2019 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE FOR MEN

What do you gift to a man who has everything and wants nothing? Well let me tell ya, it's not easy to find the perfect gift to put under the tree, but you can never go wrong with the items below...

SEVENLY

As a parent, I feel it's so important to instill a heart of giving in a child, which is why I love supporting brands that have a heart for giving and actually make giving back their mission. I came across Sevenly by an awesome accident, I'm not even entirely sure where I heard the name honestly, but on a whim I decided to look them up and you could have knocked me over. Not only were their products and designs super cool as well as thought provoking and inspiring, but every single product they offer donates to a charity! No matter what cause is near and dear to your heart, whether it be keeping our oceans clean, preserving our national parks and environment for us, the wildlife and future generations, showing kindness and making bullying a thing of the past, education for those who might not access to it, food and clean water as a human right for EVERYONE, curing cancer and heart disease, ending slavery and trafficking, whatever it is that you feel a calling to bring awareness to, you can do so in such cool ways over at Sevenly. Not only that, all of their products are ethically made using only high quality, fair trade, environmentally friendly, slave-free supply chain materials. I'm excited for Frank to find this tee and this tee and this insulated mug under the tree this year. Sevenly is a brand for world changers and they're on a mission to do their part. What cause is near to your heart? Will you be a world changer?

CASE COFFEE ROASTERS

My husband starts every single day with a cup of coffee so of course coffee is one of my go-to gifts fir him. He actually tried Case Coffee a few years back and since he LOVED it I thought why not get him a new roast from Case Coffee Roasters! This Hi-Five Rustic coffee blend smells so cozy, reminiscent of campfires and that moment when you wrap your hands around a warm cup of coffee on a cold morning (or as the package says: earthy, spice and full bodied), so it's going to be the perfect gift for him! While I love that Case Coffee Roasters makes amazing coffee, what I love even more is that Tim and Kati source their coffee with fair trade in mind! Following ethical and sustainable practices, they travel the world in search of the best coffee, bring it back to Oregon and roast them in small batches to ensure all the flavor stays intact. When you drink Case Roasts you can feel great knowing you're drinking coffee that does good all while tasting good!

MISSION BELT

A belt with no belt buckle holes you say? What on earth is this? Okay, so I'll be honest, I was a bit apprehensive at first too, but a few years ago, I got one for my husband and needless to say, he LOVED it. No more belts falling apart at the buckle holes after repeated use. This is a belt that slides and locks into place, no holes at all, and if that isn't one of the coolest things you've ever heard of, I don't know what is. What's even better is that it is way more customized as far as sizing goes than a traditional belt. Gain a few pounds over the holiday season, not a problem, lose a few pounds while chasing those new year resolutions, no need to buy a new belt, because Mission Belt has got ya covered. Mission Belts adjust every 1/4 inch, unlike traditional belts which adjust every 1 inch or so, so your belt can fit no matter how many of mom's homemade dinner rolls you reach for or how many hours you spend on the treadmill afterwards! I chose the Cuoio Italian Full Grain Leather Belt for him as one of this Christmas gifts this year and I know he's going to love it.

BEE LOVELY BOTANICALS

Since we tend to be minimalists in our everyday life, I also like to give gifts that aren't necessarily going to be around forever taking up space, and you know what they always say: cleanliness is next to Godliness. So why not add a few bars of soap underneath the tree? I'm always on the hunt for new natural soap AND I'm kind of lover of all things honey and bee related, so Bee Lovely Botanicals caught my eye right off the bat! Studies show that our skin absorbs around 64% of whatever we put on it so it's so important for me to make sure all of the products we use in our home are natural and made with wholesome ingredients. With ingredients like essential oils, coconut oil, cocoa butter, rice bran oil, honey, propolis and shea butter in their Bee Rugged Pine bar soap and Woodsman Bar soap I think they'll be perfect! Josh and Jodie, the owners of Bee Lovely Botanicals, actually became accidental beekeepers after a swarm of wild honeybees made their home on the land that they own and live on in Michigan (along with their 3 sons), after a lot of experimenting and researching, their hobby ended up becoming more than a hobby! Pretty awesome if you ask me! These soaps are going to make the best stocking stuffers so grab some for everyone you know!

