5 British-Made Ethical & Sustainable Christmas Gifts

These luxury pencil cases, notebooks and desk tidies are handcrafted from decommissioned firehose by Elvis & Kresse in Kent. Since 2005, Elvis & Kresse have been rescuing unique materials from landfill and giving them a second life as zero waste homeware and gifting pieces. Firehoses are made of a material that cannot be recycled and so once a hose has either been damaged or reached 25 years of service, it is decommissioned and sent to landfill. For over a decade, 200 tons of firehose has been reclaimed by Elvis & Kresse in Britain and 50% of the profits made from their firehose pieces has been donated to the Fire Fighters Charity.

All three of these exceptionally made pieces are available in either a red or yellow colour way and make excellent luxury and sustainable Christmas gifts. The pencil case even features a lining made of reclaimed military-grade parachute silk, another material that has been rescued from landfill.

Pencil Case – from £60, Notebook – from £72 and Desk Tidy – from £60.

Also made by Elvis & Kresse, these cube footrests and doorstops are handcrafted using leather offcuts from renowned British leather-craft manufacturers. In 2017, Elvis & Kresse partnered with the Burberry Foundation to tackle the problem of leather waste in the fashion industry and this 5-year partnership will see 120 tonnes of Burberry’s leather offcuts being recycled to make beautifully crafted luxury items by Elvis & Kresse such as these cubes. These cubes are constructed using an interlocking pattern designed to use the offcuts as efficiently as possible. They are also filled with the same leather offcuts making them 100% zero waste. Available in two sizes and two colours (Black and Tan).

Large Leather Cube – £300 and Small leather Cube – £79.

This wooden serving trough is handmade by furniture designer and maker, Isabelle Moore, in her Edinburgh-based workshop. Isabelle, who is known for her made-to-order, contemporary seating pieces, makes these sharing platter boards using offcuts in her workshop from bigger one-of-a-kind projects. These serving troughs features two designs: a plain board or with a circular dimple perfect for dipping sauces or a bottle of your favourite tipple. Ideal for serving bread, canapés and other delicious nibbles, these troughs are available exclusively through AUTHOR.

Wooden Serving Trough – from £80.

The Boofie is an eco-friendly, multi-functional bean bag that is made in Manchester by Maus Interiors. It can be used as a foot rest, side table, pouffe or extra seat when needed and is available in six different colour ways (Battleship Grey, Graphene Black, Orange, Sky Blue, Silver and Teal). Handcrafted from ethically and sustainably sourced woollen fabric, its pull handles are made from recycled leather and it is filled with sustainably sourced dried buckwheat husks. The husks maintain their shape well under weight and give ample support. Refills of the husks can be provided in future if ever needed.

Boofie – £165.

This limited edition hot water bottle and throw are both mill woven in Scotland by the skilled artisans for Araminta Campbell‘s MINTA collection. They are made from 100% British alpaca wool that has been sourced from small farms across Britain and kept in their natural colouring. We love Araminta’s dedication to supporting local and keeping traditional Scottish crafts alive. The MINTA collection features timeless designs inspired by natural forms in the Scottish landscape such as willow trees and ferns which can be seen in the detailed, rhythmic woven patterns. The mill team behind the MINTA collection are master craftspeople who have been weaving for over 50 years, ensuring pieces are woven to the highest quality and made to stand the tests of time.

Hot Water Bottle – £85 and Willow Throw – from £680.

Araminta Campbell has recently launched a new, limited edition Heritage collection which encapsulates the sustainable ethos, values and practices of all the brand’s highly regarded collections, offering both a mill woven and handwoven line.

The handwoven British alpaca line of the collection has been woven by hand in Araminta’s Edinburgh studio, each taking up to three weeks to make and only 12 of each piece being handmade. Only 200 of each piece will be produced in the mill woven line which is crafted from the finest lambswool by Scottish artisanal weavers.

Like the MINTA collection, the Heritage collection is inspired by nature. The tartan design draws inspiration from the surroundings of Araminta’s family home in Aberdeenshire, beautifully depicting the blue skies seen through the dappled leaves of the beech tree woodland.

Not only inspired by the landscape, the very colours seen in the yarn have been skilfully created from nature. Using an expert natural plant dying process, Araminta has attentively colour matched each of the yarn colours to produce a colour palette that perfectly reflects nature and is ideal for both men and women. This meticulous attention to detail highlights the conscientiousness that goes into Araminta Campbell designs and proves that luxury can be ethical and sustainable.