Shop these small businesses to find the perfect cultural gifts for everyone on your list (plus a few things you'll want to add to your own wishlist).
The holiday season is a great time to celebrate cultural traditions and festivities. Many celebrations involve the practice of gift-giving, so what better way to honor cultural holidays than by gifting cultural items?
We've rounded up eight small businesses that specialize in multicultural merchandise. So whether you're looking for the perfect piece of home decor, apparel, or toy to wrap up and give to someone you love, you're sure to find it in the list below.
Photo Credit: Mosaic the Label
This is one of the first brands that Multicultural Parenting started following on Instagram. Mosaic the Label is just such a great blend of celebrating culture and fashion that we gave it an immediate follow and liked a bunch of their posts.
Each item in their store is so unique, but they all showcase the same message of being proud of your cultural heritage. Some items use humorous phrases, others use imagery, and others use pop culture or historical references. There's just so much depth to their well-designed products that we love them all!
Of course Mosaic the Label carries must-have tees and sweatshirts, but they also sell pins, stickers, keychains, and other accessories that celebrate racial and ethnic diversity (they even have special beverage bottles.) It's such an empowering and beautiful brand that every item I look at I can immediately think of specific people that would love to receive it as a gift!
From their About Us: "We strive to empower racially and ethnically diverse individuals to find their place in the world, to flourish in that place and to show pride for that place once they find it."
Photo Credit: Portmanteau Home
Portmanteau Home has found a great way to blend practical home decor with multicultural artistry. Using multicultural prints, Portmanteau Home has everything from throw pillow covers to tea towels to aprons to wall art and more!
Each of Portmanteau Home's collections is named after words from the cultures they represent. This attention to detail is carried over to the prints they use in each of their products. The colors and designs that are selected for each culture are all stunning and a true reflection of the beautiful cultures they celebrate! Anything you gift from this store (or buy for yourself...let's be honest) will add a nice cultural accent to the home.
From their About Us: "Just like how Portmanteau is a whole new word that is created from combining the sounds and meanings of two words, Portmanteau Home hopes to show how two cultures coming together can create something new and beautiful."
Photo Credit: Joeydolls
I grew up playing with dolls, so I was so excited when I found these beautiful ethnic dolls that celebrate Asian cultures. I'll have to wait a little bit longer to get these dolls for my kids because they haven't been launched to the public yet.
I've seen doll companies offer multicultural dolls, but they have plastic faces and appendages and tiny accessories, so they're not suitable for babies or toddlers. I've seen plush companies offer dolls with various skin tones, but their clothing is very generic. Joeydolls is special because they also offer a soft doll with traditional clothing and accessories!
Sign up for their email list so you can be notified when they're available on Kickstarter so you can support them and get your preferred doll before they sell out!
From their About Us: "I want children from all around the world to feel confident in their skin and know that everyone deserves to be loved."
Photo Credit: Keiki Kaukau
I believe that everyday living is one of the most impactful ways to celebrate cultural heritage, and approachable cultural play is something Keiki Kaukau (kay-kee cow-cow) does so well! They've taken some favorite toy categories and given them a fun cultural twist.
Kids love puzzles, so Keiki Kaukau has created cultural food chunky puzzles. Kids love playing kitchen, so Keiki Kaukau has created cultural food play sets. Kids love sensory toys, so Keiki Kaukau has created cultural stacking and bead threading toys.
Keiki Kaukau's toys are perfect for little hands and creative play. They're so bright and beautiful that kids will be drawn to play with these cultural toys again and again. (Yes, their Lei Pua Wooden Bead Threading Set is on my Lei Day wishlist!)
From Their About Us: "Through our vibrant line of toys and books, we encourage your keiki to delight in the specialness of their own heritage, and invite them to explore the rich array of Pacific Rim flavors!"
Photo Credit: Heirloom Art Co.
