Christmas gifts: What can you get with $25? - Excellent
When it comes to gift-giving, most people concede that it is the thought the counts. At least it's supposed to.
But when there's not much in the wallet, the thought can become pretty small.
What can you get when you have to give something and you haven't got much to spend? The possibilities expand if you focus on what friends and loved-ones will really like or use. Here are 10 out-of-the-ordinary, more personal, gift ideas for $25 or less:
1. Message in a Bottle - A message in a bottle, whether its a Christmas Gift Message in a Bottleor one of the numerous other types message ina bottle gifts for only $21.99 which includes shipping is sure to become an instant keepsake, to that friend or family member. A beacon of your thoughtfulness and creativity, every time their eyes gaze upon the message inside the bottle, they will be filled with love and happiness.
2. Car care: Teenagers, fresh from driver education and climbing into their own set of wheels, can always use a kit to keep it tidy.
At Big Lots in Portage, $24 will buy a window squeegee ($2), glass cleaning wipes ($2.50), interior cleaning spray ($4), a microfiber washing mitt ($3), a super-absorbent drying cloth ($5), tire shining gel ($3), a package of three air fresheners ($2) and a bucket to hold the whole gift package ($2.50). All clean!
Big Lots can be contacted at 269-381-2929.
3. An Italian meal: Pre-packaged gift baskets can be expensive, but a really nice dinner for two is possible for around $25 if you assemble one yourself €" with high-quality edibles.
Pick up a package of pasta for $1.99, a jar of sauce for $8.99, olive oil for bread-dipping that begins at $9, and a bottle of Italian wine, which mayrun $5.99.
All are available at local shops, including W.J. Upson Wine Merchant. Put it all together in your own gift bag, and voila €" dinner!
€Our pasta has just the right surface roughness for the sauce,€ says proprietor Linda Czapla, who sells sauces in a variety of flavors that include roasted garlic marinara,tomato vodka and artichoke caper.
€Our least expensive Italian wine is just fabulous. It's a really pleasant blend of merlot and sangiovese wines.€
4. Salt: No, not the iodized salt that comes from the grocery store.
Sticks & Stones in downtown Kalamazoo has an array of flavored salts such as hot habanero, alder wood-smoked, wet truffle or a specialty called Windy City Celery.
€That one is perfect for a Bloody Mary,€ says owner Susan Diffenderfer. €Consumable gifts are always huge, and foodies just love this.€
Salts range from $10.99 to $12.99, and an olive wood salt spoon costs just $3.50.
Diffenderfer is an expert on which salts to pair with different dishes, and she offers other salt accessories as well.
Contact Sticks & Stones at 269-343-2520.
5. The gift of dance: Is there a couple on your list that's getting married soon? A gift they can put to good use together is dance lessons.
€Wedding and anniversary dances are big here €" especially the couple's first dance and the father-daughter dance,€ said Sharon Fisher, owner of Sharon's DanceStudio in Kalamazoo.
€They can bring their own music, and we'll teach them to dance to it.€
Fisher said that the fox trot, waltz and swing dances are most popular, along with hip-hop and salsa dancing.
The first lesson is free at Sharon's dance studio, and from now until Christmas, her holiday special is one group lesson for $15.
An inexpensive way to give two classes as a gift is to pay in advance for the $15 group lesson and let the future dancer(s) go to Sharon's for the free introductory lesson and make an appointment for the group session.
Sharon's can be reached at 269-544-2420.
6. The gift of cleanliness: For a college student in a dorm or anyone with an apartment that has the need, try cleaning and household supplies.
Stock up at Meijer in Portage for items that most young matriculators will need and appreciate.
Store brand or budget items to include: liquid dish soap for $2, laundry detergent for $4.99, dryer fabric softener sheets for $3.99, glass cleaner priced at $2.39, scrubbing cleanser for 89 cents, furniturepolish at $2.99, bowl cleaner and a brush for a total of $3.59, a package of sponges at $1.17, and a two-roll package of paper towels for $2.99.
Altogether, this practical gift is right on the money at $24.91.
Contact Meijer at (269) 381-3465.
7. Custom jewelry for the beginning beader: Little girls, big girls and jewelry fanatics can learn to fashion their own custom creations.
A beginner's class at the Bead Shop in Kalamazoo costs $15, and every participant walks away with a hand-designed floating bead necklace and a memory wire bracelet.
€Lots of people come in here and say, €I'm not creative,'€ said course instructor Jennifer Volocyk.
€But when you put beautiful, colorful things in front of them, they discover a different side of themselves, and they're proud of what they make.€
Beginner beading classes are available to anyone age 6 or older. Pay the $15, and the recipient can call to schedule the class to fit her or his ownschedule and needs (one-on-one or a group class).
The Bead Shop can be reached at 269-345-8133.
By Kelle Barr | Special to the Kalamazoo Gazette
How can I measure my love for you?
Is it measured in the number of beats
that my heart skips every time
I look your way?
Is it measured in the number of smiles
you've brought to my lips every time
I hear your voice?
Perhaps it's measured by the
sparkle in your eyes or
the music in your voice.
Or perhaps, my love for you is so deep,
that it can't be measured at all.
Though I may not be able to measure it,
it is most definitely there.
