South Africa's most thoughtful gift guide for 2025

The season of gifting is upon us. While we discourage wasteful consumption, we love that gifts show gratitude for your nearest and dearest. And, we love that thoughtful gifting is an opportunity to support small businesses that are buoying the local economy. Choose gifts that are local, made ethically in small batches and have a positive impact. And, give gifts that will be loved and cared for – not discarded.

Here is our 2025 list of gifts.

This is a perfect gift for dog-loving Capetonians. Award-winning illustrator Patrick Latimer has turned his Instagram illustrations about dogs and their favourite outdoor and nature places in Cape Town into a book in time for Christmas. There are illustrations of De Waal Park, Aderne Gardens, Chapman’s Peak, Mostert’s Mill and Keurboom Park… loved by both dogs and their human parents. You can buy it here for R320.

In her new book (left), forager and eco-explorer Nikki Brighton offers a guide to the most common edible weeds and uncultivated foods found in South Africa. Wild about Weeds includes 30 recipes.  The second book by Jane Griffith – Natural Solutions for Pests and Diseases – is a guide to identifying, tackling and solving both pests and diseases naturally in an organic edible garden. Both books are published locally. Wild about Weeds costs about R450, while Jane’s book is R410. You can order both any good book store and from Clarke Books in Cape Town. 

This 35cm high meadow candle holder offers a modern take on everyday decor with its thin, curving design in an electric blue hue. It’s made by Neimil, a brand focusing on uniquely designed hand-crafted products. This candle is subtly contemporary addition to any room. For R560, you can order it online here.

We love Project Dyad, a Cape Town-based leather goods studio. This medium-sized everyday lobster red tote is our IT bag for 2026. Materials are sourced locally from cow leather to rope and fittings, except the magnet buttons which are imported from Italy. The bag also comes in pink and cream, and in moss and black. It costs R2760 and you can buy the Libra bag here.

Based in Prince Albert, ONS has launched luxury soaps with prickly pear and lemongrass, neroli, pelargonium and Karoo citrus, as well as a beautiful range of body products. Proceeds from ONS sales directly support Ek is Oulik (I am lovely) a wellbeing initiative that offers salon care, hygiene support and access to mental health resources for children and youth in Prince Albert. You can order products to be collected in Paarl or Cape Town. Or, buy from the shop at 34 Church Street, Prince Albert. Call 023 0070 278. WhatsApp: 060 833 8856. Website: www.onsprincealbert.co.za.

Isu Collection is made up of women beaders based in KwaZulu-Natal who create beautiful hand-beaded accessories – from anklets and necklaces to bags and sunglass chains. The pieces are inspired by traditional South African beadwork. Prices range from R120 – R1800. Shop online here.

It’s essential to wear a hat when you’re out in the sun. No matter your skin colour, you should protect yourself from harmful sun rays. According to our research, sunscreen alone does not offer enough protection. Buy an Earth Age hat as a gift. Each one is crafted by hand using natural fibres in a studio in Woodstock, Cape Town. You can choose from a selection of Earth Age hats priced at R1650 or more for ones decorated with recycled glass beads. Shop online here. 

This stylish, hard-wearing, multi-functional apron is designed for mess-free cooking, grilling, or braaiing. It is woven in Plettenberg Bay using 100% cotton by the GOTS-certified home wear textile company Mungo. The apron comes in different colours. It costs R1180 and you can buy it online here.

Handcrafted at Makers Landing in Cape Town, Afrikoa’s range of classic chocolate truffles is made by a talented team of chocolatiers who use on the best African and local ingredients. Afrikoa is committed to trading directly with cocoa farmers. This means the farmers earn significantly more than they would if middlemen were involved. You can buy these online here for between R200 – R320.

This large Natal Mahogany plant from Plantify is a great easy-to-care indoor tree. It is indigenous to KwaZulu-Natal where it grows in warm humid conditions. It pairs well with a palm leaf basket which you can also find at Plantify. Read more about how to care for this, and all your plants, on Plantify.  Buy the tree here for R795. 

These handmade-in-Cape Town and hand painted ceramic shells have become prized collectibles. And why not? They are the most gorgeous, nostalgic and unique items for a wall arrangement. Buy one or more from Lucie de Moyencourt’s Shellegance online store from R800 – R3000 (excuding VAT). 

This hooded towel – handwoven in in Barrydale, using locally grown cotton – is the perfect companion for time spent pool, beach or riverside.  The hoodie made by Barrydale Hand Weavers also offers protection from the sun’s rays. It’s the perfect gift for nature loving children and small adults. Sizes range from 1 year to small adult. Prices range from R829 – R1429. You can buy online from Barrydale Hand Weavers here. 

Holidays mean you can curl up with a good book… and have time to finish it. Award-winning novelist (and medical doctor) Kopano Matlwa has published a new book titled Bosadi. It’s about Naledi, a woman unravelling slowly, painfully, purposefully. Once full of promise, her life has shrunk into the claustrophobic walls of a home that no longer feels safe, with a husband whose love has curdled into something dark and dangerous. A Zimbabwean domestic worker with a fierce devotion to the children she left behind, Aunty watches, waits and bears witness. Between the two women, a fragile sisterhood grows – tender, complicated and not without its betrayals. The book is available to buy online for R230 via the independent South African publisher Jacana.

Tucked behind a grocery store off Roeland Street in Cape Town, you’ll find the headquarters of Streetscapes, a non-profit organisation dedicated to ending homelessness by growing better lives. It provides job opportunities – cleaning, gardening, laundry services. Streetscapes works together with those living on the street to transform and rehabilitate their lives. You can support Streetscapes by donating financially, visiting their garden and buying organic produce. Visit the website here to find out more.

Her Wine Collection is run by a close-knit sisterhood and the wines are about female empowerment, storytelling, and celebrating women who are reshaping the industry. Not for sale to under 18 year olds. Prices are R100 for a bottle, which you can buy from the online shop here.