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Mother's Day Gift Guide: Unique Presents for Mom

Written by Kathryn D'Imperio Tuesday, 29 April 2008 17:55

Finding the perfect Mother's Day gift for Mom can be quite the daunting task. In the interests of avoiding yet another picture frame or coffee mug, we've compiled a comprehensive list of unique gifts for the mothers in your life. Choose the theme of your gift and get started on your hunt for the perfect present - whether you're looking for something fun, sentimental, functional, or completely luxurious. Now let's get started!

For Moms on the Go, or Going Green

CellKeeper Caddie - Great for active people and those who've always got a place to go or people to see, this hip and stylish phone pouch offers a multifunctional solution to the everyday need for toting technology. Wear CellKeeper across your body or around your waist. The caddie can hold everything from your cell phone or BlacKBerry / PDA to your iPod or MP3 player. Some small cameras also make a good fit! CellKeeper is available in original, professional, and sport styles. CellKeeper Caddies also feature an adjustable halter strap that makes toting your cell phone or small personal electronic item a breeze.

CellKeeper Professional and the CellKeeper Original offer different fabric textures and color choices. CellKeeper Sport offers a washable and reflective design, boasting attractive gray and black coloring with orange trim. It is ideal for iPods and small digital cameras. I had the joy of testing out this item for my gift guide, and it is a truly lovely carrying case for a cell phone, MP3 player, or camera. The case is soft and perfect for going to the amusement park, the zoo, embarking on a hike, or doing any number of other fun outdoor activities. I love the orange detailing and soft gray fabric, as well as the small compartments and thoughtful accommodations for cash, change, credit cards, and my all-time favorite item to tote, lip gloss! For more information, visit CellKeeper on the Web at http://www.cellkeeper.com.

Cost: $29.99

Cool Factor: This item is especially great for multitasking moms, with its wallet caddie with snap closure, lip gloss or pen sleeve, ID window, key hook, zippered internal coin pocket, cash pocket, credit card sleeves, and expandable snap closure.

Two Green Moms Shopping Totes - In case you haven't heard, "Green" is the new black. Protecting our environment and recycling, reducing, and reusing are key themes all acoss the nation. For those environmentally aware moms out there, "Girls Gone Green" and "little green bag" shopping totes make a great companion for a trip to the supermaket. They're an awesome anytime alternative to those flimsy, annoying plastic bags that tend to collect in excess in our homes.

Two Green Moms founders Mandi DuPuy and Jill Clark offer their stylish shopping bags in blue with "Girls Gone Green" design or a green bag with "little green bag" design. They're available in both insulated and non-insulated styles. The totes are slightly larger than a standard brown paper bag, and their straps fit comfortably over the shoulder. For more information, visit on the Web at http://www.twogreenmoms.com.

Cost: Prices range from $3.25 for a single tote to $29.99 for a pack of ten.

Cool Factor: Not only are the shopping totes reusable, but they are actually crafted from recyclable materials!

Fresh Wave Natural Odor Neutralizing Candles - Fresh Wave kitchen candles and travel candles are all-natural and bursting with delightful fragrances. These "green" products are biodegradable and non-toxic. They feature enticing ingredients such as extracts of soy, lime, pine needle, aniseed, clove, and cedar wood. Offer Mom a truly organic experience with a variety of fragrant candles that will surely make her kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, living room, or other area smell incredible!

The candles are available in a 6.25 oz. recyclable travel tin or a 7 oz. lovely frosted glass jar (kitchen candle). Each soy candle delivers between 30 and 40 hours of fragrant burn time. While you may not want to give Mom odor neutralizers by themselves, just think of what a neat gift basket you could create with a couple of candles, a good book, some chocolates, and a bottle of bubble bath! To learn more about Fresh Wave candles and odor eliminating products, visit on the Web at http://www.fresh-wave.com.

Cost: $13.95 for the travel candle or $18.00 for the kitchen candle.

Cool Factor: Don't be fooled by their dainty and elegant appearance. These candles are downright aggressive when it comes to eliminating cooking smells and general household odors! Simply burn the candles during and after food prep to rid the smell of fish, onions, garlic, curry - the works.

Life Fitness Believe in You ActiveStep Premium Digital Pedometer - For moms who are constantly in motion, consider this great gift that will keep her posted on her steps, aerobic steps, calories, and distance. It has a seven-day history so mom can keep track of her progress and increase or decrease her workouts accordingly. The clock shows both the time of day and the amount of time spent on aerobic walking.

The pedometer comes with a security strap that allows it to attach to clothing securely, as well as a strong clip for attaching. It also has a large screen display that resets itself at midnight to prepare for the next day's activity. The battery is easy to install and remove, and the device is just as easy to use. This digital pedometer would also make a great gift for the mom who wants to spend more time exercising but just never has enough time in her day. It would be a great motivator and it's lightweight, stylish, and easy to use. This item is available exclusively at CVS pharmacy.

Cost: Affordable

Cool Factor: This handy pedometer has a dual acceleration sensor that allows it to work even while it's in mom's pocket or purse!

Good Reads

Holding Her Head High, By Janine Turner - Dazzling actress Janine Turner chronicles her own experiences and those of 12 single moms who surmounted trials and tribulations to triumph and raise successful, influential children. Her accounts span from the Roman Empire to the twentieth century, touching upon key themes such as Dare to dream, Heal with humor, and Hold your head high.

Cost: The book retails for $22.99 US. ($15.63 on Amazon.com!)

Cool Factor: The pages cover all kinds of single mothers with intensely inspirational tales, from an enterprising widow who raised her youngins' by herself while working away in a man's business world, to mothers in the times of slavery who battled against all odds to provide a better life for their children.

