2015 Holiday Gift Guide!
Obviously, the best gift is always a kitten, but if for some reason
that's not enough, here are some empowering holiday gift ideas!
that's not enough, here are some empowering holiday gift ideas!
Body Love Gifts
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Mistletoe Penis CozyI am overcome with joy to confirm that yes, this is a thing.
"You certainly won't find this hand knit item at your local department store - definitely a boutique knit." - Deb of Goldiesknits Their penis cozies come in over 90 styles, including Jingle Bells, Santa (called Naughty but Nice), Shark, Owl, and the ever-classy Merlot. The artist suggests that these are a good alternative to underwear. |
Bellies Are Badass Tote BagThis screenprinted 100% cotton tote bag comfortably fits notebooks, records, books, etc.
The illustration on the tote shows a fabulous-looking person wearing a fantastic bra/undies combo. Looking good, badass belly celebrating person! |
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Body Activism KitIs there someone in your life who would love to spread joyous messages of body love and acceptance to everyone they meet? This is the gift for that person!
This adorable pouch comes stuffed full of cards, bookmarks, stickers, and pins designed to remind friends, family, strangers, and anybody else to celebrate their body! According to the shop owner, the exact contents of these pouches are always changing depending on what they have on hand, but they're always body positive and fabulous. |
Vulva SoapThese incredibly realistic vulva soaps are casted from real life vaginas!
Made with all natural pigments and lavender essential oil, these lovely soaps come sealed in biodegradable cello and wrapped in screen printed vintage wrapping paper. They're good for your skin and feel sudsy and wonderful. I actually wrote a review of these a while ago, which you can see here. tl;dr: 5 stars! |
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All Bodies Are Good Bodies OrnamentIt's probably tacky to include your own items in your holiday gift guide, but here's the thing: I generally make the items that I want to exist, and there aren't always other people making similar things (or maybe I just haven't found them), so some of my favorite body positive holiday themed things on the internet are my own creations.
#sorrynotsorry Now that that's out of the way: This is a glittery holiday ornament that proclaims that "All bodies are good bodies." So much glitter and so much encouragement! |
Gold Vulva & Penis Greeting CardsI can not get enough of these sexy, beautiful block printed greeting cards!
I am always psyched when I see penises depicted in a positive, respectful (rather than crude) way. The reason that there are more vaginas than penises on this gift guide is that I haven't found very many penis depictions that seem to regard penises as lovely body parts. So these greeting cards are a breath of fresh air in a sea of penis jokes. Also, check out the gorgeous pubic hair on the vag on the left! |
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Vagina Ornament"Hold her up to your ear and hear waves crashing on distant, rocky shores!" says artist Suzanne McAleenan, owner of Felt Melons.
There's really no need for me to write original content here, because Suzanne says it better than anyone. "When you gift a vagina-ment to your best pal, your mother, a hostess, you're gifting them a smile every time they see it." |
Free the Nipple ShirtI love the graphic on this shirt, and the message behind it. Why are some nipples outlawed, and others are considered totally acceptable?
This shirt is soft and cozy (like an already broken-in favorite tee). |
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All Bodies Are Beautiful BraceletThis bracelet is a friendly reminder to take with you everywhere you go. It is made of pure aluminum, which is safe for your skin, lightweight, sturdy, and it doesn't tarnish. Plus, it comes packaged in a gift bag, so you don't event have to wrap it!
Lori Ward, owner of Risky Beads, also offers custom messages, fonts, colors, and the option of putting a secret message on the inside of the bracelet, for only you and your gift-recipient to know about. |
Vagina PendantThis vulva pendant is made of sterling silver. Daniel, shop owner at Erotic, also makes uncircumcised penis earrings, vagina key chains, and lots of other genital and sex-themed sterling silver creations.
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My Body, My Choice Temporary TattooI am loving the calligraphy on this pro-choice/pro-consent temporary tattoo! The set of two tattoos also comes with 5 extra mini tats for your body decor pleasure. BFF matching tattoos, anyone?
Loretta G., shop owner at Radical Hearts Print Lab, also makes lots of awesome pro-black/anti-racist, self care, queer, feminist, body positive pieces. Their items include art prints, art tiles, fabric patches, and printable coloring book pages. So fun! |
All Bodies Are Good Bodies WreathIt's a beautiful wreath with a body positive message!
Grace D. Chin, the artist who makes these wreaths, says, "your body is GOOD ... this includes ALL marginalized body types, especially disabled and queer bodies. Remind yourself that anyone who tells you otherwise is either trying to sell you something or has internalized some harmful messages - ignore the former, be kind to the latter." |
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Cunt Coloring BookColor in * vaginas * vulvas * pussies * in this delightful cunt coloring book! Forty one of them to be exact!
This book was first published in 1973. So cool! |
Consent Gifts
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Teaching Consent to my Kitten OrnamentThis little zine ornament is the story of a kitten who learns about consent! It's adorable, and appropriate for people of all ages.
This ornament is a miniature version of the full zine, so it's exactly the same as the original, just smaller. |
Party With Consent ShirtParty With Consent is an organization that aims to end sexual assault on college campuses. They focus on developing comfort and safety within party atmospheres to ensure optimal levels of fun for everyone involved. And they make this cool shirt!
