Intentional Holiday Shopping
The time has come.
Christmas is not my favorite holiday. I don’t like how mean people get during holiday shopping, I hate cold weather, and the stress of the season is so palpable and unnecessary. In fact, I’m not Christian anymore so celebrating it is kind of silly, but my mom and sister love this time of year and I really like hanging out with my family, so I endure it.
This is why I don’t offer Christmas mini sessions or try to arrange Christmas Tree or Santa Claus sessions or anything like that.
BUT I am all for supporting small businesses in any way I can. So today I’m going to provide a list for you. A list of ideas to support local small businesses during your holiday shopping. AND included in this list will be experiences. Because people don’t need more stuff for the sake of getting a present, but families can always use more joyful memories to share. Some of these will be specific to the Tri-Cities where I live, but will also give some general ideas for those of you who live elsewhere.
Chances are, wherever you live, you’ll be able to get some great options from this list!
So here goes:
1 BOUTIQUE GOODS FROM LOCAL ARTISANS.
These could be candles, jewelry, clothing, bags, specialty hand towels, skincare, and anything else you can think of that someone can make. At these stores you can often also find crystals, books, metaphysical items, and home décor. A few places you can find these types of goods here in the Tri-Cities are:
Earth Spirit – downtown Kennewick at 113 W Kennewick Ave Ste A.
Atomic Alchemy – in the Uptown Shopping Center in Richland at 226 Williams Blvd.
Lotus of the Moon - in the Uptown Shopping Center in Richland at 1386 Jadwin Ave.
2 PAMPERING SERVICES
To give someone the gift of pampering and relaxation is such a kind way to show you care about their well-being. These experiences can be a massage, a pedicure, a facial, a metaphysical cleansing or reading, or if you have a larger budget even a full spa day or subscription to multiple treatments. To find somewhere close to you, look up “Spa” or “Wellness” online.
We have so many great places like that here in the Tri-Cities, but some I’ve personally experienced or heard excellent reviews about are:
Float Euphoria at 3221 W Kennewick Ave. Kennewick
Float Euphoria's mission is to provide a warm, loving place of peace and relaxation where clients may experience a variety of healing modalities. We are here to serve all people and foster an inclusive environment with all ages, genders, sexual orientations, races, colors, nationalities, religions, physical abilities and anything else that differentiates us from one another, for the beauty of humanity is rooted in our diversity.
Our primary focus is to lift the spirits of all who walk through our doors. To assist them with the process of healing whatever physical, emotional and spiritual ailments are affecting their lives. To help those who have forgotten to remember who they are, where they come from and where they are going.
Luna Wellness Center at 3330 W Court Street, Pasco
🌙Here at Luna Wellness we are completely dedicated to walking along side you on your journey to wellness. Discover your spirit 🧘🏽♀️ nourish your soul.
3 CLASS OR COURSE
This can be SO MANY things. So I’ll just list some here, you’ll get the idea. If you don’t see something you’d be interested in for a loved one (or yourself 😉) go somewhere like Facebook Events or Eventbrite and search for classes near you, and you’ll find all sorts of fun events.
Earth Spirit (mentioned above) has witchy classes like spell jar making, simmer pot magic, and is adding more all the time.
Atomic Alchemy (mentioned above) has perfume making classes and parties. AHmazing.
Pole Dancing – DO IT, it looks so fun. I’m terrified to hurt myself because I’m incredibly uncoordinated but I’m even considering doing one of these because it looks bomb.
A couple of places here are:
Yoga classes. Literally anywhere that teaches yoga, there are dozens of instructors at several different studios!
Dog Training Classes – these are amazing and SO helpful to any pet owner who just doesn’t have the tools and knowledge to train their furbaby. I recommend The Doghouse Dog Training with Tabby Carlson. She’s phenomenal and has helped me with my own creatures.
Baking/Decorating classes – Layered Cake Artistry is always hosting classes for different holiday baking and decorating. The ladies there are super fun and so sweet.
4 FUN ACTIVITIES
Experiences that aren’t pampering or learning, but just FUN!
Wine tasting tours - we have dozens of wineries around us that offer this service.
Dinner Cruise with Water2Wine Cruises
Axe Throwing at:
Heber Hatchets Axe Throwing in Pasco
or Axe KPR in Kennewick
Pottery painting at Polka Dot Pottery in Kennewick
Roller skating at the Rollarena in Richland
Escape room at Atomic Escape Room
Tarot or spiritual readings! Some people I recommend are:
Amy with Velvet Avalon Tarot and Spiritual Guidance
Mo with Right Around the Corner Tarot
5 RESTAURANT GIFT CARD
Pick your favorite restaurant, go buy a giftcard from them. Simple 🤷🏽♀️
6 CLOTHES, home, and other boutiques
If you want to buy clothing or home decor as gifts, try to find a locally owned boutique rather than a department store. Some local to the Tri are:
Urban Grounds (also grab a coffee while you’re there) in downtown Kennewick
Free Culture Clothing in Downtown Kennewick
Threads Resale Boutique in Downtown Kennewick
Philocaly Lingerie in Kennewick
Pink Pearl Boutique in the Richland Parkway
Hotoveli in the Richland Parkway
Luna Fish Boutique in the Richland Uptown
Adventures Underground in the Richland Uptown
There’s also the Kennewick Public Market, where multiple makers and businesses have set up to create a one-stop shop for a myriad of different goods.
I hope this gets your mind moving away from Amazon and Walmart and Target (yes, even my beloved Target) and back on local businesses and creating experiences for the people you love instead of buying gifts just for the sake of buying gifts.
Meet Me At The Market
ONE LAST THING BEFORE YOU GO!
I will be at Layered Cake Artistry’s pop-up market this Wednesday, November 23rd running a giveaway for a SWAG bag from my first TWO retreats. So it will contain items from both retreats, and I’m giving it away.
Stop by my table to find out how to enter.
See you there!