I stumbled across Heirloom Art Co. on Instagram and immediately fell in love with their products. If you are looking for timeless traditional pieces that will serve as beautiful heirlooms, you need to shop their store. They have a great selection of Nordic cultural pieces but also sell home decor, books, and gifts (I would love to be gifted anything from their store).
One fun feature of their website is that they allow you to shop by cultural holidays. Of course, they have beautiful merchandise for Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, but I really loved seeing their collections for less common holidays in the U.S. like May Day, Midsummer, Santa Lucia, and Epiphany.
They also have a journal portion on their website that explains the meaning behind the traditional items they sell and the holidays they are used to celebrate. You can learn, celebrate, and decorate for special cultural holidays all at Heirloom Art Co., and we love it!
From their About Us: "Within our company and within our personal spheres, we desire to develop a lifestyle of appreciation: appreciation for people, cultures, tradition, and innovation."
Photo Credit: Wordy
Bilingualism plays a large role in many multicultural homes. If you're like our family and want to do a little better about raising bilingual children, Wordy has some great gift ideas for your kids.
Wordy brings languages to life through puzzles and imaginative play items. Each toy is double-sided with an English label on one side and either a Spanish, French, or Chinese label on the other. Children can use the correct words to refer to the items as they play with them, making learning a fun process. To be honest, the labels would be helpful for me too since I often go blank on certain words when I'm not speaking in my native tongue.
Since their toys are educational, Wordy's website includes a phonetics pronunciation guide for English, Spanish, French, and Mandarin/ Pinyin. This way, if you're teaching your children a language from your heritage, but not your home you can feel confident in your pronunciation.
Photo Credit: Mochi Kids
Mochi Kids has the cutest designs that are simple but full of character. When I first saw their items on Instagram I was immediately drawn to their cultural foodie shirts. Their cartoonized cultural foods are the visual definition of kawaii, and I'm having a hard time deciding if my kids need their clothes, or if I need their clothes (oh, yes, they come in adult sizes too).
There's a great selection of food, holiday, and even birthday tops to choose from. No matter what you pick it's sure to make you smile when it's worn!
While I particularly love their cute graphic clothing, they also sell toys, craft kits, and partyware. They even have gift and holiday tabs on their website to better help you find exactly what you need. Mochi Kids has such a wide variety of merchandise, you'll find multiple things to add to your own wish list.
From Their About Us: "We believe actions as simple as what we wear and how we spend our dollars can change the world we live in for the better."
Photo Credit: Three Sunshine Shop
I think one of the best ways to celebrate diversity is by making it accessible to all children, and Three Sunshine Shop does this so well! Owner Sana Mulla specializes in handmade peg dolls that feature a beautifully diverse lineup. Rather than selling sets of peg dolls that are culturally specific, she sells them in a multicultural assortment. I love this so much because as kids play with these sets it helps reinforce that friendships and familial relationships can be a beautiful blend of cultures!
The clean simplicity of Three Sunshine Shop's peg dolls lends them to being both toys and decorations. Three Sunshine Shop is filled with great pieces that I would love to set out on my kids' dresser tops or in the nursery. They're easy to clean, easy to store, and easy to travel with. The added multicultural aspect just makes them that much more of a great gift buy!
We've read glowing reviews of Three Sunshine Shop and noticed that she does customizations if you would like specific ethnicities or religions included in your multicultural peg doll set.
We hope that you enjoy the holidays surrounded by those you love. We also hope that this roundup sparks some amazing ideas for you to gift this year. As you celebrate cultural holidays, keep in mind that even the simplest traditions can leave a positive impact on your children. So even if you're starting small, you are starting and that's what is important!
All the stores featured on this list were selected because of the great multicultural items on their websites. We weren't compensated to highlight any of them, and we don't earn commissions on purchases made at their storefronts. We really did choose them because we love what they sell and want to support their small businesses!
If you have a multicultural product or company you would like to be considered for a future roundup article, please let us know via our contact form.
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