Tag Archives: gift guide

Absolutely Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide 2018: THE ARIZONA EDITION!

I’m back to posting again, and what better way to usher in a holiday post with the return of the “Absolutely Last Minute Gift Guide”! As mentioned in previously, we live in Chandler, which I recently found out is the fourth largest city in Arizona. The picture above is of the Tumbleweed Christmas Tree located in Downtown Chandler, which is a five minute drive from our house. Now that I’m officially outside of California, three of the four suggestions in my gift guide are from The Grand Canyon State!

Sibley’s West

Located in Historic Downtown Chandler, Sibley’s West is a wonderful and truly unique souvenir shop. All of their items are only “From Arizona”, which is their mantra, sourcing artisans and companies based here. If you can’t visit their shop in Chandler, they have gift certificates available on their website and many fantastic gift items to choose from on their online shop.

One of my favorite items I recently purchased as a gift is a Travel Tea Set and loose leaf tea from Tea Royalty. Fortunately, I live right around the corner from Sibley’s, so I’m definitely going back and getting one for myself!

Quench Naturel

I was recently invited to an event at Singh Meadows in Tempe for the launch of Quench Naturel’s Sweet Moringa line. They use only all natural ingredients for their products, and everything is available on their online store. I will be providing a full review soon, but rest assured that all their products would make wonderful gifts!

QMULATIVE

I first heard about and met designer Quinlan of QMULATIVE at this year’s Phoenix Fashion Week (pictured above, being interviewed by my friend Tiffany of Glitz and Glam by Tiff). He was the 2017 Lifestyle Designer of the year at PHXFW, and is known for his AZ Pocket Tees (I’ll have my own soon, and will be sure to post pictures). His designs can either be purchased on his online shop, or in the Tucson area at shops like Why I Love Where I Live and Summit Hut.

Cave Tools

I have been working with Cave Tools for a few years now, having my husband Deon try out several of their wonderful products for cooking his delicious BBQ. Any of their products would make excellent gifts for that BBQ Pit Master in your life, and if you can’t decide on anything in their gift section, they also have gift certificates available.

We recently tried their Stainless Steel Meat Injector, and look out for how we used it for a recent grill session in an upcoming post!

(All pictures by me, except for the AZ Pocket Tee pictures provided by Quinlan of QMULATIVE)

Absolutely Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide 2016: The Carlsbad Edition!

For the third year running, I humbly present again my last-minute holiday gift guide! I am notorious for waiting until the last-minute, so for those of you who suffer from the same affliction, this is the guide for you. For this year’s gift guide, I thought I would put a local spin on things and give those of you in the San Diego area places to actually go and grab some great last-minute holiday presents from some of my favorite shops in the Carlsbad area.

Happy Shopping!

Wysh Boutique

Wysh Boutique is one of my favorite boutiques in Carlsbad. Located in the Village Faire at Carlsbad, they not only have fashionable clothing and accessories, but great gift ideas and gift certificates!

Gaia Gelato

Also located at the Village Faire, Gaia Gelato has gift cards, but I wouldn’t mind getting gifted a box of their yummy French macarons!

Sock District

Sock District is new to the Village Faire, so I welcomed them by immediately purchasing a couple of pairs to gift to my sister. If you visit their site (link above), you can purchase electronic gift cards for your friends and family to shop in their store or online!

The Beat Clothing

Another one of my Carlsbad favorites, The Beat Clothing has everything you could want for your edgy fashionista friends. Astrid Montalvo is their on-site stylist and she can help you find the perfect outfit for that concert-goer in your life, or give the gift of rock inspired clothing, shoes and accessories through a gift certificate!

Spin Records

Of course I need to include a place where you can give the gift of music, and my favorite place to do some digging in Carlsbad is at Spin Records. I was just there and purchased a white vinyl 7-inch single of Johnny Cash’s The Man Comes Around with his cover of Personal Jesus (pictured below). They also have t-shirts, buttons, patches and gift certificates for that crate digger in your life!

Note: This is not a sponsored post. Although I mention specific shops, all suggestions are strictly my own.

Last Minute Mother’s Day Gift Guide!

In the past couple of years, I’ve posted a “Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide” to help those of you who are procrastinators (like me) get through the Christmas holiday. Although I missed Valentine’s Day, I’m going to start putting together some “Last Minute Gift Guides” for other special occasions. Not only will it help me get creative with my own gift giving, but I hope it will help you as well! For this Mother’s Day version, I’ve gathered ideas from stores at Fashion Valley Mall to help with giving your mom (and mine) something unique on her special day!

