Gift Baskets

Wasn’t it July just a moment ago? In the ring of a jingle bell, it’s suddenly only a handful of hours until Christmas Day. Our elves here at Bisket Baskets have been happily filling Christmas gift basket orders, and in the spirit of goodwill, we’ve decided to put some of our most-loved Christmas gift baskets on sale, for today only! If you order today, you can select the 2 Day Air shipping option so Santa and his reindeer (er, the Postal Service) can speedily get your holiday gift basket to you by Christmas Day.

You can shop our Christmas Gift Baskets On Sale by checking out any gifts with the “Sale Today Only!” banner on them. We’re gifting you with prices reduced by even $50, in some of our gift baskets – and as always, your gift will be beautifully designed and filled with all the gourmet goodies we list in the product description. Here’s some highlights – and remember, 2 Day Air is your friend as Christmas nears!

The Ritz At Christmas Gift Basket: Originally listed at $174.99, this robust gift basket is on sale today for only $159.99! It features glittering gold décor, mixed with goodies like caviar, smoked salmon, toffee pretzels, chocolate pastry, Ghirardelli chocolates, and much more.

Home For The Holidays: Frosty the Snowman might be feeling a little chilly, but this snowman-themed Christmas gift basket sends so much warmth! Originally at $94.99 and on sale for $89.99, this is a wonderful gift for your in-laws, a family member’s significant other, or a next-door neighbor.

Grand Christmas Gourmet Gift Basket: This is another of our most-loved Christmas gift baskets, filled with gourmet cookies and cream chocolate bark, seasonal drink selections, butter toffee pretzels, smoked salmon, and more deliciousness! It’s perfect for gifting to an entire family. It’s on sale for $119.99!

We have 14 Christmas Gift Baskets On Sale, all filled with festive goodies that are wonderful for gifting to friends and family, and very economical for gifting to an entire family. We also have three Pet Christmas Gift Baskets on sale too, so cute for all those pet lovers in your life!

Sure, 2 Day Air costs a bit more, but with our Christmas gift baskets on sale, you’ll be able to balance out the cost of shipping it quickly. After all, you want the holidays to be perfect, and we’re here to take the stress away and make them as perfect as possible for you! Happy Holidays!

Christmas is only a handful of days away, and if you’re like us, we just can’t wait to hear those reindeer hooves on our roof and a certain red-suited and white-bearded man scurry down our chimney. We’re so excited to be in the holiday spirit, so we’ve decided to extend our Gift Baskets Free Shipping – simply use code “12FS11” during checkout! Be sure to consult our Shipping and Delivery times so you can determine whether your holiday gift basket will arrive in time for December 25^th. It’s cutting it close, but with all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, we can bet there’s more than a few people on your gift list who you’re exchanging with after the holidays – making gift baskets free shipping the perfect choice for you!

Hurrying to find the right gift baskets free shipping choice for your gift list? Take a few breaths, and check out some of our Christmas gift basket customer favorites:

• Let It Snow Gift Basket – This free shipping gift basket is decorated with tons of frosty snowmen, and filled with goodies like shortbread cookies, honey roasted snack mix, snowflake cookie, seasonal drink selection, and more!

• Christmas Morning Tea – Our Christmas morning tea free shipping gift basket is so soothing for any morning during the year! It’s filled with Biscotti, chocolate cookies, gourmet caramel popcorn, and of course, Bigelow tea!

• Holiday Drum Gift Basket – This free shipping gift basket not only comes in a pretty holiday container, but is filled with scrumptious goodies – chocolate peppermint cookies, raspberry cookies, chocolate raspberry bark, holiday pasta with roasted garlic cream sauce, and so much more.

Who needs shipping costs this holiday season?! Simply shop our Gift Baskets Free Shipping collection to get those last minute holiday gifts covered – it’s only a handful of days till Christmas, so these gifts are so perfect for all those people you’ll be gifting after Christmas Day, too!

We had the pleasure recently of adding quite a bit more Wine and Chocolate Gift Baskets to our wine gift baskets collection, and we’re pleased to announce that we’re now able to ship wine directly to your door, opening up a whole new window of wine gift basket options! Speaking of options – wine and cheese tends to be the go-to wine pairing, but chocolate has taken on a decidedly gourmet form over the last few years. Wine and chocolate pairings are more popular than ever, and we’re here to share some delicious wine and chocolate coupling ideas with you!

