The holiday season is here, which means it’s time for another Holiday gift guide! Picking out gifts for the most important people in our lives is the best part of the Holidays, but sometimes, it can be a pain in the ass! Especially this year. 2020 has been a challenge for almost everyone. I think that’s why online searches on Pinterest indicate that people are looking for meaningful holiday gifts this year, from personalized items to handmade goods.

One of my post-pandemic plans is to support local businesses. So I’ve put together a little holiday gift guide featuring local brands, where you can find something for everyone on your list, no matter your budget — everything is under PHP 1000! These are all available online, so you don’t have to go out to do your Christmas shopping. Much safer, isn’t it? Whether you want something fun or meaningful, here are some practical and thoughtful holiday gifts that people will surely appreciate.

1. Immunity Booster Christmas Package

Give someone the gift of healthy living this year with one of these Immunity Booster Christmas Package from Heaven’s Heart. They have different items such as Turmeric Tea, Turmeric Malunggay Coffee, Turmeric Mangosteen & Tongkat Ali, Virgin Coconut Oil, and Pure & Wild Honey. The price of each box will depend on what’s inside the Christmas package. They also sell the items individually.

The thought of buying and giving at the same time is truly worthwhile! Every time you purchase with Heaven’s Heart, you also give to their partner, “Operation Blessing Foundation Philippines”.

Heaven’s heart promotes to create awareness for the advocacy of children in improving their lives to overcome poverty. This advocacy let every Filipino child live a full life, helping them to create high hopes and big dreams.

2. Silver Care Kit

Part of our daily routine is proper hygiene practices, especially in these times. So why not give this Silver Care Kit as a Christmas gift to your loved ones! Priced at PHP 550, it contains their “New Normal Series,” composed of the Natural Daily Defense Hand Cream, which is my favorite go-to product; Natural Face, Hand, and Body Defense Spray; Germ Protection Soap; and Natural Defense Hand Foaming Wash.

All these hygienic products are natural! Silver Aid provides an innovative approach to sanitizing and disinfecting, and that is through the breakthrough of silver technology in its effectiveness to fight against bad bacteria and viruses. Not only does it help you fight germs, but it also provides immediate and lasting hydration to the skin.

3. Woven Crafts

Traditional Filipino crafts are wonderful. You can show your support to the weaving communities in the Philippines by purchasing woven crafts. Woven is a crafts company that designs hand-in-hand with Filipino artisans for the modern lifestyle. They have a wide range of woven crafts that can be an excellent gift for your friends and loved ones! 

These beautiful Maya sling bags cost only PHP 599 each. If you know someone who is always on the move, this will be the perfect Christmas gift! It is lightweight, eye-catching, and always a delight to carry around. Woven brings us all the things that make us proud to be Filipino and hopeful about our rich traditions. Other woven crafts that they have are Abre, Lingkat, Suklob and Liham (case, laptop and tablet sleeve), Bulsa and Lakbay (wallet), Hapag (placemat), Kapit (bag tag), and Banig (mats).

With each purchase, you not only help local artisans and crafts communities to survive, but thrive.

4. Essential Oils

Essential oils have always been one of the purest products known for their natural healing benefits. Inspired by the Tagalog word meaning “to heal”, Hilom’s essential oil blends have been created to cure a wide range of emotional and physical ailments through the different variants perfectly crafted in every roller bottle. Hilom offers a basic starter kit for only PHP 690 that includes 3 essential oil blends namely “Kalma” for relaxation, “Sigla” for motivation, and “Hiraya” for migraines.

Since it’s the holiday season, Hilom plans to sell these in a gift basket with the help of their partner brand, Artestree.

5. Stylish Kitchen Wares

If you’re shopping for someone who feels most at home in the kitchen, they will love these stylish kitchenwares from Olive & Willow! They sell home products, from mulberry satin to stylish homewares like nordic pieces and cutleries.

These beautiful Nordic styles serving dishes and cutleries boast a stunning simplistic design and colors. You can get these at an affordable price, depending on the style and size.

They are also gift-ready! The serving dishes can be packed in a kraft gift box, while cutleries can be packed in a green croc box with minimal costs or in a beautiful commercial box for free! They can also send it directly to whom you plan to give your gift, and they will write that it’s from you!

6. Personalized Gift Box

For people who are having a hard time picking out gifts for their friends and loved ones, I found an online gift-giving service based in Quezon City. The Gift Central personally handpicks the gift sets based on the recipient’s personality, making the personalized gift-giving experience easier!

With their wide array of gifting options, they see to it that each gift box is aligned with the recipient’s personality. Just tell them a thing or two about the recipient, and they will be the one who will purchase, wrap, write a card, and deliver it on your behalf! You can give a gift of 3 items for only 500 PHP. You will be assured that the gift box’s curated items will be functional, personal, and practical. With 3 to 5 days lead time, you are spared from the Holiday traffic, the time of thinking what will be the right gift and wrapping your present.

The Gift Central also cares about the environment and the community. Their packaging is reusable and made of recycled materials. The items are also produced by small-medium enterprises and charitable organizations.

7. Staycation

Everyone wants to travel during the holidays, but most of us are being cautious and staying where we are. If that’s your loved ones, give them the gift of a staycation. ZEN Rooms are open and only require valid IDs upon check-in with rates for as low as P799/night! 

Aside from low rates, ZEN Rooms also assure that your safety measures are in place for the well-being of both guests and hotel staff. They provides ZEN guarantees to assure the best experience for guests with spotless rooms, clean beds, free Wi-Fi, hot showers, and 24/7 care. Don’t forget to use my code “NICOLE20“ to get extra discounts!

Another option is a vacation house rental on Airbnb. You can sign up here:  https://abnb.me/e/NCAXfNf3Rab to get ‬PHP 1,600 OFF on your first booking.

8. Samu’t Sari Box

And speaking of traveling, do you know that your favorite local delicacies and crafts from the province can be a perfect gift idea for your friends? Samu’t Sari Pilipinas made it possible! They aim to make every customer experience the Philippines by producing gift boxes featuring products from different local destinations in the Philippines.

We all miss traveling, and this is one way to reminisce and satisfy our wanderlust while being safe and healthy at our homes. For their first release, they will be featuring Batangas, Iloilo, Palawan, and Iligan. All their boxes are priced under PHP 1000.

And that’s it for this year’s Holiday Gift Guide. I hope you find this Holiday Gift Guide helpful! Small businesses need us more than ever, so I hope you will support them too by buying their products. I carefully chose all the products mentioned that I think will be an excellent gift for everyone.