Gift Ideas to Get You Through the Season

After the pumpkin pie is polished off, and the dishes put away, the thoughts of many today will begin turning toward the December holidays.

Gift giving and its attendant shopping can be overwhelming in what for many is a time of tight money. This season, it may take a little more thought to come up with affordable yet people-pleasing gifts.

There are millions of possibilities. We have culled a few from around North County for your consideration, including baskets of food, local scenes in watercolor, a personal chef, theater tickets and balloon bungee jumping.

BASKET CASES

A holiday basket filled with goodies is a traditional gift that can be adapted to almost every taste and budget. It is a gift you can put together yourself, or you can turn to one of the companies that has specialized in creating them. The secret of an impressive basket lies in the presentation as much as in the contents, so keep both in mind when you go this route.

At Basket Express, on the lower level of North County Fair in Escondido, baskets can either be custom-filled from the wide variety of in-store gourmet items or purchased already packed. Among the ready-made choices: the lidded picnic hamper stuffed with sausage, honey mustard, cheese, crackers, wine and brandy cake for $39.95; a decorative mug filled with ground coffee, tea or hot chocolate mix for $12.50; an enormous Southwest basket brimming with salsas , Mexican beers, chilies, chips, jalapeno jelly, a potted cactus and a tiny ceramic replica of a mission for $83.95.

The minimum phone order is $35, and baskets can be hand-delivered locally or sent UPS all over the country. In-state deliveries need a minimum of one day for delivery; seven to 10 days are required for delivery elsewhere in the U.S. Basket Express, 747-4438, or for corporate orders, 679-6916.

Balloon-A-Gram, a funky party and balloon shop at 556 1st St., Encinitas, assembles their baskets with a good dose of wit. Their Cowabunga Beach number is stuffed with fresh tropical fruits, macadamia nuts, Rain Forest peanut brittle, papaya dressing, salsa and Hawaiian crackers. The Movie Basket is actually a giant stenciled popcorn bowl, filled with gourmet popcorn, jumbo boxes of Good & Plenty and Milk Duds, and a couple of Blockbuster Video gift certificates. Both baskets run around $40 and, like all the store’s offerings, are cellophane-wrapped and come with a couple of helium balloons.

You can also choose your own items to be assembled from an array of in-store foods, toiletries, toys and other gifts. Plus you can toss in a few of your own finds as well. Ready-made baskets range from $35 to $105, while custom baskets can be assembled from just under $10 and up. Minimum orders of $30 are delivered free from Del Mar to Oceanside, or for the cost of shipping, anywhere in the U.S. Balloon-a-Gram, 436-4845.

Culbertson Winery at 32575 Rancho California Road, Temecula, produces an award winning brut Champagne and imaginatively packages it for the holidays in nine different gift baskets ranging from $24 to $180.

Their “Night Before Christmas” model is a ribbon-tied, buff-colored willow basket stuffed with soup, scone, hot chocolate mixes, mulling spices, a tree ornament and two splits of brut Champagne for $58.99. The “Holiday Morning Basket” is filled with two Champagne splits, plus waffle mix, cherry-raspberry preserves, herbal tea and a holiday gift mug. It’s all tied up in plaid ribbon in a white-washed oval basket for $63.99. Baskets can be sent vis UPS within California. Allow a minimum of four days for shipping. Culbertson Winery, 714-699-0099.

For a wide selection of domestic and imported wines, check with wine connoisseur Klaus Moeller at the Wine & Deli Co. at Flower Hill Mall in Del Mar. Moeller knows his grapes and will put together custom wine and fine food baskets that include imported caviar, aged cheeses and other goodies. Pric

es range from $50 to $5,000. Wine & Deli Co., 481-1466.

Country Downs, 1302 Camino Del Mar, Del Mar, is assembling linen-lined tea baskets for $50 to $150. They contain a variety of teas, cranberry muffin or scone mix, English tea cookies, floral mugs, or French tea cups and saucers, recipe collections, and in some cases, a

porcelain tea pot. Country Downs, 481-1356.

For the first time, the Golden Door Spa in Escondido is offering its posh line of skin care products to the public. The collection is manufactured locally from botanical-based organic ingredients, and items are shipped within days of manufacture to ensure freshness. In fact each item is age-dated and the spa will replace any unused product after one year.

