KENT'S ALTERNATIVE GIFT GUIDE '22
Find the best Alternative Gifts from Kent’s indie businesses this Festive Season
The Ceramic Studio
Set in two converted barns on a beautiful orchard in Brenchley, The Ceramic Studio is easily accessible from Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge and Paddock Wood. The pottery classes are run by experienced, dedicated tutors and class sizes are small to ensure everyone’s needs are met.
The Ceramic Studio’s gift vouchers make a perfect present and can be purchased in a range of different values. Plus, the online vouchers don’t have an expiry date and are valid indefinitely! Use the QR code to buy an e-voucher.
Werkhaus
WerkHaus Margate is a collection of modern utilitarian clothing, accessories and curated vintage pieces. They stock carefully sourced vintage and pre-loved pieces, mixed with new pieces from brands such as Kings of Indigo, Stan Ray and Uskees clothing.
There’s also a range of accessories from personal favourites - Le Beret Francais, Le Specs sunglasses, Kate Jones Knitwear, Buckitt bags and Jollies socks to name just a few.
Werkhaus say: “We believe that clothing should be practical and durable as well as flattering and stylish and we firmly believe in the ethos of gender neutral clothing. Our aesthetic harks back to the days when clothing was made to last and we are passionate about natural fibres and pockets. We stock clothing that will suit all ages and sizes. All are welcome to browse, shop or just to come in for the vibe!”
WestWell Wines
Westwell Wines is a single estate vineyard and winery making beautiful, precise, world class wines on the chalky slopes of the North Downs.
Crafting all of their wines using the latest equipment, but with a low interventionist approach, Westwell’s aim is to be hands-on in the vineyard and hands-off in the winery.
Try the Pelegrim NV - Pelegrim means Pilgrim in middle English (circa 12th century) and recognises the history of those that walked the Pilgrim’s Way above the Westwell vineyard for centuries on their final leg to Canterbury.
Pelegrim is a traditional bottle-ferment sparkling wine using a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 35% Meunier and 25% Chardonnay produced using 20% reserve wines from the previous 5 years, with a dosage of 8g per litre. This vegan wine is lees-aged in bottle for 36 months to give depth and biscuity aromas which only bottle fermentation can deliver.
Treat someone to a Tour & Tasting at Westwell. Stroll through the beautiful vineyard and then visit the working winery and finally the tasting room to sample five Westwell wines.
Free delivery is included, gift cards are supplied in a gift envelope with room for your own message.
*CENE10 for 10% off orders from website
Albion Stores
Opened in March 2018, Albion Stores in Margate’s Old Town sells a mix of contemporary clothes and shoes, fine jewellery and accessories, music and homewares that reflect the relaxed, individual style of their customers. Their aim is to bring the very best choice in fashion and lifestyle while remaining authentic to their core ethos as a store.
They focus on brands with ethical sensibilities, and ensure every product is traceable and made of the highest quality. Store owners Katie and Joe hope the passion they have for what they do comes through in how they present their selection to their customers.
Vino
Faversham’s Vino has got all you need for Christmas with its outstanding range of international wines to buy for your table this festive season. If you’re looking for something to enjoy at home, you can pre-order for Christmas at a 10% discount right now with free delivery to the local area.
But if you’re looking for a cosy wine experience, head over to the Court Street bar and
Fabio Armenti will give his expert wine knowledge to customers looking for something authentic - with a Sommelier Diploma and WSET Level 3 Certificate, it’s fair to say Fabio knows his grapes.
This year, there will be No Corkage Fee on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, allowing guests to enjoy Vino’s selected bottles at RRP!!
Remember, booking is essential at weekends during the festive season. #NoPlonkers
*Pre-order for Christmas with 10% discount
Fella
Fella will be continuing to make Kent handsome this festive season with Christmas gift sets and gift cards available to use on treatments at the Fella locations.
Lookout for the new Firsthand Hydrating Shampoo, Conditioner, Charcoal Body Cleanser and Clay Pomade which will be available in-shop and online.
Why not give the gift of great skin with the Microdermabrasion facial for men - it treats blackheads, spots, ingrown hairs and wrinkles - giving an instantly smooth look and feel.