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Spice Girls Inspired Consent PinNumber of times that I've sung "If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get my consent" to people in my life since finding this pin on Etsy a few days ago: At least 2.
This shop, Chicago Uprising, also sells feminist Christmas stockings and ornaments. |
My Body, My Rules OrnamentSo much gold glitter in one ornament! This ornament was made with two different kinds of gold glitter ribbon, gold tissue paper, gold glitter gel pen, and, of course, plain old (though there's nothing plain about it) gold glitter! All to encapsulate this message of consent and autonomy in all its fabulous and powerful glory.
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Queer Gifts
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Wish You Were Queer ShirtIf you're starting to wonder if this gift guide can double as Nicole's personal holiday wish list, you might be onto something.
Artist Kiernan Dunn also makes a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fanzine, a screen printed Janelle Monáe poster, and some screen printed vintage bra posters that I am currently swooning over. This might just be the one-stop-shop for everyone on your list! |
Kissing ZineWho doesn't want hand-illustrated soft core queer erotica for the holidays?
Artist Gemma Flack describes this zine as, "a celebration of the queerest cuties kissing, making out, smooching, snogging, pashing, sucking face, canoodling, caressing, necking... with little pecks & lots of tongue! ... celebrating diverse sexuality & gender and the art of kissing ur sweetie." |
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They, Them, Their MugRemind the world of the gender pronouns you use with this nifty mug!
They also have other sex positive and gender-affirming mugs including: Kinky, Queer, and, lastly, Not a lady. Made by Meg Brown Ceramics. |
Call Me They ShirtHere's one way to make remembering your pronouns very easy for people!
Sinart, the shop that makes this shirt, also has some really cool collages for sale. |
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Gender Fluid MugThese mugs are both queer AND cozy. Other mugs by Stonewall Pottery include: Queer, Trans, So gay, Butch, Femme, and Fuck U-terus.
They also let you choose the font, text color, and shape of your mug, so it can be exactly the way you want it! |
Asexual Pride MugThis mug is too ace for this shit.
You can even get it personalized with the recipient's name on the mug. Adorkable We Are, the shop where this is from, also sells mugs that spread the pansexual, bisexual, trans, genderqueer, and all sorts of other kinds of queer love. |
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Asexual Pride HatIt's a cute hat! And it's asexual flag colors!
This hat is one way to wear your pride that doesn't require any explaining, since people who don't know what it means won't think anything of it. This item was hand crocheted in Louisiana. |
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Queer Gift Bonus Round! |
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Pansexual Pride
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Gender Bender
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Respect My Pronouns Shirt |
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Self Care Gifts
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Black Women & Self Care ZineThis zine is for all self-identified Black women. It includes the author's personal reflections on oppression, mental health, and healing. It also includes some DIY recipes and original illustrations.
Artist Naomi Moyer also makes Afrocentric postcard sets, which I am psyched about for lots of reasons! Reason number one is that they include vintage photos of cutesy-looking people with surprisingly blunt speech bubbles, which is something that I see all of the time, but the people are ALWAYS white! The people in Naomi's postcards are all POC and they're all talking about fighting against racism. Yay! |
Self-Care for Creatives ZineThis zine is all about helping people to find the many ways that they can be creative, be it through art, or non-artistic creative endeavors.
Zine maker Michelle of Busy Weekends says, "Too often I hear people put down their own creativity and it makes me sad that they can’t see it for what it’s worth." "Self-Care for Creatives is jam-packed with exercises to help you explore your creative impulse and accept what it has in store for you." - Michelle of Busy Weekends |
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The Bad Day BookThis little zine is intended to keep you company (and give you guidance) in the midst of a mental health crisis, including psychotic episodes, dissociative episodes, and suicidality, etc.
LB Lee, the artist who makes these, explains, "Obviously, this is not a replacement for a thorough crisis plan, just a quick and dirty resource for when you're not thinking clearly." Their zines Feeling Worthless? and Gender Evolution are also worth checking out. |
You Deserve to be Valued Journal"You deserve to be valued. Your words deserve to be heard. Your ideas deserve to be yours."
This journal was made by artist Megan J. Smith, founder of the Repeal Hyde Art Project, whose aim is to start a conversation about the Hyde Amendment, which blocks people from using Medicaid to pay for abortions. Megan has lots of other amazing journals, posters, and all sorts of accessories for sale. My favorites are: a "Fund all the abortions" tote, and a "You deserve to create your family on your own terms. Disability justice is reproductive justice" poster. |
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Sex Positive Gifts
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I Like My Sex Like I Like You! ZineThis zine is really meaningful to me because it suggests that sex isn't as separate from other parts of life as it is often portrayed as being. For instance, you can have sexual preferences and even a sexual personality, just like you have food preferences, entertainment preferences, etc.
The last page of the zine says, "I like my sex like I like YOU…" and has spaces for you to fill in what you like about the person you're giving it to. :) |
Gender Equality Gifts
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Amazing Girls 2016 CalendarThis illustrated printable calendar celebrates the diverse strengths and capabilities of girls.
Brave • Smart • Kind • Lovely • Creative • Strong • Leader Genuine • Adventurous • Funny • Determined • Innovative Here's how it works: You pay a mere $1.50 for the .pdf file, and print it yourself. It prints as an 11" x 17" single sheet, which you can probably do from Fed Ex or Staples using a flash drive. |