand
to protect as well as produce. You can even adjust the filters whilst browsing
products to suite your needs; for example only vegan food products, only eco-friendly
home products, only beauty products free of animal testing.
Present Aid -
This is the online gift shop of
Christian Aid charity and specialises in gift aid such as school books,
livestock, antibiotics and shoes to be donated to the poorest and most vulnerable
people across the world. There’s a great range of gifts for varied budgets too,
you can donate a baby goat for £9, fisherman training for £13, up to safe accommodation
for victims of sexual violence for £20 or a water pump for £30. If you know
anyone who would love the idea of their gift transforming a life then give this
website a try as they are striving to make charitable giving as easy and
affordable as possible.
That’s my
list of gifts that give back but I’d love to hear from you guys if you know of
any companies or individuals who are helping the world become a better place
this Christmas. Have you ever given one of these gifts or perhaps received one?
Let me know in the comments below and don’t forget to send this post to your
friends and family to help them shop for a kinder Christmas. x
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