Last-minute gifts (that won’t seem last-minute!)
Procrastinators take heart. There is a light at the end of the Christmas shopping tunnel, even if you’ve waited this long.
Experts say follow a few simple suggestions and you could snag gifts in mere minutes that will look like you spent months planning.
Joyce Sobczyk, manager of personal shopping for Bloomingdale’s, 900 N. Michigan, says make a list of everyone you need to buy for, their size and hobbies. Stores close early on Christmas Eve so start shopping in the morning. (Bloomingdale’s is open from 8 a.m. until 6 tonight.)
If you’re shopping at a department store, call ahead to see if they have personal shopping services, suggests Jackie Strohm, personal stylist manager at Nordstrom, 520 N. Michigan. Services usually are free and surprisingly available on Christmas Eve. (Nordstrom is open from 9 a.m. until 5 tonight.)
But, this begs the question: what to buy?
Stationery can be a great gift — something that most people need but don’t always splurge on for themselves. Put together a set of decorative blank cards and envelopes with a monogrammed rubber stamp with the first initial of the recipient’s name and all of a sudden you have a gift that will be remembered. At the Paper Source, with five locations in and around the city, you can choose stationery in just about any color (starting at $3.25) and find rubber letter stamps in many fonts and sizes (starting price $4.50). Journals also can be a great, personalized gift. The Gratitude journal ($14.95), also available at the Paper Source, encourages the recipient to focus on the positive going into the year ahead. You can make it that much more special by penning a quick note on the first page about how much the recipient means to you.
If you’ve got a cook on your list, consider spices from the Spice House, 1512 N. Wells. Choose from one of their 30 gift box themes, which run the gamut from sweet to savory. New this year and great for the man in your life is the Smoky Flavors Gift Box ($19.95), which includes ground chipotle chili pepper and Brisket of Love barbecue rub.
The Himalayan Salt plates (starting at $37.95), available at the Spice House as well, are a quirky gift for the cook who has everything. Use them cold to serve fruit or cheese or on the stovetop and cook right on them to lace your food with a subtle, salty flavor.
If you’re visiting there, walk two storefronts north to Old Town Oil, 1520 N. Wells. There you can pick from more than 20 varieties of 100 percent extra virgin olive oil and 14 varieties of balsamic vinegar. One of their most popular combinations is the Mediterranean Blood Orange Olive Oil paired with their 18-year aged Tangerine Balsamic Vinegar ($35.45 without basket, $39.95 with), used for everything from salads to a marinade for meat.
If you’ve got a coffee lover on your list, up the ante with a pound of the rarer special reserve blend from Peet’s Coffee and Tea in Lincoln Park. They’ve got two to choose from — one that’s 100 percent Kona (key because that’s hard to find; $55) and the JR Reserve (a combination of African and Indonesian coffees hand-selected by and named after their top coffee buyer Jim Reynolds; 51). For this coffee option you’ll pay up to four times more than regular beans (about $50), but it’s worth it.
If shopping department stores is more your style, Sobczyk steers coffee-loving customers to the Nespresso coffee machine (starting at $199; model pictured is $349.99 today). “It’s worth spending a little extra for the grown-up coffee maker,” she says.
To incorporate a little designer flair in your gift-giving without breaking the bank, there’s the Burberry skinny scarf ($195), which comes in a variety of colors at Bloomingdale’s.
At Nordstrom consider a pair of TOMS shoes for men and women. With every pair (starting at $57.95 at Nordstrom) you buy they give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. “It’s like two gifts in one,” Strohm says. “Perfect for the person who likes to give back.”
And, if despite your best intentions you still find yourself leaning toward a bathrobe, check out the super comfy Barefoot Dreams CozyChic robe at Nordstrom ($98). At some locations you can even have it monogrammed (which starts at $8), even on Christmas Eve.
To take advantage, though, you’ve got to stop procrastinating and start shopping. Now.
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