Ok! Time to be realistic! TWO DAYS LEFT for Christmas, and unless you are going out to do some last minute shopping, there is no chance of you making it in time to get those last minute gifts delivered to your house to be wrapped and then handed over to the giftee. But not to worry, this is why you have The Conscience Collective at hand to guide you through this nightmare. GIFT CARDS! 

Yes, you thought it, but I said it! Gift Cards are an amazing way to save face in case you forgot to buy a gift for your little cousin, who has had his or her little hearts set on receiving a gift from their favourite older cousin (I am not admitting to anything). And, because you have spent almost all of your budget, you're also a little reluctant to spend a lot, so a gift card is an ideal way to show them that you have not forgotten, that you care, and that they now have the power to get the item they really want, and man, are there loads of great gift cards to places that market ethical brands for all to see. 

Therefore, I have created a little gift card guide all for no more than £20/$25. Enjoy and Seasons Greetings!

KATE'S PAPERIE Leather Travel Journal, $67 | LYDALI Blue Gradient Clutch, $32 | PEOPLE TREE Recycled Yarn Pom Pom Hat, £22 | SEVEN HOPES UNITED Carved Rustic Whitewashed Picture Frame, $34 | FLENSTED Balloon 5 Mobiles, Price upon Request | TRUE GRACE Moroccan Rose Soy wax Candle, £14 | JOHNSTONS OF ELGIN Green Lambswool Shawl, £15 | GREEN & BLUE Birdball Belle Feeder, £19.95  | DOWSE Kaleidoscope Clock, £25 | HARABU HOUSE M-Cups Measuring Matyroshkas, $13 | EARTHLUST Stainless Steel Bottle 400ml, £12 | BASKETS FROM AFRICA Swazi Sisal Basket, $91(£56).

Two weeks ago, I went on a hunt for a gift for my intern for doing such a great job, and thanking her for her three months of invaluable assistance. I didn't know what to get, so settled on a People Tree Dress, which I guessed would fit her, and it did (whew). The experience got me to thinking about how often we get stuck on gifts to get for certain people outside of our immediate circles. For example, what do I get Winston, my Rastafarian Postman, as a thank you for being so chirpy, and remembering my name? Or a friend who loves to bake?

The list above is just a smidgen of all the amazing sustainable gifts that are out there, and that's counting the gifts in our GIFT GUIDE MAGAZINE. Yet, I thought I would compose a list of gifts based on those very people whose current roles, stations, and characteristics help define the types of gifts we purchase for them.

Preparing for Our Garden Party & BBQ

Ah, the warmth is back. Walked outside yesterday to Holland & Barret and ended up having to strip down my layers. That for me is a great sign. I was somewhat panic strickened when the weather took a turn for the worse a few weekends ago, only to have reared its little head just in time for my Garden Party & BBQ. The garden party is quintessential Britain, with sparkling English Wine, British reared meats, delicious salads and lake caught fish making appearances, along with our favourite British desserts--eclaires and scones anyone?
Initially, I was feeling uninspired, however, I took to my polyvore (I'm addicted now) for some much needed guidance and came up with the perfect little floral-inspired Garden Party collection that will have you hosting your own garden party in no time (especially before the Summer says its farewells and makes way for the Autumn).

When we were getting married I didn't think of a registry until a friend asked (it could've been Emma H.) about ours. Eek! Where to go where to go? So the hunt began for gifts we wanted, and not just any gifts, but an equal number of ethical gifts and non-ethical essentials from the hubby's favourite department store--John Lewis.I also had to consider what would be convenient for both US & UK guests (we asked the Italia-bound guests just to bring themselves as that was gift enough).

You could imagine how easy it was to go onto John Lewis and click everything. TOO EASY for my liking, so I had to stop and move onto the ethical side. As I typed the obvious into Google--ethical wedding gift registry--quite a few online stores came up. Some of them did not have their registry set up at the moment, and those that did have their registries up and running were confusing, not consumer friendly, or didn't have things that I liked.

However, there were those few that stopped me dead in my tracks and caused me to go slightly overboard, so much so that I ended up featuring some of the registries I had set up onto our wedding website. We even managed to find fairtrade bedsheets from John Lewis, which we immediately added to our list.  What follows is a list of a few really great ethical registry sites we are happy to promote.