When people ask me in a frenzied state if I have all my Christmas shopping done, I almost feel bad saying yes. You see I'm a single, only child with no living grandparents and friends who only switch birthday presents...so my parents are the only people who are consistently on my list. 

Saying that, I think we're all in agreement that parents are the worst to buy for. You firstly have the pressure of getting them something great to make up for all the generous presents they bought you over the years (and everything else they paid for!). Then there's the added pressure of getting them something they don't already own. I mean, my parents have been around since the 1950s and I'm not entirely sure if there's any material goods they haven't purchase themselves over the years (the temptation get them something gimmicky is high). 

Whether you parents are the only people you buy for, or they're just two of twenty, then here's my guide to what you could get them (or any other older relative that you might buy for). 

Jamie Oliver Pasta Machine. Kitchen gadgets are always a great fail-safe for parents, especially when they're kitchen gadgets that they probably don't already have (but would be nice to have!). I also like the Master Pan, and the SMART Breakfast. 

Lapdesk. If your parents are anything like mine (or fit the stereotype of parents) they love to show off how good they are with technology *cough* and own every gadget ever (even if they struggle to work them). Give them a helping hand with a lapdesk so they can browse "The Facebook" while watching Corrie. 

Autoseal Travel Mug. Erm, it's practical? My parents love travel and anything travel related always ends up on my short list. 

Robot Mop. Just look at this gif!

This will totally make up for all the chores you didn't do as a kid. (Firebox)

A bottle of their favourite tipple. Whenever I get really stuck for ideas with my parents, it's a bottle of high-end single malt whiskey for my dad and gin for my mum. 

High-end candles. Stay out of the Yankee Candles shop. There's a range of luxury candles you can pick up for your parents, and my top pick is The Isle of Skye Candle Company. 

A boxset. Your parents grew up during a time when DVDs didn't exist and they had to tape everything off the TV (my mum will groan at me for saying that). But technology has caught up and their favourite films as a teenager have now been digital re-mastered.  

Gillian Kyle anything. The epitome of  mum/dad/gran friendly (if they're Scottish).

Family Crest and Surname History. If your parents are proud of their family ancestry, this is the perfect thing to get them. From: Getting Personal

The gift of experience. Whenever you're buying for someone who seems to have everything, look at  an experience. Helicopter rides, skiing lessons, or tickets to an upcoming show. There's a wide range from Getting Personal, but there's a lot of these on the market. 

Donate to a charity in their name. Gifts in Action have a large collection, but almost all big charities have a Christmas gift option.

Because I know not everyone's mum wants perfume for Christmas, and not everyone's dad wants gardening shears, I'm going to plug my wishlists based on personality types from previous years. Gift sets from small, cruelty-free brands, online shopping for ethical Christmas presents, gift guide for a Scottish fashionista,  Stocking fillers for a kitschy gardener, gifts for the well-groomed cruelty-free male, stocking fillers for a foodie who loves a drink,  AND (my favourite!) stocking fillers for redheads and gingers. Happy shopping!

Love or hate it, Valentine's exists. I'll personally be flying out to Amsterdam on the 14th of February with my girl Hayley for a bit of palentines gallivanting. But, sssht, between you and me I'm actually a sucker for Valentine's Day and 'doesn't roll his eyes at cute teddies and refuses to go out for dinner' is pretty much high up there on my list of ideal-man-traits. 

But...a lot of stereotypical romantic stuff isn't by-default vegan. Chocolates with milk, alcohol with honey, candles with beeswax and...condoms with casein. I've not actually been in a relationship since going vegan (so my last few Valentine's have all been a bit dull) but clearly I've been daydreaming about a Valentine's spent with a hot vegan male as this list evidently shows (handy as it can be used as a gift guide, or something to plan a date at home with). 

1. Vegan wine
It's no secret that I'm a rum girl, but it's not a particularly romantic tipple and is usually vegan anyway. Vegan wine is a bit harder to come by and it will show a bit more effort if you buy in a high-end bottle with no animal by-products. Waitrose, Co-op, Marks & Spencer's and Sainsbury's have a good selection of veggie wines, however for something higher end check out the vegan section of Majestic Wine or have a look through Barnivore. 

