Time for our Holiday 2021 Gift Guide featuring our favourite small businesses!
It’s that merry and bright time of year again, thanks to plenty of candles and tricked-out local shops. Here at Emma Givens: Content & Copy, we’re lucky to work with some of these amazing small business owners ourselves.
Per tradition, we’ve put together this Holiday 2021 Gift Guide with curated selections from our very own clients!
From mythological jewellery to olive wood cheese boards, you’ll find unique and precious ways to shop small this year.
So, turn up the jingles, and let’s enjoy!
1. Jewellery inspired by a winter goddess
Laconic’s designer and maker Lindsay Forbes describes her brand as responsibly made jewellery with a story to tell.
Storytelling has been an important part of Laconic’s growth in 2021, from working together with EG: Content & Copy. Together, we took her blog posts and emails to the next level, successfully pitched influencers and stockists, created compelling product descriptions, and even wrote the story of the Beira collection.
Here’s the tale behind this jewellery that I personally love to wear:
The Beira collection of handmade jewellery is inspired by the tale of Scotland’s most powerful god, Beira, who formed mountains with her giant hammer.
Feared and worshipped in equal measure, the Queen of Winter carved mountains into stepping stones so she could travel around the land, throwing down her icy blasts.
The three ranges in this beautiful handmade jewellery collection draw inspiration from the wild and spectacular Scottish peaks and valleys that Beira shaped.
My favourite pair of earrings are the Fracture Silver Half Hoop Stud Earrings. They even feature in the featured photo of me (Emma!) at the top of this guide! I think they look like bursts of sunlight on a cold winter’s day.
These earrings would be perfect for a daughter or best friend who loves sustainable fashion and whose style has a sophisticated edge. They’re timeless and truly special, giving you confidence each time you put them on.
2. Gift sets for Italian food lovers!
q.b. Cucina brings joyful Italian food experiences to the table through a curated collection of artisan-made kitchenware and traditional and modern recipes.
My first introduction to this lovely business was actually at Christmastime last year. The founder, Sarah, did an Instagram Live as part of a virtual event series called A Very Merry Italian Christmas.
(You can still watch the free cooking class here if you want to learn how to make sweet cookies called Pandolicini Genovese)!
q.b. Cucina takes its name from the phrase “quanto basta,” which means “just enough” in Italian. It’s a classic kitchen “measurement” from all Italian grandmothers!
This and other nods to the familiarities of my childhood made their platform feel like the perfect home to honour my Nonna’s recipes. Now, a year on, I’m happy to say it’s been a successful, ongoing series called Calabrese Cooking with Nonna!
(Check out my Nonno Oreste’s recipe to make your own Peanut Torrone this Christmas!)
Just in time for the holidays, q.b. Cucina has put together gift sets of their favourite Italian, artisan wares. I’m partial to the Dolci Lovers set.
“Plan your next sweet spread with this bundle of dolci favorites, including Letitia Clark’s newest dessert-themed cookbook, La Vita È Dolce, and a set of four Italian dessert plates, handpainted with sugar-induced sayings.”
Check out their complete variety of gifts for a buon Natale (merry Christmas)!
3. Matching sets for cozy nights by the fire
Next up is a brand from our very own Graphic Designer, Robyn Brown!
Long before joining EG: Content & Copy, Robyn had launched her own clothing brand, Fikawear. In fact, it was her entrepreneurial spirit (and design prowess) that told me she’d be an amazing fit for our team!
Here’s how Robyn describes Fikawear’s special vibe:
We’re a small woman-owned, Ontario-based online boutique that focuses on comfort (think sets and sweats). Many of our designs feature unique Canadian/Northern-inspired designs. They’re the perfect pieces to keep you cozy at the cottage or running errands in the city!
She couldn’t be more right, and in typical Emma fashion (I fall in love with all the small businesses we support), I’ve purchased some fun tees for my Toronto-based besties as a Christmas surprise. (Cody and Sally—don’t peek!)
Fikawear recently released a new collection of matching sets. They’re all MAJORLY soft, perfect for cozying up by the Christmas tree or giving as a gift to a friend!
And if I might add another pick in the mix, the best option for a hockey lover in your life is definitely the unisex Haileybury Miners Crew! Basically, you can’t go wrong with cozy Canadian clothing from Fikawear this Christmas.
4. Art to warm your heart
Our final pick for the holidays is any piece by my friend and client, the charcoal and pastel artist Vanessa Turner. As Vanessa says, each piece turns the room into a little slice of heaven. She describes her style as “a celebration of culture, nature and vibrant colour.”
I’ve known Vanessa personally since the spring of 2020 (though I haven’t visited her in Bermuda just yet) and had the pleasure of taking her on as a client this summer. Together, we created her custom Brand Messaging Bible and a strategy for social media and blog posts that boosted audience engagement.
“I was able to identify my brand personality and align my copy with my vision and purpose,” Vanessa says. “My engagement has grown tremendously, and I no longer feel like I’m simply mimicking other’s marketing or coaching styles.”
The truth is, Vanessa’s art and her personality are one-of-a-kind. So her copywriting absolutely needed to be too!
One of my favourite pieces that Vanessa’s ever created is of Sally Bassett, “an enslaved Bermudian chemist who had an immense knowledge of local flora and their uses.” This painting Oh Sally! encapsulates the rich vibrancy and storytelling captured in each piece she creates.
In addition to doing commission work, Vanessa curates pieces from her collection and sells them on her website. One piece currently for sale online and through the Bermuda Society of Art is the gorgeous, A Mother’s Love. Here’s Vanessa dedication:
Time has flown by,
Each day we make new memories…
But I still remember…
Here’s to the moms who still remember… and sit quietly from time to time thinking back to those moments.
A lovely gift for your nursery or for the woman who raised you! A work of art from Vanessa is honestly one of the most precious gifts you could ever receive.
That wraps up our Holiday Gift Guide for the year 2021.
You simply can’t go wrong with a present from any of our featured clients, Laconic, q.b. Cucina, Fikawear, or Vanessa Turner.
Happy holidays from the whole team here at Emma Givens: Content & Copy. We’ll see you in 2022!
