I love to read holiday gift guides for inspiration, and what’s better inspiration than to know what people are actually gifting their friends and family this Christmas? I love finding out things like that. I’m happy to share my personal holiday gifting list below and would love to read yours in the comments. I’m excited that my fellow bloggers Catherine from mypowerpose.com and Ally from wearandbackagain.com are sharing their lists as well, which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. There’s nothing I enjoy more than finding and giving the perfect gift to people I care about, and I experience time and time again that it truly is better to give than to receive.
What I’m gifting…
For My family (Mom, Dad, and Brother)
Photo of Whistler from this post
I love to gift my family with experiences over things, so what I’m giving them this year is the same thing I gave them last year: a stay in Whistler over Christmas. This gift is completely self-benefitting as well because I love Whistler and there is no other place I’d rather be in the winter. I look forward to skiing, relaxing, walking around in the village, and taking photos in the snow with my family. For my 14-year-old brother Danny, who woke up at dawn to go skiing every day that we were in Whistler last year, I usually treat him to a pre-loaded ski pass. If the pre-loaded days runs out, his pass is linked to my credit card and can be used to buy more days, food, gear, etc., so I should probably look into changing that he’s all set. It’s going to be a great trip.
For My Mom
J. Crew boots 
MM.Lafleur “Etsuko” dress (worn in this post)
Experiences are great, but stuff is good too. My mom started a new teaching job a year ago and has been stepping up her wardrobe ever since. I bought her the MM.Lafleur Etsuko dress in Plum, her favorite color. It has a very flattering fit and can be worn to a variety of occasions. I hope it fits her as well as it fits me. Last time we went shopping together she tried on a pair of J. Crew boots and really liked them, so I ordered them for her because she would never spend that much money on a pair of boots for herself.
My mom has tried to make me promise not to buy her anything because she doesn’t want me to spend money, but that is a promise I just can’t make! And she has to admit, I buy pretty great presents! I’m going to give both gifts to her in Whistler, and there is a good chance that she will make me return both, but hopefully she’ll keep them and enjoy them for a long time.
For My Boyfriend
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JavaScript is currently disabled in this browser. Reactivate it to view this content.I’ve been planning to give my boyfriend a wool winter coat for a while now, so I kept an eye on the one I liked and bought it as soon as it went on sale. He likes to wear crewneck sweaters in the winter so I also bought him a merino wool sweater and cashmere sweater, both on sale.
I wonder though, if what I should really get him is a missile-launching remote-control helicopter, as per his Christmas gift guide for men. Hmmm.
For My Colleagues
Scotch whiskey fudge
I work in a large company and associate with a lot of colleagues on a daily basis, so it would be impossible to buy gifts for all of them. However, there are two colleagues with whom I have the pleasure of participating in a common interest outside of work: scotch whiskey. I met Doug and Bob three years ago when I was working as a consultant for my current employer, and in addition to the 20+ years of industry wisdom they were able to impart to me, they introduced me to a lifelong appreciation of scotch by taking me to my first scotch tasting event. It’s been our annual tradition ever since and they’ve never let me pay for my ticket. I’ve always been stumped by what to get them other than a Christmas card until I saw boxes of whiskey fudge made with single malt scotch whiskey at a gift shop recently. Perfect!
For My Life Group Leaders
Blushed silk cami
I am incredibly blessed to be part of a wonderful life group. It’s led by an amazing couple, James and Kylee, who are two of the kindest, most generous, and funniest people I know. They open their home every week to lead and host our life group (consisting of me and two girls at the moment). They are always well-prepared and create an environment that is fun but also completely honest and open, so we feel comfortable being personal and vulnerable.
In addition to great fellowship, they also feed us, much to my delight every week. Kylee is like a young and sexy Martha Stewart who has a full-time job but manages to cook naturopath-approved 3-course meals on a regular basis and makes everything from salad dressing to almond milk from scratch. We went shopping together to find her a dress for her brother’s wedding back in the summer, and I made her try on a silk set for fun while we were in Anthropologie. It looked amazing on her and she loved it, so I decided then that I would get it for her for Christmas. To my dismay, the shorts were sold out online and in stores in the the whole country, so I was only able to order the cami, but I ordered her this lace silk chemise as a substitute. After reading Catherine’s post, I think the gluten-free cookbook she recommended would make a great gift for Kylee as well. As for James, he loves to drink coffee, so I’m giving him a giftcard to his favorite coffee shop JJ Bean.
Check out great posts from Catherine at My Power Pose and Ally at Wear and Back Again to find out what they’re gifting people on their lists.
I would love to know what you are gifting people on your list this year. Please share!