Last week was super busy for me. Much of my work week was spent decorating, shopping, catering, and hosting a reception for 60, followed by a one-day 1000 mile drive to retrieve my son for the holidays. Now that I’ve had a chance to relax and rest I’m ready to share my last guide with you – gift ideas for the real Santa (aka: Mom). Most mom’s would rather spend time with their loved ones than receive a gift but it never hurts to have a present or two ready so you can stay on her nice list….
A few weeks ago I listed some gift ideas for kids,teens, and young adults. Having worked many a Black Friday in my younger years I try not to shop over the Thanksgiving holiday if I can help it. Fast forward through a week spent working on a Program in Music, Mind& Society event and I am ready to get back into holiday shopping mode. Next up, some gift ideas for the fathers in your life….
It’s only 4 days until Turkey Day and the nation’s holiday shopping madness officially begins. I’ve already got gift ideas for the little onesandtweensin my life. But what to get for the slightly harder-to-please grown-ups? Here a few of the things I am considering – maybe you’ll find the perfect thing for your brother, sister, boyfriend, girlfriend, or bestie too…
I have a real love/hate relationship with technology and try to avoid giving gifts with plugs. That is especially hard to do when buying for anyone young (say between 10 and 20). I find money always works, but if you are looking for something a little more personal to give your favorite tween or teen the following 18 ideas score high on the ‘cool’ scale and ‘low’ on electricity usage…
Over the next few weeks you will be able to see some of the gifts I’ll be giving this season (with tips on how you can easily purchase or make something similar). Let’s begin with some Secret Santa gifts that set me back less than $20 total.
A bit of backstory: each year I participate in a Secret Santa gift exchange at work. There are only two rules; you can’t spend more than $20, and you have to purchase an ornament out of that amount (which is used to reveal each Santa). After choosing your person you receive a listing of their favorite candy, snack, non-alcoholic beverage (it is work), hobby, color, and the like. Everyone hangs their stockings at the start of December so gifts can be deposited as often as Santa sees fit. You can open your gift(s) at any time or all at once. Trying to guess who your Santa might be is highly encouraged. With any luck, all of the Santa’s identities will remain a mystery until the ornament reveal happens at our holiday lunch.
This year I challenged myself to see how many nice things I could give my ‘secret’ while keeping within my $20 budget. This person likes chocolate, golds and greens, coffee, and owls…here’s what I purchased or made and will be secretly delivering over the next 7 days…
‘Warm Hands Warm Heart’ Knit Gloves ($1.00 from JoAnn Fabrics)
Aloe Plant in 6″ Clay Pot and Saucer ($1.00 plant from Lowe’s. I had the pot and saucer, acrylic paint and ribbon on hand. I cleaned and then painted the pot and saucer with 3 coats of acrylic paint, then glued ribbon around the top of the pot, leaving enough extra ribbon to tie into a pretty bow.)
Starbucks Card(given to me and being re-gifted; a $5 value that technically cost me zero.)
Infinity Scarf (I used this silky beaded charmeuse fabric , which I had left over from another project, to make the scarf. Search Pinterest for “how to make an infinity scarf”. Even a novice seamstress can make an infinity scarf in less than an hour. And since I already had the fabric and thread on hand the scarf cost nada to make.)
…A little ingenuity combined with some re-gifting, material re-sourcing, and sweat equity, and I now have 7 days of gifts, plus and ornament, for $17! Now all I need to do is deposit each gift unnoticed, hope the person likes what they’ve received, and can’t figure out I’m their Santa until I give them the owl!
How about you? Will you participate in a Secret Santa or other type of gift exchange this year? What sorts of gifts do you plan on giving (or making)? I’d love to know…
The Grey Goddess 