A Gift Basket for Book-Lovers

"Once the dollars are removed from Christmas gifts,
gift-giving becomes more loving, more interesting,
and more fun for everyone.
Gifts can be found on the seashore, created out of scraps,
searched for at book sales, or baked in an oven.
Dare to be different.
Take the dollars out of gifts and wrap them in love."

~ D. W. Woodliff

Here are some ideas from one of my holiday notebooks. If you have book lovers on your list, these are always fun to put together!!

A BOOK-LOVER'S BASKET ~

Use a large basket that can be left in a special place in their room and filled with books. Or, another "container" could be a large canvas tote bag that can be carried to the library.

~ Fill the basket or bag with some books by a favorite author ~ or a new one in the type of book they prefer (for example, a new mystery writer for those who love mysteries).

~ Look for older books they've mentioned that are no longer in print ~ you can often find them at small bookshops or at online auctions ~ and they'd be wonderful to add to their collection. I've often had luck at ebay or amazon.

~ Handmade, personalized or specialty bookmarks (don't worry if they already have a bookmark... those who love to read never have enough!). Possibilities are endless if you love to scrapbook, rubber stamp, crochet, or cross stitch. ABC Stitch Therapy (an online shop) has a nice selection of cross stitch bookmarks that are available.

~ Bookplates ~ I've found some great ones at both Barnes & Noble and Borders.

~ A journal to record their thoughts and favorite quotes or passages.

~ Coffee, tea or cocoa to enjoy while they read.

~ Specialty candies or cookies to go with the beverage.

~ A candle or two to enjoy as they relax with a favorite book.

~ A booklight (great for night-time reading while traveling, or even if the electricity goes out!).

~ Gift certificate to a favorite bookstore or two.

~ A large pile of paperbacks from the used bookstore for the avid reader (my husband loves this each year ~ he gets about 10 books for the price of 2 or 3, and he doesn't worry that he might leave one behind on a plane or a hotel as he travels).

~ A book for readers (recommending books along a certain line, or including passages from various books.... you can often find something like this in the bargain sections of the large chain bookstores, and they're full of interesting information).

~ Since I'm really into cross-stitching again (one of my old favorite hobbies) I think a nice homemade cross stitch sampler or pinkeep would be wonderful to include with the gift basket. You could stitch one that goes with the theme of the basket (if you've followed a theme), or you could do one that goes with books. A nice sampler for this would be "The Bookshelf" by Little House Needleworks. There's also a nice smaller sampler by LHN called "Music and Books".