If we’d trust anyone to curate a holiday wish list for us, it would be Jessica Alba. The actress and Honest Company co-founder has made her name as an arbiter of good taste and owner of impeccable accessories. So when she heard she was putting together a wish list (check) for philanthropic shopping site Olivela that would benefit Baby2Baby, a charity very close to her heart (check, check), we wanted to be first in line to shop it. We may not have a billion-dollar-beauty company entrepreneur’s budget, but we find ourselves having a hard time resisting her picks from brands including Olivia Von Halle, Edie Parker, Dana Rebecca Designs and Tod’s (all pictured above) – particularly because proceeds from the products will benefit a charity that provides diapers, clothing and other necessities to children in need (with an added bonus of a stroller being donated with every jewelry purchase through Saturday).
So she’s made holiday shopping for her husband, Cash Warren, that much easier – but she can’t say he’s returning the favor. “He’s so picky. Anything he wants he gets,” she says. “I usually just get him basics. Like, he has some pants right now that he’s really into that are really wide leg on the bottom and they’re too long … so I’ll get him some alternatives to that pant so I don’t have to see them anymore.”
(On the other hand, he’s made shopping for the guy in your life much easier, she says, noting that she thinks his Pair of Thieves socks and underwear line is a great gift for any dude. “I’m telling you, my husband said his undies changed guys’ lives,” she says. “Underwear is a thing for men and he said your junk feels really good in it. I don’t know. I have no idea what he’s talking about. It wicks the moisture so you don’t get a sweaty bum. And they’re really good designs and cute cuts. [You could do a] great pack of that with cool socks and great undershirts and a Common Projects shoe; those are always good—they’re sort of foolproof. They’re chic, they’re simple and you can wear them with anything.”)
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Despite Warren throwing a wrench in her gifting strategy, Alba says she’s right on track for everybody else on her list. “I have people I work with at Honest and in entertainment, then I have my friends, my family members and my children – it’s a lot,” she says. “It can get overwhelming so I try to do as much as I can in advance. I do a lot of group gifting with one theme. This year for my coworkers, I might put together a ‘Netflix and Chill’ basket.” (We don’t want to spoil the surprise, but Jessica Alba’s coworkers, you’re in for a treat.)
Alba says her parents always made a big deal out of Christmas, and she’s passing that tradition on to her own family – daughters Honor, 9, Haven, 6, and a soon-to-arrive baby boy. They open a present the night before, wear matching Christmas pajamas and host an annual Christmas dinner for more than 80 family members – “It’s literally like a wedding. We have to tent our patio and we have to rent tables and chairs and dishware. It’s like a whole thing.” This year, however, she’ll be taking it easy. “Since its near the time of having the baby we’re just gonna be mellow, because there’s no way I’m gonna be like waddling around trying to cook for 80 people,” she says. “It’s just gonna be immediate family for Christmas dinner, which is still 20 people. Better than 80!”
There is one tradition scale back on this year, though: Teaching her daughters the importance of giving back at the holidays. “We adopt a family every holiday with Baby2Baby. We get the names of the kids, their ages, and the wish list of what they want and the kids come with me and we Christmas shop for them,” she says. “Then we have this holiday party where all the kids participate – we hang out with them for the afternoon and do crafts together, take pictures with Santa; at the end of the day we give them our gifts. I think that’s just how tangible as it can get for the kiddos.”
Check out Alba’s selections for Olivela, and let us know what’s on your wishlist below.