The “Go-To” Gift

A New Purse – This is a great “go-to” gift because it’s easy and if your mom is like mine, anything practical will do just fine. As I’ve mentioned before, my mom is a big fan of Kipling (2nd floor), so getting her something she will like immediately is a snap. My mom loves backpacks or cross-body purses, and there are so many fun styles and colors to choose from.

Jewelry – This is always a great “go-to” because if you get something your mom loves, you have the pleasure of seeing it on her all the time. I think charm bracelets are wonderful because you can pick out charms that are meaningful to the both of you. If you are not worried about a budget, Tiffany & Co (2nd floor) has gorgeous bracelets and charms in sterling silver, rose gold and gold. If you are looking for more wallet friendly bracelets and charms, Swarovski (2nd floor) has a lovely little selection that will be easier on on your pocketbook.

Quality Time

Day Spa – There are two day spas at Fashion Valley: Carlton Hair (1st floor) and Happy Nails (1st floor). Gift cards are available at both locations to give any mom a wonderful full day of pampering from head to toe!

Brunch and a Movie – Treat your mom to a mid-morning meal and movie, all at Fashion Valley! True Food Kitchen (1st floor) is one of my favorite restaurants there, and they have a healthy and oh-so-delicious brunch menu. Then take her to see a new flick at AMC Fashion Valley 18 (2nd floor), maybe the upcoming Captain America: Civil War?

Bring it on Home

Home Cooked Meal – How about some pampering at home? Either cook something special for mom or get her some new gadgets if she’s the culinary wizard at Williams-Sonoma (2nd floor). I’m a baker myself and there are just so many cool things to find there for anyone who wants to dabble in cookery.

(Pictured: Mother’s Day Cookie Gift Box & Williams-Sonoma Goldtouch Nonstick 6-Piece Essentials Bakeware Set from their official website)

New Parking Guidance System

If you’re a regular shopper at Fashion Valley (like me), then I’m sure you’re already aware of this awesome bit of news: The guess work has now been taken out of the parking situation with their new “parking guidance system” that helps inform you of how many spaces are available! This new system is available at all eight of their parking garages (structures A through H).

FTC Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Fashion Valley

Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide 2015 Part 2!

As promised, here is part two to my “Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide”! This list of gift ideas is designed to help you with the music lovers in your life in addition to more for your fashion loving friends and family. The titles of each section will link directly to how you can purchase each gift idea. Enjoy and happy shopping!

THE MUSIC LOVERS GIFT GUIDE

Spotify Subscription

I love Spotify. I love it so much that I subscribe to Spotify Premium not only because I have access to a seemingly unlimited database of music, but also for the ability to eliminate ads and save music on Spotify so that I can listen to my playlists without the need to use wi-fi or phone data.

For a limited time only, you can give the gift of a three-month subscription of Spotify for only $.99!

(Photo capture courtesy of Spotify)

VNYL Subscription

I’m a very avid vinyl record collector. I try to participate in some kind of monthly record meme because I love to share my collection, and I love to see what my online friends are spinning. If you would like to get someone special some vinyl of their own, buy them a subscription to VNYL and they can have their team of curators choose three albums a month based on their profile!

$39 will buy a one month subscription of 3 records. But if you really love someone, you can buy them a whole year subscription at $420 for 36 records. For those of you in the California area, they have a flagship store in Los Angeles!

(Photo capture courtesy of VNYL)

M. Lineham Art

If you do not know Matthew Lineham is or his art, please let me introduce you! I discovered Matthew Lineham’s incredible art on Instagram. He has 16 “Saints” of New Wave, two of which I have purchased myself: Simon Le Bon and Bryan Ferry. Of the 16, I have seen six in concert, and I know he’s working on his Saint Dave Gahan one. His pieces are truly a wonderful and unique gift for the 80’s alternative lover in your life and won’t break the bank at $15 each print.

Urbanears Headphones

Because I’m a Premium Spotify subscriber, I received a code to receive half off a pair of wireless headphones from Urbanears. They have Bluetooth capability, where I can use it to not only listen to music, but pick up a call and swipe to the next song on my Spotify list!

Their line includes ear buds and full headphones, ranging in price from $29 to $99.

