In times of uncertainty, it can be difficult to show your loved ones you’re thinking about them. Whether they need cheering up or have an important event or birthday approaching, we often turn to gifts to show how much we care. In particular (and one currently very popular) is the idea of letterbox gifts and care packages.
A selection of hand picked gifts that fit nicely within a postable box sounds easy to put together in theory, but we often struggle knowing what to put in them. In this blog, we’re going to go through some of our favourite gifts to add into a care package as well as highlight some of the wonderful small businesses who took part in our Cross Promotion Scheme.
Start with a card
A necessity to any gift or birthday present, a greeting card tells your recipient who their care package is from and you can add your own personalised messages about why you’re sending it. Want to add even more personalisation to your gift? Why not support a small business and buy a handmade card from Etsy? Within a community of small businesses, it is also important to support others (outside of our own industry).
Add some chocolates or sweets
Who doesn’t like chocolate or sweets? That’s what makes this gift great for almost any occasion. Show them you know them by including their favourite types and add a cheap filler to complement your other gifts.
Adding the key gifts
Whenever we hear the phrase care package or letterbox gift, we immediately think pampering, food and relaxation. That’s why we often see socks and pjs included for comfort, mugs, hot chocolates and books for relaxation as well as all your favourite candle products.
If we were to build to the ultimate candle inspired care package, it would include:
- A Candle
- A Reed Diffuser
- Wax Melts & Wax Burner
- Hand Soaps
- Room Sprays
- And other well-being products
Our recent cross promotion scheme saw some great businesses come together to cross promote their products through social media campaigns and joint products. To highlight these amazing brands who want to support each other, we’ve given all readers of this blog insight into each of these brands to help inspire you with your care package ideas.
Candles
Candles can be a centre point for serenity and calm in the home. Accompanied by their favourite fragrance, it’s not a mystery why this can be one of the most popular gifts for a care package. Here are our cross promotion candle businesses:
Ireland Based Brands
- The Happy Chandler https://www.facebook.com/The-Happy-Chandler-391180058372601/ - From hobby to business, The Happy Chandler stocks in Ireland, Switzerland, Italy, Canada and New Zealand.
- Milis https://mymilis.com - Specialises in scented homeware products inspired by family and the love of baking. Try out their candles Morning, Zest and Sparkle.
- R&G Essentials - https://www.randgessentials.com/ - Hand poured in the heart of West Ireland, no paraffins, parabens or artificial dyes are used in their products.
Coastal Themed Brands
- Coastal Melts https://www.coastalmelts.com - Relive seaside memories with coastal-inspired candles as well as shell charms, room sprays and carpet perfumes.
- Happy Soul Scarborough https://www.happysoulonline.co.uk - Inspired by nature, the sea & beauty found in everyday objects. Happy Soul Scarborough is based on the Yorkshire Coast.
Natural Mindfulness Brands
- AGNI https://www.agni.org.uk - Specifically design candles for Trataka meditation to supplement mindful practice.
- Lumi Essence https://www.etsy.com/shop/lumiessencearomas/ - Offers a variety of essential oil based candles for aromatherapy on the mind, body and soul.
- Five Bees Yard https://fivebeesyard.com - Uses excess beeswax which is said to relieve headaches, asthma symptoms and allergies.
- Renovo Naturis https://www.renovo-naturis.com - Massage inspired candles to recreate the spa experience in your own home.
Eco and Vegan Friendly Brands
- Coney Wood Candles https://www.coneywoodcandles.co.uk - Focuses on using natural wax and prides themselves on their eco and vegan friendly candles and melts.
- Molly & Me Candles https://www.mollyandmecandles.co.uk - Unique in their eco approach using only recycled packaging, reusing and encouraging the reuse of boxes and glass candle jars with their glass return scheme
- Scents By Artemis https://www.scentsbyartemis.co.uk - All natural and eco-friendly brands from ingredients to packaging is key for these luxury woodwork scented candles.
- Biotika https://www.biotika.pl - Specialises in the manual production of soy candles, prepared with ecological soy wax, unbleached cotton wicks and natural essential oils.
- Aureal Candles https://m.facebook.com/aurealcandle/ - Implementing a refillable candle scheme was key to create an environmentally friendly brand.
- BOHO candle https://www.bohocandles.co.uk - Their burn & bloom candles come with a wildflower seed infused dust cover so you can turn your used candle into a wildflower plant pot.
- Dallas Candles https://www.dallascandles.co.uk - Homerun candle company which is plastic-free and zero waste. 3 years of great environmental consideration.