2. Chocolates from Hotel Chocolate
I've mentioned before that I'm a savoury girl so 1) I'd marry a guy who brought a packet of crisps to our first date and 2) I'm therefore rubbish at recommending chocolates. But the vegan options in Hotel Chocolate look higher-end and come in nicer boxes than other brands on offer. So I'm going with that. 

3. Soya candles
Obviously a romantic evening isn't complete without some clichéd candles. Pacifica, Harper's Candles and BeeFayre all sell vegan candles. 

4. French Letter condoms

Regular condoms contain the animal protein casein, but being vegan is no excuse to not take your sexual health seriously. Also, if you're in need of some lube, YesYesYes has a water-based vegan option, and the Superdrug own brand is vegan suitable (I do spoil you guys, even in an overshare kind of way).

5. Eden perfumes
These were a recent addition to my perfume collection, and they are high-end and grown-up. Spritz some over yourself if you're going on a hot date.

6. A cup of tea
I know tea isn't seen as a typically romantic (or vegan) thing, but I like tea so it's staying in. I found this sweetheart tea on Etsy and Bluebird Tea Co. have a section of their website dedicated to romantic brews.  

7. Lush vegan Valentine's products
Roll up, roll up, it's the blogger cliche but their products are godly and perfect to lather up in the tub together. You can pick up what would work best for you and your sweet, but don't be this girl. Har har.

8. A meal out
If you're looking to take you sweetheart out for a meal, and you live in Glasgow, I'd recommend 13th Note or Red Onion for some Valentine's Day nosh. Okay, I've never actually been to these places on that particular date but they've always been my venue of choice when I'm looking for a formal sit-down kind of meal.

9. A cute vegan themed card
You can remind them that they are the nutritional yeast to your macaroni cheese, or your favourite herbivore. Or you can get a boring one from Clinton's.

10. Have a romantic break to a vegan B&B
While 100% vegan B&Bs still aren't a common occurrence, we are lucky that the UK has a few of them. There's Loaf B&B just south of the border, Fox Hall in Cumbria. and Bay Tree Vegan Hotel right in the south of England. There's also VegVisits which is essentially AirBnB for vegans.

11. A personalised pot of Marmite
I was hesitant to include this as, while Marmite is vegan within itself, it is owned by Unilever - who are pretty much as un-vegan as you can get (I buy the Tesco own-brand). But it's cute, so do what you like.

Credit

It's that time of year again when instead of having a man to buy a Valentine's Day gift for, I write up a guide on the internet of what I would buy instead. So spoken for ladies (or people who just fancy buying themselves something nice) here's the kind of gift my ideal man would like to receive...

1. Bulldog

I recommend this time after time, but this is my favourite cruelty-free male brand. I have bought this regularly over the years for males in my life (romantic or otherwise) and always get good feedback. The brand comes up quite often in the #cfbloggers chat too. 

2. The Spicery (or something similar) 

I actually bought this for a male friend at Christmas who loves spicy foods and he seemed to really enjoy his monthly box. I actually wanted to keep it for myself when it arrived...

3. Joke sex food from Ann Summers

True story: I once bought penis shaped pasta for an ex. He was a bit confused but his friends laughed and made spaghetti bolognese with it. Have a look at this obviously NSFW link. 

4. Ingress pants (or other geeky and fun pants)

I love underwear and a man with a proper underwear collection gets an up-vote from me. Plus points his collection includes funky pants (cause they make me laugh and that's always good). If your guy doesn't play Ingress or you don't have time to order from Etsy then Primark is always a good shout for geeky pants. 

5. A cute but artistic card

I don't like giving or receiving cards (waste of paper) but they are the done thing so if you're going to then buy something like this I love you to be pieces card, this super cheesy card or this one if you're with a ginger. 

What are you planning to buy your sweet this 14th of February?