Gift Ideas for Your Bae: Women-Owned Businesses Edition

Hi friends! Today, I’m here to bring you your ultimate holiday shopping guide for gift ideas your girlfriend, wife, best friend, significant other, or treat-yo-self self. The best part is, everything in this list will only be businesses owned by women (totally badass). So not only will you be giving the best gift ever that your bae is guaranteed to love, but you’ll also be supporting women-owned businesses. What a win-win situation!

Makeup & Beauty Gift Ideas

1. Beauty Bakerie- This is a stunning black-owned business, founded by the total badass, mom, and breast cancer survivor, Cashmere Nicole. She built this AMAZING and adorable makeup brand in 2011 with the motto, “Be Better, not Bitter.” You’ve seen all of Beauty Bakerie’s products on Instagram and famous Youtubers’ faces. All of their adorable packaging relates to all things baking, but don’t be fooled by the cute packaging. The quality of the products like eyeshadows, foundations, and concealers are no joke. They’re also cruelty-free.
   Gift Pick Idea: The Matte Lip Whip in color: Versailles. Their Lip Whip line is a beauty cult favorite for a reason. This color especially looks beautiful on every skin tone and can be both for everyday wear or going out looks. I’m so obsessed! Buy it here, $20.
   
   
   
2. Taya Beauty-Taya is a queer-owned business that is all about creating nourishing products with ingredients from the rain forest using sustainable methods. It was founded by world’s first openly lesbian Latina supermodel, Patricia Velasquez. Taya, meaning “I am” in Wayuu dialect, works to continue supporting indigenous communities. They’re vegan and cruelty-free.
   
   
   
3. Hi Wildflower-Writer and novelist, Tanwi Nandini Islam started Hi Wildflower while writing her revisions for her novel, Bright Lines. She started with making perfumes with scents extracted from all over the world, quickly expanded her line to beautiful lipsticks and eyeshadow palettes. All of the colors and scents she chooses are so perfectly crafted. I’m obsessed.

Nerdy Gift Ideas

1. Away Travel- Founded by 2 women, Steph Korey and Jen Rubio, they created what is lovingly termed “luggage 2.0”. They’ve fixed just about everything you hate about your current luggage bags by making them with: ejectable external battery, 360-degree Hinamoto wheels, unbreakable hardshell casing, waterproof lining, and modern colors.
   
   
   
2. Adafruit-This is super nerdy, but as much as I love makeup, I am always an engineering nerd at heart that loves to tinker. Limor Fried started Adafruit in 2005 to create the best place online for learning electronics for all ages and skill levels. Even us at Lioness used Adafruit a lot in the early days to prototype all kinds of vibrators!
   Gift Pick Idea: Circuit Playground Snow Globe. This is a perfect introductory kit for programming and making circuits, plus you get to customize your very own snow globe! Buy it here, $39.95.
   
   
   
3. Lioness- Of course I can’t make a nerdy gift guide section without including ourselves! Lioness is the first and only vibrator that helps you improve your orgasms. Experiment, understand, and have better orgasms.
   Gift Pick Idea: The Lioness Vibrator. There are new precision sensor feedback technology packed into this strong but quiet, silicone rabbit-style vibrator to let you literally see your arousal and orgasm so you can mix up, enhance or just repeat your favorite ritual. Buy it here, $229.
   
   

Charitable Gifting Ideas

If gift-giving might not be their top five languages of love, how about donating to amazing causes in their name this holiday?

1. The Milligan Foundation is an absolutely amazing organization that provides resources “for domestic violence victims in need of transportation and relocation services.” It was founded by Tracey Milligan, a domestic violence survivor, as an idea in 1998 to formally launching in 2011. They continue to help so many people nationally every year and hope to expand globally in the future.
   
   
2. BetterBrave is a nonprofit organization working to combat sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace by providing resources and tools for victims, witnesses, and allies.It’s founded by Grace Choi and Tammy Cho and they’re working tirelessly to help change the world we work in.
   
   
   
3. Healing to Action is a nonprofit organization who help build worker-led movements and build worker power “to organize against gender violence to achieve economic and social equality.” It was founded in 2016 by two amazing women, Sheerine Alemzadeh and Karla Altmayer, who continue to help worker leaders have powerful voices against gender violence. You can make a donation here.

Happy gift-giving, friends!