With Christmas season upon us, it means that gift giving is heavily on our minds to buy for those most important to us. After this crazy year full of reflection, realisation and for many, devastation, it is so important for us to support small businesses to keep them afloat. So, I thought I would put together a list of a few small businesses that either I’ll be supporting this Christmas or I can introduce you to so you can support them as well. Whether you’re looking for a Secret Santa prezzie, stocking fillers or a main present for boyfriends/girlfriends, brothers/ sisters, mums/dad, the in-laws, or even work colleagues, I’ve covered all bases to give you ideas for everyone, all in one place.
Photo by Tofros.com from Pexels
Grays Lashes:
Gray’s Lashes is a small beauty business in the UK that’s run solely by a young college boy. I came across this business over on TikTok back at the beginning of the first lock down I believe it was, when he only had a few products on sale including the iconic brow and lash serum (which is still very much on my wish list!) and now his businesses is going from strength to strength, releasing lots of new products regularly and selling out very fast. It’s so inspiring to see someone so passionate about their business and what they do after working so hard for something start to pay of and I believe this is just the beginning for Gray’s Lashes, I highly recommend checking out the website and supporting this incredibly talented guy!
Club Backdrops + Capture by Lucy:
Part of being a Blogger means I spend a lot of time trying to ace my flat lays and add a little bit of more a personal touch to my images. I’ve particularly tried to up my game throughout this year compared to the years before. One way I try to achieve this is by finding the perfect backdrop. When I first started blogging I didn’t really invest in things to make my content better and just used some marble sticky back plastic or some wall paper samples (I really thought I was doing something back then l o l) and I’d change these depending on the season or category of the post I was writing. But, earlier in the year I invested in a backdrop, which is the Miami Ice Vinyl from Club Backdrops and I’m so glad I decided to upgrade as it’s such good quality, doesn’t crease (obviously as long as you care for it properly), there’s no glare from the flash and its a really great size to make huge flat lays with lots of products. I’ve also heard so many great things about the Capture by Lucy Backdrops and really love so many of the styles she sells, I’ve definitely added a couple to my wish list.
Swatch Easy:
Carfume:
*disclaimers – I was very kindly gifted this gift set by Carfume, but all opinions are my own*
Carfume is one of those brands you’ve probably seen every blogger/influencer talk about all over social media but this one still deserves a mention. If you don’t already know about Carfume, they sell premium car air freshers that not only look pretty, they have a number of different scents and you can even match the scent to your favourite fragrance. This is the Christmas Gift Set For Her and it comes with 3 different scents which are dupes of Alien, Black Opium and Lady Million … ugh lush! I find it so hard to find a car scent that you can actually smell or, the complete opposite, when it’s too overpowering or too sweet but Carfume have hit the nail on the head with these. My favourite has to be Black Opium, even though I’ve never tried any of the ‘actual’ perfumes; although they all smell unreal.
Personalised N Pretty:
PersonalisedNPretty is a shop on Etsy which sells, as the name suggests, personalised items. Although the shop is closed for Christmas, I did want to mention it for you to potentially keep in mind for the new year when it comes to present buying for birthdays or anything. This time last year I was really struggling to think of a secret Santa gift for one of my colleagues at work and after a quick search I came across this shop. I ended up purchasing a mug with an illustration on it which looked identical to my colleague and her dog. My colleague is obsessed with her dog and I could personalise the hair colour, hair style, dog type and colour to make it look exactly like them! It came out so perfect, better than I could’ve imagined to be honest, you can see the preview of the design I was sent (obviously before being placed on the mug) in the picture below.
I asked on Twitter for people to share their own businesses or small businesses they love and recommend, so I could share them in this post. I did get a lot more replies that I had anticipated, meaning that I can’t mention them all in this post, so I’ve attached the tweet, at the end of the post, to give you the opportunity to have a look through and see if there’s a business that would tickle yours or someone you know’s fancy. But, here are a several of my favourite that were shared.
I’m doing a blog post featuring lots of #smallbusinseses so please leave links below to ones I should include!!
— luc🍁 (@lucibarker_) November 26, 2020
Just Peachy Hair Care:
Next up we have Just Peachy Hair Care which, you guessed it, is a hair care brand based in the U.S. and owned by 22 year old woman, called Ashley. Ashley only started Just Peachy back in September of this year, so be sure to go and check her products out when doing your Christmas shopping this year. The product that has caught my eye the most is the Fly Not Dry Hair Oil which is said to restore moisture, and provide a relief from a flaky dry scalp and has the ingredients of Lemon Grass, Jojoba, Roses, Herbs, so I know it’ll smell so dreamy.
Ellice Lydia:
Next up we have ellicelydia.com which is a small handmade, intimate apparel business named by the owner, based in Norwich, England. Ellice Lydia is a size inclusive running from cup size AA-GG, band sizes 24-42 and clothes size 2-20 “to allow girls to feel beautiful and sexy in their underwear, no matter what size.” Not only does the Ellice make stunning underwear sets, she also makes swimwear, face masks and has a bridal range. These items would be such a great idea for a Christmas present and if you can’t decide what your chosen person would like, then they have many different gift card amounts to choose from too!
GraceEtcCandles:
Oh you all know I love me some candles so I couldn’t complete this list without including at least one candle business. Grace Etc Candles is an Etsy run shop that sells handmade Scented Soy Wax Candles, currently with 5 different scents. These scents include Rooftop Bar, Sail Away, Take me to Tahiti, Lime in the Coconut and Movie Night. The prices range from £10 to £18 each depending on the size/ weight of the Candle and, as they’re soy wax, they burn for 50% longer.
Consellationcouk:
Consellationcouk is a jewellery company ‘inspired by the stars’ and it’s run by Cally. This shop currently sells 3 different necklaces and some gorgeous, gorgeous earrings that range from £16-£20 (with a sale on at the time of writing). I’m not too much of a jewellery person but I have been wanting to buy a nice necklace or something and I am so glad I came across Consellationcouk as they have stunning necklaces. Be sure to head over the the shop either for items for your wish list, or maybe a thoughtful gift for you mum etc.
Love from Lori:
The last business, in this list, that you should consider supporting this Christmas is Love from Lori which is a bespoke gifting care package business. From the Front Liners Package for the Key Worker, to the Hug in a Mug which is a little self care kit and the New Home Survival Kit, as well as Christmas boxes and much more, there is something for every person in your life; and if you don’t see something for that particular someone, you can request a personalised bundle!
Shop the Post:
Thank you so much for reading this post, I really hope you’re able to help one of these business or other small business this year, to help that one or the family run business to do that little jig when they sale. I will see you tomorrow with a new, and very exciting, post as it’s very different to something I’ve ever posted on my Blog AND it’s a guest post.
Well balls, my comment has only gone and disappeared again! Haha! There’s just so much to say; it’s a running commentary throughout your posts Luci! You need a travelling comment bar as you scroll! :’D
Right, swatch stencils – bloody love them and think I’ll be 100% purchasing from Louise in the new year. Backdrops – OMG I’ve fallen down the rabbit hole, it’s a whole new world. I’m in love!
Also loved that Louise sells makeup charts too. I never thought you’d be able to purchase them yourself. They’d be great to practice my makeup planning with!
Constellation Co UK 😀 and Cally! One of my all time faves. <3
Ellie xx
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Oh no, nightmare😂 do it; backdrops are the illusion that I have my life together right now😂 try props as well they’re a game changer. Xx