Our Giving Gifts News Blog

 
 

This blog has gift ideas, news, and special offers. 

 

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  1. Into the Blue list a wide range of gift experiences around the country, catering for all sorts of budgets.  And they cover a wide range of gifts and interests, with everything from flight simulators to water sports, days out to afternoon teas, short breaks to animal experiences.  They also have an incredible range of creative and craft gifts and outdoor gifts to choose from too. 

    SPECIAL OFFER!!

    What's more, they've got a fabulous 15% off for you!  It covers all experiences up to £250.00 and it's ongoing - there's no minimum spend, although some products are excluded from this offer.  Just use the code 

    ITB15FORME

    Sniff out a great gift experience at Into the Blue!

    You could give a dog lover
    a Sheepdog experience in Yorkshire!

    How about a Swinton Estate Lunch & Garden Tour?
    How about a Swinton Estate Lunch & Garden Tour (Ripon, Yorkshire)?
    Enjoy talks, garden walks & lunch at Swinton Park
    See other Gardening Workshops and Floristry courses here

    There are a number of Rural Craft experiences including this Traditional Basket Weaving Course in Surrey
    There are a number of Rural Craft experiences
    including this Traditional Basket Weaving Course in Surrey

     Fly off to see the Falconry experiences
    Fly off to see the Falconry experiences -
    give them the chance to meet, handle and fly a bird of prey!

    Fly off to Into the Blue to see their full range of experiences! 

    Don't forget, the code ITB15FORME will give you 15% off experiences up to £250.00 ongoing, although some products are excluded from this offer.  

     

     

  2.  

    Wow!  Emma Bridgewater's Christmas range has launched and it's got lots of wonderful products to choose from, including the 12 Days of Christmas!   They would either make great gifts or you can use them to decorate your home with - and keep for Christmas after Christmas!

    This is the 12 Days Of Christmas Partridge In A Pear Tree 1/2 Pint Mug - a Club Exclusive
    This is the 12 Days Of Christmas Partridge In A Pear Tree 1/2 Pint Mug
    - a Club Exclusive for £30.00

    This is the 12 Days Of Christmas Three French Hens 8 1/2 Inch Plate - a Club Exclusive
    This is the 12 Days Of Christmas Three French Hens 8 1/2 Inch Plate
    - a Club Exclusive for £32.00

    There's a lovely Partridge In A Pear Tree Round Tin Tray
    There's a lovely Partridge In A Pear Tree Round Tin Tray for £10.00

    This is the Partridge In A Pear Tree Dome Lid Curved Tin Caddy

    This is the Partridge In A Pear Tree Dome Lid Curved Tin Caddy for £9.00

    But there are other Christmas gift ideas as well...

    There's the Holly Medium Biscuit Barrel, ready to store your biscuits in
    There's the Holly Medium Biscuit Barrel,
    ready to store your biscuits in (£12.50)

    There's the London At Christmas 1/2 Pint Mug
    There's the London At Christmas 1/2 Pint Mug for £20.83


    There's the Christmas Dresser 1/2 Pint Mug
    There's the Christmas Dresser 1/2 Pint Mug for £20.83.  
    It features a number of Emma Bridgewater patterns.

    This Holly Small Old Bowl is just the thing for snacks such as popcorn
    This Holly Small Old Bowl is just the thing for snacks such as popcorn.
    For £17.50

     There's the Gold Toast & Marmalade Smoked Salmon 8 1/2 Inch Plate - just the thing for smoked salmon goodies!
    There's the Gold Toast & Marmalade Smoked Salmon 8 1/2 Inch Plate 
    - just the thing for smoked salmon goodies!  For £23.33

     For those in the Collectors Club there's a Christmas Joy Small Cake Stand
    For those in the Collectors Club there's a Christmas Joy Small Cake Stand
    for £45.83

    and lots more to choose from!

     

    Visit Emma Bridgewater here


  3.  

    If you’re looking for a Christmas jumper for a dog owner, how about giving them a personalised Christmas dog jumper?  You can put a picture of the dog's breed (there's a huge range covered) and his or her name on the front. 

    Amongst the huge range of Christmas jumpers they list, Not on the High Street list this personalised Christmas dog jumper, and there's lots of breeds to choose from.

    You take a look at the hand drawn dog illustrations you can see in the photos, to choose your pup/pups, then type the breed and colour into the text boxes.   If you’ve got more than one pet, you can add extra on to the design. 

    Take a look at this Personalised Dog Lover Christmas Jumper here
    This Personalised Dog Lover Christmas Jumper is £40.00

    They do jumpers for cats, hamsters, guinea pigs and rabbits too!  And different pet types can be mixed.

    The size information is on Not on the High Street’s website and the jumpers are a unisex fit – they come in sizes for adults and children – you can all match!  They are made of 80% cotton, 20% polyester. 

    Fetch more information from Not on the High Street


  4.  

