Wrap It Up: 2025 New England Holiday Gift Guide

By Katrina Farmer and Jenn Johnson
Photos by Adam DeTour

For centuries here in New England, there have been glassblowers and woodworkers in village centers, chandlers by the harbor, seamstresses at home by the hearth. Now there are also young illustrators in trendy neighborhoods, grandchildren of founders running companies in historic mills, and entrepreneurs committed to using natural ingredients in their beauty products. Today’s New England artists, crafters, small-business owners, and innovators celebrate the collective history of our six states with their high-quality work.

We’ve picked a handful of their products to share this holiday season. Ranging from traditional to modern, they’re all perfect for gift-giving. You’re sure to find something for everyone on your list in our 2025 New England holiday gift guide.

2025 New England Holiday Gift Guide

Coastally Inspired New England Gifts

1. Cleanse yourself with the sea. Atlantic Soap Co. founder Caroline Laye collects maris aqua from the ocean near Woods Hole, Massachusetts, as the base of her fragrant soaps. With sculpted edges and swirled patterns, it’s like the waves are in the palm of your hand. $11-$32; atlanticsoapco.com

2. Boston-based artist Jill Rosenwald’s pottery features ever-classic colors and signature patterns that stand out in any setting. Plus, each piece is made to order (and customizable). The Gloucester Swoosh oval tray is an invitation to let any worries and cares wash away. Available in four sizes, $240-$520; jillrosenwald.com

3. If ever there was a way to carry the coast with you, this is it. Made of old sailcloth and outfitted with hemp rope handles, Sea Bags’ Wavy Seas medium tote is fashionable and durable. Each bag is handcrafted on the working waterfront in Portland, Maine. $175; seabags.com

4. Maine was a major center for the American sardine industry for over a century, but the nation’s last cannery, in Prospect Harbor, closed in 2010. Honor that history with Hearth and Harrow’s screen-printed organic sardines tea towel, proudly made in Rockport, Maine. Four color options, $20 each; hearthandharrow.com

5. “Candle wax … on the hardwood floor,” sings Taylor Swift in “New Year’s Day”; if only she had chosen Seawicks Candle Company tins instead. Hand-poured in small batches in Richmond, Maine, these delightful 100-percent-soy candles are clean-burning and perfect for anyone longing for “the scent of the coast.” $16; seawicks.com

6. Native Rhode Islander David Norton loves to sail. He cleverly uses marine-grade line, the same as a boat’s running rigging, for his Lemon & Line jewelry, handcrafted in Newport. Celebrate all things nautical with this limited-edition Nantucket Hydrangea design, featuring a custom diamond-pattern braid (woven in New England). $38; lemonandline.com

7. Two sisters and a cousin, with happiness manager Alfie the dog at their side, head up E. Frances Paper, based in Newport, Rhode Island. Their playful spirit shines in the whimsical illustrations adorning their products. Drop a Little Notes card into a loved one’s pocket, bag, or lunchbox for a “surprise hello”; the wallet-size cards are also ideal as gift tags or at place settings. $14; efrancespaper.com

Modern-Heirloom New England Gifts

1. In Bridgeport, Connecticut, a former textile mill building is now powered by the creative spirit of artist tenants including Denyse Schmidt, a nationally recognized figure in modern quilt design since the late 1990s. Marrying time-honored techniques with bold patterns, her handmade-to-order quilts are art for everyday living. Prices vary by size and pattern (shown: “4 Crosses” in queen size, $4,000); dsquilts.com

2. To read the founding story of Gallit Cavendish’s Loveline Baskets on her website (and you should) is to understand the deeply personal reason the Bowdoinham, Maine, resident began her career in handcraft. But her creations—especially the one-of-a-kind baskets sewn from durable, hand-dyed cotton rope and fitted with wooden lids crafted by her husband, Chris—also speak for themselves. Like the artist who made them, they are a testament to both the beauty that life offers and the resilience it requires. $120-$380 (shown: Hibiscus basket, $360); loveline-baskets.com

3. Throughout 30-plus years of studying and practicing the art of blown glass, Jen Violette of Wilmington, Vermont, has always enjoyed the seasonal change of pace that ornament making provides. A balance of simplicity and sophistication, Violette’s creations show hints of her early Italian glass training and come in a rich variety of colors and textures, turning any tree into a fir-scented mini art gallery. Prices vary (shown: $28 each); jenviolette.com

4. Art and craft meet in JK Adams’s collaboration with Laura Zindel, as the Dorset, Vermont–based wood-products brand provides a fitting canvas for the Brattleboro artist’s nature-inspired designs. As with all JK Adams’s wares, the results are suited to be passed down through generations. Shown: Laura Zindel Cherry Round Serving Tray, $239; jkadams.com

5. Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley made his name by pioneering the photography of individual snow crystals. Danforth Pewter made its name by reviving a family legacy in pewtering that goes back to colonial America. Be dazzled by the melding of these two Vermont icons with the annual Snowflake Bentley ornament, made in Middlebury by master metalworkers now celebrating their firm’s golden anniversary. $29.95; danforthpewter.com

6. In the world of fine spirits, just a small tasting can help connoisseurs discover a new lifelong love. The same is true of the recently debuted Windham Tasting Glass by Simon Pearce of Quechee, Vermont—a petite expression of glassblowing artistry that will leave you wanting more. $75; simonpearce.com

7. Scads of design trends have come and gone in the 104 years that Steele Canvas has been in business. One that’s stuck around: midcentury modern, whose iconic sleekness is paired with heavy-duty canvas and cold-rolled steel in the Wilmington, Massachusetts, company’s Butterfly Sling Chair. $479.95; steelecanvas.com

Eco-Friendly New England Gifts

1. Kristen Mara of Lebanon, Connecticut, decreases the need for mined materials and adds a unique flair to her jewelry by using certified recycled metals. Her sterling silver and bronze Beltane link necklace will develop a distinct patina the more it is worn. $178; kristenmara.com

2. Massachusetts-based Long Wharf Supply Co. makes clothing from a blend of discarded oyster shells, recycled water bottles, and wool or cotton. Keep shells out of the landfill and help reseed oyster beds, which naturally filter water, with an Edgartown SeaWell Hat. $48; longwharfsupply.com

3. Remember the Bernie Sanders mittens that became a meme? Made and gifted to Sanders by teacher Jen Ellis, they are now handcrafted for all by the Vermont Mitten Co. in Shelburne. The cozy, one-of-a-kind mittens are cut from old wool sweaters and lined with fleece—just like Bernie’s. $50; vermontteddybear.com

4. Far from any five-star restaurant, in New Vineyard, Maine, salt and pepper mills are shaped for chefs and home cooks alike. Each Fletchers’ Mill product is made of locally harvested wood, while any scraps or sawdust become pellet fuel—eco-care that’s worth a star rating. $58; fletchersmill.com

5. Add some color to the life of someone you love with an Old Hancock Glassworks suncatcher. Using old bottles from the local transfer station, Chris Salmon melts the glass at his Antrim, New Hampshire, studio and hand-presses a plethora of designs in a variety of hues. When the light streams through one of his creations, it glows in contrast to the winter’s cold. $12.95; store.newengland.com

6. Sustainability guides Spencer Peterman of Gill, Massachusetts, who crafts his spalted maple wood bowls as functional works of art from downed trees that have “a story to tell,” found on walks in the woods. $105-$810; spencerpeterman.com

New England Stocking Stuffers

1. Here’s a stuffer with staying power: Despite the honest-to-goodness lifetime guarantee it has offered since launching in 2004, wool sock maker Darn Tough of Northfield, Vermont, reportedly sees less than 1 percent in returns. Shown: Women’s Bear Town Hiking Socks, $25; darntough.com

2. A book lover’s wardrobe speaks volumes when perked up with bandanas from Heading Prints of Portland, Maine, featuring designs adapted from vintage literary illustrations. $18 each; headingprints.com

3. Upscale that stocking with Rough & Tumble’s Flip Wallets, made one at a time in Brunswick, Maine, in nearly 30 colors of sumptuous premium leather. So money. $98 each; roughandtumble.com  

4. Mix equal parts form and function, add a pinch of artisan flair, et voilà: Beehive Handmade’s pewter measuring spoons, crafted in Warren, Rhode Island. $72; beehivehandmade.com

5. With their recyclable tin and cardboard containers, these unisex skin soothers from MacKenzie’s in Atkinson, New Hampshire (Fisherman Hand Salve, $12.95), and Ursa Major in Waterbury, Vermont (Going Places Lip Balm, $14) go soft on the environment, too. fishermanhandscrub.com; ursamajorvt.com

6. All-ages, old-school fun from a New England heritage brand, and using sustainably sourced material to boot? Game on, says Maple Landmark of Middlebury, Vermont. $31; maplelandmark.com

This feature was originally published as “Wrap It Up” in the November/December 2025 issue of Yankee.

Katrina Farmer

Katrina Farmer is Yankee's associate editor. She enjoys supporting the editorial team by researching story ideas, answering queries, copyediting online content, and writing short articles. It is her goal to visit (and have a memorable experience in) all 67 counties in New England; she has five to go.

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