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Customer Appreciation, Feedback, Gift Baskets

Picnics!

April 12, 2012

Welcome back readers,

I hope everyone had a fantastic Easter and didn’t eat their way into an early coma like I did! I asked that if any of you had some great desserts or decorations you made for Easter to send me a picture and thankfully one reader, Sharon, sent me a picture of some creative and delicious chocolates she made! Seriously awesome decorating skills on these chocolates!  It’s never too late to send it your own pictures if you still have them, especially if you tried out any of the recipes we’ve posted. Now, on with the show…

Last week I asked you all to vote in the comments section on what you wanted me to write about and the clear winner for the week has been picnics! Coffee and tea came in second with fitness following close behind, but clearly everyone is very excited about this nice Spring weather and can’t wait to get out and enjoy it (without breaking a sweat that is).

Picnics should be fun and easy, something you can throw together in a few minutes. So I have a couple of sandwich recipes that would be perfect for a Spring picnic, as well as a few suggestions to make your time outdoors a little more comfortable.

Peanut Butter Banana Sandwiches

This is an absolute favorite of mine! All you need is some bread, peanut butter (I prefer smooth), sliced bananas and you’re good to go. I like to add a few extras to my sandwiches for more flavor and components. I usually add some honey and granola mix, gives it extra flavor and a little extra crunch.

Peanut Butter Apple Sandwiches

Are you sensing a theme or my love of peanut butter? You can always substitute peanut butter for any other nut butter (almond, sunflower, etc.) or if you want to make it a super sweet treat you can add Nutella. For this “sandwich” I don’t actually use bread, instead I slice apples to be the holders. You spread peanut butter (or whichever you prefer) on the apple slices, add granola or chocolate chips (or both!) and stack the slices together to form a sandwich. It’s a fun and healthy treat that is very easy to make!

For picnics, you can generally use any kind of outdoor blanket or mat and you’ll be fine, but the problem always lies with where and how you’re sitting. Sitting outside is probably one of the more uncomfortable things since the invention of the sofa, so it’s hard to get used to (especially if your knees are about 40 years older than you are like some blog writers). So I have two cheap options for outdoor seating to make your picnic a bit more comfortable! Our first one is from Target, a reclining picnic seat. It seems like it would be nice for back support and easy to pack up and go with. I’m probably the clumsiest person around though, so I would find some way to keep falling back on myself. So I have a second option from IKEA for us…balance challenged people out there. It’s technically a stool, but it’s also very sturdy, wide and doesn’t seem like it would fall over on you! All the makings of an easy picnic seat (for me at least!).

If you want some great picnic gift baskets that are all ready to go, we have some seriously amazing picnic options on our site right now! My three picks:

Well I hope you all enjoyed this picnics post and have some more ideas for the rest of us! In the comments section (1-2 paragraphs), tell me some of your picnic ideas and recipes! FIVE lucky and random winners will receive the Impromptu Picnic Cooler & Snacks Tote Gift Basket!

Happy Picnicking!

Customer Appreciation, Feedback

Reader’s Choice

April 5, 2012

Welcome back gift basket fans!

You all had really awesome ideas for desserts in the comments! Have any of you tried out the festive cakes yet? Don’t forget to send me pictures of your Easter decorations or displays and I’ll post them here on the blog! Anyway, on to the winners of last week’s blog: Congratulations to Rachel V (March 29, 2012 at 5:24 pm), Pamela Hansen (March 30, 2012 at 9:56 am), Heather Garity (March 31, 2012 at 12:12 pm), Jenny (April 2, 2012 at 1:41 pm), and Cathy P (April 4, 2012 at 3:09 pm)! Send your shipping information to me at amariscal@1800flowers.com and I’ll send out your truffle cake pops!

Holiday weekends are always busy ones, lots of planning and cooking and shopping and worst of all, cleaning. So today is going to be very short, so short even that we’re near the end of the post! Sure, this might feel like when you were in school and the teacher would roll in the stand with a TV strapped onto it and call that the lesson for the day while they caught up on grading, but… well yes, this is actually kind of like that. No worries though, I’ll have a nice, detailed post ready for you all next week with great giveaways as soon as you all decide for me!

