It's the La Flâneuse Holiday Gift Guide 2025!

With Family Drama, More Than 20 Great Gift Ideas, France's Most Famous Female Comedian, and Lots of Ways to Say "Gawd That's Expensive" in French

Dec 07, 2025

Coucou mes petit lutins ! (Hi there my little elves !)

Vous êtes prêts pour les fêtes ? (Are you ready for the holidays?) This week I thought I’d share a few French-inspired and sometimes Made in France gifts just in case tu cherches un petit cadeau (you’re looking for a little gift) for your favorite francophile or for you, parce que t’es magnifique quoi (because you’re gorgeous).

If you happen to be in France before the New Year, I suggest you pop into Monoprix, buy a box of holiday cards to support la Croix Rouge (Red Cross), then post them adorned with the new *croissant au beurre* scratch-n-sniff timbres postales (international stamps). I know, right?!

Before diving into my little guide, I just want to take a moment post-Thanksgiving and pre-other-year-end festivities to say que je suis reconnaisante (that I’m grateful) for your presence here. Whether you’re just discovering our La Flâneuse community, or you’ve been here tout le long de la route (all along the way) — vous êtes les bienvenus (you are most welcome).

I thought I’d share a bit from our latest travel adventures below, but if you just need to get to that fantastique French gift-giving energy, you know what to do—just scrolllll on downnn. Ça ne me dérange pas du tout (it doesn’t bother me at all).

And Now: A Quick Franco-Américain Road Trip Through My Roots

Monsieur B and I have just returned from a short visit to the States where we celebrated my mom’s 80th birthday in Dayton, Ohio. It was good to spend time with her and with her wonderful new petit copain (boyfriend!), whom she has actually known for more than fifty years, and who is still obsessed with her.

I’m telling you people, just like my story, big love can happen at any time in this crazy life. It meant so much that my husband took time off work to come with me, as this was the first time he’d met my mom, who as you may know, is a painter and a former 1980s MTV video star.

Karen Bussen's mother — My mom, lunching in New York with me in the late 1980s, and last month, celebrating her 80th bday in her studio.

Two Days in Music City and a Big Bag o’ Boots

From Ohio, we drove down to Nashville, which was the first time for both of us, et on a vraiment adoré cette ville musicale (and we really loved this musical city). Also, yes I did come home with three pairs of cowboy boots, but only because the store had a 3-for-1 promo and the hubs kept telling me how cute I looked 🤷‍♀️ 🥰

*Quand je suis rentrée à Paris* (When I got home to Paris), I realized that these dang boots were exactly what was missing from all my favorite outfits!

Photos of pancakes, oysters, Dolly Parton's songwriting journal, and other details from Nashville, Tennessee — Scenes from the road to Nashville, and on Broadway in Music City. A highlight for me was seeing the pages from Dolly Parton's journal where she wrote "Jolene" (on exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame). We ate every fried and smoked thing we could find but also had a gastro meal at Husk.

Insider❤️ Tip: You know you married the right man when he encourages you to take home three full size pairs of cowboy boots (for the price of one) even though you are sharing a small suitcase that’s already stuffed with buttermilk ranch dressing, hot honey, baked beans, graham crackers, and cans of Campbell’s tomato soup.

The La Flâneuse Holiday Gift Guide 2025

I hope this guide helps inspire your gift-giving this year. Some items are made in France, and there’s a range of gifts for any budget. A few are perfect stocking-stuffers, and at least one is a book written by my friend Jane.

Make sure to check details and shipping etc. I’m just gonna keep it simple, but I do want to note that for some of the items I may receive a small commission, which I will reinvest here for more stories and fun. Allez, on y go (alright, let’s go) !

My Most Important Advice: Shop for Yourself First :-)

I recently discovered this wonderful French marque (brand) called Lalide à Paris. They make gorgeous loungewear, pajamas, and this fabulous Lalide liquette “Claudia” night dress. Plus their accessories are have-to-haves. Don’t worry about how long it will take to ship this. You’ll be happy when it arrives.

French Beauty Gifts

Who doesn’t love a French pharmacy beauty product in their stocking? This Orange flower hand cream is so pretty and smells great. Typology kindly sent me their glow drops which I use practically every day, and as a person with skin prone to blotchiness, I also love their anti-rougeur (anti-redness) color correcteur. My all-time favorite French moisturizing cream is from Embryolisse. Have you heard of that brand? I hadn’t till a friend gave me a tube and I now must have it always.

