Christmas Shopping

I am my Mother's daughter for sure.  We both pick up items throughout the year and save them as Christmas presents.  I think my record this year was for my brother, Tom, who is in Afghanistan.  When I was in Oregon on vacation back in April, I saw the perfect t-shirt at REI for him.  It had a drawing of three bike lanes and only one lane for cars.  He is the ultimate road biker.  I didn't pick it up for him right then since I figured the Anchorage REI would have it.  Turns out I was wrong (yet again)!  Lucky for me, Josh Niva (my good pal) was headed to Bend in May to visit friends.  I asked him to pick up the shirt, and he called me from the store to ask where it was shelved.  And, Tom just opened it when he was home this week for R&R to celebrate an early Christmas.

I am almost done with Christmas shopping, and I just packed all the gifts for our trip to South Carolina later this month.  Thought I would share some unique gifts that I've seen or bought this year if you are trying to finish your shopping or are stuck on ideas. 

www.uncommongoods.com
They have some unique gifts, especially for wine lovers.

www.verabradley.com
Every girl should have a Vera Bradley bag... a cosmetic bag, a duffel or some cute bag in their whimsical prints.

http://web.mac.com/reachpatti/
My very talented sister in law, Patti, does silhouettes, pencil sketches and more.  Check it out!  Perfect if you have kiddos or need a gift for Grandma and Grandpa!

www.fredflare.com
Some super cool stuff.

 http://sephora.com/
I love make up, even if I don't wear a ton of it.  A girl can never have enough lip glosses or luscious lotions.  Plus you get three free samples with every order.  YAY!

Okay, enough fun websites.  Couple of other ideas for gifts:  car detailing (it makes you love your car all over again when it's super clean), locally made ornaments (Cabin Fever in Anchorage has the best), down booties from REI (they aren't just for winter camping), SmartWool socks from Title Nine (http://www.titlenine.com/, they have unique patterns), SkHoop insulated skirts (http://www.skhoop.us/, now available in pink underside), and practical gifts like pretty dish towels that match the kitchen.

One last handy tip for you cybershoppers like me.  Before you buy something on a website, open a new tab and google the store name and coupon code.  Example:  Eddie Bauer Coupon Code.  Chances are, there will be a coupon code for a discount or a coupon code for free shipping.  I used that trick at Snapfish.com and found free shipping for my Christmas Cards this year!  This tip is courtesy of my former co-worker, Kelly Laipenieks, one of the most efficient shoppers out there.

Since I started out the post talking about my Mother, here's a pic of her goofing off with The Blue Man Group (in Las Vegas).  Happy Shopping!