Last Minute Mother's Day Shopping...

Now that you have hinted to your husband how to make Sunday special for you, have you thought about your own mom?!  Or how about some other important moms in your life?  If not, thats ok because there is still time to put together a thoughtful gift.  Once again I am going to recommend Home Goods because it basically has pearly gates.  I was there today and quickly got inspired by all the great stuff.  It dawned on me while I was there that I should get a little Mother's Day gift for my son's teachers.  They "mother" him while he is in their care and they go home and mother their own kids....they deserve a little something.


I found a two-pack of these really cute popcorn containers ($8).  I bought 2 candy bars and 2 packs of popcorn ($4 total) and voila...a movie-night gift basket.  


I saw lots of other cute containers there that could serve as your "gift basket" for a variety of themes.  Here are some ideas:


Gardening Basket filled with:
$- gloves, a decorative pot, and a foot scrub/soak for after all that hard work
$$- giftcard for a pedicure.


Picnic Basket filled with:
$- inexpensive cups or plates, some printed napkins, citronella candles
$$- a bottle of wine and some cheese and crackers


Book Lovers Basket: (use a basket, wooden box, or tote bag)
$- bookmark, giftcard to bookstore, journal
$$- add a coffee mug and Starbucks giftcard


Cook's Basket: (use a basket, colorful collander, or place everything in the center of an apron and gather all the sides together and tie it with a ribbon)
$- measuring cups, kitchen tools, some cooking oils, cookbook
$$- A giftcard to Cooking Uptown's cooking classes

Everything I have listed here (other than the wine, cheese and giftcards) was in HomeGoods.  They had tons of stuff for under $10!  Also they are running a deal right now where if you buy a $25 giftcard you receive a free year's subscription to Good Housekeeping.  This deal is good through May 8th.

Got em, Flaunt em...

So hopefully everyone is now on their way to beautiful holiday cards!  If you are still working on them don't forget to check out some of the great online sites like Shutterfly and Snapfish because most of these are running deals right now.  You can probably walk away with inexpensive cards AND free shipping.  You may even find some other gifts to give.  I make photo calendars every year for my mother-in-law and it is her favorite gift (or so she tells me!)

I am one of those people who keeps all of the cards I receive each year.  I don't know why, I just can't bear to throw away these beautiful cards that I know people put a lot of time into.  Plus the cards are always so pretty that they make great decorations in themselves.  I have a pile of them that is getting out of control so I needed some creative ways to display the old and the new.   This called for a trip to one of my most favorite places on earth.  If I ever have any chunk of time to myself you will not find me at a nail salon, a coffee shop, or even a shoe store.  Nope, I will be roaming around a Home Goods.  When I say the name I swear I hear angels singing "Ahhhhhh"  It is pure therapy for me to get lost in the aisles there!  I can find anything from a gift for my mother to a new picture frame, to sheets, to thank you cards.  I know some people hate the idea of plundering through massive amounts of stuff but I for one love finding the little treasures.

I went on a mission to find things to display holiday cards and my HG didn't fail me once again.  Here are some of the great finds lurking at the Sharon Rd. location right now...

Assorted boxes $12- $30

More boxes...

Mission accomplished!

If you would like even more options at an even lower price I am going to let you in on a little secret gem right here in Charlotte.  The Mighty Dollar.  This dollar store is better than any other I have ever visited.  They carry all kinds of Hallmark wrapping paper and gift bags, tons of birthday decorations, craft supplies, and lots of other stuff.  I stopped in to see if they had anything that could be used to display cards and did they ever.   I only did $4 bucks worth of damage and here's what I ended up with:

Tinsel tree, tinsel wreaths (2 tied together), and they also had strands
of tinsel that you could use around a door frame.
I attached my cards with these teeny, tiny clothes pins that I found in the craft section.

If these ideas don't strike your fancy how about these...

Silver tree $50

Green hurricane ($15)...just toss all the cards inside.
Or use a clear, glass hurricane so all of the cards and their colors are visible!

Now let me hear from you!  What creative and inexpensive ways have you found to display your cards this year??