Vote in the comments section: Which topic would you like me to write about for next week with a giveaway?

  1. Fitness
  2. Coffee/Tea parties
  3. Picnics

Whichever topic gets the most votes in the comments section will win! Our staff here is patiently waiting for your replies:

Have a happy and safe holiday weekend!

Birthday Gift, Customer Appreciation, Feedback, Gift Baskets, Party!

Happy Birthday…to Someone!

March 8, 2012
Great Big Happy Birthday Sweets & Treats Box Gift Basket

Welcome back gift basket readers!

I LOVE all of your suggestions and ideas for St. Patrick’s Day! I’m wondering if I can do a whole day of eating nothing but green eggs and rice krispy treats without getting sick…(we all know I’m going to try anyway!) Of course, we have some gift baskets to get out that you won’t hesitate to eat all day! Congratulations to Bernadette Cirigliano (March 1, 2012 at 5:09 pm), Mrs Judy Nutaitis (March 2, 2012 at 8:41 am), Sangita (March 2, 2012 at 12:03 pm) Lori (March 5, 2012 at 3:06 pm), and Kathy (March 8, 2012 at 2:46 pm)! Send your shipping info to amariscal@1800flowers.com and I can send out your Best of Ghirardelli® Gift Baskets!

If there is anything about the all-encompassing, freakily aware internet stalking system known as Facebook that I actually really love, it’s that it keeps track of everyone’s birthdays so that I don’t have to. Not that I don’t make a conscious effort to remember birthdays, but everyone past a select few friends and family members, if I don’t have the date written somewhere in a place I know I’ll see every day, I’ll be sending a lot of belated-birthday grievances. Thankfully for me, I live in the great age of technology where I have the internet to do all my thinking for me (Just kidding! Well, kind of. Let me Google the answer…) In all seriousness, I really like the birthday feature on Facebook and I’m sure it makes everyone feel great to see their page filled with Happy Birthday wishes and birthday messages from friends new and old.

Great Big Happy Birthday Sweets & Treats Box Gift Basket

Great Big Happy Birthday Sweets & Treats Box $29.99; Product Code:93839

That being said, I also think that this handy tool has made everyone a little bit lazy with their birthday well wishes. I’m not saying that you need to go all out for that one kid you used to have Calculus with 8 years ago, but I’m sure that your closer friends would appreciate something a little more thoughtful than “happy birthday, you” on their wall (I am extremely guilty of this sometimes). Brighten up someone’s birthday and surprise them with a fun, colorful and delicious birthday gift! And don’t forget to add a nice card with it for personalization!

I was sold the minute I saw there was a mini birthday cake in the Great Big Happy Birthday Sweets & Treats Box. Not to mention, the two birthday hate and cupcake decorated cookies look adorable. It also comes with lots of sweets and popcorn balls. This would be a great birthday surprise for someone to find at their desk, on the table when they get home. There are about 12 young kids to think about in my family and I never have any idea what they like from week to week except for sweets and candy, and lots of it. This would be such a cute birthday surprise for your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins (you get the idea!)

Happy Birthday Chocolate Indulgence Gift Basket

Happy Birthday Chocolate Indulgence Gift Basket $34.99; Product Code:96479

I know you all will never get tired of chocolate gift baskets, so this Happy Birthday Chocolate Indulgence Gift Basket makes the perfect chocolate lover’s birthday gift. Filled with Happy Birthday greetings in the form of Cheryl’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, Fannie May® Cookies & Cream Bark, Fannie May® Bavarian Chocolate Pretzels, Fannie May® Mint Meltaway Cocoa, Harry London® Milk Chocolate Crispy Joys, Harry London® 70% Organic Dark Chocolate The Popcorn Factory® Butter Toffee Popcorn and more, they will definitely appreciate the birthday gift!

Now that we all have decided to ease up on the lazy happy birthday Facebook posts, tell me in the comments section (1-2 paragraphs) a great birthday surprise you’ve had or have done for a friend! FIVE lucky and random winners will receive the Great Big Happy Birthday Sweets & Treats Box!