The “Bath Treasure Chest” is a large dome-lidded basket filled with moisture scrub, moisture mist, bath and shower gel, soap drops and a loofah mitt, for $65. Other gifts, some in baskets, some boxed and wrapped in silver and burgundy, range between $40 and $225. As an introductory offer, the men’s traveler case comes in a lambskin pouch filled with $95 worth of grooming products for $59.50. Gift certificates are also available. The Golden Door, 800-231-1444.

Some baskets are so special they’re gifts in themselves. That’s the case with Gayle Radcliffe’s Indian burden baskets. Woven in the traditional coil method, sewn with sinew, raffia or linen, and embellished with antique bells, beads, shells, feathers, or the fallen needles of the artist’s own Torrey Pines, they’re meant to hang on a door. With each basket comes an explanation:

“May your burden ease with the music of the bells.”

Traditional burden baskets were woven by native Americans. Rather than carry their burdens in their hearts, the baskets symbolically carried them, lifting the weight from the soul for more positive pursuits.

These cup-sized baskets are priced at $45 and can be custom-made in many colors. Radcliffe’s other baskets are priced up to $300. Her work has been shown at the Ocean Song Gallery in Del Mar and will be sold at the Rancho Santa Fe Library until Saturday. Call 944-7442.

SPECIAL FINDS

A painting of a favorite local scene might be just the ticket for the romantic or for the friends and relatives who are California Dreamin’ back in Kokomo or Kalamazoo.

Local watercolor artist Mary Helmreich has painted more than 70 local scenes--including balloons over the San Dieguito River valley, the Del Mar Fair at night, Batiquitos Lagoon, Cardiff State Beach, Chino’s Vegetable Shop and the Olivenhain Meeting House. Although her originals go for as much as $2,500, her prints sell for as little as $28 for an unframed 11-by-14-inch, to $348 for a 28-by-30-inch acid free, double-matted, framed print.

Helmreich’s work is displayed most weekends at either Ralphs Shopping Center in Encinitas, the Big Bear shopping center in Del Mar or the Hotel del Coronado. Or call The Boston Art Co., 756-2916.

Patricia Bynum Watkins is another watercolorist who captures local scenes in paint. Her work hangs at the San Dieguito Gallery in Leucadia, and Kern & Co. in Encinitas and Del Mar, with originals ranging from $450 to $600, and various-sized prints from $35 to $75. A line of note cards depicting Palomar Observatory, and landmarks in Rancho Santa Fe and San Diego sells for $6 to $20 at the Rancho Bernardo Inn gift shop, the Spice of Life in Julian, Parrot Press in Rancho Santa Fe, the Rancho Santa Fe Inn and Rancho Santa Fe Pharmacy.

Sometimes a name or a monogram on a gift adds the right personal touch. Personal Property at Flower Hill Mall in Del Mar engraves, embroiders, or hand-paints names or initials on almost everything it sells. Gifts range in price from a 2 1/2-inch silver encased mirror in a velvet pouch for $13.50, to a pair of elaborate bronze candlesticks for $350. In between are personalized mailboxes, bowls, frames, trays, hand-painted bird houses, and monogrammed cotton and wool throws, and a line of hand-painted furniture. Personal Property, 481-0281.

It’s been said that a book is a gift you can open again and again. It may, in fact, be the perfect gift. You don’t have to worry about size, color, or batteries, and in a small bookstore with knowledgeable help, it’s fairly easy to find something that fits the interests of the recipient.

Pat Brett, manager of Ranch Books on La Flecha in Rancho Santa Fe says cookbooks, books on architecture, interior design and low-water gardening are all popular. The store also has a good selection of classic children’s books, many illustrated with full color plates. Signed Marguerite Henry books are especially popular with the 8-to-12-year-old set.

In addition, the store offers signed books by local authors like Joseph Wambaugh, Louise Hay and Wally Schirra. Ranch Books, La Flecha, Rancho Santa Fe, 756-2265.

