The poet Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet, said: ‘The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the greatest intention.’
Obviously, random acts of kindness needn’t cost a penny – there’s always cooking someone a meal, taking their dog for a walk, offering to mind a child, etc – but a luxurious delivery will pack an extra punch.
Here are some of our favourites.
A Gift Of Wellbeing
Few people are as good at practicing self-care as the experts tell us we should be. This box of delights (£75) from the organic wellbeing brand, Neom, ensures it’s easy as pie. Designed to make you feel uplifted by day and sleepy by night, it includes two expertly blended candles – the Happiness one for the daytime and the Perfect Night’s Sleep for evening. The definition of kindness? Arranging for this to be sent to a friend in need. Buy it.
A Box Of Cocktails
The sure-fire way to inject glamour and festivity into an evening at home is by shaking up some cocktails. But we can’t all be Stanley Tucci (if you haven’t come across them, our random act of kindness to you is to tell you to view his brilliant videos, like this one on YouTube). Which is where Nio comes in. Nio, which stands for Needs Ice Only, delivers delicious ready-mixed cocktails through the letterbox. No bar, equipment or ingredients are required. The plan of Nio founders Luca and Alessandro was to ‘bring expertly crafted ready-to-savour cocktails into their home to enhance their evenings. So, the same expertise; the same premium brands; the same quality ingredients; and the same range of cocktails. Everything you expect to discover in the world’s best bars.’ Kindness incarnate. £39. Buy it.
Meals On Wheels
We are prepared to bet that you know somebody who’d weep with gratitude if they were told they didn’t have to decide what to eat for dinner, buy its ingredients or make it – even for a single evening. Imagine how thrilled they’d be if they received this box (from £40.28) of comforting meals from ByRuby. Including British free-range chicken, leek and bacon pie, three cheese macaroni cheese, British grass-fed beef cottage pie, woodland mushroom risotto, classic British fish pie, roasted vegetable and spinach lasagne, British free-range coq au vin and British grass-fed beef lasagne, this bundle has dinner sorted for eight beautiful nights. ByRuby makes these feasts in small batches, out of premium locally sourced ingredients, freezes them and then delivers them to the address of your choice (delivery days are Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays). Buy it.
A Bundle Of Books
A book bundle from Persephone Books comes in a beautiful grey cardboard box filled with pink tissue paper and tied with grey ribbon. The books inside look pretty as a picture. Even if nobody ever reads them, they’ll light up the shelf for ever more. But whoever you send them to will read them – because Persephone’s clever selections are irresistible. There are 12 different box sets to choose from, all bearing the hallmarks of Persephone’s wit and expert curation. For a random act of kindness, we like the box of Six Cheerful Books (£70) best. Buy it.
Flowers Through The Letterbox
Is there a human being on the planet whose spirits aren’t raised by a pretty bunch of flowers? We doubt it. They are exciting on a birthday, on Valentine’ Day, as a way of saying congratulations. But a random bunch of flowers, sent for no particular reason? That is the dream. Bloom and Wild, which was set up in 2013, delivers limited-edition bouquets through the letterbox. They arrive in bud, with easy-to-follow care instructions, and burst into life over the following days. We like the Florist’s Pick (£28) bouquet, because its seasonal flowers change every four weeks and 15 per cent of the profits made from it go to the charity, Carers Trust. Buy it.
A Beaded Beauty
There is something so soft, delicate and love-filled about these little necklaces. The super cool stylist Emma Milne Watson took to making jewellery to pass the time in lockdown and her pretty necklaces were instant hits. Personalise one with your friend’s initial and your kindness will never be forgotten. From £72. Buy it.
By Becky Ladenburg
February 2022
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