Holiday gift giving with Hallmark Gold Crown

As many of you know, I'm a gift-giving girl. It's in my blood (and even in my logo). I grew up in a family that celebrates all occasions, even going beyond what's expected during the typical holiday season. No matter what the budget or occasion, my family - especially my mom - always knows how to make milestones extra special or show appreciation through the use of a gift.

Now here's a great idea straight from my mom...She keeps a "surprise box" in the closet which houses items she collects throughout the year that can serve as great gifts, say for the party hostess, a teacher or a coach, a friend who's having a bad week, etc. She always has a full stock of giftable goodies ready to go.

Like I said, it's in my blood. I'm naturally a gift-giver. I love to buy people gifts...and the holiday season is no exception. During the holidays, I want to buy for everyone. It's the perfect time to show people how much you value them. Whether you plan to spend $5 or $50, it's the thought associated with the token of appreciation that matters.

Wondering where to find some of the best goodies for the holiday season? I've found that Hallmark Gold Crown stores always offer products suited for a wide variety of audiences. No matter who you are shopping for, you can find the perfect little surprise at your local Hallmark.

I recently visited Hallmark's holiday section to explore quick and easy gift options for the Christmas season. I personally love to take store bought finds and wrap them up in a show-stopping manner. Honestly, if I could be a professional gift-wrapper and make a decent living, I would totally sign-up. (Hey, Hallmark - If you decided to add professional wrappers to your employee lineup, shoot me an email and I'll be there for the interview!)

Today, I'm excited to share three gift ideas I discovered at the Hallmark store in the Crestview Hills Town Center. I picked up the following items because I knew they're so versatile and would work for any female on my to-buy for list. In fact, they would be perfect for a "surprise box!"

• Crafters & Co. mistletoe scented hand soap
• Crafters & Co. handcrafted peppermint bark
• Hallmark holiday card assortment

Additionally, I picked up the following items to polish off the packages:

• Tie-on sparkly reindeer gift tags
• Self-adhesive polka dot bows

To wrap these, I went with my go-to technique: bag and bow.

Bagging and bowing is my solution for making any item more festive in the matter of minutes. Seriously, just keep some cellophane wrap or bags, plus ribbon and gift tags, on hand and you'll always be able to pull together a gorgeous gift in no time.

Ready to see how it's done? I put my bag and bow philosophy to use when wrapping the three new gifts I picked up at Hallmark.

And we're done!

Making store bought gifts look even more special is easy and can be done in minutes.

Have you stopped by Hallmark lately? What finds have you recently discovered there? I especially have my eye on more handcrafted items in their Crafters & Co. line.

A special thanks to Hallmark for sponsoring this post!