10 best Christmas home gift ideas in this age of Covid-19

It may not feel like it, but Christmas is upon us in less than a month’s time. While celebrations are expected to be more subdued this year, gift-giving is still a way to let your friends and family know you are thinking of them.

We put together a list of the best home things to get (and what’s on everyone’s wish list) in this unusual age of Covid-19.

1. Work from home self-care kit

Retailing at Zenkle for $75

Working from home can be just as stressful as working in the office. Pamper your telecommuting friends with a self-care kit that will ease away any tension.

This one comprises a stress-free pillow mist featuring a blend of lavender, vetivert, bergamot and chamomile so that sleep can come easy, a stress-free soy candle that gives off a floral, fresh, earthy and evergreen scent as well as a stress-free roll on that can be applied to wrists, temples or tense muscles.

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2. Blossom Breeze clean dishes

Retailing at 3littlepicks for $29.80

Danish brand Meraki carries a range of clean and natural lifestyle and skincare products that are without parabens, colorants or any nasty chemicals. We like their dish washing liquid because it is not every day we come across one that is gentle enough on our hands.

This one carries a mild citrusy scent and can be used for cleaning other surfaces as well. Bonus? Your friends and family will appreciate the gorgeous packaging that will look super stylish next to any sink.

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3. Laundry powder

Retailing at Your Sustainable Store for $21.90

And speaking of natural products, this laundry powder is similarly free from chemicals or preservatives. The product ingredients are simple enough: baking soda (to remove stains and odours), washing soda (meant to serve as a water softener) and coconut soap (as a natural fragrance).

It comes in a 1 kg packaging and already enveloped in hipster brown paper so there’s no need to do any actual gift wrapping.

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4. Activity Mat Spray

Retailing at Basic Theory for $26.80

One good thing that came out of Covid-19? People are working out a lot more at home. If your pals are always on YouTube following the latest workout video, you might want to get them this activity mat spray.

It features a blend of tea-tree and lavender essential oils that have natural disinfecting properties to get rid of grime and bacteria on yoga mats. But it’s not just restricted to use on exercise mats, it can also be applied on areas like children’s play mats or tabletops as well.

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5. Dyson Digital Slim

Retailing at Dyson online store from $749

If you are looking to splurge on a gift, consider getting Dyson’s latest Digital Slim, a cordless vacuum made for smaller spaces. It packs all the punch and suction power of their V11 vacuum, but is 20 percent smaller and 30 percent lighter, weighing at 1.9 kg.

One of our favourite features is the detachable battery that allows you to charge it separately so you can still use the vacuum if you get another battery. Each battery has a runtime of 40 mins, so with two batteries, that’s a total of 80 mins of cleaning!

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6. Uniqka Manhattan desk organiser

Retailing at made-in for $190

Here’s another gift to consider for your design-savvy, work-from-home friends — a chic and sleek stationery holder that will elevate any workstation and keep things organised.

The Manhattan desk organiser is inspired by the city’s skyline and features a leather base with metal cylinders to hold stationery. Available in four colours: black, brown, rose, gold.

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7. Heritage Copper watering can

Retailing at Tumbleweed Plants for $125

Like baking and exercising, it seems everyone now is growing plants in this age of Covid. For the green thumbs in your list of giftees, get them a watering can that will be a status symbol among plant enthusiasts.

Haws is a London watering can brand that has decades of history and their watering cans are known to be light, easy to fill and not cumbersome when handling.

The lustrous copper finish is a delight to the eyes (and any windowsill) but the best part about it is that it develops a beautiful green-ish patina over time, so it essentially grows with the grower too.

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8. Jjobi Box UV sterilisation toy storage box

Retailing at Tangs for $265

While we don’t know how effective these UV box sterilisers are against the coronavirus, they are useful in helping to get rid of other germs and bacteria on the surface of things.

This particular one by South Korean firm Jjobi is marketed for children’s toys, which every parent knows are a hotbed of grime, but its ample space (50 litres worth!) also means it works for everyday things like your clothes, cutlery and wallets.

All you need to do is close the lid to start the sterilisation process, which takes about an hour each time. UV light can be harmful to us, so while Jjobi box doesn’t generate any noise, smell or heat when it’s sterilising, we don’t recommend being in close vicinity when it does its thing.

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9. DIY Tea & Botanical blending box

Retailing at a.muse projects from $45

If you are looking to gift the gift of wellness, you can’t go wrong with teas. Tea has numerous health benefits and there is evidence to suggest that some teas can even boost your immune system.

This box of teas is particularly fun, allowing your recipient to experiment with their own tea blends. Each box comes with various tea accessories and a range of tea leaves that you can mix and match to come up with your own brews.

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10. Stay Home brew kit

Retailing at homeground coffee roasters from $40

And if your friends or family are coffee drinkers instead? Get them this stay home coffee brew kit, which comes with a drip kettle, filter paper, ground (or whole bean) coffee and the option to add on a beautiful glass server to serve your brews in. Now they can always have a café-quality coffee break in the comfort of their home.

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This article was first published in Renonation.