Gift to a close friend--pick a theme
My sister-in-law Kendall and I are best buds, BFFs, besties! We’re married to the Wilson boys, Ron & Carolyn’s only kids. Even though you don’t get to pick your family, I would have chosen Kendall. She’s a true miracle in my life—so dear, so special to me. (Aaack, pass the tissues, please . . . )
Besides being married to smoke-free Marlboro men (just to let you know how studly and rugged they are), we have in common our love of bargains and an updated country decorating style. Years ago, Kendall and I vowed to never pay retail for a Christmas present for one another. We both collect and decorate with antiques, especially rustics, which opens up a whole world of shopping at antique stores, flea markets and garage sales.
The fact that Kendall also collects Coca-Cola items, displaying them in her red and black kitchen, makes shopping for her quite easy. I hardly have to think about what I’ll get her. Instead, I just have to hunt down the treasures. Once I spotted a Coca-Cola metal wall thermometer at a garage sale. Believe it or not, the glass tube was intact! The price? An incredible, outrageous 25 cents! I fought feelings of guilt as I handed over my quarter. Kendall squealed with excitement as she opened it, exclaiming that she already had the perfect spot in mind.
I could no longer keep my find a secret; part of my excitement came in “confessing” to my sister-in-law the incredible bargain I’d found. Coincidentally enough, I spied the same item at an antique mall a few years later. The vendor was asking $52.00! I did a little Snoopy dance, wishing I had someone to high five in my glee!
This idea sounds so simple that I don’t know why more of us don’t do it. Simply spread the word about a particular style or collection and let friends and family theme-shop for us! For example, my mother-in-law collects rose bowls with frogs, salt and pepper shakers. (We all rejoiced when she passed through her Beanie Baby phase!) My mom loves blue and white china and collectibles. Such theme gifts make it easy to buy for the special people in our lives.
Do you have a special theme gift that you like to give or receive? Share it with us and our readers. We might “steal” the idea, but hopefully we live so far away we shouldn’t be in competition with each other for the same item . . .
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2 comments:
I try to stick to theme shopping for a few people. It just makes shopping a little easier. My mom collects angels, my father inlaw collects match box cars, my brother inlaw collects star wars items. I have started my daughter a collection of barbies of the world. She gets a barbie from a different country every year. I think this year I am getting her the barbie from spain. They are so pretty and depending on where you purchase it they are not badly priced.
Collecting Emmit Kelly Jrs was something that relieved my husband from having to worry about size and color and released me from having to make up excuses to return things!
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