The Ultimate Vegan Gift Giving Guide

The Ultimate Vegan Gift Giving Guide

You never realise how hard it is to buy for a vegan until you're stuck doing it, but honestly, vegan gift-giving doesn’t have to be that hard, you just need to know where to look. 

Why Buy Vegan Gifts?

Imagine this... You are buying a gift for a vegan friend. You bought something thoughtful and lovely - or so you thought! When they unwrap the present they immediately recognise that the gift is not vegan.

They don’t say anything about it though and thank you, but both of you know that your friend won’t be able to use the new gorgeous product.

Instead of the present bringing joy to your friend, it’s now the elephant in the room. It’s horrible. 

Whether you're a non-vegan buying for a vegan, or just looking for vegan gift ideas, we know that the whole process can be mind-boggling and awkward (just ask your friend about the first time they went vegan grocery shopping).

It feels like vegan gift giving can be fraught - because so many seemingly safe products are not actually vegan. Sneaky animal products can be found in literally anything and the box doesn’t always list whether or not it is vegan-friendly. 

It can be really hard, especially as a non-vegan, to navigate your way around the vegan product world and you could never be sure if what you’re buying will actually make them happy. It’s totally overwhelming!

Knowing that you have bought a vegan present adds more depth and meaningfulness to the gift regardless if the receiver is vegan or not. It shows that not only do you have a heart big enough for them but there is also room for caring about the environment and animals too. No animals suffered for the sake of spoiling someone.

A vegan present is the best type of gift in any situation. 

Buying a gift for a close vegan friend or relative

Our list of vegan gift ideas has a great variety of products that should suit any personality - and you know them best! Use our lists of vegan gifts to spark ideas of your own and help you decide on the perfect present. 

We have the following guides to help you buy vegan gifts:

Buying a present for a vegan you don’t know well

Buying a present for a vegan that you don’t know well can be super hard. It might feel like you have a lot of restrictions on what you can purchase but we suggest you just keep it simple! In this case; vegan cookbooks, cooking products, a gift card or a vegan hamper filled with loads of special treats are the best way to go. They’ll be totally thrilled - I promise!

Vegan hamper for ultimate vegan gift giving guide

What Shouldn’t You Give a Vegan?

It can be hard to decipher the ingredients and processes of each individual product so sometimes it may take a little more research. However, there are some items that you should definitely not buy and vegan:

  • Any food item that includes animal-derived ingredients (it contains meat, fish, eggs, dairy, honey, gelatin, whey, etc). Read my vegan shopping list for a complete list of items to avoid
  • Candles made from beeswax
  • Non-vegan soap, toothpaste or shower products made with stearic acid or glycerin
  • Makeup made with glycerin, lanolin, carmine, honey or beeswax
  • Makeup, bath and skincare products that are tested on animals
  • Silk, fur, wool, leather, suede, cashmere
  • Down or feathers 
  • Bone china or pearls
  • Non-vegan wine, champagne, beer or cider (it is a shock to realise that some alcohols aren’t vegan as the alcohol is filtered through egg whites or fish bladder)
  • Some vegans believe palm oil isn’t vegan, so try to avoid this ingredient if possible

Is your mind exploding yet? 

Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered! 

We’ve made it super simple for you, all you need to do is choose something from our store and buy it! If you buy a present from us - we will ship the gift out to them in Earth-friendly packaging with a special note written to them by you. Look out for the ‘Order Note’ section on the Cart. 

You can’t get vegan presents much easier than that!

Little blue present for The Ultimate Vegan Gift Giving Guide

If You’re a Vegan Who Doesn’t Want to Receive Non-Vegan Gifts

People get gifts they don’t want for many reasons. But as a vegan, we want to minimise the amount of money spent on animal products as much as possible, and this extends into gifts people purchase us. We all want presents we can appreciate and use, so take steps to educate your relatives and friends before they go out and buy anything. 

If you think you might be getting gifts this season, there are two ways you can avoid getting a non-vegan gift. Here’s how:

  1. Send them one of our vegan gift guides. If it’s your family and close friends that are stumped as to what to get you for a present, and you don’t already have your own list of vegan presents or a specific gift in mind - simply flick them one of our articles for awesome vegan gift ideas, safe in the knowledge that anything they purchase you from our list is 100% vegan!
  2. Ask for a shopping gift card. This is the best option if you are in a situation where you don’t feel comfortable telling the person the ins and outs of your vegan lifestyle. Examples could be at work around Christmas time or a Secret Santa situation where the other person doesn’t know you very well. If you don’t ever expect to receive a present from this person again then telling them you are vegan might just create unnecessary questions and judgement. Gift cards are a win-win in this situation! It’s easy for the other person to buy, and you get to choose your own vegan present!

We want the gift-giving process to be easier and more joyful all round - without any animals getting hurt in the process. That’s why we have put together our guides on gifts for vegans (Australia) together. We hope you find them super helpful!

Check out our guides: 


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