Pastel Christmas

Dear Diary

by

Though many might consider it a downfall or weakness, I am without a doubt a proud romantic. I honestly can’t help it- I just love, well, love, especially when the most wonderful time of the year rolls around. That’s right lovebirds, I’m talking about Christmas!

When Giftagram first approached me to curate some of my favourite holiday gifts for all you lovers out there, I practically jumped out out of my chair at the chance. Not only do I consider myself the most hopeless of all hopeless romantics, but I also specialize in all things Christmas and gifting related (if I do say so myself). I’m the type to keep a list of Christmas gift ideas for my significant other on my phone all year round, the type to start shopping in August and have everything wrapped and under the tree well before December first.

In short, I think I’m a pretty good person to date this time of year, and I’d love to help spread the love by sharing some of my favourite swoon-worthy gifts from all across the continent. If you’re looking to win a heart this holiday season, look no further!

Canada

1. Sweet Woodruff Grande Bouquet
Forget Valentine’s day and send a gorgeous bouquet of fresh blooms over the holidays. Not only are they sure to earn your date’s affection, it they’ll totally earn brownie points with the family too when they ends up being the centerpiece at Christmas dinner.

2. Sloane Mint Chocolate Tea
Nothing says love like a cozy night in sipping freshly steeped tea and baking cookies with your nearest and dearest. Sloane Tea is carefully crafted, locally packaged, and loaded with delicious all-natural flavour.

3. Kitten and the Bear Jam Set
Kitten and the Bear jams are all handcrafted here in Toronto by the sweetest husband and wife duo you can imagine, and anyone who has visited their tiny Parkdale cafe will vouch that all of their products are made with love.

4. Woodlot Recharge Candle jar
Baby it’s cold outside, and what better way to keep warm than over an all-natural coconut wax candle?

5. Gold Apothecary bath Salt Set
Take your Netflix night up a notch by cuddling up with your boo in a bath laced with bergamot and rose petals. It doesn’t get much more classic than a lover’s bubble bath, and it’s a great excuse to get naked right?

DSC_0035

DSC_0102

DSC_0066

USA

6. Compartes Chocolate Bar Collection One
I’ve had a personal love affair with this incredible LA chocolate company for ages, and I’ll gladly accept pretty much any chance to gift (or receive) any of them! I mean really, a “Donuts and Coffee” chocolate bar? What can possibly compete with that!

7. Flower Crown Home Kit
No one can resist the gift of frolicking around in a beautiful homemade floral crown. I repeat, no one.

8. Thee Spa Day Box
Give your nearest and dearest the gift of relaxation with this amazing kit featuring a hand poured candle by The Little Market, a Dick Taylor Chocolate Bar, Infused Honey, Sugarfina sweets, Herbivore Calm bath salts & soap, Dram Apothecary floral posey tea.

9. The Bouqs Bouquet
Festive, classic, and oh so pretty, you really can’t go wrong with 12 winter-white roses delivered to your bae’s doorstep.

10. Sugarfina Cheers! Gift Set
Treat your sweet with one of Sugarfina’s famous sugary gift sets! Containing three of their best-selling boozy candy creations (champagne bears, champagne bubbles, peach bellini), this set makes snack time a cause for celebration.

Originally published on the Giftagram blog

Get Creative

by

There’s something special about wrapping up a hand-picked gift, but turning the wrap itself into a work of art really takes things to the next level.

I teamed up with @blousesandhouses, my artistically-inclined partner in crime here at RAOP, and together we created a roll of dreamy watercolour gift wrap! With a colour scheme inspired by our upcoming #pastelxmaspartea shoot, we chose shades of pink, purple, and blue, carefully blending them together to create pastel Christmas magic. Super simple and oh-so pretty, this is the perfect way to personalize the presents under your tree. You could even throw a DIY holiday wrap party if you felt to inclined…  

DSC_0019

DSC_0005

DSC_0028

DSC_0021

Supplies //

-Roll of white drawing paper (found at art supply stores)

-Watercolour paint in tubes

-small paint brushes for mixing

-small plastic containers (yogurt etc.) or a palette with deep compartments

-Rags

-Cups of clean water

DSC_0030

DSC_0132

Instructions //

1 // Roll out your paper on a clean surface, use weights or clamps to secure it.

2 // Designate a container for each colour you’d like to use. Drop about a dime’s worth of watercolour paint into the bottom of the container. Add a few tablespoons of water and mix well.

3 // Dip the rag in a cup of clean water to saturate it, then dip into a colour mixture and in broad sweeping motions apply to paper. Try not to oversaturate the paper with water as it will tear!

4 // Once the paper is dry you can add another colour – We don’t recommend using more than 3 as the paper could become too weak.

5 // Allow to dry fully with the weights or clamps. Once dry (ideally next day) lay a clean towel over the paper and on a low setting lightly iron over it to smooth out any wrinkles.

6 // Start wrapping!

Note: Try not to overlap contrasting colours (ie: green and red) as this will make brown. Stick with cool or warm colour families to avoid making a mess of your artwork!

Party Time

by

Every year the holidays roll around, and every single year I have a whole list of big plans that I never get to execute. As happy and bubbly as I am year-round, Christmas time really brings out the best in me, but sadly I always end up too busy with work to really enjoy the magic of the season. From ice skating to sugar cookie baking, the little pleasures I associate with this time of year always seem to escape me, but this year I’m putting my foot down- this year, I’m going full elf.

I’ll be sharing a list of all my favourite holiday “to-do’s” here very soon so you can follow along, but in the meantime I’m hard at work planning something that has managed to escape me for years: a sparkly pastel holiday photo shoot! I’ve teamed up with Kitten and the Bear, and together we’ve dreamt up the concept of a pastel christmas tea party (henceforth to be known as #pastelxmaspartea!) Think Blush and Bloom florals, Sweet Bakeshop sugar cookies, and sequins, tinsel and fairy lights in every corner- all captured by the very talented Gillian of Sounds like Yellow!

Over the next few weeks as we get everything together we’ll be sharing sneak peeks, plus exclusive holiday DIY’s and tutorials, so be sure to keep an eye on our hashtag for updates (or take a gander at our inspiration Pin Board!)

We hope we’ve got you dreaming of a Pastel Christmas like we are!

Pastelxmas1

PASTELXMASPARTEA1

PastelXmasPartea

PastelXmasPartea1

pastelxmas2

PastelXmasPartea5

PastelXmasPartea6

All images via my Pinterest