If it feels like the holiday season was just here, that’s because it was. It has become this three month long affair. But at Bottles & Banter, we like to respect the Halloween and Thanksgiving holidays. So now that we’re in an appropriate holiday shopping time frame, we wanted to introduce you to a list of some of our favorite gift ideas. And maybe it will help you feel inspired for some of those difficult-to-shop-for people on your list. So here is our annual Holiday Gift Guide!
Bottles & Banter Holiday Gift Guide
A Fresh and Flavorful Treat
Bleuberet makes our list of favorite things for several reasons. Their products are rich and made from real Maine blueberries. It’s artisanal food at its finest. And when you’re picking out a gift, you want to know you’re getting something of high quality. Bleuberet ticks this box. It’s also great for everyone on your list because everything Bleuberet is unique and delicious, which is great when you have someone on your list that seems to already have everything. Their Chase the Blues Away box is our go to gift idea. It’s packed with Bleuberet’s Wild Maine Blueberry Fruit Spread, a blue porcelain jam bowl, a cute tea towel, and blue napkins. It’s everything you need for a nice cup of afternoon tea.
Perfect for: the cook in the family, host gifts, white elephant, mom/dad
Some Much Needed Relaxation
Cozy Reader Club is a gift that pretty much everyone on your list can use. We all need some “me” time and Cozy Reader Club helps you get there. They assemble monthly boxes that contain everything you need to curl up with a good book and spend some time relaxing. In each box you’ll get: a recently released hardcover women’s fiction novel, artisan coffee, tea, or hot chocolate, handcrafted items, and gourmet handcrafted treats. We all struggle to find some time to ourselves, but when a box full of products designed to help you relax shows up on your doorstep, it makes it just a little bit easier. We think it’s a great gift idea because we all like to be pampered once in awhile, but don’t often treat ourselves. So treat someone else on your list who needs a little rejuvenation!
Perfect for: your wife, sister-in-law, mom, pregnant friend
I See Me! Books
Speaking of books, they also make great gifts for kids. If you’re looking for a unique gift idea, I See Me! offers personalized books to help the kids on your list feel special. You can choose from a variety of themes and customize from there. The mission of I See Me! is to show each child how unique he/she is, teach them how to spell their name, and to build their vocabulary skills. The books help to build self-esteem, which is one of the reasons we love them so much! Not only will you personalize the words of the book, but you’ll also notice custom images. A great option for the holidays is “My Very Own Christmas”. You’ll get a personalized book with matching ornament. And your kiddo will see their name light up on the big Christmas tree throughout the book.
Perfect for: your children, nieces/nephews, grandkids
Give the Gift of Binging
Because we, as parents of young children, get too much sleep! We want you to stay up all night watching your favorite TV series. Just kidding, kind of. If you’re anything like us, we like to have a show on in the background at night after the kid goes to bed for some background noise. Blogging, cleaning, packing, whatever. It’s nice to have something continuous on without being bothered by commercials or having to change the show.
Enter: Chromecast (or Apple TV, Roku, etc.) and a Netflix subscription! We’ve ditched cable in favor of using our streaming devices and a la carte services. It’s saved us a ton of money, and frankly, hassle. We have access to all of the standard content, but on our weird and ever-changing schedule. So if i want to watch the latest episode of Below Deck at 3am while Olivia is up screaming, well dang it, I am going to.
Perfect for: basically anyone who watches TV
And When you Finally Try to Sleep
We all probably wish for more quality, rejuvenating sleep. Staying up late to do housework. Traveling. Kids waking up at night. Kids getting up early. Stress from the day. These are all reasons for not getting adequate sleep. One thing that can help is playing music or soothing sounds. That’s why we like the Soft-Tones Pillow Speaker. It doesn’t involve headphones or waking up other people in the house. Just lay it on top of your pillow and listen to your favorite music or an audiobook. It makes a great gift! The sound quality is great and it’s made from a comfy memory foam.
Perfect for: spouse, older children, parents
Just Say the Word
Amazon, Google, and Apple are all competing for to be the top of the “voice assistants” pyramid. And full disclosure: we don’t actually own one of these. Hint, hint. It’s on our guide because it’s something that we want. Unfortunately, Apple’s HomePod is late in its release so we’ll have to wait a bit. Voice assistants are quickly growing in technology, connecting your home to the internet of things. Need to add something to you’re grocery list “Hey Siri, remind me to buy diapers.” Or is it getting chilly? “Hey Siri, turn up the next 2 degrees.” All of this while preparing dinner with a recipe being read to you or making your toddler’s dinner and putting on their favorite song. Sign us up!
Perfect for: your spouse or a close family friend
Stop Losing Stuff
We’ve all lost our keys. Or your kid has lost their favorite toy (Sophie getting tossed in New Orleans? What a treat). Or maybe you’ve lost your purse. Tile is in the similar vein to the “Find my iPhone” app with iCloud. Attach these nifty tags to important and oh-so-losable items like keys and remotes. Once they’re connected to your phone, the Tile app will keep track of the last place it was seen. If you’re out and about, there’s a good chance that is where it was last connected. In the house, it’s probably still connected. But either way, it’ll save you a ton of time and stress when searching for your stuff.
Perfect for: new parents, outdoors loving friends, or travelers
Or At Least Stay Organized
Technology isn’t the end all for life. Sometimes, just keeping your stuff organized and in one place is important. I mean, we’re not going to put a Tile in diapers or wipes! For our everyday adventures, we pack all of Olivia’s essentials in our JuJuBe diaper bag. The one we have is great for a couple of reasons: it’s water resistant (for the obvious reasons), it has well thought out compartments, it’s durable, and it’s relatively gender neutral. We always know exactly where in the bag we can reach for the diapers and wipes, the various lotions that come along with having a baby, food, toys, yada yada yada. Trust us when we say: a well designed diaper bag is among the best things in the world in a time when your attention is stretched and your mind just a bit tired.
Perfect for: new parents in your life!
Want to win some of these fabulous items for those on your holiday list (or keep them for yourself!)? We are excited to be part of the Winter is Coming blog hop. Enter our giveaway for a chance to win prizes from Bleuberet, I See Me! Books, and Soft-Tones, and then check out all the other awesome prizes that are part of the hop below!