Vintage Vavoom: Romantic Decorating with One-of-a-Kind Finds, By The Editors of Romantic Homes Magazine - This book is a great resource for moms who like to keep a special place in their hearts and homes for past memories and family heirlooms. The beautiful book features more than 200 full-color pages of tips and suggestions for timeless decorating and unique personal touches. Some of the top tips mom will learn include: determining the value of a piece of furniture or home accessory, creating themes, adding in elements from Mother Nature, gathering inspiration from window-shopping, and more.

The gorgeous photos throughout the book's pages depict countless romantic settings, from seductive soaking tubs draped in wispy sheers to picturesque fairytale garden scenes seemingly straight out of "The Secret Garden." The colors, textures, shapes, and styles are enough to make any woman want to call out sick and play hooky to dress up her own home in a truly romantic fashion. I look forward to adopting some of these lovely decorating suggestions as my own.

Cost: $35.00 US, $44.00 CAN. ($22.75 on Amazon.com!)

Cool Factor: The book teaches readers to follow their instincts and decorate their homes with the things they love.

Sweet or Scented

Hershey's Bliss Chocolates - Even though we're avoiding the common gifts of the parental holidays - standard photo frames, coffee mugs, traditional flower arrangements - there's no way we could pass by chocolate altogether! Many moms - and women in general - are big fans of chocolate! Hershey's introduced its new line - Bliss. The delightful chocolates are available in three flavors: Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, and Milk Chocolate with a Meltaway center. Individually wrapped pieces await inside attractively decorated packaging. Serving size is six pieces at around 200 to 220 calories.

The taste is sweet, succulent, and everything a chocolate indulgence should be. These chocolatey tidbits would make the perfect companion curled up in front of a cozy fire with a good book, or comfortably relaxing amid suds and bubbles in the tub with a glass of wine or champagne. I would expect nothing less from Hershey's!

Hershey's Bliss is available nationwide in 9.6 oz packages at grocery stores, mass retailers and drugstores. For more information, visit www.hersheys.com.

Cost: Less than $5.

Cool Factor: The smooth and creamy chocolates are shaped like squares, with a slightly domed shape that fits the mouth comfortably and allows the chocolate to melt evenly.

Rocket Farms Orchids - Rather than fresh-cut flowers this year, why not get Mom a potted orchid that she could care for all year long? Rocket Farms offers beautiful orchids with white, pink, red, yellow, maroon, or multi-colored blossoms. Flowers ship right from the greenhouse to destinations in the United States and Canada. For more information, visit on the Web at http://www.rocketfarms.com.

Cost: $38 to $52

Cool Factor: You know this company is serious...They have roughly seven MILLION square feet of greenhouse and growing space!

Pretty and Pampering
 

Sophisticated spring tote - Available at CVS, you can score a nice gift set worth $70 for a heck of a lot less. Set includes an adorable canvas bag with faux crocodile trimmings, including a hand cream, body mist, a wallet, makeup bag, and lipstick holder. Each bag or pouch item in the gift set is durable and well crafted, featuring a sturdy zipper and strong handle or straps.

The canvas tote compares to a normal handbag in size, with mock croc trim around the edges and on the straps. The makeup bag is a good size to fit cosmetics of many shapes and sizes, especially those pesky eyeliner pencils! The mini makeup mirror features a secure snap closure and a mirror on either side. The lipstick holder is absolutely adorable - it's the tiniest bag I've ever seen and it has a zipper all the way around to make sure your smoochy cosmetics stay safe inside.

The essence of BEAUTY hand cream and body mist arrive in 2 oz. containers - a perfect fit for those traveling moms who want to stay within the limits imposed for airline travel.

Cost: $14.99

Cool Factor: Sets are available in pink, green, purple, and blue - beautiful colors to pamper your mom with a fashionable, functional, and affordable gift!
 

ME! Bath Ice Cream - For the ultimate, at-home pampering experience, get Mom some Bath Ice Cream! This adorable product comes sculpted in a ball and shaped just like a scoop of ice cream. The ball of bath salts bursts with aromatherapeutic fragrance and erupts into a fizzy and bubbly spa setting once dropped into the bathtub. The product moisturizes and hydrates the skin, leaving it extra soft and silky.

Bath Ice Cream smells truly divine and features fine oils, minerals, and fragrances. Sinful varieties include Chocolate Covered Strawberry, Coconut Cove, Cosmopolitan, Gotta Have It Pomegranate, Havana Banana, Mint Mojito, Morning Grapefruit, and many, many more. The colors of many of these "flavors" are gorgeous and bold, making them as beautiful as they are fragrant. To learn more about Bath Ice Cream, visit on the Web at http://www.mebath.com.

Cost: $8

Cool Factor: Much like traditional ice cream, Bath Ice Cream comes in many - count them - 35 "flavors" - so you can make Mom a nice Mother's Day "Sundae" gift basket. If you decide the gift basket is the way to go, don't forget to check out the other products this company offers, like Shower Sherbet, Body Icing, and the Monthly Club.

OPI Beyond Chic Nail Lacquers - For those moms who love the finer things in life, consider OPI nail lacquers. The colors are absolutely gorgeous and the nail potions go on smooth and slick. The hues are soft and delicate, pearly and elegant, to say the least. They are appropriate for business, casual, dates, special events, or just lounging around the house.

Light shades look especially lovely this time of year, and best of all, they will match Mom's entire wardrobe. You really can't go wrong with pearly pinks or whites. You can choose from six shades or get Mom the whole set. The polishes feature a patented, long-lasting formula that leaves nails looking beautiful and freshly painted longer.

For more information, check out OPI on the Web at www.opi.com.

Cost: $8.50

Cool Factor: The nail polish shades are pretty, soft, and subtle. They would work nicely for any mom, and really, isn't that the benefit we are all looking for!