Book your 30 minute appointment now and receive £10 off your first visit. (Please note that a skin test is required before the first session at least 48 hours before appointment.)
Bean Smitten – Christmas Blend
Back by popular demand, Bean Smitten’s Christmas Blend returns for its ninth consecutive year.
Blended to remind us of all the things that we love about Christmas – a slight smokiness of an open fire; rich chocolate; mixed nuts; and citrus and spice.
Its success lies within the recipe, made up of 100% Specialty Grade Arabica beans from Brazil, Indonesia and Rwanda, expertly blended post-roast to create the perfect Christmas coffee.
A firm favourite among Bean Smitten customers and sure to keep the roaster busy right up until 31st December! Available as whole beans or ground.
Beatbox by Boxclad
A modular storage system, inspired by vinyl, that moves to the rhythm of your home. At just over 350mm deep, it’s the perfect size for your vinyl collection (and any other collection you might have!) and compact enough to fit neatly into the smallest of spaces.
Available in three sizes, choose your individual boxes to stack together and create a system that’s unique to you. Each Beatbox stays separate, allowing you to re-stack in seconds, making them perfect for small garden pods, large living rooms or even hallways - just mix however you please. #mybeatbox
Daddyboards
@daddyboards / @paddleboardingeventsuk
Looking for a unique gift for that adventurous person in your life? Or keen to try something new? Then try a Daddyboards gift card.
They have a range of lessons and experiences to help you get out on the water on a paddleboard. They come highly recommended, highly qualified and fully insured, with years of experience catering for beginners to advanced on lakes, rivers and sea.
As one half of Paddleboarding Events UK, they also offer bespoke adventure holidays. They already have short breaks in stunning West Wales and SUP surf weekends in Norfolk, with new adventures coming soon.
Fuggles
fugglesbottleshop.co.uk / fugglesbeercafe.co.uk
@fugglesbottleshop / @fugglesbeercafe
Let Fuggles take the hard work out of finding the perfect Christmas gift with its Fuggles Crackers.
One amazing beer, curated by our expert team and perfectly packaged in a festive beer cracker. Ideal as a Christmas gift, stocking filler or Secret Santa!
Choose from 11 different styles, including Gluten Free and Alcohol Free options.
Apartment 9 Media
Don’t be a mug - mix and match the perfect mug and beanie combo!
Plus, find tons of colourful and modern prints, stickers and gifts from a Folkestone-based artist. Free local delivery available.
Arcanist Rum
Premium Small-Batch Caribbean Pineapple Spiced Rum. The allure of small-batch rum and its seductive flavour. The sweetness of the pineapple is perfectly balanced with the Caribbean spices, so every drop has a hidden world of flavour - and it never tastes too sweet
The Escapement
Give the gift of adventure at The Escapement - Escape Rooms.
An immersive experience that hybrids theatre and mystery games - requiring teamwork and collaboration. Spend quality time with loved ones, away from screens, creating core memories.
Enjoy breath-taking scenic environments, perplexing puzzles, exciting challenges and unrivalled customer service.
The intriguing gift vouchers offer something different and unexpected - embossed with gold, encased in black envelopes and sealed with bronze wax.
Designed for between two and eight people, choose to gift as many tickets as you want, whether it’s a couple, squad or family.
With two award-winning venues in Thanet and six themes to choose from, there’s something for everyone. Tickets are selling fast, so treat someone to a truly unique experience they’ll never forget.
Harbour & Tide
Harbour & Tide is a modern beach store selling goods for seaside life, with a focus on functional, joyful and sustainable products.
Its refreshed offering for autumn/winter includes British knitwear and accessories, journals and planners, reusable insulated cups and bottles, natural soaps and beauty, books and games for adults and children and a selection of blankets, tote bags and shoppers. Harbour & Tide will be popping up at Union Yoga + Cafe in Ramsgate for November and December, Monday - Saturday, 9am-2pm. You can also shop online with UK-wide shipping and local delivery options.
Hopeless Dolls
Hopeless Dolls is run by Maisie and Dulcie, a sister lead duo from Medway, who make and sell creepy cute home decor and gifts including art prints, enamel pins and stickers - and is the world’s ONLY seller of the Dental Incense Burner.
