Cupids got the Right Idea

Love is in the air and in the Chocolate around the middle of February. Every Valentine’s Day it feels like people give the identical thing. A box of chocolates, a cheesy teddy bear, spa products, sexy intimate apparel, jewelry, it’s all totally predictable! While most people wouldn’t complain about having a gift from someone they love, there must be more personal ways of revealing your love and affection. If you feel like your gifts are becoming redundant from year to year and you want to step it up a notch, why not make something yourself that says that you took the time to create something that comes from your heart. Not only will this mean more, but it will be unique and genuinely express your feelings in a way that no greeting card can. Here are some ideas that will show you really care. You could Create a coupon book that they can redeem at any time. Include coupons for a free massage, dinner and a movie, a night out at a fancy restaurant, or a day exempt from cleaning. Each coupon should be an opportunity for you to show them you love them by pampering them or cutting them some slack and giving them a chance to relax. These are great ways to show that special someone how much you really care on that one day of the year declared I love you day. There are lots creative ideas for creating romance without spending lots of money such as Concoct an assortment of sensual spa products. Find a few recipes online to make your own bubble bath solution or salt or sugar scrub. These are often easy to make from ingredients which you likely have at home or can buy at the store. Make these products and present them in a decorative jar or bag. I love Valentines day with all this positive energy of love and romance and caring. If all else fails you could Spend time together. Whether you plan a weekend getaway to a resort and spa or just plan a night alone on the couch, the most important thing you can give to the person you love is your time and attention. Let them know that no matter what you’re doing together, they are the most important person in the world. A friend recently told me that he sent a gift basket to his wife last year for Valentine’s day and she loved it because it contained things that you don’t find in most stores. Great gourmet chocolates, flavored nuts, wine, olives and more great chocolate. It made him look really good and this very romantic holiday. I could have sent him a I Love You Balloon Bouquet. I Love You Balloons are a great way to send you message of love on Valentine's day. Our I love you balloon bouquet comes in several different options. Send just the bouquet or add balloons to one of our Romantic Gifts or our Valentine's Day Gifts. Hand delivered in the Metro Denver area only. If these ideas have sparked your interest or given you a good starting point for planning out your Valentine’s Day, please pass this along via Facebook or Twitter. For more Valentine’s Day gift ideas, I love Baskets by Rita.  http://www.basketsbyrita.com http://www.facebook.com/pages/Baskets-By-Rita http://www.twitter.com/basketsbyrita http://www.basketsbyrita.com/I-Love-You-Balloon-Bouquet_p_270.html

Give the Gift of Beers Hurah

Give the Gift of Beer Going back as early as 7,000 BC beer has been enjoyed by people all over the planet since its origin. While techniques and recipes have changed over time and geography, the basic principles of fermentation and malting are a fabulous scientific invention. But let’s not be so technical! We get it. Beer has been around for centuries and people like it! In fact, for much of history, alcohol was favored over water, since water purification techniques had not been invented. Can you imagine a world where it is healthier to down a few beers than to quell your thirst with water? Try using that excuse next time you stumble home after having one too many! Although in present-day America we tend to classify beer among the "burger and fries" category more than the five-star restaurant" experience, in old times beer was the favored drink of Egyptian Pharaohs. Countries such as Germany and Belgium are proud of their hundreds of breweries and take the art of brewing very seriously. Try buying a beer in a Belgian food store. You will literally have hundreds of options! In the USA domestic breweries are becoming more and more popular. As a result, beer is becoming more popular in higher class social groups and has earned the status of wine in some areas. Take Colorado for instance.  Colorado has the most breweries per capita of any U.S. state and I think beer is without a doubt the preferred alcoholic beverage of Coloradoans. As with wine, breweries and select restaurants have began pairing beer with particular dishes for a finer dining experience. After thousands of years of experimentation and alteration, there is a never-ending selection of beers available around the world, and new beers are still being produced. When giving a gift, why not think about including this long loved beverage? A beer basket from Gift Basket is a refreshing and exceptional presentation for any occasion. We can customize any beer basket to include your choice of beers or a selection preferred by our basket making, beer loving experts. We also fill our beer baskets with a selection of snacks like cheese, crackers, chips and salsa, nuts, summer sausage, and popcorn. Take for example our Beer Gift For Groomsmen. Our beer gift for groomsmen comes in a painted tub and is a perfect gift for your beer loving groomsmen. We fill our large red beer tub with a 6 pack of our favorite Colorado Micro brews, chips and salsa, assorted nuts, beef jerky, pretzels, trail mix, chocolate cookies and more. We can customize this gift to match your wedding colors too!. If browsing this blog has made your thirsty for more, why not take my advice and hop onto www.basketsbyrita.com and get yourself a beer basket? Don’t forget to pass this on via Facebook or Twitter! www.basketsbyrita.com