French Food and Wine Gifts

Nothing says “Yes, Chef,” like unfurling this Laguiole barbecue tool set in front of everyone in the backyard.

Any good cook can always use a Beechwood spoon in their stocking, along with a pair of Opinel paring knives.

This Laguiole sommelier knife tells everyone, “I know whether Gigondas is an appellation or a town. Or both.” IYKYK.

If you need to apologize in a big way or otherwise make some kind of grand gesture, may I suggest a baller Mauviel stainless steel chef pan with a dome lid?

Got a francophile Martha Stewart type in your entourage? If you’re French, probably not because no one I ever ask here knows who she is, even though she was such an inspiration to me in my career. Bref (anyway), this here is not just a deluxe raclette/mini-crêpe set for eight. It’s a lifestyle. A lifestyle that Martha (or her French equivalent) would certainly approve. But then again, so is a Staub fondue set, for those who prefer their melted cheese en grande quantité (in large format).

I have become obsessed with beautiful steak knives and have several sets, like these from Perceval that I bought myself years ago (available in a bunch of colors and by the individual piece if you like). I even sometimes mix and match the knives from different sets to add a little beautiful chaos to my tablescape.

A Gift for Babies Who Already Love France

I don’t have a baby, but my husband says that every single French infant is in possession of this little French giraffe named Sophie—for help with teething

Stocking Stuffers for French Language Learners

Someone you know trying to up their language skills? How bout these French vocab playing cards or these here French phrase flashcards.

Or for free you could just send them a link to a routine from France’s most famous female stand-up comedian—Florence Foresti—with a message that reads, “T’as la réf ?” (“Get it?”).

Side Note about French Comedy: One of my first French teachers in Lyon always played stand-up comedy videos in class, then asked us to explain what we saw/heard. Mais moi, j’étais nulle ! (Me, I sucked at this!). When it comes to foreign language comprehension, jokes are no joke, am I right? I think comedy and getting “la réf” is the last frontier of mastering a language, and in the beginning, I always felt my outsider-ness when everyone else was laughing at something que j’ai pas capté (that I didn’t understand). To this day whenever I “get” a joke en français, je sais que je fais des progrès (I know I’m making progress).

If you’d like to give me my favorite holiday gift, it’s super easy. Just share this post with someone cute so they can join us! Merci merci, c’est super gentil !

If You’re Visiting France and You Need to Buy Gifts to Take Home

My number one suggestion is to just go to rue du Bac dans le 6ème arrondissement. On this magical street you’ll find something for everyone you know including you, from fine stationery to tea towels and napkins with French words on them, candles, good wine, expensive shoes, French cleaning products, charming accessories and beautiful socks. Et quand t’en as marre, tu peux toujours boire un petit verre dans un bon café. (When you’ve had it up to here, you can always drink a glass of wine in a good café.) Je t’en prie (You’re welcome).

My number two conseil (advice) if you’re looking for food or homeware gifts, is to aller directement (go directly) à La Grande Epicerie. This is the massive food emporium of Le Bon Marché (one of Paris’ most fabled department stores). They have everything—cookies, chocolates, vinegars, regional specialties from all over France. OK it’s true that the only people who shop there are tourists and rich French people parce que ça coute la peau des fesses (it costs the skin off your ass).

Insider Tip: If you’ve never been there, ask someone to point you toward le rayon américain (the American aisle) so you can be horrified at how the French perceive our supermarket needs.

Fun French Expressions to Say “It’s Expensive”

Did you know that the name of the department store Le Bon Marché doesn’t mean “the good market”, but in fact “the good deal.”

Ç’est pas donné/Ce n’est pas donné (They’re not giving it away)

Ça coûte un bras (It costs an arm)

Ça coûte la peau des fesses (it costs the skin off your ass)

Ça coûte les yeux de la tête (it costs the eyes out of your head)

And here are a bunch more from this overly excited French teacher.

Send a Card from France—with a Croissant-scented Stamp!

I already told you about heading over to Monoprix, which I describe as, “like Target, if a French person designed it and it actually had high quality items including cashmere.”

Scroll back up top if you missed my tip about mailing holiday cards from France. Choose something with “Joyeuses Fêtes” (Happy Holidays) or “Meilleurs Voeux” (Best Wishes) and don’t forget to add the butter croissant commemorative stamp.

Also, can someone tell me in the comments if they think this stamp actually smells like croissants, as promised?

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