Their art depicts messages of self-love, celebrating your queerness and alternative culture. Their inspirations come from many different sources, including drag performers, celebrities and the weird and wonderful. Their platform holds a safe space for alternative and queer individuals to feel accepted and celebrated.
Check them out and become a member of the dollhouse.
Kent Cookery School
It’s that time of year when we constantly ask the age-old question of what to get someone who has everything! An experience to remember, that’s what – at The Kent Cookery School.
Whether they are a confident cook, complete beginner or just love the eating part, there is a course for them. From Bao Buns & Sushi to Bread Making, Knife Skills and a wide range of Street Food and Weber Barbecue courses, there is something for all tastes and abilities. With more than 250 five-star reviews on TripAdvisor, you can rest assured that the recipient will have a fantastic time learning new skills and eating great food!
Kentish Pip & Woolton Farm
Kentishpip.co.uk / wooltonfarm.co.uk
Shop the Kentish Pip & Woolton Farm merchandise, from souvenir glassware to exclusive printed T-shirts.
The brand’s handcrafted ciders and Woolton Wines are available as a gift set, perfect for wine- or cider-lovers.
Vouchers (sold digitally or physically on request) will be available. These can be used for online purchases across Kentish Pip and Woolton Farm platforms or for wine/cider flights that can be redeemed during The Barn’s opening hours next year.
Contemporary Art at The Lido Stores
Affordable original fine art, elegant jewellery, vibrant homewares and a diverse range of handmade ceramics are available from The Lido Stores in Cliftonville.
Crashing Cymbals is a an original mixed-media painting on canvas by Laura Mars (c. 90cm x 70cm), £195
Ceramic Birds handmade by Guy Holder is a range of exquisite pieces available from £56, including owls, doves and seabirds.
Positioned opposite the Lido obelisk, the gallery exhibits contemporary art produced by emerging and mid-career artists with an emphasis on Kent-based artists and designers. Own Art partnership allows for monthly interest-free payments on sales of more than £1,000.
LPOL - Dinky Zero-Waste Collection
The Dinky Zero-Waste leather handbag collection is handmade in Margate from surplus and dead-stock materials carefully selected from the LPOL studio and workshop.
A true celebration of the LPOL Zero-Waste ethos, Dinky is a reimagining of one of their most popular handbag styles. Born entirely of a re-use and recycling philosophy, this new design incorporates multiple panels utilising textures of offcut surplus leathers collected and archived in their workshop and studio - material that would otherwise end up in landfill.
The only element of this bag not upcycled or recycled is the metal hardware (they’re working on it!). This circular production method not only gives the material a second life but it is kinder to the environment, saves water and reduces carbon emissions.
Maidstone Distillery
The Maidstone Distillery Guided Gin Making Experience vouchers, presented as gift certificate and sealed within the hallmarked envelope, make the perfect gift for any spirit connoisseur.
Guests will be warmly welcomed into the distillery with a drink at the bar before being taken through to the experience room, where they will learn the art of distillation on their personal mini copper pot still. Here they can delve into the fascinating craft and learn about the processes we use to create our fine artisan spirits and, over the course of two hours, design and create their very own 70cl bottle of spirit to take home with them.
Margaux
@margaux_margate
A beautiful lifestyle store in Margate Old Town, carefully curated with love.
Unique European womenswear collections blend with beautiful accessories, skincare and homewares that you won’t find elsewhere.
Northdown Brewery
Need the perfect gift for the beer-lover in your life? Hop forward, award-winning beer from sunny Margate! Brewing since 2018, Northdown Brewery is proud to be part of Kent’s rich history of hop-growing and beer-making. Modern hazy pale ales, flavour-forward IPAs and proper tasty ales - Christmas just got better!
Not For Humans Pet Boutique
Through the turquoise door, halfway down The Old High Street, Folkestone, you’ll find handcrafted pet beds made from upcycled materials, designer dog coats, leads and walking utility bags, paintings, prints and greeting cards by local artists and lots more gorgeous stuff!
But what if you want mittens for your monkey or a lead for your lizard? One of the many bonuses of selling handmade products by local creatives is that they can make whatever you ask them to. So if they haven’t got what you want, or they do but you want it in a different colour, that’s no problem, either.