**Next week Thursday I’ll be on a series of planes, trains, and automobiles (okay, really just one plane and corresponding vehicles) so next week’s blog will be posted on Friday (3/16) and winners announced then!

Have a great weekend, and happy birthday to someone!

Customer Appreciation, Feedback, Gift Baskets, Valentine's Day

Unique Valentine’s Day Gifts and Ideas

February 9, 2012
Love is in the Air Balloon & Sweets Product Code:96122

Welcome Back Baskets Readers!

zack morris saved by the bell valentines day

I wonder how much Zack spent on gifts for Kelly/every girl guest star on the show...

A lot of great deal breakers from your comments! I consider myself an expert Television watcher and at least 10 of the deal breakers you all commented on have happened on various episodes of Full House and Saved By the Bell; I feel like we all should have had these important life lessons ingrained into our brains by now (maybe it didn’t work because the moment wasn’t accompanied by some situational theme music or a long speech breaking the third wall from Zack Morris or Danny Tanner). Point being, aside from telling you all the television shows I know better than my own memories, is that I never knew these deal breakers happened outside of my television screen!  Anyway, winners! Congratulations to Danielle Levins (February 2, 2012 at 4:19 pm), Janey B. (February 3, 2012 at 7:26 pm), Lucy (February 7, 2012 at 6:49 am), RAJ (February 9, 2012 at 12:35 pm), Adrian (February 9, 2012 at 3:21 pm)! Email your shipping information to amariscal@1800flowers.com and I’ll send out your Valentine’s Day treat tower!

Love is in the Air Balloon & Sweets Product Code:96122

Love is in the Air Balloon & Sweets $29.99; Product Code:96122

Valentine’s Day is less than a week away! Are you all prepared? Do you have Valentine’s Day plans or non-plans? Maybe Valentine’s Day gift ideas? I will be doing everything very last minute, so I foresee a more “homemade” Valentine’s Day gift in my near-future project list. If you’re feeling rushed on time for Valentine’s Day planning, don’t fret! I have a few fun and interesting ideas for unique and loveable Valentine’s Day gifts.

If you’re looking for a unique spin to the traditional Valentine’s Day gift, 1800baskets.com has you covered! As we all know by now, I’m not a big fan of pink, but even I think this Valentine’s Day gift is very adorable and could be great decoration for after the holiday. Our “Love is in the Air Balloon & Sweets” gift basket would make for a great surprise for any sweetheart this Valentine’s Day. Containing Cinnamon popcorn from The Popcorn Factory and foiled-wrapped heart chocolates, it’s the perfect spin on a traditional Valentine’s Day gift (also the contents taste amazing!).

If you want to get more creative, we have some select gift baskets perfect for a romantic Valentine’s Day celebration. Try out our “Irresistible Valentine’s Day Wine Gift Basket” or “Romantic Evening Red Wine & Lindt® Truffles”, both equipped with delicious wine and fine chocolates. Have this gift ready to present with the promise of an intimate night in together. A great way to show you planned something romantic for this Valentine’s Day.

Romantic Evening Red Wine & Lindt® Truffles & Irresistible Valentine’s Day Wine Gift Basket

I recently went to a friend’s wedding and they had a really great and romantic idea that could be used for those of you who are looking for a more home-made idea. They had a series of empty and decorated wine bottles with different year increments on them (like 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, etc) and had all of their guests write small notes to them for each anniversary. So when they reach that anniversary date, they will read all the sweet notes everyone sent to them on their wedding. I think an idea of this that would be cute to try out is to get a few empty bottles, decorate them with certain dates or events and have some little love notes inside for your significant other to read later!

Another great home-made gift is to make a coupon book (this is a good stand-by for any celebration!). One of my friends went to a family Christmas party where one of the members decided that instead of everyone buying them gifts, they would rather have everyone pick a piece of paper hanging on a string from her ceiling fan, on each piece of paper was a chore or task to do. Personally, I think that’s brilliant and I’m a little shocked I didn’t come up with it first. Obviously, you can change around the book to more romantic, Valentine’s Day related things or coupons that relate directly to you.

