Unlike years past where I used to make a bajillion gift guides, this year I’m streamlining my focus and creating my own local Chicago holiday gift guide, supporting a few of my favorite businesses! Obviously the pandemic has hit small businesses the hardest over the past year, so giving your favorite local shops some love is more important than ever before.
Luckily Chicago is full of amazing local stores (and conveniently ship all over the US!) so you can get something for everyone on your list this year. Plus there’s a real human behind every purchase doing a happy dance every time you shop from them – which makes everyone feel better about gift-giving this year! I’m planning to buy about 50% of my gifts this year from local shops this year, so hopefully this local Chicago holiday gift guide will make that easier for myself and anyone else planning to shop local too!
Local Chicago Holiday Gift Guide
- Chicago Plate from Art Effect: Ever since I moved to the Lincoln Park neighborhood, Art Effect has been my local go-to for gifts and cute clothes for myself and friends. The store is beautiful, and I especially love their collection of Chicago themed bar wear, kitchen wear, and more.
- Winestyr Gift Set: Winestyr is a local wine club I joined last year, and I signed up for their quarterly subscription where they send you 3 bottles of wine of their sommeliers’ choosing. Besides being a local company, I love that they support small wineries from around the US, most of which aren’t available at grocery stores or other retailers because they only make small batch bottles. This celebration box is what we all need to end the garbage fire of 2020 on a high note – and I’m definitely ordering myself a few bottles of this NV Alexandrie Brut (how pretty is that bottle?!)
- Metric Coffee: One of my favorite local coffee shops roasts their own beans just a few blocks away from my house, and it’s the perfect gift for anyone you know who loves coffee. They have subscriptions available, as well as awesome brew kit gift boxes too!
- Mad Hatter hats from Alice and Wonder: It’s been so incredible watching my friend Ali grow her clothing company Alice and Wonder from an online store, to a boutique, and launching her sister brand Mad Hatter last year! We used to work in advertising together, and she’s been such an inspiration watching her grow and thrive over the last 5 (plus?!) years she’s owned her business. This cute Chicago hat is a personal favorite, and it comes in a few colors too!
- Makeup Bag Travel Set from White Elephant Designs: Another local online shop I love, White Elephant Designs was started by two sisters about 8 years ago. They have the cutest ornaments, accessories, masks (practical this year!), and I love their nesting toilet tree bags as a gift for your friends or family who love to travel (and definitely miss it this year).
- Equilibria Daily Soft Gels: Another incredible women-run business in Chicago, Equilibria makes a variety of CBD infused products – including drops, these daily soft gels, serums and more. I love using both their drops and soft gels before bed, and I’ve noticed I sleep so much better whenever I take them. You can get 15% off your order using CHARMINGLYSTYLED at check out.
- Cocovit Coconut Oil: One of my favorite skincare products of all time, and I especially love that it’s another amazing local female founded and run company! I love the coconut oil as an all over moisturizer, and the lip scrub is an essential product for when my lips are dry during Chicago winters.
- Anecdote Fir Balsam Candle: My friend Danielle started Anecdote over a year ago and she sells the most beautiful art, furniture and now these amazingly fragrant candles! I love that they’re local and the fir balsam scent is perfect for the holidays.
- Ranch Ornament from All She Wrote: Another favorite shop (also on Armitage!) is All She Wrote. They have the best gifts, stationary and wrapping paper for all your holiday needs, and I especially love their eclectic ornament selection (from Ranch dressing, to Dolly Parton, and everything in between)
- Mindy’s THC Edibles: Mindy Segal is a Chicago legend (and James Beard award winning pastry chef!) and so when she announced she was launching an edibles company, I knew it was going to be good! I was fortunate to attend a virtual event earlier this week to learn about how she gets inspiration for her recipes, and they’re pretty tasty too 🙂
- Loop Threader Earrings from Milk Handmade: One of my favorite local places for handmade items – I love their one of a kind clothing pieces, jewelry and their amazing homemade candles. It’s the perfect spot to pick up something for friends and family, and they’re currently offering curbside delivery too!
- Bon Aprontit Apron in Sugar: My amazing friend Megan launched her boutique apron business a few years ago, and it’s been incredible to see how much it’s grown over the past few years. I love her bejeweled aprons – and they’re the perfect gift for the glam hostess in your life.
- MegMade Art and Furniture: I’ve known Meg and Joe for a few years now, and I’m constantly amazed at all they’re able to accomplish with their business, MegMade. What started as a company that refinished bureaus has now grown to refurnish all home furniture, beautiful decor, original art, and their own wallpaper and home paint brand too! And they’re even teasing the fact that they’re getting their own TV show, so I’ll definitely be cheering this amazing local couple on (and getting much needed home decor ideas too!)
- Local Gift Boxes from Foxtrot: I’m obsessed with Foxtrot – they have the perfect selection of grocery items, local goods, gifts, wine and more. I often send gift boxes to friends in town for birthdays or anniversaries, and now they’re shipping tons of cute gift boxes statewide in Texas and Illinois!
And my local Chicago holiday gift guide wouldn’t be complete without two other local companies that couldn’t quite fit in my very cluttered graphic 🙂
My friend Kim started a company, Read it and Eat, which is a subscription box that features a non-fiction food book, a local food item that supports a local business, and then she donates a food item to a local non-profit in Chicago. I love that she also focuses her support on women-owned and BPIOC companies and organizations to donate back to, or feature in the box!
And if you’re local to Chicago, The Grey Hotel is offering small batch cocktails as part of their concierge cocktail program! Bobby who runs the concierge program at The Grey started bottling cocktails and selling them to help service industry workers in Chicago, and other organizations that could use some love during the pandemic. $1 of every cocktail sale goes to a non-profit organization, and the cocktails are delicious! I’m planning on taking a few home with me when I drive down to South Carolina for the holidays. Just go to the counter in the hotel and place your order, and they’ll bring them right to you!
Any spots I missed in my local Chicago holiday gift guide? Let me know! I’m always looking for new ideas and local spots to support during the holidays! xx