     The 7th November is National Hug a Bear Day.

    The idea is to help us all understand how important hugging is and how it can benefit us all.  This isn’t just about hugging each other – it’s about hugging teddy bears as well!

    Of course the idea is not that we should all head out in the hope of finding a real live bear to hug. 

    It’s about giving your lovely teddy bears and the people you love a hug!  Show them you care about them and love them.  We can give our pets a hug too, or a special cuddle on National Hug a Bear Day.

    So it’s a good chance to raise awareness of the joys a bear can bring us and to raise awareness of bear charities helping bears, be they in the wild or captive.  Here’s a list of bear charities – many will have ways you can sort of envelop a wild bear with love and a hug by doing something to help them. Have a look at them and see if you can help.  Why not adopt a bear or become a bear carer with Free the Bears who rescue bears from captivity from bear bile farms?

    Why not send a rescue bear at a Free the Bears sanctuary a pot of honey for £12.00
    Why not send a rescue bear at a Free the Bears sanctuary
    a pot of honey for £12.00?  Find out more here

    You could send a bear a gift – a pot of honey, for instance.  Bears love honey!  See the gifts you can send bears who've been rescued by charity Free the Bears here

    Why not send or give someone a teddy bear?  When my aunt was in hospital, I bought her a tiny teddy bear (so it wouldn’t take up much room) to remind her that we all loved her and wanted to help and support her.  She could look at her bear and know that she wasn’t alone.  The bear represented all of us.
    Meet Hamleys® Bon Bon Bear

    Just look at that face!
    Don't you want to hug Hamleys® Bon Bon Bear?
     Take a look at the teddy bears at Hamleys
    and lots of bears - including Paddington, of course!

    Or why not just give someone you love a big hug to celebrate National Hug a Bear Day!

    Introducing Hamleys Harry Potter Gryffindor Bear
    Introducing Hamleys Harry Potter Gryffindor Bear

    Hugging is a very soothing action, if you like a hug – and some people don’t, so you need to bear that in mind.  The verb “to hug” comes from “hugga”, which is an Old Norse word meaning to soothe.  And it’s related to the German word “hegen” which translates into the verb “to cherish”.  So you can see why National Hug a Bear Day was created to show how good it is to hug and to be hugged.

    Hello!  I'm little Brother Bear, so cute and cuddly!
    Hello!  I'm little Brother Bear, so cute and cuddly!
    I'm from English Heritage
    (they've got other bears and soft toys too, but we won't mention them...)

    Hugging someone means putting your arms around them and holding them tight.  But the word “hug” an also refer to something that hugs ground or water e.g. the road hugs the coast – so the road stays close to the coast.   

    And although a koala isn't a bear (they are marsupials), I couldn't resist adding this gorgeous Koala soft toy bear which you can personalise.... 

    This is a Personalised Koala Soft Toy Teddy Bear Children's Gift
    This is a Personalised Koala Soft Toy Teddy Bear Children's Gift -
    so adorable!  From £23.16 from Not on the High Street
    (as there's a small and large size).
    They've got a LOT of teddy bears to choose from, by the way -
    take a look here.

    Bear hugs can be quite ferocious, overly enthusiatic and tight, so you may not want to give your loved one a bear hug, but this is a good chance to think about our loved ones and what they mean to us, and the great thing about hugging is that it’s free!

    And if you're looking for something to give you a smile throughout 2025, how about a Teddy Bears Calendar, from the Calendar Club

     Take a look at this Teddy Bears Calendar 2025 here

  5.  

    Well, it's amazing to think that we are in October already and rapidly heading to a new year, 2025.  Where on earth has 2024 gone?  

    A new year can be a great time to have a fresh start - mind you, you can of course have a fresh start tomorrow, this next hour.  

    Calendars can not only help you keep track of your plans - they can remind you to create some!  As well as routine appointments, you can make sure you've got balance with fun things to do, events you want to attend, breaks to go on, even if they are for the day.  And of course the other thing about calendars is that you can give someone a gift which is close to their heart and matches their interests and passions.   Calendars can also brighten up a room and help a cause!

    It does help - particularly if you're manic - to be able to get calendars for several people at once, whether they are small enough to pop on a desk, slim to fit in a place on a wall or big enough to put up in a place where everyone can see it.

    Take a look at the Calendars from the Calendar Club

    There's 2 for £20.00 on selected calendars at the Calendar Club. 

    Plus there's free delivery on all UK orders £10+!

    (These two offers will run until 21st October 2024 at 9am.)

    Amongst other calendars, there are those for animal lovers, garden lovers, lovers of Britain, including different parts of Britain), Gruffalos, nature, dogs (there are LOTS for dog lovers!), cats, history, Spitfires, Winnie the Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, art, dinosaurs and more.   So you should find there's plenty of choice...They've even got Taylor Swift calendars! 

    Head to see the selected calendars here at the Calendar Club.