Christmas is sneaking up on us, and it’s likely that the man in your life has procrastinated his shopping for you until the last minute. But if you’re anything like me, there’s probably a lot of things you would love for Christmas, but writing a list takes too much time and effort, and sometimes you’d just like to be surprised, right? That’s where the ladies of Reno Moms Blog have come to the rescue! I surveyed the ladies on what moms want for Christmas from LOCAL stores, as we’re all about supporting local businesses. Here is what the ladies came up with. Feel free to share this link with that hunk of yours to give him some inspiration, and considering everything is in town, he can even pick this stuff up at the last minute! There are also a lot of great ideas for your own mom or a special friend!
Classes: Moms love to get out and away from the kids to learn new hobbies or revisit ones put on the back burner when they became a parent. Offer to watch the kiddos while she attends one of these classes.
- Nothing To It Gift Cards – These could be used towards a cooking class or in their shop, which is a chef’s dream
- Paint and Sips – There are so many options all over town. Feeling really generous? Buy a gift card for two classes so that she can take a girlfriend with her. We suggest Pinot’s Palette in Northwest Reno, Arts for All in Downtown Reno, or Picasso & Wine in Midtown or at the Summit Mall, the Playful Potter.
- Class packs to Pilates Studio of Reno, The Studio, Rishi Yoga, Midtown Community Yoga, Ball Fitness, Yoga Pod, Pure Barre or Kaia Fit
- Cake or cookie decorating class at Biggest Little Cake Shoppe or at Mix Cupcakes
- Gordon’s Photo Service Photography 101 class
- Wedge Cheese Shop’s wine and cheese pairings class
- Art classes from the Nevada Museum of Art (and check out their awesome gift shop while you’re there!)
Jewelry: Really, guys, you can’t go wrong with something shiny and sentimental as a gift.
- BVW Jewelers, located in South Creek Shopping Center has really unique pieces created by local jeweler, Britten Wolf. There are bobbles for all different budgets. If you want to give your man a bit more guidance, they have great “Hint” cards, where you can come into the store and write down a few suggestions of what you’d like for a gift
- Custom Jewelry by Memory Lane Jewelry, a local jewelry maker on Etsy. Every mom would love hand stamped jewelry with the initials or birth stones of her kids
- You can also pick up some inexpensive hand made jewelry at the Buy Nevada First store in the Reno Town Mall, all made by locals!
Eats or Drinks:
- Meal service from the BFF Café, serving healthy clean-eating meals to go! You can order packs of food for an entire week at a time!
- Buy a 20 or 40 pound box of local, all natural pasture raised beef from Sanford Ranch. Then make sure you grill it up and prepare it for her and serve it with a nice red wine — the gift that keeps on giving! Sanford Ranch is running a promotion until Christmas where every 20 lb package purchase or gift certificate of equal value is an entry into a drawing for a free 1/8th portion of cow. Moo!
- A combination of flavor infused olive oil and balsamic vinegar from Big Horn Olive Oil Company. The staff there can give you suggestions of great pairings, and you can taste samples to find your favorite.
- A gift basket from We Olive.
- Chocolates from Dorinda’s Chocolates
- Wine from Whispering Vine or Vino 100
Pampering:
- If you really want to spoil a mom, give her a gift certificate to either Dolce Vita Wellness Spa or the Atlantis Spa and watch her kids for her for the day. Yes, I said the DAY. Not just an hour.
- A manicure or pedicure from Soak Nail Spa & Lounge
- Locally made shampoos, conditioners, lotions, body wash and lip balms at the Buy Nevada First store. You can get these items for a fraction of what you’d spend at a franchise, and the quality is top notch!
- Soaps or lotions from Lavender Ridge (bonus, you can get laundry bags and culinary lavendar!)
- Maid service from Krystal Clean Housecleaning
- A 10 visit pass to Carson Hot Springs
Boutique Shops:
- Larkellen has fun, local items, including jewelry and house decor.
- Let her show her pride for Reno-Tahoe with clothes from Reno Envy or for the Wolf Pack at Silver and Blue Outfitters
- Pick up some fashionable, indie clothing at Neverender in midtown.
- For the Carson City residents, The Purple Avocado has a variety of mugs, jewelry, books and home decor. (Moms, it’s also a great place to pick up teacher’s gifts!)
- Sierra Belle in midtown has simple, affordable, trendy and chic clothes. It’s a fun, upbeat store!
- Chez Vous has great jewelry, candles, decor, pj’s, boot socks and clothing.
- The Couture Closet has personal stylists that can help you pick out a fabulous outfit for that special mom in your life. Bring in her clothing size and a picture of her so that the ladies have something to work with!
- Sweet Pickin’s Boutique, featuring shabby chic decor, furniture and clothing. “That store makes me swoon,” said one of our contributors.
- The Niche Boutique, with clothing and home décor and locations in Reno, Truckee, Sparks and Carson City
- Lulu Lemon for yoga apparel in Downtown Reno
- Nevada Art Museum gift shop – always something pretty, unique and often local
- Great Western Marketplace, which features all local services, arts, crafts and food. You’re bound to find something great here!
- Other honorable mentions included Bungalow 215 in Sparks, Matilda Jane Clothing, The Freckled Frog and Natural Selection
Sentimental:
- Grab the kids and head to Clay Canvas. Put the kids’ handprint on a platter for mom and grandma!
- A mother’s necklace from Memory Lane Jewelry, a local jewelry maker on Etsy. (I know I mentioned it above, but it really fits this category, too!)
Over the Top:
If you really want to GO BIG, put a giant bow on a new car from Dolan Automotive Group. (OK, likely this isn’t happening for most of us, but we love Dolan Auto Group anyway!)
What are you waiting for?! Hit those local shops and support the Reno economy!
Special thanks to the Reno Moms Blog contributors, readers and Debbie Sessions for helping compile this list!
