Gifts to Give this Holiday Season

'Tis the season, friends! Christmas is less than two weeks away, and it's crunch time to get your holiday shopping done. While I'm a lover of last minute shopping (I will literally go the mall on Christmas Eve, just because I love the hustle and bustle of shopping hours before Christmas) I know most people are not into that stress, so to make things easier, I've put together a list of some great gifts to give this holiday season:

The gift of experience:

This holiday season, offer your family the gift of live performance. Make new memories by treating your kids to a day at the NAC, and taking them to see Mozart's Flight of Fancy and Romeo and Juliet Ballet. You can buy your tickets online, print them out, and surprise your family with tickets to so many upcoming family shows. A perfect gift to give those who have it all.

The gift for plant lovers:

Support local and visit Robert Plant Greenhouses in Ottawa's east this holiday season, and select from a huge variety of outdoor planters, wreaths, Christmas trees, indoor decor items, and more. Gifting a plant or planter makes a unique host gift to give that'll last well into the new year.

The gift of local:

Bluhobo is a Canadian jewelry company that just opened their doors in Westboro! This store carries so many gorgeous gold pieces, including necklaces, bracelets, rings, and earrings. I was gifted the beautiful mystical eye pendant. It's an evil eye charm with diamonds and a turquoise stone, on a simple gold chain. I think all of their pieces would make excellent gifts to give for the holidays.

Must Boutique is a clothing store in Westboro, locally owned by the lovely Jessica, and filled with the finest clothes you can image! Here you'll find coats, jackets, dresses, sweaters, tops, skirts, scarves, hats and more. The service is excellent, and the price point is great, too. The pieces are high quality, luxurious, and unique.

Innes Massage Thereapy is a massage clinic in the east end, and it's my go-to place for massages. The service is excellent, and giving the gift of a massage is something everyone would appreciate! A gift card for a massage is an awesome stocking stuffer.

The gifts for those who love one-stop shopping:

If you want to check off your shopping list in one shot, head to Bayshore Shopping Centre and shop all your favourite stores like Aritzia, Sephora, lululemon, Roots, La Vie en Rose, and more. Bayshore also has a "What's in store" program that's basically an online wish list, where you can reserve and pay for your items before you go to the store to pick up, saving you loads of time! You can also grab a Bayshore gift card while you're there, to gift to someone on your list (gift cards also make great stocking stuffers, too!)

The gift that gives back:

Purdys chocolatiers Dear Santa campaign gives back to children’s hospitals across Canada, including our very own CHEO. $2 from the sale of every Dear Santa chocolate bar goes back to children’s hospitals, and $8 from every gift basket goes back to children’s hospitals. (Each gift basket is beautifully decorated and includes 4 Dear Santa bars and an assortment of Purdys most-loved treats. So far, Purdys has raised over $440,000 for children's hospitals across Canada.

The gifts for the beauty lovers:

Two things I love to receive: books, and beauty products! Beauty products make excellent gifts, like anything from Jo Malone London--their candles, soaps, and fragrances are luxurious, look beautiful in the home, and smell divine. You can shop all your Jo Malone goodies at Nordstrom or Sephora.

Vivier beauty products are some of my favourite skin care products. I love their line of retinol cream, and their award-winning QuintiSerum. The serum is a game-changer for skin, complete with 15% vitamin C, Vitamin E, and 5 Peptides that help improve skin elasticity and promote collagen production so your skin will just glow!

For those on your holiday shopping list who love doing their hair, or are looking for some great new hair products and gift sets, check out Chatters, a Canadian hair salon and store where you can shop all the best brands in hair care, including Drybar and Moroccan Oil.

Hasbro board games like Monopoloy, Clue, Connect-4 and Battleship are always a must for the holiday season, and great gifts to give kids of any age. I always include board games under our Christmas tree.

Happy Holidays!

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