THE FASHIONISTA GIFT GUIDE

Love Tatum Gift Card

I first saw Love Tatum jewelry at a few local boutiques during blogger events. But I really started to love the pieces after seeing them on my blogger friends like Laura Neuzeth and Vanessa Balli. I bought my first pieces at Simply Local (two necklaces and a ring), and my most recent purchase is that gorgeous ring pictured above. Created by Tatum Lenahan, you can give the gift of one of her amazing pieces by purchasing a gift card for your favorite fashionista!

Ja-Vie Shoes

I reviewed Ja-Vie shoes recently after discovering them on Instagram (original post here). These have been my go-to shoes lately, not only because they’re comfortable and cute, but so practical for this wet weather we’ve been having lately. Another great gift for your fashionable friends because they so very affordable at $68 a pair!

And a big thank you and shout out to Ja-Vie for the lovely feature on their Instagram!

Bittersweet by Maria Shireen

I instantly fell in love with Bittersweet by Maria Shireen bracelets after seeing them on BuzzFeed and even more so when I was invited to their press preview (link to the original post here and on their press page). If you want to give the gift of style and functionality, these bracelets are your answer for that girl on the go. As a refresher, these sleek bracelets are designed to hold any hair-tie, lifting it from your wrist and allowing it to blend in naturally with any arm-candy you may be sporting.

Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide Part 1: FashionMIA Favorites!

My Fashionmia.com Faves! by any2ndnow on polyvore.com

Can you believe Christmas is next week? And yes, I’ve famously left some of my shopping until the last-minute. If you have as well, I’ve come up with a list of great outfit gift ideas for the fashionistas in your life through FashionMIA: Modern, Irresistible, and Affordable women’s clothing. I’ve listed my five favorite outerwear pieces and seven favorite dresses from their site, ranging from casual capes to stylish coats and cute shifts to fabulous frocks worthy of New Year’s Eve. The best part: everything pictured is under $50 each!

Part two of my last-minute holiday gift guide will hopefully appeal to fashion and music lovers alike, stay tuned!

Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide!

If you’re like me, you’ve waited until the absolute last-minute to get your gift list together for the Christmas Holiday. I do it every year, and I don’t know if I’ll ever learn to be proactive and do it earlier.

So what I’ve done is found some really cool gift ideas that are a bit outside of the norm, and only one requires actual gift wrap. Cheers and happy shopping!

Caffeine Crawl 2015 Tickets

The Caffeine Crawl takes place January 23-24 2015, and showcases 16 different coffee houses in San Diego. Tickets range from $23-30 per route, but it looks like you get some goodies along with your tickets. This is a great gift for the coffee lover in your life!

Tickets include an event packet with Crawl goodies and souvenirs, admittance to all stops on your selected route which includes a drink or chocolate sample provided and determined by each shop, and short, educational presentation.

Afternoon Tea at Mary’s English Kitchen

I had such a wonderful time during my own afternoon tea experience at Harrods (original post here), so I have been looking for another experience to match it. When Katie from the blog La Jolla Mom mentioned Mary’s English Kitchen in La Jolla, I thought about getting that as a gift for me and my girlfriends as a great afternoon out. If you want to do the same, you can call them at (858) 263-4614 to inquire about gift certificates or to make a reservation.

(Photo courtesy of Yelp!)

ClassPass Gift Cards

Recently, I was able to take part in a month membership to ClassPass (post here), where one month’s membership gets you unlimited access to participating exercise studios in the San Diego area. If you have someone in your life who would like to do the same, gift cards are available for one class, a one month membership or three-month membership. Click on the link for details! ClassPass Gifting

Duty Free City Gift Certificates

After I won my Furla bag from Duty Free City and attended their grand opening (posts here and here), I truly feel it’s a wonderful place to spend a day with family or friends because it’s not just about the shopping, but the experience. Gift certificates are available to give that experience to someone you love by calling (619) 621-2600.

The Sand Cloud Beach Towel

Finally, the only gift in my little gift guide that may need actual wrapping paper: The Sand Cloud beach towel. When I first posted about this fantastic little beach blanket/towel (post here), it was merely a start-up. Now they have a full-blown shop where you can purchase one for $32.50 and they come in six cool colors. I have two of them myself: one in Ocean Blue and the Mint Green one pictured above. Stay tuned…I may have a surprise in the new year for you regarding Sand Cloud!

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