I love you with all of my heart
and all of my soul,
and I will love you for the rest of my life
But when there's not much in the wallet, the thought can become pretty small.
What can you get when you have to give something and you haven't got much to spend? The possibilities expand if you focus on what friends and loved-ones will really like or use. Here are 10 out-of-the-ordinary, more personal, gift ideas for $25 or less:
1. Message in a Bottle - A message in a bottle, whether its a Christmas Gift Message in a Bottleor one of the numerous other types message ina bottle gifts for only $21.99 which includes shipping is sure to become an instant keepsake, to that friend or family member. A beacon of your thoughtfulness and creativity, every time their eyes gaze upon the message inside the bottle, they will be filled with love and happiness.
2. Car care: Teenagers, fresh from driver education and climbing into their own set of wheels, can always use a kit to keep it tidy.
At Big Lots in Portage, $24 will buy a window squeegee ($2), glass cleaning wipes ($2.50), interior cleaning spray ($4), a microfiber washing mitt ($3), a super-absorbent drying cloth ($5), tire shining gel ($3), a package of three air fresheners ($2) and a bucket to hold the whole gift package ($2.50). All clean!
Big Lots can be contacted at 269-381-2929.
3. An Italian meal: Pre-packaged gift baskets can be expensive, but a really nice dinner for two is possible for around $25 if you assemble one yourself €" with high-quality edibles.
Pick up a package of pasta for $1.99, a jar of sauce for $8.99, olive oil for bread-dipping that begins at $9, and a bottle of Italian wine, which mayrun $5.99.
All are available at local shops, including W.J. Upson Wine Merchant. Put it all together in your own gift bag, and voila €" dinner!
€Our pasta has just the right surface roughness for the sauce,€ says proprietor Linda Czapla, who sells sauces in a variety of flavors that include roasted garlic marinara,tomato vodka and artichoke caper.
€Our least expensive Italian wine is just fabulous. It's a really pleasant blend of merlot and sangiovese wines.€
4. Salt: No, not the iodized salt that comes from the grocery store.
Sticks & Stones in downtown Kalamazoo has an array of flavored salts such as hot habanero, alder wood-smoked, wet truffle or a specialty called Windy City Celery.
€That one is perfect for a Bloody Mary,€ says owner Susan Diffenderfer. €Consumable gifts are always huge, and foodies just love this.€
Salts range from $10.99 to $12.99, and an olive wood salt spoon costs just $3.50.
Diffenderfer is an expert on which salts to pair with different dishes, and she offers other salt accessories as well.
Contact Sticks & Stones at 269-343-2520.
5. The gift of dance: Is there a couple on your list that's getting married soon? A gift they can put to good use together is dance lessons.
€Wedding and anniversary dances are big here €" especially the couple's first dance and the father-daughter dance,€ said Sharon Fisher, owner of Sharon's DanceStudio in Kalamazoo.
€They can bring their own music, and we'll teach them to dance to it.€
Fisher said that the fox trot, waltz and swing dances are most popular, along with hip-hop and salsa dancing.
The first lesson is free at Sharon's dance studio, and from now until Christmas, her holiday special is one group lesson for $15.
An inexpensive way to give two classes as a gift is to pay in advance for the $15 group lesson and let the future dancer(s) go to Sharon's for the free introductory lesson and make an appointment for the group session.
Sharon's can be reached at 269-544-2420.
6. The gift of cleanliness: For a college student in a dorm or anyone with an apartment that has the need, try cleaning and household supplies.
Stock up at Meijer in Portage for items that most young matriculators will need and appreciate.
Store brand or budget items to include: liquid dish soap for $2, laundry detergent for $4.99, dryer fabric softener sheets for $3.99, glass cleaner priced at $2.39, scrubbing cleanser for 89 cents, furniturepolish at $2.99, bowl cleaner and a brush for a total of $3.59, a package of sponges at $1.17, and a two-roll package of paper towels for $2.99.
Altogether, this practical gift is right on the money at $24.91.
Contact Meijer at (269) 381-3465.
7. Custom jewelry for the beginning beader: Little girls, big girls and jewelry fanatics can learn to fashion their own custom creations.
A beginner's class at the Bead Shop in Kalamazoo costs $15, and every participant walks away with a hand-designed floating bead necklace and a memory wire bracelet.
€Lots of people come in here and say, €I'm not creative,'€ said course instructor Jennifer Volocyk.
€But when you put beautiful, colorful things in front of them, they discover a different side of themselves, and they're proud of what they make.€
Beginner beading classes are available to anyone age 6 or older. Pay the $15, and the recipient can call to schedule the class to fit her or his ownschedule and needs (one-on-one or a group class).
The Bead Shop can be reached at 269-345-8133.
By Kelle Barr | Special to the Kalamazoo Gazette
How can I measure my love for you?
Is it measured in the number of beats
that my heart skips every time
I look your way?
Is it measured in the number of smiles
you've brought to my lips every time
I hear your voice?
Perhaps it's measured by the
sparkle in your eyes or
the music in your voice.
Or perhaps, my love for you is so deep,
that it can't be measured at all.
Though I may not be able to measure it,
it is most definitely there.
I love you with all of my heart
and all of my soul,
and I will love you for the rest of my life
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