Valentine's Day or Engagement Gift (Married Bucket List)

I've celebrated Valentine's days before, but because this is my first as a wife, I'm hoping to make it special! My husband is a hard one because he doesn't love "stuff" as much as I do, but I got a great idea thanks to my friend. She was talking about her bucket list and I thought "Yes! A family bucket list for us to do together!" I got a Paperblanks journal or you can buy any other journal he might like (favorite team, color, whatever), and wrote things to do at the top of the page and left the rest of the page blank to be able to write the date and a description of how it all went down. Some examples include:

• Go to the Olympics (I'm watching right now)
• Create our own flavor of ice cream
• Experience zero gravity
• Watch a meteor shower
• Swim with glow in the dark algae in the ocean
• Skinny dip in the bay next to our home (keep old age at bay)
• Places to go

Great gift for him as a newly married couple (did I mention also inexpensive?), plus it promises more fun to come! Also a good gift for other couples, you might fill in a couple items but let them do the rest!

Grandparents

Bless my dear grandparents! As they are in their 80's, buying gifts for them has been getting harder. I find that my gifts tend toward the sentimental or practical. I recently made them a scrapbook, so this year I decided to get them a luxury plush throw from Restoration Hardware. I received the cream one last year from one of my girlfriend's and have loved it ever since! It's a great size and is super comfy-- Also machine washable which I love love love! On sale from $59 to $29, not kidding.

Father/Wife

As I've said before, it's a difficult thing to shop for a man who doesn't want anything and doesn't need much, but the one thing my father can't say no to is COMFORT. That's why this year, I got him and his wife sheepskin lined slippers. I find that UGGs are super comfortable and last a long time, but there are cheaper options out there as well. LL Bean does a good job at the slipper thing too! Below you'll find pictures of UGG's Byron slipper for men and Dakota slipper for women.

Gift for Girlfriend

One of my best girlfriends loves vintage looking jewelry; I always troll around markets and shops with her to find pretty beads or pieces. That's why when I saw this necklace at J. Crew, I knew it'd be great for her! The link doesn't take you to the exact one I saw in the store because I couldn't find it online, but it's similar and J. Crew always has new pieces coming in. Here's a picture of one that's similar in style.

Gifts for the Ladies

It's great when I'm able to give gifts that I've personally used and loved. This year, for the ladies in my family, I've filled their gift baskets with:

- A cute holiday paper pad to jot down their shopping lists. Everyone can always use a list pad, Expressionery has great ones that are good for any occasion!



- Too Faced shadow insurance from Sephora, it's an amazing shadow primer that makes your eye shadow stay put and stay crease-free ALL day! I can't live without it now.



- And a skinny patent leather belt from J.Crew. I have a few of them and you can dress them up or down and wear them with just about anything! It can work for any aged lady in my family!

Xmas Gifts for Girlfriends

This year's gifts: a cute colorful pashmina, matching lace undies from Victoria's Secret and a fruity lipgloss!

Xmas Gift for my Mother

My holiday gift for my mother had many pieces to it, but her bigger gift was a coffee-table photography book of the Beatles (her favorite). Barnes and Nobles has great bargains on coffee-table books during the holidays so be sure to check them out! This gift can readily apply to anyone with a favorite band, topic, or hobby and it's also gender neutral. This can also apply to a couple who has a shared interest!

BF stocking stuffer

Another great stocking stuffer from the Personalization Mall! As this was the first set of holidays my bf and I split between our two families, it was the first Christmas we'd spent together. I wanted to commemorate the occasion by getting an engraved ornament that said the date and the #1. I hope to give him a new number each Christmas so that we can travel round the tree to count the years!

BF's X-mas Gift + Stocking stuffer + Groomsmen gifts

As mentioned in a previous post, my BF currently goes to school in Michigan and it can get quite chilly there. It's unfortunate that my X-mas gift was backordered and didn't arrive until March, but they're so deliciously warm and good-looking that I'll forgive LL Bean for their gaffe! Did I mention they have these in women's sizes as well? Also, check out the multi-functional titanium collar stays (sweet stocking stuffer!) from Bonobos that are also bottle-openers! Can't get more festive than that. Update: husband bought these for his groomsmen and had a short inside joke engraved on one and their initials on the other.