Fruit for Thought and Health

Only one third of all American adults consume two or more servings of fruit per day. When I think of all my favorite fruits: mangos, lychee, strawberries, blueberries, peaches, etc, etc, etc. I think it’s such a shame that more people don’t embrace the clear healthful goodness of fruit. Fruit is not only part of a nutritious diet, but it is nature’s candy. Fruit contains a small portion of the calories of your average candy bar, offers enzymes, vitamins, and minerals that are not found in a candy bar, and is all together more nourishing while still able to fulfill that sugary sweet tooth. Fruit consumption is also effective for weight loss. It provides energy, water, minimizes the risk of heart disease and some forms of cancer, and can slow down the aging process. Who wouldn’t want to eat more fruit after learning these facts? Next time you have an occasion to give a gift, why not deliver a fruit basket? If you’re going to give someone sweets, why not give the gift of wellness as well? At Baskets By Rita, we bundle the freshest, most attractive fruit available into our Diabetic Gift Basket. This is our guilt free way for you to send a special treat when dietary restrictions dictate. Our diabetic gift basket includes cheese, crackers, nuts, diabetic candy, diabetic cookies, tea, pretzels, and a diabetic chocolate bar. Our Diabetic gift basket is a great get well basket, birthday basket, thinking of you gift, or sweet valentines basket. Not only can we guarantee that your gift will be aesthetically pleasing, but it will be filled full of luscious, ripe, sweetness! All of our fruit baskets consist of seasonal fruits such as apples, bananas, pears, and other assorted fruits. We are eager to modify any of our baskets to our customers’ qualifications, so if you have something in particular that you want, be sure to let us know. Whether you have a friend who is a health nut or know someone special who is trying to lose weight, or if you just feel like giving a sweet gift to a sweet person, our fruit baskets are ideal for welcome gifts. Help someone get their five daily servings of fruit by sending a healthy fruit basket. The majority of our fruit baskets also come with other tasty snacks including nuts, cheese and crackers, wine, you name it! http://www.basketsbyrita.com/assets/images/diabetic-gift-basket.jpg If this blog has peaked your interest, struck your fancy, or given you some gift giving stimulation, please pass it along to your friends and family via Twitter or Facebook. Thanks! http://www.basketsbyrita.com/Fruit-and-Healthy-Gift-Baskets_c_25.html http://www.basketsbyrita.com/Diabetic-Gift-Basket_p_40.html

A College Students Christmas

Few things are as pure as a child’s joy on Christmas morning. I recall running down the staircase as soon as I got up and shaking my parents awake, asking them if we could open our gifts from Santa. Even though the gifts were always different from year to year, the traditions were always the same. One of my favorite Christmas traditions was always the candy and goodies I would uncover in my stocking and in the kitchen, which was warm and cozy from all the baking. With such a hugewide selection of brownies, toffees, and peppermint candies, I could give myself a belly ache by noon!

Christmas was the only time of year when I was allowed to eat anything I wanted all day long. Think of the children you love and what Christmas means to them. Whether you have fond memories of singing Christmas carols with your nieces and nephews on the way home from church on Christmas eve, or joyfully remember sneaking around and playing Santa Clause to bring that mystical twinkle to your own children’s eyes, there are many effortless things you can do to create those holiday memories that a child will look back on so fondly for years to come. One thing that makes Christmas so extraordinary is the decorations and holiday trim you find everywhere. At Baskets By Rita we pride ourselves in the beauty of each of our baskets. We care just as much about how our baskets look on the outside as how they taste on the inside. Inside each of our holiday gift baskets you will find a mixture of cookies, chocolates, drink mixes made for snuggling up by the fire, candies, nuts and popcorn, and snack mixes. Who could ask for a more wonderful gift for a child? What if this year your child, niece, nephew, grand, or godchild woke up to find not only their stocking on the fireplace, but a perfectly delicious Baskets By Rita gift basket there as well? That would be a Christmas to remember! To see our assortment of Christmas goodies, visit www.basketsbyrita.com. A great example is our CU Boulder Care Package. Send your CU Boulder or Denver student a care package to say welcome back to school, good luck during finals, home sick or just because. We fill our gold and black stripped box with, Boulder Chips, almonds, cheese snacks, corn chips, Rocky Mountain salsa, caramel corn, Jelly Belly sports beans, Buffalo stick jerky, a CU frosted glass and a mouse pad. We can add their favorite food too. We just add more great goodies like fresh baked cookies and brownies, snack mix, beverages and PowerBars to the larger sizes. . Even if you can’t be around to see their face light up this Christmas, give a gift you’re sure will captivate the littlest heart you know. http://www.basketsbyrita.com  http://www.twitter.com/basketsbyrita.com http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Baskets-By-Rita/138008009558273 http://www.basketsbyrita.com/assets/images/cu_care package.jpg

