5 Gifts Guaranteed For Girlish Giddiness

Whether it’s finding something nice for the hostess, a safe gift for family members you see just once a year or if you have a sudden desire to give a little something to a girlfriend – unearthing affordable, clever, last-minute gifts for women isn’t always easy. While every gal is different, we put together a list of five budget-friendly gifts that are sure to be memorable pleasers.

Wolf BlassThe Chic Six-Pack
Wine is a great, simple gift for many a friend, co-worker or family member – here’s a quick way to make it more special:

1. Go to the liquor or beer store and pick up one of those free cardboard carriers meant to hold mix-and-match beer purchases (these usually have six to eight beer compartments).

2. Next, swing over to the section where smaller bottles of wine are displayed (often near the cashier). The popular Wolf Blass Yellow Label Cabernet Sauvignon is now available in 375ml single bottles for $9.85. Decide if you want to:
- Pick up enough of this vintage to fill your carrier
- Mix and match with other mini varieties
- Just pick up two or four bottles of the Wolf Blass Yellow Label minis

3. Back at home, place these small bottles of wine into the slots of the mix-and-match beer carrier. If you have less wine than there are compartments, fill the other slots with great foods that pair well with wine – different cheeses, a small baguette or even some chocolate. Add a ribbon and a card – and you’re done!

This is great gift for single friends, those weirdoes who don’t normally finish a regular bottle in one sitting or family members who like to entertain. It also makes for a far more glamorous six-pack than any bloaty beer could.

Vancouver 2010 MittensVancouver 2010 Red Mittens in Medium
Believe it or not - these are a hot commodity! As Olympic fever is reaching an excited boiling point, so is the desire for these mittens. They are the Tickle Me Elmo and Cabbage Patch Doll of modern Canadiana. If you find a medium pair of the Vancouver 2010 Red Mittens from The Bay, BUY THEM, because they'll be gone tomorrow. If you really, honestly don’t know anyone who would want them (and if that's the case, you're not thinking hard enough), put them on eBay and then buy a more expensive gift with the profit.

I’ve asked around – from friends on the West Coast to the Prairies to the East – the medium perfect-size-for-ladies mittens are out of stock around the country. Small is too constricting and large is too oven-mitty. Medium is the maple-flavoured porridge that is just right for Canadian women across the country. When in stock, they are available at The Bay for $10.

Lemon Tree PatisserieLemon Tree Patisserie Macarons
When I went to Paris a year ago, there was one place I just had to go. It wasn’t the Eiffel Tower. Or the Louvre. Or even the café Amelie was filmed in. It was Ladurée. Oh, Ladurée, be still, my fat heart. Your precious macarons are France’s greatest achievement. The French macaron, not to be confused with the horrid coconut macaroon, is a delicate sandwich-like pastry that dreams are made of.

You can imagine my unbridled excitement when I came across Kelly Lee, the owner and baker behind Lemon Tree Patisserie in Toronto. Her specialty? The French macaron. Memories of drunken, sugar-hazed days in Paris came flooding back with each ecstatic bite. Lee offers classic macarons year-round in flavours like double chocolate, pistachio, lemon and pecan praline, but Lemon Tree Patisserie also puts out seasonal lovelies like ginger spice (my favourite), Grand Marnier and peppermint candy cane. *Drool.*

Pick up a package of three ($4) for the stocking of a sister-in-law you want to smooth over, a box of nine ($14.99) for the hostess or a selection of 12 ($19.99) for a new mom.

Kelly Lee sells her macarons in person at Toronto’s St. Lawrence Market (downstairs level near Lively Life) every Saturday. Orders can also be placed with Lemon Tree Patisserie by phone or e-mail, and for a small fee, can be delivered within the GTA (sorry, ROC, this is one treat The Centre of the Universe has exclusive dibs on).

Bay Leaf WreathHerb Leaf Wreath
The Williams Sonoma Bay Leaf Wreath (pictured to the left) is so charmingly simple – but at $60 US (plus shipping – it’s an Internet exclusive), the cost isn’t so darling for many of us.

Luckily, even gals who consider themselves less-than crafty can make one without too much swearing or an intervention from Jack Daniels. Here’s how:

Supplies:
- Several bunches of fresh herb sprigs (bay leaf is a great choice, but you can also incorporate rosemary, thyme or sage). Dry sprigs will also work but the wreath will obviously take on a different (but still good!) look. Not sure where to find mass quantities of herbs? Try a farmer’s market or a grocery store known for fresh produce like Whole Foods.
- Scissors
- Floral wire
- Wire cutters
- Wire wreath frame (or unravel a wire clothing hanger and bend into a circular shape)
- Ribbon (optional)

1. Using your scissors, cut a three or four sprigs of herbs, making sure you don’t cut off their stems.

2. Create a little bouquet with the sprigs and pinch the stems against your wire frame.

3. Take the floral wire and wrap it around the bouquet stems and the wire frame, connecting the bouquet to the wreath frame. Pull the wire tightly. Do not cut it – you’ll be using this long string of wire for several bouquets (ideally, you won’t have to cut the floral wire until you’ve placed the last bouquet in your row).

4. Repeat steps 1 to 3, placing each herb bouquet so that it overlaps the last, making sure the wire from the last bunch of herbs is covered by the following bunch.

5. Once you’ve reached the first bouquet of your row, lift the first bundle and tuck the last one under it. Wrap the floral wire around tightly a few times, tie a knot in the back and using wire cutters, cut the floral wire, leaving about an inch of free wire.

6. If your wire frame is multi-rowed (like the type Williams Sonoma does), repeat steps 1 – 5 on the second row. Continue this until the frame of your wreath is complete.

7. If you like, add a ribbon to the back (you can attach it to the 1” leftover wire) for hanging.

Beautiful and aromatic – this is a terrific seasonal gift – and it’s one that keeps on giving. Once the leaves dry, your recipient can pluck them, store them and use them for cooking and teas throughout the year!

Not ambitious enough to make a large wreath? Cut the time in half by making a bunch of mini wreath napkin holders with just floral wire and sprigs!

KivaA Kiva Gift Certificate
If someone you know cares about poverty happening at home and around the globe, wants to find ways to help people who are already helping themselves, or they’re just someone who doesn’t need any more stuff, Kiva presents a smart solution.

Kiva is "the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend to unique entrepreneurs around the globe." Through the site, you can learn about different low-income entrepreneurs and grassroots organizations that have business goals in place, but just need financing to make it succeed. Opportunities range from helping a new Canadian finance a taxi cab purchase so he can support his family, funding a single mother in Nigeria to improve her tailoring business and lending to a group in Thailand so they can repair their fishing boat.

Kiva is not about hand-outs, it’s just about giving a hand (and even getting repaid!).

Kiva gift certificates can be printed or sent by e-mail. The extra great thing about a gift certificate from Kiva is that your recipient gets to choose what business or individual to lend the money to, making the gift that much more personal. What’s more? The entrepreneur who receives the money pays it back over a schedule – when the money is repaid, your friend or family member can re-lend it to another entrepreneur, donate their funds to Kiva (to cover operational expenses), or withdraw their funds to a PayPal account. How great is that?