Acts of Kindness Gift Guide

Hello my friends and Happy Thanksgiving!!! As I sit down to write this post my heart is truly full. I try to take time every day to write down things that I’m grateful for, but Thanksgiving makes me reflect a little longer. Today I’m grateful for: the most amazing husband, friends and family who love me unconditionally, 2 sweet kittens that make me laugh every day, a delicious meal lovingly prepared, quality time spent with my mom, many blessings and that you are here reading.

As it gets later on Thanksgiving, many people are out shopping or maybe planning their big Black Friday plan of attack for tomorrow. Today I’m sharing some great gift ideas that you don’t have to brave any crowds to purchase and that will make you feel good about giving. I’m calling it my Intentional (not-so-random) Acts of Kindness Gift Guide.

Feya Candles

I met Sarah (Chief Candle Lady at Feya) at a blog conference a few years ago and was so inspired by her passion for helping others. After meeting her and experiencing her candles is when I first got the idea for this post. For every Feya candle purchased, they provide a meal for a child in need. Sara herself has been able to deliver many of these meals throughout the country and internationally as well. And not that you need another reason to buy these for everyone on your list, but they smell ahhhhmazing! I’m enjoying the Pumpkin Spice candle right this moment (which is a nice substitute because Lord knows there is no room for pumpkin anything in my belly right now!)

Skyline Socks

Skyline sells socks with, you guessed it, the skylines of major American cities. For each pair of socks purchased, a pair of socks will be donated to someone in that same city.

Raven & Lily

Raven + Lily employs women all over the world to create beautiful clothing, jewelry and home goods by hand. In doing so, they are helping these women to break the cycle of poverty, all while following fair trade guidelines.

M·A·C Cosmetics Viva Glam

I worked for M·A·C for many years and Viva Glam was always something I was so proud to be a part of. Through the purchase of a Viva Glam lipstick or lip glass, every penny of the purchase price goes to the M·A·C AIDS Fund which goes toward helping men, women and children living with or affected by HIV/AIDS. Every.penny.

WeWood Watches

If you’ve looked at Instagram lately, you’ve undoubtedly seen the huge wood watch trend happening. WeWood uses only sustainable materials and plants a tree for every watch purchased. They have planted nearly 500,000 trees!

Purpose Jewelry

The philosophy behind Purpose Jewelry is that you shouldn’t have to sacrifice style to make a difference. Purpose Jewelry is beautifully crafted by young women rescued from sex trafficking. They work with survivors in Mumbai, India and Orange County, CA. From creation to shipping, these young women are playing a critical role in every step of the process. They are able to earn a fair wage and gain employable skills for the future.

The Company Store

The Company Store has a program named Buy One, Give One where with every comforter purchased from their site, they donate a blanket to a homeless child. Literally warms my heart.

Taaluma Totes

Carry a Country takes wool and cotton from all around the world and brings it back to the U.S. where disabled adults are employed to craft each tote. The purchase of each tote then goes back into the country where the fabric is from as a micro-loan to farmers and small business owners there. Whenever they can, they pay the loan back and the repayment funds the purchase of more fabrics, creating an economic flow in that country.

The Giving Keys

At first glance these are cool vintage-y repurposed keys turned pendants with inspirational phrases engraved into them.  The idea behind this company is that you wear the necklace until you find someone that you feel really needs the message on the necklace at which point you give it to that person. Then you go to The Giving Keys website and report the story. It’s all about paying it forward. Oh and they have employed people experiencing homelessness and help them transition to permanent housing.

So maybe we could all do some intentional acts of kindness this holiday and pay it forward while we give fabulous gifts at the same time… sound good? Sounds good to me.

Again, Happy Thanksgiving friends. I’m truly honored and grateful to you for being a part of my blog tribe! 😉 Much love!