How about a personal chef? Sue Titcomb, former sous chef at Charlie’s Grill in Cardiff, and her partner, David MacKay, will shop and prepare five to 10 dinner entrees and side dishes in the home--weekly, monthly, or however often you want. The customized meals are then packaged, labeled and stored in the refrigerator and freezer with simple instructions. A regular $260 two-week service, including 10 meals for two, is available for an introductory price of $200. Sample dinners include: broiled salmon with cucumber vinaigrette, four cheese and vegetable calzones and glazed chicken with sauteed apples. But the chef can cook up almost anything your heart desires. Gift certificates are available from this 2 1/2-year-old company in Carlsbad. Personally Yours, 631-0750.

An exotic fruit tree is a gift that, with any luck, will keep giving year after year. Exotica Rare Fruit Nursery at 2508-B East Vista Way, Vista, has one of the largest selections of edible landscaping in the county with juicy varieties of sapote, lychee, guava, cheimoya, papaya, persimmon and other exotic fruits. A banana tree in a 5-gallon pot sells for about $15, a fig $20, and a guava $25. Manager says everything they carry can grow in North County, though some varieties are more susceptible to frost than others. Exotica Rare Fruit Nursery, 724-9093.

Another fruitful possibility is a macadamia tree from Macadamia Land Nursery, 2562 Mountain View Drive, Escondido. According to Sunset’s “Western Garden Book,” macadamia trees are “clean, handsome, and ornamental.” Owner Charlotte Hotchkiss says that, if you can grow an avocado or a lemon, you can grow a macadamia. She says her trees have fairly simple needs: a frost-free spot, a deep soak for the 6-foot tap root (it requires a little less water than an avocado) and very little fertilizer. Prices run between $25 and $35 for just a tad under 5-gallon container. If you can’t wait for that first harvest, pick up some fresh macadamia nuts grown on the spot. Half pound packages of shelled nuts run $4.50 raw, or two packages for $8.00. Roasted go for $5.50 half a pound, or two for $10. Hotchkiss also sells two models of macadamia nutcrackers for $20 and $30. Macadamia Land Nursery, 745-3417.

Gift certificates for weekly, monthly, or quarterly delivery of seasonal flowers, plants, or gourmet items delivered on a regular basis are offered by many local florists.

Among them are Rancho Santa Fe Flowers & Gifts in Rancho Santa Fe, 756-5023, Lion in The Sun in Solana Beach, 755-9355, and Silver Bells Florist & Gifts in Vista, 798-2956, where prices are in the $20-$30 range for each delivered item.

FUN, GAMES, AND GETAWAYS

Hot air balloons hang like Christmas ornaments in the late afternoon skies of North County, and no less than half a dozen local companies offer gift certificates for a bird’s eye view of beaches and back yards. Prices run around $125 to $135 for a one-hour flight and a post-flight Champagne party. Some outfits like Sunset Balloons in Del Mar, 481-9122; Balloon Bungee in Sorrento Valley, 481-3466, and Boeing-Bungee in Escondido 432-8817, offer bungee jumping, where, for about $100, participants jump out of a tethered balloon with a bungee-cord connecting them to the basket.

If your recipient’s idea of fun is a little more grounded, you might consider giving a board, role-playing, or fantasy game.

Among the stores specializing in games is Game Towne at 2933 Roosevelt St., Carlsbad. Owner David Good says Dungeons and Dragons, Cosmic Encounter, Talsman, Trumpet, Scattergories and HeroQuest are all popular. Some can be the basis of a good party, like “How to Host a Murder,” a role-playing game in which participants are encouraged to dress in costume and help solve a crime. With game prices averaging $20 to $30, playing just once can be cheaper than a night at the movies for a family of four. Game Towne, 720-1555.

Another good family gift is an annual membership to the Wild Animal Park in Escondido. Included in a $45 single, or $58 couple, and $10 child membership are: unlimited entrance to both the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park, two guest passes, six discount guest coupons, four two-for-one coupons for the Zoo bus tour, one year’s subscription to ZOONOOZ, the Zoo Log newsletter and calendar, and discounts on behind-the-scenes tours. Call 231-0251.

Series or one-time tickets to concerts and plays are also a treat.

The North Coast Repertory Theatre at Lomas Santa Fe Plaza in Solana Beach is an intimate theater of only six rows and 194 seats, and has a knack for staging successful plays. Individual tickets sell for $12 to $14, and a four play series starting with “Seasons Greetings” running through Dec. 28, to “Love Letters on Blue Paper,” ending May 23, costs $41 to $48. Call 481-1055.

