Gift baskets are a great gift for almost every occasion. They are appropriate for your closest friends or for people you don’t know that well. When assembled well, a gift basket can become a work of art. Here are some ideas for creating the perfect gift basket.

Coffee-Lover Gift Basket

A coffee-themed gift basket is the perfect present for your caffeine obsessed friend or co-worker. Line a basket with natural looking, crinkle cut shred. Fill it with a bag of coffee beans, a fun mug, chocolate covered coffee beans and a gift card to their favorite coffee stop. Ask for an empty disposable cup at a nearby coffee shop and use it to stash the gift card or another treat.

Kitchen-Themed Gift Basket

Does your friend love to cook or bake? Why not assemble a gift basket with the chef in mind? Buy a strainer or pot to hold everything. Include pot holders, cookie cutters and some new kitchen utensils. Add a new cook book, apron or a set of measuring cups. For an extra creative addition, include your personal cookie mix like the one we recently told you about.

A Gift Basket for the New Home Owner

New home owners need lots of stuff. Fill a bucket, paint can or flower pot with items like cleaning supplies, change of address cards or monogrammed hand towels. Swing by the post office and pick up a change of address form to include. Another personal touch would be return address labels complete with their new address.

More Tips for Creating the Perfect Gift Basket

• Use cellophane bags to contain your gift bag. Tie it at the top with coordinating ribbon.

• Give your gift basket a professional look by using glue dots. It’s an easy and discreet way to stick items together.

• Line your basket with tissue paper or shred to give it a creative look and to add color.

Photo Courtesy of Killerbeez

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You stopped buying bottled water. You recycle just about everything. You even drink organic coffee. Now it’s time to turn your gift giving just as green as the rest of your life. Here are seven ways to be thoughtful to you friends, family and the earth.

1.    Give an edible gift. Check out your local farmers’ market and pick up some fresh fruit and veggies for an organic and yummy homemade gift basket. Edible gifts are great because you know they’ll be used.

2.    Look locally. When shopping for presents support local craftspeople. Make sure the items are made with non-toxic supplies.

3.    Give the gift of nature. For the outdoorsy types, why not give them a pass to the national parks. For $80 they’ll have access to dozens of parks across the country.

4.    Look for earth-friendly gadgets. There are plenty of them at Terrapass.com. Check out this personal wind turbine. It’s a great way to charge your cell phone or iPod without using electricity.

5.    Think about what they’ll actually use. It’s important to buy items that will be used, not wasted or thrown away.

6.    Give them some land. For just $50 you can adopt an acre of Costa Rican rainforest, an area threatened by development. It’s a gift that they may never get to touch or so, but they’ll definitely appreciate it.

7.    Think about the wrapping. Before you go snag some pretty paper and ribbon, think about what it’s made of. Avoid cards and wrap made with chlorine-bleached paper. Look for a PCF (processed chlorine free) label or products made from recycled material. Better yet, re-use paper and gift bags or put the Sunday comics to use.

Photo courtesy of TerraPass.com

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Bypass the humdrum bridal shower gifts of blenders and nightgowns and give a getaway for two. Now wait, don’t roll your eyes and ask if I think your last name is Trump. I’m talking about a virtual getaway. There are times a married couple would love to go off for a weekend, but can’t because of various reasons. That’s where your gift comes in.

A beach themed gift basket would be a great gift for any new or established couple so file this away for anniversaries as well. And for people with kids - it can be nearly impossible to getaway when you have munchkins. This is an easy craft for everyone, even the most non-crafty gifter.

• Buy a beachy themed container to hold all of your items. This could be a great tin pail, brightly colored bucket or a cute lined picnic basket, etc.
• Line the container with a colorful piece of fabric or a beach towel.
• Throw in some crinkle shredded paper or tissue paper.
• Pile in tropical candles, a bottle of gourmet lemonade (or wine), cheese, crackers, massage oil, wine glasses, an “ocean sounds” CD or a beach scene DVD, a small souvenir bottle of sand, a couple of seashells and anything else that screams fun in the sun.
• Be sure to secure items in the basket so they don’t jostle around while you transport them. A little tape goes a long way. And if tape or glue will ruin an item, try securing items with pieces of twine to add to the rustic look or use small gauge wire for an invisible look. Whatever you do, don’t make the items hard to get out. Nothing ruins an evening like fighting with packaging!

The majority of these items you can find at your local discount stores or if you really want to get fancy go to your local home decor stores or online.

photo credit: The Best Caribbean Beaches/Waves: Virtual Vacations

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Oh boy, you’re that parent. The one who bought a book for the birthday party. The other parents look at you in sympathy, wondering how you could have made such a rookie mistake. They all dutifully bought Princess Sparkle Head or Kung Fu Superhero or the latest and greatest educational toy.

Right after the parents of the birthday kid soothingly thank you for thinking of their child’s literary future and before the birthday kid tosses your gift onto the pile with the socks from Grandma and the undies from Auntie Mo, the kid realizes the book is all about them!

Score!

Personalized storybooks with the child’s favorite characters has just put you at the top of the gift heap. MyChildBook.Com offers books with all sorts of subjects, adventures and characters designed around that one special child.

So instead of just reading about the Disney Princesses’ adventures or Nemo’s latest hijinks, they can join in the adventures! How cool is that?

Some of the titles available include: Batman, Marvel Comics characters, Sesame Street, Scooby-Do, Veggie Tales, God Loves Me, Kwanzaa Best and My Adventures in Birthday Land.

For those who are looking to create a bigger impact, create a gift basket with the child’s personalized book and expand on the theme. Include personalized pencils, other stationary and a craft. A few fabric paints and a tote bag or ball cap can provide a really fun activity. This gift idea is especially cool for kids whose names are unusual or have a unique spelling.

Just be sure to order the items ahead of time, adding a moniker can often add days to a gift order.

Image belongs to: mychildbook.com

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The Bunny Hop

If you feel generous this Easter, you can send this cute fluffy bunny hippety-hopping to all your favorite little people! Kids will love the cuddly bunny, the Easter PEZ dispenser and the PEZ candies.

The basket also contains caramel popcorn and Ghirardelli chocolate.

The price is $29.99 and the package can be shipped via FedEx overnight or 2nd Day Delivery. 

You still have time to buy it and surprise your loved one!

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Today’s choice:

 
Be My Valentine? - Valentine’s Day Gift Basket

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This is today’s suggestion: a designer crate for baby girls filled with many “must-have” items. Everything from ribbon barrettes to juice and snack cups. She’ll just love snuggling up with a warm fleece blanket and a soft, cuddly teddy bear. The nice thing is that you can customize it!

For more Baby Girl Baskets, please visit .

Looking for gifts? Browse our GIFT STORE! Also, check out the COUPONS page for savings at the best online gift stores!