What are some unique Valentine’s Day gift ideas that you have? Let me know in the comments section (1-2 paragraphs) and FIVE will win the Love is in the Air Balloon & Sweets Valentine’s Day gift basket!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Christmas Gift Baskets, Customer Appreciation, Feedback, Gift Baskets, Gift Baskets Catalog, Holiday Gift Baskets, Party!

Holiday Gifting

December 8, 2011
Comfort and Joy Sweet Treats Gift Basket

Welcome Back Basket Fans!

I loved reading about all of your favorite decorations and I’m sure that everyone’s house will be perfectly festive this month! The decoration process at my house has now spanned to over the week and usually when we’re all finally home and not too tired (also before any good TV shows start), so the one day it typically takes us to decorate the tree is now going on five. I won’t wait that long to announce the winners though! Congratulations to Dorinna (posted December 2, 2011 at 9:08 am), Kathy S. (posted December 8, 2011 at 12:23 pm), Barbara (posted December 1, 2011 at 4:22 pm), Edwina (posted December 8, 2011 at 1:57 pm), and Roger Simmons (posted December 1, 2011 at 10:29 pm)!! Email your information to amariscal@1800flowers.com and we’ll get your Regal Drum Gift Tower to you right away! Back to business! Continue Reading…

chocolate covered strawberries, Customer Appreciation, Feedback, Gift Baskets, Party!, Sweepstakes, Thank You Gifts, Uncategorized

We have lots to SMILE about!

September 15, 2011

Looks like some of you may have caught us testing out a preview of our BIG giveaway we’ll be having next week! You will all definitely need to check out our Facebook page on Monday, September 19, where we will be hosting our 1800Baskets.com National Gratitude Day sweepstake! We will be giving away 100 All Smiles gift baskets to some lucky fans. That’s right, 100 All Smiles gift baskets! All you have to do is “Like” us and enter your information on the sweepstakes page when it launches on Monday for a chance to win. Invite your friends to Like us too!

However, two of you lucky and loyal readers will be winning the gift basket today. Congratulations to Charlotte LeBlanc (posted at September 12, 2011 at 5:26 pm) and Sharon (posted at September 12, 2011 at 3:49 pm)! Please send your full names and address to me at amariscal@1800flowers.com and I can send over your All Smiles Gourmet Treats gift basket! If you didn’t win today, you have 100 more tries on Monday 🙂

Continue Reading…

Customer Appreciation, Feedback, Gift Baskets, Thank You Gifts, Uncategorized

To Our Loyal Fans…

September 12, 2011

Thank you for always making us Smile!

You know what’s fun about being a gifting company (aside from everything, duh!)? It’s that we always know the perfect ways to show appreciation for our nearest and dearest fans! Next week, Monday September 19, is 1800Baskets.com National Gratitude Day, and what better way to show all of you how thankful we are for you than to do what we know best: Gifts!

All Smiles Gourmet Sweets & Treats Gift Basket $9.99; Product code: 96089

You all have been the best and we’re very grateful for you! Thank you so much for coming back every week to read our new posts and giving us your time and input. It’s always so nice to know that we have such dedicated people out there who are interested in what we do. We’re always super thrilled to read what you all have to say, from things that you are excited about, to helping us out with your opinions. That’s why we’re having a special Monday blog post and exclusive giveaway for all of our best fans. TWO lucky fans will win this All Smiles Gourmet Sweets & Treats Gift Basket, which includes $10 off your next purchase! Enough to enjoy on your own, with family or friends, or even to pay it forward to someone you want to show gratitude toward and say thanks on us!

Do you have someone you need to thank? Maybe there is someone who everyday is making your life easier. Whether it’s just being there to talk to on the phone, helping you move boxes, letting you borrow a book or movie, or even someone that you never really thought to thank before, let them know that they’re appreciated and enjoy the biggest smiles that are sure to come. The smiles are a guarantee!