- Ignium Candle Co https://www.instagram.com/igniumcandle.co/ - Sells bespoke soy wax candles that are completely eco & vegan friendly.
Fragrance Focused Brands
- Sixthscent Candles https://thesixthscent.co.uk/ - Hand poured, natural soy wax candles designed to fill your home with remarkable fragrances.
- Chester Candles & Co. https://www.chestercandles.co.uk - Meticulously tested waxes, wicks and fragrance combinations have ensured top quality candles for their customers.
- Personalise with Ruby https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Personalisewithruby - Started in January 2020, Personalise with Ruby has an impressive 20 different fragrances to choose from.
- Cornwall Lavender https://www.cornwall-lavender.co.uk - Homegrown lavender is the fragrance behind the brand for all their candles, soaps and body products.
- Manchester Candles https://manchestercandles.co.uk - From love to business, candles that look great and smell great are key selling points.
- Hidden Sense https://www.hidden-sense.com - Create an intimate sense of home in any space, with these aromatic candles.
- Tasony Candle Co https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/TasonyCandleCo - Experiment with fragrance using their Sugarloaf Mountain, Old Havana and Boracay Island candles and soap bars.
- AMI https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/amicandles - Inspired by people, made from 100% soy wax combined with a unique blend of the highest-quality fragrance and essential oils.
- Vixen & Tod https://www.vixenandtod.co.uk - A passion to sell highly perfumed and eco-friendly candles, VIxen & Tod pride themselves on their luxury scents.
Custom Labelling
If you’re interested in including a candle product in your care package, why not add a touch of personalisation? 9 of An Essence https://9ofanessence.com offers custom labelling service to their customers so you can add any message to your candle.
Candle Wax Melts
For those who like solid, aromatic smells you might want to include some wax melts in their care package. Not only can they be personalised by shape and scents, but they are also a great zero waste product for many businesses.
- Madam Melts https://www.madammelts.com - Turned their hobby into their dream job, has an impressive fragrance range.
- Ayah Home Fragrance https://www.ayahuk.com - All of their products are handmade using biodegradable bases and scents.
- Olfactory Candles https://www.olfactorycandles.co.uk/ - Be transported to your childhood or reminded of a loved one with these powerful scents.
- Mesmerizing Melts https://www.mesmerizingmelts.com - Made from passion and love, these wax melts fill your home with wonderful aromas.
- Secret Aroma By Emma https://www.facebook.com/secretaromabyemma - What started as mental therapy has now been shared with many, with amazing scents to calm and soothe your mind.
Personalised Gifts
Take your personalisation game one step further with Grace & Style designs https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/GraceandStyleUK. Not only do they sell Candle Melts, but they also specialize in custom boxes, bags and other complimentary gifts.
Reed Diffusers
Reed Diffusers are a great alternative to getting fragrance into your home without the need for a flame. Below are some small businesses that also offer Reed Diffusers alongside their Candles and Wax Melts.
- Cosy Corner https://www.cosycorner.net - specialises in wedding favour, gifts and candle melts
- The Smelly Cow Co https://thesmellycowco.co.uk - practice mindfulness with tea light holders, diffusers and handwash
- The Scented Home Co https://www.thescentedhomeco.co.uk - passionate about beautiful smelling homes, try their hand soaps, candles, wax melts and reed diffusers
- Enchanted Wood Candles https://www.enchantedwood.uk - add a loving aroma and ambience to your home with their new range of reed diffusers
Why stop at candles?
You don’t need to stop at just candles of wax melts, we also have some great, alternative recommendations:
- Yarn Worx https://www.yarnworx.com - beautiful hand dyed yarns for those who like knitting
- Gyamfua Glow https://www.gyamfuaglow.com - natural, organic skincare for additional wellness benefits
- Royally Made https://www.romade.ro/ - Tea, Mugs and a variety of gifts all accompany the candles Royally Made create.
Finish off with a secure box
Once you’ve selected all your gifts, filled out your card and added your chocolates, make sure you put them inside a strong, secure box. Especially if you’re posting. Packing this out with some shredded paper, tissue paper or newspaper can help keep the items in place.
If you’re hand delivering your parcel you could select some wrapping paper or a gift bag to place your box in. Otherwise, if you’re sending this in the post, make sure you check with your postal services about packages sizes and sending. If you can upgrade to tracked delivery so you can make sure your gift is delivered.
We hope this blog has given you some inspiration on what you can do for others to create a unique, hand picked gift. We would love to see the care packages you create with each other or the cross promotion products and social media posts you create. Use the hashtags #NICandlesCrossPromotion so that we can see what you do!
1 Response
What a brilliant idea