A Holiday Gift Guide for Shopping Small
Whether you’re nearly done holiday shopping or just getting started, the AKASSA Holiday Gift Guide has a little bit of everything for your favorite people this season. As part of our mission to spotlight AAPI and female makers while reducing our carbon footprint, our gift guide features some of our favorite small businesses. We hope this guide sparks inspiration for you and makes gift-giving this holiday a little less stressful. Happy holidays, AKASSA fam! Now, on to the good stuff…
For our first gift guide, we wanted to showcase a few makers who you might have seen before in previous AKASSA events, but also some other brands that we’ve been long-time fans of and new favorites that we’ve found along the way. Quick tip: In the next section, you can click on the links to go straight to the makers’ shop page. Check out each makers’ section to learn more about why we chose them!
A quick peek
(Starting at the top from left to right)
PRISM Bags
$$ | Accessories & Bags | Los Angeles, CA
PRISM Bags is founded by identical twins, Rachel and Helen! Annie and I got a chance to meet them at the latest Maum Market in Pasadena where their wallets immediately caught our eyes. We love the sleek and compact design of the Minimalist Vegan Bifold Wallet which comes with a shiny gold carabiner and two different neutral colors and textures.
I wish we had more time to chat with the gals because there’s so much more to PRISM than just another wallet or bag. Aside from keeping you stylish while being extremely functional, the company also promotes sustainable fashion, ethical labor, and inclusivity to empower users. You can learn more about how Rachel and Helen have given back through their business here.
What are we buying?
Minimalist Vegan Bifold Wallet ($40 $32) - SALE
Safety Alarm ($20)
Hemleva
$-$$ | Accessories, Stickers, Jewelry | Seattle, WA
We LOVE Hemleva. You might remember their Monstera Suncatcher as part of our holiday boxes last year. Founded by Samantha Leung and based in Seattle, Hemleva has a large collection of colorful items including suncatcher stickers, keychains, stationery, pins, and more.
Samantha contributes regularly to various causes on a per-product basis, and has donated over $8,000 in 2022 to nonprofits such as Stop AAPI Hate, Regional Animal Services of King County (RASKC), The Trevor Project, and more. Early this year, Hemleva also joined 1% for the Planet, an ongoing pledge to donate 1% of every sale to support nonprofit organizations focused on the environment.
What are we buying?
Suncatchers ($4-$30)
Monstera Drop Earrings ($36)
Lucky Jones Co.
$-$$ | Stickers, Prints, Totes, Water Bottles | Charleston, SC
We like our posters like our soondubu: spicy. Recommended by a friend, we stumbled on Lucky Jones Co. and honestly? We just love her vibe. This one woman show is driven and starred by Laura Jones from Charleston.
We love the sass in Lucky Jones Co. products because not only will they tell you like it is, but there’s a pinch of optimism to brighten things up.
What are we buying?
Kindly f*ck all the way off print ($4.50 - $18)
Courtney Ahn Design
$-$$ | Stickers & Prints | Portland, OR
Courtney Ahn, or as she prefers it, Courn, is the mastermind behind these vibrant, colorful prints and stickers. She'll catch your eye with her whimsical use of color and shapes.
Her unique artistic style reflects her pride as a queer Asian woman, and her studio prioritizes working with BIPOC, queer, and woman-owned businesses because they often face the biggest barriers to success.
What are we buying?
JaneLi.Co
$-$$ | Apparel, Stickers, and Prints | San Francisco, CA
Another maker we love - Jane Li. Not only do we love her creative designs, but we also truly respect her hustle. Her shop is always filled with witty and clever nods to our Asian heritage. We included a few of her stickers in last year’s holiday boxes, including her popular Stop Fucking Around holographic sticker and her signature lettering Asian American sticker. You might also recognize her from season 2 of Craftopia (watch episode 7!)
Her stickers, prints, and apparel are always brimming with sass and humor. Make sure to follow her on Instagram, where she shares her journey as a small business owner. Our favorites include her builds, where she does time lapses of constructing her event booth spaces and event debriefs (which were an inspiration for our post-vendor reports during our last AKASSA event).
What are we buying?
The Divine Source
$$ | Bracelets | Anaheim, CA
Our dear friend, Rachel Sison, owner of The Divine Source has a wide range of gemstone bracelets in her Etsy shop. Rachel was one of our vendors for the AKASSA Summer Festival, and we love working with her because she puts so much care and effort into every bracelet designed. Each bracelet is carefully curated to help the wearer harness healing energy while spreading love and joy.
The Divine Source has made charitable donations to multiple social/environmental justice-centered organizations including Black Feminist Project, The Conscious Kid, Autistic People of Color Fund, and more. If you’re looking for a one-of-a-kind gift, make sure to message Rachel over Instagram to start your order!
What are we buying?
Manifestation Bracelets ($15)
Om & Shanti Boutique
$$ | Candles, Jewelry, Apparel | San Francisco, CA
Om & Shanti, which translates to “peace and serenity”, was founded by Urmi Patel a proud Asian American female who grew up in San Francisco. Having gone through her fair share of struggles, Urmi built Om & Shanti to be a small business that focuses on self-healing and productive growth.
This boutique features both handmade items from Urmi as well as curated pieces from other small businesses. Our personal favorites are the natural soy wax candles. Each candle includes decorative stones for spiritual healing and well-being.
What are we buying?
Caribbean Queen Candle ($12)
BRWNGRLZ
$$ | Jewelry
BRWNGRLZ has a plethora of beautiful laser-cut earrings that aren’t just statement pieces. Each design is unique and holds a rich narrative that pushes the wearer to embrace nonconformity and embrace their color. That said, BRWNGRLZ earrings are inclusive of everyone. We love that they challenge buyers to embrace the brown girl energy and not be afraid to stand out in the crowd.
Over the years, BRWNGRLZ has also donated thousands of dollars to organizations that fight for social change in the United States and the Philippines.
What are we buying?
TALA ($30 $20) - SALE
415 ($25)
Los Angeles ($45)
String Cheese Embroidery
$$ | Apparel & Embroidery | Troy, NY
String Cheese Embroidery features a handful of unique caps, beanies, and embroidered goodies. Each stitch is made by Elise, or as her friends call her, Cheese! Our personal favorite is her Christmas ornament hoops. These cute little 3-inch hoops are the perfect funky and colorful pop to add to any tree this holiday.
While you’re on her Etsy page, be sure to check out her cute floral beanies, which are perfect for the winter season!
What are we buying?
Christmas Ornament ($20)
These are just a handful of the vendors we recommend for this holiday season. There are plenty more small businesses out there — we encourage you to look local, shop small, and gift mindfully! Oh, and to wrap it all up, grab some unique holiday gift-wrapping paper from Cheery Human Studios. Have a great holiday, friends!