College Besties

I generally get my roommates from college the same thing, sometimes with a little bit of customization! This year's presents:

- Copy of the "Bridesmaid Guide" by Kate Chynoweth. Such a cute and useful book as we'll all be each other's bridesmaids coming up!
- Minimergency kit (perfect for my teacher roommates): Hairspray, Clear Nail Polish, Nail Polish Remover, Emery Board, Lip Balm, Earring Backs, Clear Elastics, Sewing Kit, Double-Sided Tape, Stain Remover, Deodorant Towelette, Pain Reliever, Tampon, Breath Freshener, Dental Floss, and Adhesive Bandages
- Lilly Pulitzer stationary (perky stationary for my perky teacher friends)

Stocking Stuffers!

Tartan holiday cards... plus jingle bell bobby pins from Kate Spade

Birthday Gifts for GF's

Recently, two of my gf's had their birthdays and I got them photo gifts. Generally, I'm not a huge fan but I got these notepads from Snapfish that were so easy and super cute! I customized them with a photo in the corner (on every page) and their name on top. I threw in some additional photos in picture frames and a little Kate Spade stationary and was good to go!

Aunt's Birthday

As I've said before, sometimes it's nice to get a bunch of little gifts rather than one big one!

My aunt is an avid gardner, so I went with a floral themed birthday gift. I got beautiful floral mugs, floral stationary in a cute box, a travel Votivo candle, and gummy vitamin bears (calcium to keep her bones strong)!

Birthday Gift for my Mother

So I normally steer clear of buying my mother clothes or anything related because she's a stylist and I get nervous on the likely chance she finds it heinous, BUT- I found this leather jacket at CUSP which I thought she'd love. One, it's so soft and incredibly thin which is perfect for a california night as a quick layer, also, it's in a beautiful chocolate brown which she'll love... hopefully! You can also get it at Nordstrom, Neimans, or Barneys.

Birthday Gift for my Grandmother

Sometimes it's good to go in on a gift with someone else. My Grandmother LOVES scarves, so my dearest cousin picked out a really cute Missoni one!

Birthday Gift

Sometimes, I prefer to get a few smaller gifts rather than a big one. For my best friend Sara, I got her 3 of her favorite things; anything pomegranate (pomegranate/white tea gummy pandas from Bissinger's Confections, they also have other flavors like blueberry acai and goji guava), a cute printed clutch for summer (from J.Crew), and a little "gossip" (Amazon always has great prices for DVD's).

My Mother's Day Gift

I'll be seeing my mother shortly, so I wanted to give her something I could present to her in person. She has a weakness for figure sketches, and I saw this one on Etsy from the artist Gretchen Kelly and it was a done deal!

Mother's Day

Boyfriend: What's a good gift for my mother?

I reminded him that his parents are planning to travel to Africa soon and that he should get something related to that... I hinted towards a travel journal and Kolo has such cute ones that are part journal, photo book, and agenda. The small and larger journal comes with two inserts (photo sleeve and notebook) and the larger one can even fit a third insert which you can buy separately.

Me: Get this, say it's for the upcoming Africa trip, insert a picture of you, your brother, and the family dog so she won't miss you too much. Mothers can't get enough of that stuff!

Engagement Gift

Great gifts don't have to be expensive! Recently, two of my best friends got engaged. We don't live near each other anymore, so we were thinking "what can we send as a cute gift to say congrats?"

We sent off a couple bridal magazine subscriptions each (one was Southern Bride for my Southern belle gf) and a small little something (CD from Williams-Sonoma made for playing at a dinner party, for the pair who likes to entertain frequently). This is great because it's a gift that keeps giving pretty much until the wedding, and it helps the bride-to-be get excited about all the planning!

Love this site because they can send greeting postcards along with your gift subscription.



Congrats to Dane/Fish and Kate/Matt! xo

Fun Earrings

I'm not going to lie, I love a good deal.

Just snapped up two pairs of Kendra Scott earrings from GILT for $42 (originally $88) and $35 (originally $75). They aren't fine jewelry, but great pieces for your girlfriends because they're fun and for a season. I'm thinking one for the gift box, and one for me! If you're not a member of GILT, you should join because they have some great deals.

Pictures are below, and check her website if you want to know where to purchase her jewelry.