Thinking About Holiday Gifts

I‘m pretty sure I’ve got most of my holiday shopping done, with a few exceptions that will probably have me rushing around last-minute! Joss, for the most part, has asked for merch from his favorite YouTubers and, of course, a Nintendo Switch 2. (He has to help pay for that one, though, and has been doing a pretty good job of saving up over the past several months.) But I thought it would be fun to put together my own little holiday gift guide, if anyone needs some inspiration.

1. Blair Hollow candle

Blair Hollow Candle Co. recently opened up a location in the 66 Collective, and I finally made it in over Small Business Saturday weekend. It’s worth a visit just to walk in for the smells, and I like how they have different candle collections. There was an herb-inspired collection when I visited, as well as fall, winter and vintage collections. I think I smelled just about every candle in the store before selecting a couple to give (or keep).

One I did not purchase was their winter gingerbread candle — it smelled exactly like fresh-baked gingerbread, and it smelled so good, it was sold out! They were in the process of restocking, but I haven’t made it back yet. Here’s one I ended up with instead: Ember Hymn, which smells like Frankincense, Myrrh and Cedarwood. Less obvious for a holiday scent than gingerbread or pine, and very nice. They also sell interesting match boxes, wick trimmers, etc.

2. Vintage holiday decor

This might not be for just anyone on your list, but the things I’m keeping an eye out for (for gifts-to-myself) include vintage photo frames, Christmas cards from the ’50s-’70s, and old holiday decorations I remember from my grandma’s house growing up. The Tulsa Flea Market is a great place to shop for any vintage-lovers on your list (next date isn’t until after Christmas, though: Dec. 27). I even found some old salt and pepper shakers I remember from childhood!

Also, just a door or two down from Blaire Hollow in the 66 Collective, you’ll find Bad Penny, which I’d never heard of before! It’s a very small but very nice vintage shop. They even were giving out free wildflower seed packets and a recipe for a hot chocolate/instant coffee drink you can make in bulk and enjoy during cold months. I will definitely be going back. They had a nice collection of vintage pins, and I found a couple that looked familiar! I didn’t put two-and-two together until I brought them home, but they match the reindeer on the stocking my mom made for me as a kid.

Of course, my favorite vintage shop is always Love Me Two Times. But I’m trying to save my budget to visit Bee’s Knees Vintage at 26th and Harvard when they open! Not sure if that will be before Christmas or not, but fingers crossed!

3. Books

Books are always on my Christmas list, both to give and receive. In advance of Christmas, we were sent a copy of “Cluedle: The Case of Rudolph’s Revenge.” Joss really loves these books, so when they offered to send a copy of the latest addition to the series, I said “Yes, please!” The first book in the series had some pretty glaring plot holes that were obvious event to Joss, but they’ve improved since then. Joss loves the puzzles, which include logic puzzles, code breaking, etc., and enjoyed this book a lot. In fact, we’ve done two other Cluedle books but have skipped one, so that one may be on his list for Christmas. If a puzzle-solving book sounds fun to you, we did see some adult variations at Barnes & Nobles.

As usual, we are making our way through the Sequoyah book list for this year. We just have about 1.5 more books to go! I asked Joss what his favorites so far this year have been, and he really liked “Fowl Play“ (about a girl who inherits a parrot from her deceased uncle and goes on a mission to find out if he’d been murdered). As well as “The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum,” about a girl who gets selected to attend a spy training school. They’re both a lot of fun, on the more lighthearted end of the Sequoyah book list. (Yes, even the murder-y one. It did deal with grief and family disconnectedness, but the parrot was amusing, and it was overall pretty lighthearted.)

And if you’re purchasing books for younger readers, check out this list from Tulsa City-County Library librarians! tulsakids.com/favorite-books-of-2025

4. Experience gifts

Here’s a gift I just purchased for both Joss and myself: Holiday Learn to Skate classes at WeStreet Ice Center. If you have a little extra time on your hands over winter break and are sticking around town, WeStreet is offering four one-hour skating lessons for just $39.99. Confessions: I’ve never enjoyed ice skating. So I’m hoping that getting more familiar with it in a structured setting helps!! And Joss hasn’t really done ice skating yet, so this should be good for both of us. I’ll keep you posted!

And I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this yet, but Joss has been doing afterschool classes at Climb Tulsa this semester — ever since he did summer camp there and realized how much he likes climbing! We are about to take a break because he wants to try out for the next Spotlight Children’s Theatre play, but are definitely planning to sign up again in the spring. The climbing classes are about $299 for eight weeks – a 1.5-hour class each week. It’s a bit of an investment, but he’s enjoyed them so much, it’s definitely worth it. In fact, after another round or two of classes, we might have to just get a membership so he can go any time.

Of course, if you want to gift something to do during the holiday season, tickets to Philbrook Festival or Botanic Garden of Lights would not go unappreciated, I’m sure! And a family membership to one of your favorite local attractions will pay off all year long.