By the way, although the shop’s called Not For Humans, they do actually have lots of gorgeous handmade products for humans and their homes, too, from animal-themed cushions to jewellery, coasters and all kinds of stuff that you won’t be able to resist.
Whitstable Harbour Gin
The Whitstable Distillery Co. Ltd has created this refreshingly smooth London Dry, which surged on to shelves in 2021. Delicately infused with sea buckthorn and samphire, it became a firm favourite in many local bars and restaurants and rippled across the South East from Deal to Greenwich.
Having received accolades from experts and mixologists alike, this coastal brand is set to become a popular player in the ever-growing gin market. Featured at the British Embassy in Paris, we say if it’s good enough for the Ambassador then it’s good enough for us!
Buy online or visit their flagship store at Whitstable harbour for gift ideas and Christmas hampers.
Ølke Roastery
Folkestone roasted specialty coffee with a focus on bright flavours and genuine recyclability.
Specialty coffee is the cream of the crop - only the highest-grade coffee is recognised with the ‘specialty’ title. In short, it tastes really very good.
Ølke Roastery takes a precise and analytical approach. A lot of love has gone into growing and transporting the coffee to the UK so it’s only right that it’s handled with care.
All packaging is 100% recyclable, using infinitely recyclable material where possible. This is why the coffee arrives in beer cans. Luckily, it also looks very, very cool.
* Quote “CENE10” to get 10% off
Terrapy
Terrariums. Mindfully made. Create a beautiful, low-care and sustainable tropical plant world with Terrapy. Their workshops introduce you to the wonderful world of terrariums, how they work, their history and how to make one. You will create your own terrarium, which will be yours to take home and keep forever! The carbon-negative, ethical workshops start from just £30 and are run in partnership with wonderful small businesses across Kent. Why not book a place for yourself or buy a gift card for a friend?
The handmade Kentish terrariums are also available to buy. Based in the South East? Have a group of six or more friends? Terrapy can also bring the workshop to you!
* Quote "CENE22" to get 10% off private group bookings January - March 2023.
100% Recycled ‘No Sheep’ Sherpa Hoodie
The Quarter Masters are raising the bar one again with this winter’s new Conscious Collection, including sustainably-minded, gender-neutral pieces like this insanely cosy, 100% recycled, ‘No Sheep’ Sherpa hoodie, embellished with a shepherd’s ‘smit mark’ and spray-effect branding in hot pink. £79.99.
Sandgate Trading
Durance Cotton Flower Candle - Discover Durance’s iconic best-selling fragrance, Cotton Flower. All the gentle pleasure of cotton unveiled by a fragrance with musky notes, beautifully tender for a cocooning ambiance.
Handmade and decorated, this candle with soft and tender accord will perfume your home as well as create a soft and cocooning atmosphere. The ingredients used to make this candle are carefully chosen to burn cleanly and perfume beautifully. (+/- 40hr burn time)
LIGA Beach Clean Recycled Placemats - The ultimate gift for sustainable homeware-lovers. These Beach Clean recycled mats from LIGA are made from recycled EVA Plastics and organic cork, turning materials that would be harmful to our planet into something beautiful. Find these in-store at Sandgate Trading, along with a carefully curated selection of unique homewares, gifts and fragrance.
Albion House Hotel
Built in 1792, the history of Albion House in Ramsgate is rich and colourful. Those who have stayed in the magnificent bedrooms even includes Princess Victoria shortly before she was crowned Queen.
The many original features of this magnificent have been maintained or restored during the sensitive 2014 refurbishment and the return of the luxurious Albion House to all its majesty has seen the introduction of Italian Carrara marble bathrooms, renewed sash windows, exquisite furnishings and the original cornices remoulded and replaced.
The clifftop location of Albion House affords it an incredible vantage point over the beach, a view that stretches right down to the Royal Harbour, while the modern Dining Rooms offer an exceptional menu harvesting the best local produce from right here in Kent.
This festive season, you can buy that special someone the gift experience of Albion House.
Luxury Gift Packages:
Gift vouchers
£20 » £250
Tea and Cake for Two
£10
Dinner for Two
£70 » £95
Night in a Top-Secret Room for Two
£139
Getaway for Two
£125 » £399
