and would rather watch all the John Lewis Christmas ads back to back forever than have to schlep round the shops trying to work out what to buy for your famalam.
Panic ye not – we’ve come up with a list of not-shit gifts (or shops at which to buy them) which you can get in time* for Christmas (and none of them involving Amazon frickin Prime
KEEPY CUPPY
KeepCup, approx. £10
Where to get it: Two Day Coffee, Bristol, and various other outlets
They may be a client of Wonderland but they’re also just generally a pretty amazing company with a tonne of purpose at their heart and great-looking products. KeepCup are a true sustainable pioneer, driving the reuse revolution, one reusable coffee cup at a time (did you know we use 7 million disposable coffee cups A DAY in the UK alone?
Their whole range is amazing but we especially love their new Star Wars cups, for the big or little Stormtroopers in your life.
GETTIN CHILLY WITH IT
Chilly’s Insulated Bottle, £20
Where to get it: Gift voucher online
A shit-hot (or should I say cold) reusable water bottle is a must. A few Wonderlanders already have these bad boys and can’t recommend them enough. You might not fancy ice-cold water all day right now, but come festival season they’re essential. It’s too late to get it shipped from their website but why not give them a digital gift voucher and let your giftee choose from the multitude of designs and colours available themselves?
VERONICA DEARLY MERCH
Where to get it: Gift voucher online
We are big fans of Veronica here and love her funny, self-effacing and slightly rude designs. In fact our Ellie bought us all the incredible “Don’t be a Dick” keyrings (bit shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted there Els).
She offers a handy email voucher so even those Christmas Eve-rs reading this should be able to sort something out.
If you still feel the need to hit the shops, our failsafe choices:
UTILITARIAN DELICIOUSNESS AT LABOUR & WAIT
If you’re a fan of everything utilitarian then you’re gonna love this shop. It’s one of our favourites in London. Always something amazing to discover from aprons, to soap, hardware to clothing, and even the proverbial kitchen sink. Functional, simple design rules. Bloody love it.
PAPERSMITHS FOR PERFECT STATIONERY PORN
A local haunt, much loved by everyone at Wonderland, is Papersmiths, a Clifton stationery emporium and a total feast for the eyes. Pens, notebooks, things you need and things you don’t. You literally can’t go wrong buying something lovely in here.
YES DIGGITY
If all else fails, go immediately to Dig Haüshizzle on Colston Street in Bristol. You can ALWAYS find something amazing here, from furniture to curiosities. It’s literally packed with beautiful things. And the owners are SUPER lovely and helpful if you get stuck.
Or if you think Christmas is really all about giving:
KINDNESS IS CONTAGIOUS. PASS IT ON THIS CHRISTMAS WITH KINDLY
Earlier this year Alison co-founded a charity with a couple of friends. The Kindly Collectivesupports grassroots charities and projects that have a social or environmental purpose at their heart. We currently support three projects – under Kindly Kids, Kindly Women and Kindly Creatures – that all need funding and help in raising awareness.
Kindly Kids supports unaccompanied Refugee children across Europe, Kindly Women supports vulnerable Yazidi women living in refugee camps in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, teaching women to sew, and providing them with the tools and equipment to create sellable garments, providing them with a small income, independence and perhaps most importantly, helping to rehabilitate them. Kindly Creatures is raising money to fund vital research into a critically endangered species of dolphin, the Atlantic Humpback, also the shiest dolphin in the world.
If you have any pennies left over then the projects would all appreciate them.
BUY EVERYTHING FROM THE CHOOSE LOVE SHOP:
If you haven’t read about this already then you’ve been living in a cave.
Choose Love is the world’s first shop where you can buy real products for refugees. You can buy loads of different items at different prices, from emergency blankets to school bags and medical equipment. You can even buy the whole shop for just under £500.
Do something good and buy, buy buy. Find it at either 18 Broadwick St, Soho, London W1F 8HS or head to the online shop.
BUDDY BOXES BY BLURT:
These gender-neutral, inclusive subscription boxes by mental health organisation Blurt are described as a “hug in a box”. They’re packed full of goodies designed to nuture your wellbeing and mental health and encourage self-care. You can gift them to a friend, but we love that they offer am option to donate a box to someone in need too.
Whatever you end up buying (or not), have a lovely Christmas innit.
*We hold no responsibility if the presents don’t turn up on time or indeed if you think they are not not-shit.
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