For the stylish and the houseproud

Here at Cult Status, we aim to help out with the gift-giving that many of you have to undertake during the year-end festive season; and, as is the case with this column, we always aim to present offerings to you that are far from typical.

Last month, I shared with you some unique beauty and novelty gift suggestions; this month, I'm focusing on the fashion and accessories and home bits you could possibly fill your friends' and family's stockings with.

As I did last month, I've tried to keep my suggestions to within the moderate price range, to make things more realistic than aspirational.

Having said that, I'm starting with a gift idea that's decidedly luxurious; but not as out of reach as it can sometimes be: cashmere. Cashmere is undoubtedly luxe and, most times, also prohibitively expensive. Not so the offerings from Everlane.

Founded in 2010 by then 25-year-old entrepreneur Michael Preysman, Everlane is known for its ethical and sustainable approach to clothing production. Each factory it pairs with is first given a compliance audit to evaluate factors like fair wages, reasonable hours and environment. The company also reveals the actual costs behind all of its products - from materials to labour to transportation - and offers them to the customer, minus the traditional retail mark-up.

Everlane has a regular "Choose What You Pay" section on its website (everlane.com), in which it allows the buyer to choose from a range of prices on selected merchandise. When I last checked, a cashmere-wool-mix beanie could be had for as low as US$16. Such deals aside, Everlane's 100 per cent cashmere offerings start from US$50 for hats and gloves, to US$88 for scarves. They are also available at US department store Nordstrom (shop.nordstrom.com).

Cult Swedish brand Monki has some of the most adorable and comfortable sleepwear around (£25-30, or S$45-54, asos.com), and its Gingerbread Man and Christmas Tree pyjama sets are no exception. These designs are both festive and fun, and will make an excellent gift for the young and young-at-heart. They're made from super-soft cotton jersey (soft enough to please this fussy wearer) and the company also partners with the Better Cotton Initiative to improve cotton farming globally. You'll definitely sleep better in these.

For those who love a beautifully scented home, you can't go wrong with a sumptious candle from fashion icon and taste-maker Bella Freud (£45, cultbeauty.co.uk, Net-a-Porter.com). Housed in chic glassware of varying colours and decorated with her recognisable doodles, these are an elegant gift for any proud homeowner. Another plus: the scents from Bella Freud candles are among the strongest out of any candle brand I've tried so far.

This acupressure mat (£55, cultbeauty.co.uk) by the brand Bed of Nails claims to relieve a variety of ills, from insomnia and stress, to jetlag, to chronic neck and back pain, to complexion problems, and even cellulite. I can only attest that it has worked to an extent to soothe my chronic back pains and seems to help relax me at the end of the day. It does take some getting used to - the first few times may prove to be a little uncomfortable - but no doubt your gift recipient will appreciate your thoughtfulness if jetlag/stress/muscle aches are what they struggle with.

And this last category will thrill the houseproud Star Wars fans out there. Etsy boutique MokuShop has beautifully rendered wood bookends, including one of Darth Vader walking an AT-AT on a leash (US$49, etsy.com) and another of the partially completed Death Star (US$55, etsy.com), both of which are available in a natural wood or blue-grey finish. They can be used as traditional bookends, or simply as decoration.

We hope we've given you some fun ideas to help you get started on your gift-shopping. Happy holidays!