Love. Play. Eat. London.

Last Minute Gift Ideas + WIN £169 Optima Pizza Express Napoli Oven

//  by //  207 Comments

Last Minute Gift Ideas

It’s been another one of those longest fastest years in living memory. Perhaps like many of us, you’ve been too preoccupied with new variant, booster shot queues, travel restrictions and changing rules to sort your Christmas list. Never fear, I’ve put together a quick and dirty guide to some excellent last minute gift ideas.

I’ve also got a fabulous giveaway offer — scroll down and click through for more about how to win an Optima Pizza Express Napoli oven worth £169!

Last Minute Gift Ideas for the Whole Family

1. Books, Books, Books

best books 2021

You can never go wrong with a book. Once again, I’m following the Icelandic tradition of Jolabokaflod and gifting my family members a book and a chocolate treat to enjoy on Christmas Eve. If you need ideas, check out my Reading Lists* on Bookshop.org or these book guides: 50 Kids Books on Race and Diversity, Parenting Books for People Who don’t read Parenting Books and my 21 Best Books of 2021.

Of course, I’d highly recommend my own book Bringing Up Race: How to Raise a Kind Child in a Prejudiced World for yourself, a friend, a teacher’s gift, a book club member, or that racist uncle.

2. Support a Black Owned Business

In 2020, the campaign Black Pound Day was launched to boost Black businesses and entrepreneurs. But you don’t have to wait until the first Saturday of the month to show your support. Why not pick up a product from a Black owned business for Christmas — it’s a gift that gives back. Find top last minute gift ideas via my directory of UK Black businesses.

3. Family Friendly Board Games

We love playing board games and they make excellent last minute gift ideas. Try classics like Monopoly, Scrabble or Backgammon or a snazzy pack of cards for hours of fun. The boys and I are big fans of Exploding Kittens and Throw Throw Burrito and for grownups, I’ve heard great things about Cards Against Humanity (there’s a kid friendly version too).

4. Give the Gift of Theatre 

Nutcracker London Coliseum

There are some absolutely magical Christmas shows for families in London and beyond, although we’re depressingly on the precipice of what looks like another lockdown. You can still share the gift of theatre with someone by booking advance tickets or buying a gift card or voucher. And you’ll be helping out folk who work in the creative arts industry too.

Visit my guide to the best London theatre shows for inspiration.

5. Give the Gift of Education

Who doesn’t want to start the new year with a bit more knowledge? School your loved ones with an online course in anything from creative writing to filmmaking to painting. The Masterclass series features people at the top of their game breaking down their craft for newbies.  

6. Gift a TV Box Set

Bridgerton

I’m an unapologetic TV-holic. Some of the best times I’ve had with my husband and/or kids this year (or any year, frankly) have been in front of the telly. Share your love of the small screen with a collection of vintage TV or cartoon classics, or a binge-worthy box set or Netflix subscription. I’ve listed our top 30 television series to watch with the kids (or grownups only). 

7. Subscriptions: Gifts that Keep on Giving

Subscription gifts are cool because you can buy them as last minute gift ideas, in the knowledge that they’ll keep putting a smile on their receiver’s face. The mister gets a regular beer subscription and recently, I’ve also gifted him with a plant subscription. Buy subscriptions for cheese, comic books, puzzles, magazines, music streaming, Disney+, coffee, meat, bacon, books, vinyl, socks… whatever takes their fancy.

8. DIY Gifts

Often the best gifts are handmade and you don’t have to be a DIY expert to create something memorable. Your baby or child’s handprints on a canvas. A hand-decorated tin filled with homemade cookies. A wall print of favourite places, significant dates, special songs or locations. A custom photo book. DIY bath bombs or salt/sugar foot scrubs. A mix tape… or its modern equivalent e.g. a Spotify playlist.

9. Pampering and Self-Care

After the last couple of years, we could all do with some extra TLC. Pampering and self-care gift ideas can range from something as simple as a scented candle, a bath bomb or a satin eye mask to more lavish bath and beauty sets, personalised fragrances, or a spa trip voucher. If you need deep tissue massage, I highly recommend the Theragun that I got last Christmas.

10. Gift a Family Day Trip

Flights cancelled? Destination red-listed? Or maybe you just couldn’t face the stress of PCR tests, Omicron surges and the ghastly spectre of quarantine hotels. We’re stuck at home this year too and, as cases rise, possibly on lockdown. There’s still time to gift your family a day out either somewhere outside London or in our fair Capital. 

Buy tickets for ice skating spots, winter wonderlands, festive markets and more in my guide to Christmas in London.

WIN an Optima Pizza Express Napoli Oven worth £169

Optima Pizza Express Napoli oven image

Fancy making wood-fired pizza in your own kitchen? We reviewed the Optima Pizza Express Napoli Oven, a fabulous piece of kit that makes authentic wood-fired style pizza in minutes. Simply whip up your homemade pizza dough (or use a store-bought fresh or frozen) and within 3-5 minutes cooking time, you’ll have delicious pizza with that smokey wood-fired taste. It’s also great for calzones, flatbreads and more. To enter this giveaway, simply follow the instructions in the form below (refresh the page if the form doesn’t load) and read my full review HERE. There are 8 ways to enter and each entry counts separately. Best of luck!

