Holiday gift for a friend – delight your pals with beautiful and functional design presents!

Friends in Food is a fillable friendship book for food lovers.

Are you in search of holiday gifts for a friend, buddy, or work colleague? We have carefully curated 8 unique gift ideas, perfect for bringing joy long after the holiday season. Some of these stocking stuffers are small, inexpensive gifts that can conveniently fit into an envelope. Find the perfect gift that suits your loved ones!

Foodie’s friend book

A book is always a great gift! Friends in Food is an essential guide for the friend who enjoys hosting dinner parties and Sunday brunches. Compiled by editor and food writer Pia Alapeteri, this English-language book allows you to gather information about the diets, allergies, favorite treats, and least favorite ingredients of up to 21 friends.

The pages also include playful discussions, top 3 lists, and questions like whether celery is a threat or an opportunity. This beautifully illustrated book also features inspiring stories about shared meals, simple recipes, and tips to make gathering around a common table more accessible.

Friends in Food book >
All books >

Holiday gift for a friend – delight your pals with beautiful and functional design presents!

Teemu Järvi's wall calendar presents beautiful illustrations of Northern nature.

Art year-round

Teemu Järvi’s The Wonders of Nordic Wilderness wall calendar adorns the home of nature and art enthusiasts with stunning animal-themed ink drawings. The pages of the 2024 calendar showcase endangered Nordic species, from the arctic fox to the Saimaa ringed seal and the wolverine to the tundra owl.

To support the biodiversity of Finnish nature, Teemu Järvi donates five percent of the calendar’s sales to WWF Finland. Printed on environmentally friendly paper in Finland, the calendar’s hanging hook and spiral binding are made of copper-colored metal.

• Teemu Järvi's wall calendar >

Holiday gift for a friend – delight your pals with beautiful and functional design presents!

HAY's tote bag will make you stand out on a grocery haul.

Distinctive companion

HAY’s burgundy red tote bag brings joy to your friend on shopping, sport, and library outings. Stylishly finished with a white HAY logo and long straps, the bag is made from responsibly produced organic cotton, making it light, durable, and easy to fold into a coat pocket while waiting for use. Pair the bag with chocolate and your friend’s favorite magazine for post-holiday relaxation.

• HAY’s tote bag >
All bags >

Holiday gift for a friend – delight your pals with beautiful and functional design presents!

Georg Jensen's decorations bring an elegant touch of festive glee to the décor.

Luxurious collectible

Georg Jensen's hanging deer ornament adds a touch of sophisticated playfulness to festive home decor. Curled under the branches to dream, the deer is part of the 2023 collection, inspired by the enchanting atmosphere of the winter forest.

The elegant brass mobile is available in gold and palladium finishes, accompanied by red and green hanging ribbons. How about starting a fun tradition by gifting your friend an addition to the collectible series every Christmas?

• Georg Jensen's deer mobile >

The Sense oil nourishes your skin with the power of wild-grown Nordic plants.

Evergreen pampering

A friend who loves natural cosmetics will be delighted when they unwrap the Finnish brand Hetkinen’s Sense body oil. The beautifully bottled oil is enriched with highly nutritious sea buckthorn oil and pine needle extract, pampering the skin with antioxidants, vitamins, and circulation-enhancing properties. This gentle product is based on nourishing almond and grape seed oils, with a hint of scents like pine, palmarosa, and bergamot for a luxurious experience.

Sense body oil >
All cosmetics >

Holiday gift for a friend – delight your pals with beautiful and functional design presents!

Audo Copenhagen’s Cressida linen napkins are decorated with thin, sophisticated stripes.

Linen-soft package

High-quality linen napkins complete the festive table setting and elevate everyday meals. Audo Copenhagen’s elegantly simple Cressida napkins are a perfect gift for a friend who appreciates timeless interior design and pairs well with various dishes.

Designed by the trio Mentze Ottenstein + Rosholm, the napkins are part of the Cocoon textile series, drawing inspiration from traditions of hosting and gathering. The linen’s crisp texture, traditional look with red stripes, and modern manufacturing methods come together in a refreshing way.

• Cressida napkins >
All cloth napkins >

The Candela candles by Collaboratorio spark light and joy on dark winter evenings.

Sweet thoughts

Collaboratorio’s Candela beeswax candles bring warmth, light, and joy to dark winter evenings. Handcrafted in Helsinki, these candles burn cleanly and spread a delicious honey scent when lit. The candle packaging makes it an excellent gift as is, or you can wrap them in a beautiful kitchen towel.

Candela beeswax candles >
All candles >

Iittala’s Tundra tumbler was designed by the legendary Oiva Toikka in 1970.

A toast to friendship

Holiday drinks, morning juice, and even a sip of tap water sparkle beautifully in Iittala’s Tundra tumblers. Designed by master craftsman Oiva Toikka in 1970, these glasses interpret landscapes covered in perennial frost from arctic wilderness. The delicate relief pattern, formed by up to twelve small details, is visually captivating and feels pleasantly tactile. Sold in pairs, these glasses are made at Iittala’s glassworks in Finland, so they make a lovely gift for anyone interested in Finnish or Nordic design.

Iittala's Tundra tumblers >
All drinking glasses >

See also:

• More curated gifts for a loved one >

Text: Kaisa Mikkola Images: Juho Huttunen and manufacturers

Published on 12 Dec, 2023

Related stories

Most popular

Seasonal

Design Stories is the online magazine of Finnish Design Shop, created to inspire and delight design lovers everywhere. We hope you enjoy exploring with us! Let the Design Stories editorial team know of an interesting story – or send us feedback!