WRITE FOR RIGHTS 2018 GIFT GUIDE For the wellness-conscious
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HGail Johnson
ealth-conscious loved ones can be tricky to buy for: you want something that supports and shouts wellness, but you can’t exactly give them a jar of vitamins. A kombucha SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) might be all they crave, but this socalled mother culture could be a little tough to wrap. And chances are your healthy-living BFF already has her own yoga mat, block, and bolster cushion.
Fret not: we have you covered with these gift ideas that will warm the hearts of even your fittest, healthiest pals.
THE OIL OF HEALING
Get this: the global essential-oil market is expected to reach $12.85 billion by 2023, up from $5.91 billion in 2016, according to Stratistics Market Research Consulting. This holiday season seems like as good a time as ever to get into the aromatherapeutic trend, in which concentrated plant extracts are inhaled or diluted and rubbed onto the skin. They’re said to have a whole host of health benefits, depending on the plant in question; lavender helps with stress relief, while tea tree may boost immunity.
Shaped like a Maghreb tajine, Auria’s Taj Ultrasonic Diffuser ($79.50 at Indigo [various locations]) will infuse a space in style. With a mist that lasts 16 hours, the unit comes in seven colours, including white, grey, and wood. To go with it, pick up Saje Natural Wellness’s holiday Diffuser Blend Collection ($44.95 at Saje [various locations]), consisting of four five-millilitre bottles of uplifting oils, including tree scents and peppermint twist.
Plant-based goodness isn’t limited to health-focused foodies; it’s good for your hair, too. Consider a basket of bottles from Vancouver-based AG Hair’s vegan-friendly Natural line, which is 98 percent plant-based. Apple-cider vinegar is the “holistic hero ingredient”, with the substance’s acidity acting to lower ph levels, making hair shinier, more manageable, T h and less frizzy, e w all without nasty e
i chemicals. g h t o The AG Hair Natural e t
G d Holiday Duo consists n e
s g v i t i of Natural Balance y B l e
a n k e t i s d Shampoo and Natural Boost Conditioner, both formulated for all hair types, including colour-treated hair ($48 for both 355-millilitre bottles at salons or www.aghair.com). BEYOND A BLENDER Most healthy individuals have soups and smoothies on regular rotation, but some soups and smoothies are genuinely smoother than others. The grand master of small kitchen appliances, Vitamix, is the gift to splurge on when you want to win a health nut’s heart. In no time, they’ll be whipping up nut and seed butters, nondairy milks, baby food, dips, sauces, dressings, alternative flours, and more.
There’s a range of options: the newest model, the Explorian, has a twohorsepower motor, while the premium Ascent A3500 kicks it up to 2.2 horsepower (at Gourmet Warehouse [1340 East Hastings Street], other kitchen stores, and www.vitamix.com/ca). Both have a self-cleaning option, aircraft-grade stainless-steel blades, and a cool-running motor that can pulverize ingredients for up to six minutes