Uncommon Goods - Gift Guide

It’s not even half way through the year yet, the kids are still on holiday, the sun is still

shining (on occasion!) and I’ve already started planning my Christmas shopping for this year.  That’s right, I’m one of THOSE people.  Christmas is one of my favourite times of year, because I love buying gifts for lovely people, and spreading the love and Christmas joy with every that I meet!  I could do Christmas all year round, seriously.  I was already in the midst of planning out some of the smaller bits and bobs to put away for the festive season when Rocky from Uncommon Goods approached me and asked for me to take a look at their site for some gifting inspo. 

Uncommon Goods are a US brand who have a focus on making themselves an environmental and sustainable retailer.  All of their goods are handcrafted and sources from individuals, crafters and small manufactures.  What I love the most about this is that they only stock goods that cause no harm to people or animals, meaning that their stock sustainable, mostly made from recycled materials and cruelty free! I'm currently working on becoming more green myself in regards to my waste - blog post to follow soon - and so this was important to me as I'll be looking carefully at where my money is going when I spend it. I love the ethics and everything about this brand, and I’m so delighted to be working on them for this post!

Here is a gift guide that I have personally put together from their fabulous selection of goodies.  These are just some of the bits that really stood out to me as I was browsing the site, although I reckon that I could build up a pretty hefty bill picking out bits for everyone, If my bank balance would allow me!

Lamarama Large Zipper Pouch

Uncommon Goods is one of those sites that no matter what section you land on, you are absolutely going to find something for every single person on your gift list.  I’ve got 6 siblings in total, and as I was scrolling through the Gifts for Her page, I came across this super cute coin pouch.  My sister Eve has a thing for Lamas – don’t ask – and so when I spied this I knew it would be the perfect match for her, as it would go perfectly with her lama hat that she wears during the colder months.  You do you Eve, you’re rocking it!

Elwood the Rainbow Unicorn Mug

Another gift that stood out to me as I was scrolling through the site was this gorgeous unicorn mug,  that I think  certain someone I know would absolutely love!  I don’t know about you, but there is nothing that I enjoy more at Christmas timue than enjoying a nice festive drink in the colder months in some cosy pjs and a nice new mug!  This bad boy is going to make a certain someone smile at Christmas time,

Ceramic Guitar Wall Sculptures

After scrolling for a good while checking out all of the lovely bits that I could grab for my sisters, my mum and my girlfriends – I finally a unique and special little something for my boyfriendthese handcrafted ceramic guitar wall sculptures.  My boyfriend likes to play on occasion when he’s in the mood, however he always keeps his guitars on the wall of his bedroom.  I know that when we have our own place, he’s either going to do the same in his man cave, or put them away somewhere, not to be seen unless he wants to play.  Should it be the latter, these cute sculptures would make the perfect compromise to remind him that he’s got them there, ready to be played when he is ready.

So there you have it, my Christmas shopping is well underway now after having been introduced to this fantastic site - I hope this gives you some gifting inspo too, Christmas or not!

Until the next one,


Lauren X

Day Trip in Aberdeen

Early last month was my little brothers birthday, and seeing as he is a fussy bugger, and wouldn’t tell me what he wanted for his birthday, I suggested that we have a day out in Aberdeen instead.  I never really know how much there was to do in Aberdeen until I started looking into it.  We managed three different activities and a bite to eat on our adventures, so I thought it would be nice to share so that you all could explore too!

Aberdeen Harbour Dolphin Tours

We started off our trip with a morning dolphin tour run by the Aberdeen harbour crew.  The tour lasted one hour and cost £10 per child and £18 per adult.  We were given a quick tour of the harbour before setting off to the beach to see all the dolphins, and it was fab!  Of course it couldn’t be guaranteed that we would see any, after all you are going out to see to see them in their own environment, it’s not a planned out show.  We were super lucky that day, the sun was shining, the water was nice and calm and the dolphins were full of life and energy – and there was loads of them too.  My brothers really enjoyed themselves as did I, they got a shot of steering the boat, and the chaps on board were really fun and made sure everyone on board didn’t miss a thing!

The Tollbooth Museum

This was something that I was really looking forward to, as the idea of exploring an old prison like building fills me with great joy, as did it for my brothers too!  Whilst not very big, and it doesn’t take very long to look around, the atmosphere was spot on, and it was great fun exploring the old prison cells, looking at the old tools and desperately clinging onto the walls and ropes as we climbed the long and twisted stair cases.  The building had an earie feel about it the whole time we were exploring, and with loads of information points to stop and read, it really was a great way to fill in a 30 minute void in our busy day.

Maritime Museum

Whilst I think that this would have been an activity I would have enjoyed more had I done a little more research prior to visiting, this was a great museum to take the kids to and explore and learn about the oil and gas industry, drilling, sea life and even some old school fishing tools.  What we thought was going to be an in and out kind of job actually turned into a near hour stay, there was so such to look at and interactive with, and with so many different floors to explore, they were sure that we weren’t going to miss anything!  Whilst we didn’t actually visit this part, there was a lovely looking café and gift shop that would have been nice had you been travelling from a distance or planning to spend a good couple o hours taking in all the place had to offer. 

We all really enjoyed our day out exploring Aberdeen’s hidden treasures, and I’ll be making sure that I take advantage of what is right on our doorstep again in the near future.

Is there any other places you think I should check out on my next adventure?

Until the next one,

Lauren X