While you’re here, I want you all to make sure you keep your eyes open for some real fun next week. I wasn’t kidding when I said we want to thank you all in the biggest way possible. This week is just the start of our thanks, but be sure to stay tuned for our grandest display of gratitude and smiles on our Facebook page, Monday September 19!

You have until 11:59 p.m. CST tomorrow, Tuesday September 13, to tell us who you owe gratitude to below in the blog comments section (1-2 paragraphs) and enter for a chance to win!

Birthday Gift, chocolate covered strawberries, Customer Appreciation, Feedback, Halloween, Teacher Appreciation, Thank You Gifts, Uncategorized, Valentine's Day

Chocolate Covered Strawberries!

August 18, 2011

Congratulations to Diane (posted at August 18, 2011 at 2:05 pm) and Elaine Kontra (posted at August 16, 2011 at 11:27 am)! Please send your full names and address to me at amariscal@1800flowers.com and I can send over your Back to the Books Snack gift basket! As always, thank you to everyone for participating and don’t forget to tell your friends to join us on Facebook.

Remember when everyone was all “aw we missed out on chocolate covered strawberries and we’re so sad about this”? Remember that? Well, wipe away those tears! Did you know we have a Chocolate Dipped Strawberry club that delivers decadent, mouthwatering strawberries to you four times during the year?

Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Club $19/mo Product Code:94976

Continue Reading…

Feedback, For the Love of Coffee, Gift Baskets, Gift Baskets Catalog, Product Designers, Summer Time Gift, Uncategorized

10 Ways to Spruce Up Your Space

July 7, 2011

Hello again, Baskets Readers!

WOW! We had a HUGE influx of commenters to the blog today. Thank you to everyone who has read and participated, I hope you all stick around. Before we get into this weeks post, we have 2 winners to announce from last weeks’ contest. Congratulations to our two random winners, JD Burnsed (posted July 7, 2011 at 11:04 am) and Patricia Sauber (posted July 2, 2011 at 11:55 pm)! You will both receive the Regal Oak Grandeur Gift Basket. Please send your full name and address to amariscal@1800flowers.com and we can help you claim your prize. To our other readers, stick around at the end for another possible contest!

Friendly Baskets blogger at home w/part of the Starbucks® Break Time gift basket!

Mondays! Ack! Okay, so it’s not actually Monday, but it feels like it right? The week after any holiday weekend always feels like a series of never-ending Mondays. Extended holiday weekends are all fun, beach trips, excessive eating and games, until you wake up to find an army of ants making claims of Manifest Destiny over your kitchen. Which, coincidentally is also the time you curse your apartment for its lack of a dishwasher appliance (yeah, that one is probably just me). Maybe you had a fun party weekend in or out of the house, or maybe you’re Joey Chestnut and on your fifth consecutive hot dog eating championship win (woof!). Either way, I think we can all agree that we need a break from our vacations (also we need to clean and rightfully take back our kitchens).

Continue Reading…

Feedback

Our Weekly Email – Tell us what you think. (3 winners!)

September 22, 2010
Halloween Haunted House Treat Box
Halloween Haunted House Treat Box

Hi. We send out a weekly 1800Baskets.com email every Tuesday. We were thinking about how to turn that into a fun contest as well.  So how about this. After the email goes out each week (typically on Tuesdays), we’ll make a FB post and provide a link to the blog. On the blog, you tell us what you like and what you don’t about the weekly email. We’ll pick a few winners – this week it’s 3 (yay!) – and the winner gets the product featured in the email.

 
So for your feeback you post below, try and make it about a paragraph and please tell us BOTH the positive and the negative aspects of the email. As many of you know, we think feedback is vital, so that’s why we don’t shy away from asking for negative feedback.
 
And as always, we want to let you know, we print out EACH AND EVERY COMMENT with your name next to it. We then bring the printed comments into our Design Room and discuss them. 🙂
 

Current Party Status:

Winner #1) Anne M.

Winner #2) Sil Leoen

Winner #3) Jen

Surprise Winner #4)  Roxanne

If anybody’s searching, here’s an active coupon code: BSKTS15FB (15% off your entire order).