Other possibilities are individual or series tickets from the Poway Center for the Performing Arts, 748-0505; the Lawrence Welk Resort Dinner Theater in Escondido, 749-3448; the Mystery Cafe Dinner Theater in San Marcos, 544-1600; the Lake San Marcos Chamber Music Society, 744-3072, and the San Diego Chamber Orchestra, where candlelight performances are preceded by wine and hors d’oeuvres at an intimate private club in Fairbanks Ranch, 753-6402.

If the sound of an overhead smash is music to your recipient’s ears, you might consider giving a gift certificate for a tennis clinic at the Plush Rancho Valencia Tennis Resort in Rancho Santa Fe. An all-day clinic concentrating on strokes in the morning and play and strategy in the afternoon runs $95. Or a morning session runs $50, and an afternoon $45, with no more than four players to a pro. Be a sport and throw in the buffet lunch for $16. Rancho Valencia, 756-1123. The Rancho Bernardo Inn Tennis College offers a similar program for two three-hour morning sessions for $140. Rancho Bernardo Inn Tennis College, 542-6096.

You don’t have to fly to Hawaii or Mexico to enjoy a romantic escape. You could give a gift certificate for a close getaway at any number of the area’s better hotels and resorts. The Inn L’ Auberge Del Mar is offering a “Just The Two Of You” package that includes a fireplace room, dinner in the Bistro Gardens, and a bottle of Champagne for $159 per couple, through Dec. 30, 259-1515.

The Rancho Bernardo Inn is offering a sports holiday package including two nights lodging, breakfasts and dinners, unlimited greens fee, golf cart, daily use of the fitness center, and unlimited tennis for $344 per person, double, through March 31. Rancho Bernardo Inn, 487-2413.

The cozy Julian Lodge has 23 phoneless rooms for a quiet mountain getaway at $69 and $79. Julian Lodge, 765-1420.

All three hotels offer gift certificates that can be ordered with a credit card.

You don’t need that credit card for some getaway gifts. A promissory note for a morning, afternoon, or whole day with someone you love doesn’t have to cost a penny, but with time the most valuable commodity today, can be a treasured gift.

A hike through Torrey Pines State Reserve or the new San Dieguito River Park, whale watching from a beach bluff, exploring a tide pool, biking through back country or a picnic in the park can make you a hero for the day.

HEALTH AND FITNESS

Since statistics show most of us put on 5 to 7 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, what some will want is a way to get the pounds off. But tread carefully when shopping in this department. Your friend or relative may not appreciate the hint.

How about a guardian angel descending on the new year to purge the kitchen of all those sinful, flab-adding foods? That’s exactly what Lisa Heebner, a cooking instructor who demonstrates healthful, low-fat techniques at such swank spots as Cal-a-Vie spa, does. For $50 an hour, she zeroes in on your trouble spots, tosses the junk, and stocks your kitchen with delicious and nutritious foods. Heebner also gives group and private cooking lessons. Gift certificates are available: Garlic & Sapphires, 755-7773.

A gym membership is another good gift for fitness hopefuls, and North County has some of the best.

Look for proximity, pleasant surroundings, up-to-date equipment and top-notch instruction. There are dozens of good gyms to chose from.

One local club, Del Mar Workout, was recently named one of the top 25 gyms in the nation by SELF, a national fitness magazine. Prices here range from $139 for a three-month student rate (no dues) to $499 plus $42 monthly dues for a full membership. Gift certificates are available, 481-6226.

A day at a spa probably won’t make anyone as slim as an aerobics instructor, but it can make them feel as pampered as a prince or princess. The Spa Del Mar offers a half or full day of the pleasures of massage, facials, body wraps, and other indulgences for men and women, from $149 to $299. Baden Baden in Carlsbad has similar offerings from $153.77 to $208.37, 931-1411.

Other gifts that pamper include a gift certificate for a salon manicure, pedicure or massage. Bodywork Emporium, 338 North Highway 101, Leucadia has 12 massage therapists on staff and will knead away those kinks for $37 for a 45 minute massage or $42 for an hour. Bodywork Emporium, 942-9565.