Earth Friendly gift Giving 2010

Earth Friendly gift Giving Let’s ponder ways to be Earth-friendly for the Christmas this season. Everyone is wanting to get on the band wagon of going green. Not only is it good for the economy but it is also fantastic for the pocket book. In these years of economic downturn and this friendly mind set let’s take a look at various ways to be eco-friendly and save money. Buy a live tree or even a artificial Christmas tree. Live trees can be planted and enjoyed for years. If you don’t have a yard for planting one then get an artificial one you can use each year. If you put up Christmas lights purchase led lights if you can afford it. If not, then be sure to have your lights on a timer and only run them from sunset until you go to bed. No need lighting up the darkness when no one is out to get pleasure from them. Wrap your gifts it recycled paper and decorate gifts with previously used ribbon and sparkles. Another option which is something our family has done for a long time, and wrap your presents in handmade fabric bags that can used year after year. The disadvantage of these bags is that they are simple to open so someone could peek if they truly wanted to. Buy greeting card printed on recycled paper. You might even not bother with the snail mail this year and send e-card in its place. Don't go to shopping at malls this year. Spending hours hoping to find the perfect gift wastes huge amounts of time and money. You can buy online and still buy from local companies as well. Think about the right gifts that you believe they will use, need and enjoy. Everyone enjoys flavorful food and everyone really should eat so think about giving a Colorado food gift.

Now take this one step further and make a decision on a gourmet food gift that comes in an Earth friendly recycled reusable shopping bag. Eco Gift Bag Colorado Save the environment with our Eco friendly green gift bags. Filled with great tasting Colorado products perfect for your next event. Tortilla Chips, Colorado salsa, Colorado trail mix, snack crackers, Lara bar, white cheddar popcorn, buffalo stick, chocolate bar, Boulder chips,and a fresh baked brownie or cookie are inside this bag. Choose your corporate colors to personalize these bags. Comes in a variety of price ranges. Choose a gift that isn't in a basket or a box but instead a 100% recycled reusable non-woven bag with our own Colorado logo design. These perfect bags come in reusable nylon or 100% recycled reusable. The nylon bag becomes a small rolls for easy convenient carrying in your car. The 100% recycled bag doesn’t use any new materials to construct. They are both great choices. I found that Basketsbyrita offers Eco Friendly Gourmet Holiday Gift Bag and an eco-friendly Colorado Holiday Gift. Your holiday shopping just got simpler and easier since you shopped online, got something useful, did something that was good for the environment and your recipient will love it. Completed! Happy Holidays. http://www.basketsbyrita.com/Eco-Friendly-Gifts_c_24.html  http://www.basketsbyrita.com

Seasonal Beers For Gifts

Along with chilly weather comes rich comfort foods and fragrant spices. Imagine your favorite holiday snacks: gingerbread, apple cider, apple cinnamon tea, flavored lattes, and apple pie. All of these share the rich, heavy aroma that we commonly associate with the holiday season. As the seasons change into fall, bakeries and coffee shops bring back their seasonal menu items. On a crisp, cold morning, nothing curbs a craving like a mug of hot apple cider or a warm cinnamon scone. When we frequently think of sweets and hot libations when we think of seasonal foods, another favorite that comes to mind is seasonal beers. While a coffee drinker might look forward to the return of their favorite pumpkin spice latte, a beer fanatic may wait diligently for the reintroduction of their favorite oktoberfest beer. In 2008, seasonal beers were the top selling craft beer in the US. There is certainly something to be said for the impression seasonal food and beverages may have on our holiday spirit. The idea of beer and food pairing is especially relevant with holiday and seasonal beers, since they are normally seasoned differently than their year round alternatives. To comprehend the best way of pairing seasonal beers, it is important to know the various types that are out there. Oktoberfest beers are often aged and as a result possess a robust flavor. These pair best with beefy meat dishes such as steak and potatoes. Harvest ales are made with seasonal spices and ingredients. These bold flavors pair well with the bold, rich foods the holidays are known best for. I’m certain you can place a few bets as to which foods pair well with a pumpkin beer. Pumpkin is really a very neutral ingredient and lends itself to making for a good ale or lager. These beers pair well with lighter meats such as pork and chicken along with seasonal vegetables such as corn and squash. It also pairs well with pumpkin pie. At Baskets By Rita we know a thing or two about pairing good beers with luxury foods. Any of our seasonal beer baskets come with an assortment of cheese, crackers, chocolates, and sausages paired to awaken your taste buds. Take for example our Birthday Beer Basket. This is the perfect birthday gift for that special guy or gal who enjoys great beer. Our heavy willow basket is filled with a 6 pack of assorted Colorado Micro brew, chip and salsa, assorted nuts, beef jerky, Jelly Belly candy, cheese and crackers, snack mix and more. Send our Birthday Beer Gift Basket filled with everything needed to celebrate their special day.. If you would like to give a unique, personalized gift this holiday season, why not think about sending a beer basket? I can’t imagine a better treat for curling up by the fire place and savoring good foods than cracking open a cold, Oktoberfest beer and consuming the bliss and warmth of the season. Happy holidays! If you found this article interesting or know of someone else who could find it helpful, please don’t hesitate to pass it on via email, Facebook, or Twitter. Thanks a ton!  http://twitter.com/basketsbyrita http://www.facebook.com/pages/Baskets-By-Rita/138008009558273