NB: UK entries only. The prize is non refundable and non exchangeable. No cash alternative will be offered. For Babes about Town competition T&Cs please see our Disclosure page.

Optima Pizza Express Napoli Giveaway £169

Competitions are listed at The Prize Finder, Competition Database and Super Lucky.

Last Minute Gift Ideas + WIN £169 Optima Pizza Express Napoli Oven
Share
Pin
Tweet
Share

About Uju

Uju Asika is a writer, blogger and creative consultant. She is the author of Raising Boys Who Do Better: A Hopeful Guide for a New Generation (DK/Penguin Random House), Bringing Up Race: How to Raise a Kind Child in a Prejudiced World (Yellow Kite/Hachette UK) and the delightful picture book A World for Me and You, illustrated by Jennie Poh (Hachette Children's Group). Uju's books are available at Bookshop.org, Amazon, Waterstones and other good bookshops. Follow Uju @babesabouttown on Twitter/Facebook/Instagram.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  15. Carrie Talbot-Ashby

    My youngsters all love making pizzas and adding their own toppings, this would be awesome! x

  20. Samantha Buntain

    I’d make a chicken tikka pizza because I’m pregnant and that’s my craving lol, plus my two kids love it

  21. Rob Griffiths

    I live on my own and with imminent restrictions I will probably have to share with Alf, my dog.

  30. Kay Broomfield

    I’d make my children Hawaiian pizza and for me, a margherita pizza with mushrooms, red onion and black olives!

  34. Ruth Amy Wollerton

    I would love to make a homemade Rosemary infused pizza with goats cheese, rocket leaves, sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes and caramalised onions. My family would love these for our New Years party.

  36. Lynne Durkin

    Love homemade pizzas so would make a chicken, onion and mushroom pizza and share with my daughters

  38. Fiona Johnstone

    Sweet chilli chicken with peppers and red onions would be my choice to make. We love it. What a great prize.

  42. pete c

    I’d make my favourite pizza, with toppings of cheese, tomato, red onion and orange pepper, all shared with my gf

  46. Tony Martin

    All kind of pizzas for friends and family, why be a one trick pony with food when there are thousands of things you can create

  52. Lindsey Stuart

    We are a family of pizza lovers :) This pizza oven would come in incredibly handy, the first pizza I would make would be a cheese a jalapeno pizza with a BBQ base to share with my partner and son, my girls would be making a cheese and tomato pizza. Yum!

  53. Christine Lockley

    Pizas are our favourite and we’d make for our family games night with pepperoni and cheese being the favourite toppings

  56. linda maxwell

    I love a ham and pineapple but nobody in the house does .They each have their own fav with the youngest just loving cheese and tomato.

  58. A.E. ADKINS

    Goats cheese & red onion pizza although could do with a pizza oven at the moment for turkey pizzas!

  65. Zibby Ferguson

    A wide and varied selection of pizza, to suit and please all of our varied taste buds _ sharing with family, friends and the birds who hang around on bbq days xx

  72. Jodi hill

    My daughter absolutely loooves making homemade pizzas! I buy lodough for my slimming world diet & these would be perfect for family favourites like ham and pineapple for my daughter or My favourite, tandoori chicken, onions & jalapeños :)

  73. Sadia Iqbal

    would have a garden pizza party for my youngest daughters birthday.
    She has some out of this world ideas about pizza toppings including gummy bears & beans !!

  75. Kerry Wild

    This would be absolutely amazing. Would love to try and make a variety, cheese feast for me and a spicy meat combo for hubby and then move on to experimenting with other ingredientsand flavours

  80. Coyshie Comps

    I would make just the standard Margherita Pizza but with a lil Truffle Oil, Chilli’s, Fresh Basil, Sun-dried Tomatoes & Hazelnut Dukkah 😍🥂✨

  93. Lilian Gray

    Spicy BBQ chicken, BBQ sauce base, red onion, bell peppers, mushroom, sweetcorn, not sure about sharing it though, some things are too good to share lol.

  94. Nikki Phipps

    I’d share with my two children and would make a bbq base with steak, mushroom and cheese x Thank you.

  100. Adrienne McGroder

    We love pepperoni and meat feast, but would try some goats cheese, spinach, red onion etc, and other veggie options. This would be such a great prize for my family and we would use when having friends over also.

  103. Rachael Sexey

    I would make a greek pizza and share it with my husband and children although I would probably need to make a few

  106. Troy Easton

    most likely a normal Cheese on with ham on with I reckon with this will taste pretty nice.

  107. Karen T

    I’ve never actually made a pizza – just bought a pre made one! I’d love to make a Margarita for my daughter, a Pepperoni pizza for my husband and a ham pizza for my son and me!

