Yesterday was my birthday which means that I am now 36 years, something that I am totally fine with as I feel content with where I am in life and anyway, the thirties are the new twenties, right? 😉
Birthdays are always special, although I have to admit that it is not the same as I was a kid. I feel that something changed when I became a mother myself, or maybe it is just the age!
Ever since dear husband and I have a shared bank account I always felt it a bit funny buying gifts for each other as I am basically getting a gift that has been paid with my (our) own money. I have come to realize though, that it is more about the gesture and the thought of it and that is why we still continue doing it.
In recent years we have been buying my birthday presents together. Although he has got me some great presents by himself in the past, gift buying is not his greatest passion and since he has so many other fantastic qualities, I don’t really have a problem with it. Anyway, my wish list is normally very short and very specific so there is not much room for surprises anyways.
The last couple of years my gifts have been from locally based designers/ artists, mostly from the Tel Aviv area, but I am now discovering some really great things that are even more local, so that will be for next year…
I have been buying from these businesses first of all because their things are really nice but secondly also because I have gotten a greater awareness of supporting the local as well as smaller and independent businesses and entrepreneurs. True, I have a greater esteem for the self-employed since being one myself but also I see that the benefits of buying from these businesses are many: the money stays in the community, it creates local jobs, it increases work of local suppliers, it is often of higher quality than that of mass production, customer services is more personal and therefore better, there is more room for flexibility and customization and the carbon footprint is smaller.
As for examples of the gifts I have gotten over the years; there was the beautiful ring from Agas and Tamar, the awesome printed scarf from Lee Coren and some really nice underwear from Ugly Duckling by Gal Angel. Nice things, right?
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