Posts Tagged ‘Holiday Gift Baskets’

Holiday Baskets On A Budget

When is a holiday basket not a basket?
When you eliminate the basket all together and design an affordable gift that packs a punch without straining your budget.

Most of us love to give gifts, but sometimes the economy of the situation does not allow us to go overboard. You might want a little something for a co-worker but only have $15-20 to spend. Sending gifts to thank your clients for their business is a smart marketing move, but being the clever business person you are, you have to watch your cost per gift. How do you acknowledge them with a gift that will get noticed, that looks personal, without breaking the bank?

Simple! The easiest solution is to call us at Fancifull, we love taking problems off your plate. This year I have been having fun coming up with simple yet delicious gourmet gifts for under 35 dollars. I have been particularly smitten with mugs and mug/plate sets. The idea of someone with their mug of hot cocoa, or more potent beverage, relaxing and enjoying the spirit of the holiday makes me smile. I can’t help it, I always think of the person who is receiving the gift as I design. We have The Mug Hug, which is a mug wrapped in a red knit sweater in a box with white chocolate cocoa and buttery shortbread cookies. Then there is the Eat, Drink and Be Happy mug and plate set complete with hot drinks, cookies and chocolates that could be used year round.

Want something more gourmet food oriented? How about our California Cheese gift box with 2 artisan cheeses, crackers, and almonds all wrapped in a California Fruit Label Box. One of our most popular gifts is the Fancifull Wine Caddy with a bottle of wine, cheese, crackers and nuts packed in a jute carrying bag for only $29.95. A great box of chocolates or our Velvet Rope Cake Truffles always make an impression.

If you are a do-it-yourself kind of person, take these tips and come up with some gifts of your own design. Home baked cookies in a mug with a packet of tea is a lovely idea. A small tray with a candle, bath salts and some lotion is a more personal “time out” gift. For someone who is eating gluten free or has diet restrictions, find a cute plate and fill it with foods they can eat, wrap it and put a bow on it, voila – a thoughtful gift. A movie ticket wrapped with some popcorn is a treat I’m sure any friend would like. Once you start looking around you’ll find more and more possibilities. If the holiday pace picks up and you find yourself short of time and energy, well…you know who to call.

Belvoir Fruit Farms and the Magic of Elderflower

“The delicate scent of elderflowers is as quintessentially English as tea parties and village fetes and, in the countryside, it’s often said that summer has only really arrived when the elderflowers start appearing in the hedgerows at the beginning of June.” – Belvoir Fruit Farms

Makes you want to visit England, doesn’t it? Most of us here in the states have no idea what Elderflowers smell like, and it still sounds great. Fortunately, you don’t have to use your imagination because Belvoir has captured the flavor and aroma of the enticing elderflower and put it into a bottle.

The product? Elderflower Pressé.

Made 100% naturally at Belvoir Fruit Farms in Lincolnshire, England, from handpicked elderflowers, fresh lemon juice, cane sugar and lightly carbonated Belvoir spring water. This a delicate beverage with an exquisitely scented taste. Serve chilled as a sophisticated and refreshing alternative to alcohol or add white wine or champagne for aromatic spritzers or mix with gin or vodka for great cocktails. Belvoir Elderflower water is best served cold on a hot day, but its unique flavor can be enjoyed year round with any meal or by itself.

This refreshing drink is well known and loved throughout Europe, although the flower is known by different names: Fliederbeerblute in Austria, Fleur de sureau in France. But it is almost completely unknown here. So we’re getting ours from England and are having to bring it in by the pallet load because it is so popular. Stop by the store and we’ll give you a taste. Or call us to get some for yourself or to have it included in any of your holiday gift baskets. You can also substitute it in our wine gift baskets, just make a note in the other info field online or let your order taker know over the phone.

Cheers!
And thanks to the fine folks at Belvoir Fruit Farms!

Fancifull Unwrapped

When I first set foot in Fancifull Fine Foods and Baskets in November 2010, I didn’t know what to expect. I only knew they made amazing wine gift baskets, fruit baskets and many other wonderful gifts that I’d feel privileged to receive. I had received a call from my Mom saying that her friends needed help in their production line for the Christmas season. So off I went…into the world of gift baskets!

The teamwork that goes into every facet of the business was astounding. Working in the production area proved to be a delightful mix of controlled chaos and constant motion. All the baskets/bows are handmade to order, artisan foods are carefully selected to create a delicate blend of flavors and the finishing touches are never overlooked with any order. From the small individual orders for holiday gift baskets to the large and extravagant custom baskets, everything looked like it was fit for royalty (and sometimes it was!). The amount of dedication that was poured into every design made me feel proud to be a part of it all. It was a wonderful way to start my career at Fancifull, as it let me see the end product of all the hard, time-consuming work that goes into designing every gift that leaves the building. I knew that I had to learn more about this business, about what it takes to run every aspect of it all. It was only 1 month after the Christmas season had ended when I returned to Fancifull, only this time, as a permanent employee… an Assistant Buyer.

Dia De Los Muertos

A client called us on Thursday and needed a custom gift basket for a very special client. They needed it that same day! And they needed it to be for the Mexican Day of the Dead – Dia De Los Muertos. They didn’t tell us who it was for, but we’re thinking maybe Danny Elfman. (I’ve heard it said that this is his favorite holiday.)

The first thing was to find a coffin-like wood trunk to hold everything. If you’re going to celebrate the day of the dead, you’d better do it right!
Our client sent us a special skull shaped bottle of tequila which paired perfectly with a black skull that we found. There are some other very unique items in there too, along with some pretty cool things to eat, as always.

Getting a gift basket like this turned around in less than a day really takes some doing! Every year we create a lot of holiday gift baskets, but this is the first one ever for Dia de los Muertos!

Celebrity Custom Gift Baskets

Being located in Hollywood we are often called upon to create special gift baskets for celebrities.
Today, for instance, we were asked to create a unique custom gift basket for fitness expert Richard Simmons. We wanted something elegant, but flamboyant. Classy, but fun.
We started with one of our heavy cast serving trays and a bottle of sparkling Moscato and went on from there.

Gift baskets such are these are one of the things that have made us famous. Perhaps you should have us create some memorable Holiday Gift Baskets for you? 😉

Holiday Gift Baskets – Custom Designs

Being an elf is not a job for the weak. For weeks now, Terry has been in the midst of designing holiday gift baskets for an array of clients.

Once again we are designing a whole holiday catalog for Universal Studios, a variety of baskets in all shapes, sizes and price points.

The wine gift basket pictured here features two Universal branded wines and great foods in a striking basket made from barrel staves.

Barnes & Nobles has just brought us an exciting opportunity to package their Nook electronic reader for the corporate market. Ususally when we design a corporate gift basket such as this it’s for promotional use by the company we’re designing for. But placing the incredibly user friendly Nook, with its various accoutrements, in an attractive container with coffee, tea, possibly wine and such makes a fantastic gift basket good for the holidays, a birthday or a get well gift basket. We look forward to offering this to our clients this holiday season.

There are other projects afoot as well, including one for Heineken that will involve clear ice buckets and fake ice…   Exciting! What can we design for you?