  112. Rebecca Beesley

    we love making home-made pizza as a family – all sorts of toppings but especially cheese, peppers, and sometimes artichokes, pepperoni etc too. Happy new year. x

  114. Simon L

    Well it’s just me living on my own with a thousand books. I don’t tend to order pizza just for me.
    So, given the chance I would love to experiment with making pizzas using ingredients and ideas from around the world!
    … and share the best results with that special lady when I finally meet her!
    Chances are I will be a seasoned and (very) experienced pizza maker by then!

  115. Tracey Hallmark

    I’d make homemade pizzas with my family my favourite is Pepperoni, Chorizo and mushroom topping

  116. Val Pownall

    How fantastic! My granddaughters love making pizzas with me so we would make their favourite ham and pineapple.

  117. Charlotte Easton

    This looks a brilliant piece of kit! I’d definitely try my Veganuary smokey “Meatball” pizza in this! Thank you for a great giveaway.

  120. Jennifer Rhymer

    I would make my four children their favourite pizzas. I love ham, mushroom, red onion & chicken on mine so I’d make myself that one as well x

  123. Abi Birch

    I’d make calzone 😋 with chicken, bacon, loads of cheese and BBQ sauce 😍 heaven 👌🏻

  124. Eileen Hindley

    I would make fresh pizzas from scratch cook them in the oven and invite all of the family

  131. Kerry Gilham

    Oh wow. The opportunities are endless. We could have a different flavoured pizza every night and not get bored.

  132. Nadine

    I would make a calzone for my husband. We had the best calzone in Denmark made in a family owned Italian restaurant. I would practice until my dough was as good as theirs! amazing prize.

  133. Charlotte Wilde

    i’d have a go at beetroot, goats cheese and rocket – my fave! and i’d share it with ME as everyone else loves meat pizzas!

  152. Teresa Sheldon

    What wouldn’t I make, pizzas, garlic bread flat breads I’d be trying alsorts of different goodies and add and expriement with flavours and toppings I’d have a ball and the family would love it

  155. Charmian Filewood

    I’d have a pizza party with my family, the table full of bases and bowls of different toppings and we could all make our own choice of pizza 🍕

  156. Robyn

    This looks like a great addition to the kitchen! We often make pizzas, but would love to try making some dough sticks for movie night snacks 😋

  157. Natalie Gillham

    I would make my daughters pizzas with their favourite toppings of ham, pineapple, sweetcorn and mushrooms x

  162. Oli Marshall

    Pizza is my family’s favourite dish in the whole wide world 😋 so, we’d be thrilled to get spoiled with this FANTASTIC treat👌. Please DO count us in 🤩💯💗.

  164. Elaine Pett

    I recently discovered goats cheese pizza with sliced figs and fresh rocket, it’s delicious. I’d cook for my family

  167. Lorna Lyons

    I would make my homemade spicy chicken & spicy onion pizza for myself & pepperoni pizza’s for my boys. I would also make them their favourite sweet pizza – Nutella topped with marshmallows and a rolo stuffed crust (it really is amazing 🤤)

  169. Catherine Thomas

    I would love to make parma ham and mozzarella pizzas with my two little girls – wow, this would be amazing!

  175. Pam

    What a brilliant prize! I would make sourdough pizza with a spicy tangy tomato sauce and a variety of cheeses, chicken tikka, red and green peppers, red onions and sweetcorn to start with. Then experiment with new flavours and toppings each week to share with family and friends.

  176. sandy lynn ralph

    oh I would make a selection of pizzas for the family . starting with a meat feast as that’s a favourite

  178. Sarah KNIGHTLEY

    I have the Pizza Express recipe book, so I’d work my way through all the gorgeous pizza recipes in there, and share them with my partner and kids!

  179. Emma Ms. Gough

    I’d use this to make gluten free pizza for my husband and I, we’d experiment with new flavours too, things that are hard to come by buying straight off the shelf!

  184. Busy Bee

    Fantastic prize, Pizza is a firm favourite in our house and this would take it to another level! ❤️✨

  190. Ian Yates

    An oven-sized pizza with a ridiculous amount if various cheeses and a lot of chopped chillies. I’d share it with whoever comes-a-calling.

  200. Kim Willing

    I’d love this for my pizza mad son, and we’d enjoy making all kinds of different pizzas together. A great family event.

  202. Carrie-ann Pierce

    I would make a homemade bbq beef pizza for my family. I have been telling them today how amazing they are having made 15 12″ ones today at work (school cook)

  203. Amanda w

    I’d love this! We love pizzas in our house! This would be fab to take to the caravan with us too!! Fingers crossed!!

  204. Catherine Gregory

    My little boy would eat pizza for every meal if I’d let him so I’d definitely share with him. He’d love a simple cheese and tomato pizza and I think I’d have pepperoni pizza with extra cheese

  205. Tracy Barber

    I’d make a tasty vegetable pizza which I’d share with the family, getting hungry thinking about it

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *