Christmas always comes with the tricky task that seems to get harder and harder– and seems to crop up faster and faster– every year. What gifts are you going to get for your Caribbean family members this Christmas? A certain tropical fruit comes to mind, but mangoes aren’t even in season. It’s tempting, but you can’t just go with a gift card either. So what’s there to be done?
At times, it can feel impossible and overwhelming to pick out the perfect present, especially when you’ve started to exhaust your ideas over the years, so we’ve taken the time to put together a gift guide that is sure to have something every, yes, every member of the family might want. You came to the right place.
4 Kinds of Gifts to Get for Your Caribbean Family
1. For Music Lovers: Carolin’ in the Caribbean
If ears could smile, music-related gifts would be sure to get a wide, beaming grin.
As half-Jamaican singer Mya has put so elegantly into words, “What always draws me back to the Caribbean vibes are the upbeat vibrations of welcoming melodies and… rhythms that make you feel like dancing…” Clearly, music runs just as potently through our veins as our Caribbean blood does.
Whether it’s to dance, or to enjoy a beautiful piece of sonic art, or to bring the full feeling of joy only music can bring to a home, there is no better gift than the gift of music.
2. For Fashion Lovers: Island Chic Fashion & Style
Vibrancy, color, and life have become nearly synonymous with the Caribbean region. We are known for our love of laughter and all things vivid and bright. In this, our style is core to our identity as a form of expressing the fireworks of our inner color.
For this reason, any fashionable gift that helps fulfill that expressiveness is sure to be loved by any member of the family, especially those closer to or currently in teenagehood.
3. For the Home Bodies: Caribbean Home Decor & Accessories
A house is not a home unless it is filled with love and warm meals, and then made into your own. We often do this in the Caribbean by using lively decoration pieces, whether that’s tasteful artwork, comfortable lounge chairs, plant life, or other interesting decor that fills our hearts with joy in one way or another. Gifting home-based items is a great way to show you care, especially for the homeowner themselves, as it demonstrates a respect for the hearth they have cultivated.
4. For the Foodies: Tastes of the Caribbean Culinary Delights
Caribbean food and drinks are famous around the world, and for good reason. Our part of the tropics is home to some of the best cooking, cuisine, and consumables, like delectable coconut rum cake, fried plantains, jerk chicken, mmm… Lucky for us, the food only gets better around the holidays, with delicious delights that we fondly look forward to enjoying every December surrounded by the ones we love. Food is centrally intertwined with Caribbean culture as a whole, and therefore, makes a wonderful, guaranteed-to-be-cherished Christmas present for the ones you love.
12 Quick, Inexpensive Amazon Gifts Ideas for Your Caribbean Family
A Bob Marley Vinyl Record Still Can Do No Wrong
There is “One Love” all Caribbeans share: a deep, passionate love for music. With all the best hits of Bob Marley, this vinyl will be forever treasured, especially by those who love old-school tunes and/or still have a record player. Vinyl has been making a major resurgence, so you could considering pairing a classic vinyl like, Bob Marley’s Legend, with a cool affordable vinyl player for the Gen Z music lover in your family. It’s a great way to introduce the nostalgic melodies of beloved Marley, to the next generation. This vinyl gift is an easy way to make your loved one feel like the “Sun Is Shining.”
Even without a vinyl player, this record can make a distinctive decoration for any music aficionado. It can also be purchased as a CD if needed, but the vinyl, with its more robust audio quality, is our recommendation.
Novelty Seashell Music Box
This adorable music box is the kind of Christmas present the receiver is guaranteed to love. With every warm feeling of the seaside, this dainty, shell-shaped music box evokes images of sapphire skies, gold sand, and seas of crystal blue, making it the perfect keepsake to give a daughter, niece, grandchild, or any young Caribbean girl.
Doubling as a jewelry box, the box can hold small treasures and comes in three pleasant colors: watermelon pink, pale blush, or pearl white. And just as a shell held to your ear emits calming sounds that will always remind you of the sparkling ocean, each time the giftee hears the dreamlike, delicate music ring out of her precious music box, she will always be reminded of you and how you care for her.
Kalimba with Ocean Detailing
The kalimba is known for having a heavenly, melodic sound, and for this reason is often used. Often called a thumb piano, the instrument is played easily with the thumbs, and is a beginner-friendly, intuitive instrument that sounds effortlessly beautiful. Handcrafted from high-quality wood with beautiful, artistic oceanic detailing, this specific instrument is one of a kind.
Any music enthusiast will feel blessed while listening to the twinkling notes that float from this specialty kalimba, and accompanied by some easily found online kalimba tabs for some of their favorite songs, it is an exquisite pick.
For free kalimba tabs to play “One Love” by Bob Marley, check this link!
Custom/Personalizable Soccer Jersey
Across the Caribbean, we all love football, though we’ll all be rooting for different teams in the World Cup. Still, this stylish, customizable soccer jersey is an excellent choice for a gift no matter what country’s team is your favorite, as not only does it come in # vivid colors, but a name of your choosing can also be printed on the back, whether that’s his favorite soccer player’s surname or his own name.
With its high-quality fabric and well-crafted design, this jersey is perfect for younger men in the family to wear either as a cool, spiffy tee or as a sharp look for playing on the field.
Beachy Beaded Gemstone Bracelet
With an aquamarine chain, gold detailing, and a sparkly starfish charm, this one-of-a-kind, carefully crafted bracelet is a gift sure to make a young lady smile. Dainty and sweet with its charming, sea-themed design, it is the most enchanting accompaniment to any breezy, summery outfit and is a darling reminder of sweet, sunny, Caribbean days. This balmy vibe effused off of the bracelet is one desirable for young women.
Whenever the recipient wears this special bracelet, she will be reminded of you with just a glance at the lovely piece of sparkling jewelry around her wrist.
Upcycled Coconut Shell Bowls & Scented Soy Coconut Shell Candle
Remember the sweet smell of coconut that used to fill the house every December? Or, perhaps you associate Christmas with the delicate spices of ginger and cinnamon. This cleverly decorated coconut candle smells like more than just vanilla, cinnamon, or coconut, of course (those being the three available scent options). It also carries the sweet scent of that nostalgic memory, that special only-Christmas smell. Fit in a tropical coconut shell to further the Caribbean feeling, this candle will make a home feel even more homey, especially during the holiday season.
If you’re missing the nostalgic feeling of eating out of a calabash or coconut, The CocoBowl Company has countless coconut bowls of various sizes that are perfect for morning porridge! Your grandmother or mother-in-law will adore these thoughtful, coconut presents!
Caribbean Hammock Swinging Chair
Lounging in this hammock will become a favorite pastime for an uncle, or perhaps father.
Imagine the breeze blowing, gently rustling palm leaves as he slowly swings back and forth, clear blue skies above and cheeks warmed by comforting sunlight. In 5 colors of a whimsical design, including a rainbow and a classic light brown, this piece will also add an island touch to any outdoor space, especially by a pool or front porch. Additionally, some studies have found that laying in a hammock is beneficial for the back, so it is a great choice for anyone suffering from lumbar pains.
Be sure to wrap up this instrument of serene joy for one of your family members this holiday season.
“Tropical Breeze” Set of 4 Artisanal Soaps
There is nothing that feels more luxurious or relaxing than a warm, bubble bath surrounded by fragrant candles (maybe even coconut-shaped ones) after a long, tiring day. This tropical set of French-milled bar soaps will only make that experience more deluxe, with the delicious scents of Island Ginger, Juicy Peach, Seafresh, and Ocean Pür. Organically created with natural ocean materials and shea and cocoa butter, this soap is not only a paradise for the nose, but a haven for the skin. These soaps will leave a special woman feeling as cool and calm as a sea breeze.
Just make sure you don’t present this present in a way that makes the recipient think you’re attempting to subtly tell them something negative about their hygiene, and it will be a well-appreciated and thoughtful gift.
Colorful Beach Toys Set for Children
Here in Florida and all across the Caribbean, we know that Christmas is always accompanied with warm, sunny weather. For a winter’s day at the beach, this set of vibrantly-colored sand tools and toys is sure to make a young boy or girl jump for joy. This is a gift that is not just a toy, but a tool for making memories, as for a beach-bound child, there is no greater delight than the ability to make the coolest sand palaces on the whole shore.
With a shovel and rake to dig out moats or pools that can be filled with ocean water easily carried in the adorable suitcase or watering can, as well as cutesy molds to create little sand sculptures of starfish, crabs, tiddler fish, and conch shells, your little one will more than enjoy crafting unique sculptures by the seaside.
Fresh Roasted Caribbean Coffee Variety Set (3 pack)
Nothing tastes better than Caribbean coffee– and no Caribbean coffee tastes better than this gourmet assortment of richly roasted coffee from Haiti, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic. With each having its own warm blend of aromatic flavors, the brand is known for preserving the freshness of its ground coffee by using specialized packaging processes to best maintain the deliciousness of the drink and integrity of the beans.
Brewing a mug of smooth, dark mahogany goodness that is the ideal start to an otherwise tired morning, this coffee set will give any spouse a feeling of luxury and make them feel special. The set is also a wonderful choice for any other particular lovers of coffee in the family.
Premium Blends– Caribbean Flavors Seasoning Variety Bundle (Pack of 3)
If you ever wondered what made your grandma’s cooking always taste oh, so good, part of the reason was definitely the seasonings used to enrich the delicious flavor of the meal. Think about every year’s past Christmas dinner– that succulent meat, every side you ate too much of– remember each unique blend of flavors that each dish proudly presented, whether it was delightfully spicy, or just the right blend of barbecue-esque savor, the food alone couldn’t accomplish that symphonic taste.
It is for this reason that spices are a key part of any Caribbean home, and this one of a kind array of festive flavorings is a welcome gift for a mother or grandmother, or anyone else with an interest in cooking.
DIY Rum Making Kit
Need a present for a grandparent or an older-than-21 family member? This alcohol infusion kit, with nine different natural flavorings available for combination, can make 512 different combinations to make a fully individualized, robust island drink. Those flavors are categorized into both woods and other botanicals, which are as follows:
Woods: dark chocolate, american sweetheart, vanilla dream
Botanical: cherries, cinnamon, pecan, nutmeg, raisins, apple, vanilla sugar, orange, pineapple
No matter which flavor or combination of flavors the giftee goes with, they’re sure to enjoy this unique and flavorful gift that allows them to try their own handmade rum.
Remember the Reason for the Season!
We know when you sit around that regal, emerald tree, the thoughtfulness, joy, and care you give to others will be the greatest gift of the season, not whatever material item is actually inside inside the present boxes. As trite as it may sound, it’s the thought, the sentiment, and the care behind the gift that truly matters.
Well, as long as it’s not a gift card.
Merry Christmas!
