Gift Ideas

For a lot of people, Mother’s Day means buying flowers and a card. As a child, I always preferred making my mom’s cards. I remember making a few wonky presents as well—like a paper box covered in padded shiny ivory quilting material with a pink paper heart on top. (It was hideous, but she loved it).

I just recently joined Pinterest. The thing I like most about Pinterest is the rush of creative ideas, interesting recipes and DIY projects I have at my fingertips. When I saw a ‘Phish Food’ brownie recipe, I immediately thought about my sister’s upcoming birthday. She isn’t much for sweets, and usually opts for carrot cake on her birthday, but she has always had a thing for Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food frozen yogurt. I can recall our early twenties when we lived together in Minnesota, every now and then a pint would spend a few days in our freezer as she’d savor a spoonful at a time. I thought home-made Phish Food-inspired brownies would be a perfect little something for her birthday.

Shopping for the men in my life always seems harder, somehow, than shopping for women. With that in mind, I’ve rounded up 12 unique Christmas gift ideas under $25 that should satisfy a broad range of men in your life.

I love the idea of DIY Christmas gifts, which I previously mentioned in a DIY Christmas ornaments post. Homemade gifts have the allure of being personal and are more thoughtful than a store-bought gift. There is just something sentimental and intimate about a homemade gift. Below are nine unique and creative DIY Christmas gift ideas. They all seem doable, even for the not-so-crafty girl like me.

If money were no object, what gift would you want to receive for Christmas? With that question in mind, I compiled 10 outrageously expensive Christmas gifts. Many of the items I found left me puzzled or laughing, but I wouldn’t mind owning a few of these. It’s hard for me to fathom receiving such an opulent gift, but I could definitely imagine these items elegantly wrapped underneath someone’s gold-plated, diamond-encrusted Christmas tree.

What do you give someone who invites you to their house for a holiday party, or to the person who is hosting you for a holiday trip? It can be really tricky to decide what is appropriate, so I’ve come up with 12 hostess gift ideas to help you get ready for the holiday season.