'TIS THE SEASON FOR HOLIDAY CARDS

I received product in exchange for this post. All opinions are my own and I only partner with brands we know and love. #MyShutterfly #Sponsored

I may be modern and minimalist in a lot of ways, but I'm also a traditionalist in a lot of ways as well, like Christmas cards for instance. They're something I just really enjoy, I love sending them as much as I love receiving them, as a kid I remember is was always so much fun to go to the mailbox every day during the holiday season and find a new card from family or friends. It seems it may be a dying tradition, but I'm doing my part to keep it alive, and I think more people should, it's just plain fun!

I've been using Shutterfly and Tiny Prints for our cards for years now, and they're our go to for all things photo gift related and especially holiday cards. You may remember I didn't have time to get Christmas cards out last year, probably because I was too busy having a baby haha, but I DID get New Year cards out, which was something new for us, and I kinda LOVED it. I decided to go with Christmas cards again this year, I mean you could argue that it's more of a multipurpose card, neutral, not significantly more Christmas than it was new year, but either way, whatever it is, I'm pretty much obsessed with the cards we chose this year. The design (found here) I chose is super simple, you know I'm all about simplicity and the minimal look, I used one of the photos from our beach sunset family session we had with my beautiful (and vert talented) friend Autumn from Autumn Trinity Photography when we were in vacation in South Carolina (side note: if you ever get a chance to visit Huntington beach state park in south Carolina, do it, it's one of the most beautiful places on earth) and it was the most perfect photo to grace the front of our cards. I couldn't just pick one photo though, so I added 5 more to the back. I was able to customize every last inch of our cards which is why we love the Shutterfly and Tiny Prints experience so much, they know everyone has different tastes and styles and let you choose just what you like! They also offer custom postage stamps as well and I highly recommend them to tie in the entire look, it's always one of my favorite added touches to make our holiday cards even more unique.

I also grabbed a few photo gifts for my mom, in-laws, sisters, brother and sister-in-law, Shutterfly just made my gift shopping a breeze and all it took was choosing some fun products from their website and adding a photo or two to add! Their mugs are super high quality and are always one of my favorite go-to gifts over at Shutterfly. I also found this adorable customized tea towel that's a new product this year and it immediately went into my cart, my mom collects tea towels so this will be the perfect gift for her! Have you created holiday cards yet this year? head on over and make some, you may even want to grab some gifts for the fam while you're at it, and don't forget to take advantage of the discount codes and rad sales they always have going on! 

LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW

Okay, I'll admit it, I was never the most outdoorsy person... that is, until this summer. I became a mom to a little boy last winter that changed our lives, as soon as the weather warmed up this spring, we started taking him outside, and he LOVED it. He loved it so much in fact, that he was pretty grumpy on days we didn't get outside much, so we eventually started going outside every single day, spending tons of time outside all through the summer and by the time the summer ended, we discovered, that this sweet boy we'd welcomed into our family, had in fact, turned us into outdoors people. We even got a tent and are planning to go camping this next spring!

To keep being able to go outdoors though, with wintertime fast approaching I knew we were going to have to get some kind of winter gear for the kiddos, because Pennsylvania gets COLD in the wintertime. Snow bibs and winter jacket to the rescue thanks to Arctix! We won't have to be stuck indoors all winter now and can actually go outside when it's cold and be warm enough to have fun and play! Yay!

if you haven't heard of Arctix before, they're a wholesale, value priced snow clothing brand, which means, if your taste for adventure is big, but your budget is small, they've got you covered! The products they sent over are great quality which I'm really happy about and they're pretty stylish too! Whether you just like staying warm while walking your dog, playing in the snow, ice fishing, skiing or snowboarding, working an outdoor job or whatever it is you like to do in the cold, they pretty much have whatever you need. The thing I love most (second only to their great price point and high quality) is their attention to detail, things like pocket details or a zipper in the perfect spot, they spend extensive time before the start of every winter researching the best fabrics and perfecting the fit of their clothing, so it'll be just perfect for you! You can outfit the entire family over at Arctix and they have something for everyone! What kind of adventures will you be heading out on this winter? I see lots of snow days filled with snowball fights, snowman making, sledding, hot cocoa and lots of memory making in our future this winter!