Southern-made Holiday Gifts

Oh the Holiday Season! It means many, many things: events, time with family and friends, decorating, watching a ton of Christmas movies, celebrating various religious moments…but it also means shopping.  Shopping for the perfect gifts for all the people you need to get things for can be a fun and stressful process. But it also means I get to shop for myself as well, so that is fun.  In my shopping over the last few weeks, I have some great Southern-made stores and products to share with you! Hope it can help you with your future shopping!

• The Charleston Soap Chef. Love this stuff! Lotions, soaps and sugar scrubs made in Charleston with local ingredients and lots of them are organic. I bought the soap bar, body butter and sugar scrub in the Southern Magnolia scent. OMG, the stuff is amazing. It smells divine and does amazing things to my skin… it definitely seems to stay moisturized longer after using the sugar scrub, which is really great for the winter. Check them out on the web here: http://www.thecharlestonsoapchef.com/index.html

• Bella Collina Jewlrey. They are based in the Carolinas and she makes the most amazing jewelry. The materials are not local, the stones come from all over the world. Craftsmanship is wonderful, the pieces that she makes are sublime. I really love the detail that she puts into each piece, you can tell that it takes time and the result it worth it. I picked up this lovely necklace and earring set made out of African turquoise. Love it. She will do custom orders too! Check it out: http://www.bellacollinajewelry.com

From http://www.bellacollinajewelry.com/

• Rewined Candles. Also made in Charleston and they are heavenly. I stumbled on these in the historic market area a few months back and have seen them in some local stores as well throughout the region. First, they smell great and they really nailed the scents of the various wines. Also, it is a great reuse of old wine bottles! Love sustainability. They make great gifts! http://www.rewinedcandles.com/

• Carolina Crafts and Glass. Handmade glass pieces… coasters, plates, bowls, nightlights… all sorts of things. They are really pretty and make great statement pieces for a home. Just love them. They are also really well-made, so even though it is super pretty glass, I don’t feel like I am going to break a piece if I pick it up, which considering how clumsy I can be is a VERY good thing! http://www.scarolinaglass.com/default.html

So, those are four Southern places I am loving leading up to the holidays! I will be sure to add more as I  come across them. Do you have any great suggestions on Southern products?