Wine and Milk Chocolate Pairings

It’s hard to find someone who doesn’t love the smooth taste of milk chocolate – it just seems to conjure up happiness! Choose a few of your favorite milk chocolate candy bars, and stick with wines like a Pinot Noir, a Reisling, dessert wines, or even a sparkling wine. These are all lighter wines that will accent, but not overpower, the chocolate.

Wine and Dark Chocolate Pairings

We’ve been hearing so much about the health benefits of dark chocolate, and when you pair them with the reported benefits of red wine, well, we’ve got a wine coupling that’s good for us, too (in moderation, of course)! Dark chocolate has a very strong flavor, so you need a full-bodied wine to go with it. Go for a Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, or a Pinot Noir.

Wine and White Chocolate Pairings

Take a bite into a white chocolate bar…mmm. Doesn’t it just seem to have a buttery flavor? Think “fun” when you’re choosing a wine to pair it with – namely, a sweet or dessert wine. A Sherry or a Moscato wine is fabulous for it. Want to walk on the wild side? Pair it with its alter ego – a Zinfandel. The coupling of these two tend to balance each other’s “rough edges” out.

Move over wine and cheese – wine and chocolate pairings are a fun, gourmet alternative to traditional wine couplings. Many of our Wine Gift Baskets feature gourmet chocolates, so the gift recipient will be all ready to enjoy wine and chocolate pairings – courtesy of your thoughtfulness!

Creating gift baskets has been our livelihood and business for the last 13 years, and we’re always on the lookout for new types of gift baskets and gourmet goodies to include in them. We love to receive feedback from our loyal customers, and we noticed that more and more shoppers were asking for dinner gift baskets, filled with all the fixings for a delicious night in. We value this great feedback, and lo and behold, we’re happy to announce the addition of our new Meal Gift Baskets section!

We taste test all of the tasty treats inside our gift baskets (and oh yes, we love our jobs!), and we were licking our lips over the delicious appetizers, dinners, and desserts in our meal gift baskets. Let’s take a gander at some of our most popular meal gift baskets so far – but be sure to check back soon, as we’re always adding more!

Grandma’s Pantry Meal Gift Basket – Grandma always seems to have a little of everything in her pantry, doesn’t she? This is a robust gift basket that’s perfect for a big family, or a hungry one! It starts out with mozzarella cheese bars and baked potato soup, and transcends into an evening of angel hair pasta and gourmet sauce, a make your own pizza kit for eight slices, lemon bars, blueberry muffin mix, hand decorated cookies, and Irish crème coffee! We think that’s enough food for dinner for even two nights!

Gourmet Pizza Making Kit – A love for pizza tends to be that common dominator connecting most of us. Our make your own pizza kit features a mozzarella cheese bar, pizza kit for eight slices, sliced pepperoni, pizza stone set, an oven mitt, and an oven hot pad. It’s so much fun to make pizza at home and create your own topping varieties, and we think it’s just the thing for couples and families to bond over!

Hearty Chili Fixins Dinner Gift Basket – Enjoying a bowl of chili on a frosty winter day is so welcome! This meal gift basket includes two biscotti, corn bread, chili fixins, Wisconsin cheddar cheese triangles, gourmet crackers, amaretto cheesecake cheeseball dessert mix, hand decorated cookies, and vanilla crème coffee. Now simply enjoy watching the snow gently fall outside your home’s windows as you relax with a great meal and your loved ones!

Soup Bones Meal Gift Basket – Meal gift baskets are such a practical holiday gift idea, and if your gift recipient has a dog, include Fido in the gift, too! This soup-themed holiday gift basket includes roasted corn chowder soup, Wisconsin cheddar cheese triangles, wheat wafers, and a seasonal drink mix for the owner, and fresh, hand iced gourmet dog biscuits for Fido. Now the pooch in the family can have a treat to snack on while the rest of the family is enjoying soul-warming soups!

Meal Gift Baskets are going to be a popular holiday gift this year, as the gift of dinner is always a wonderful gift to give and receive. Our lives are so busy these days, so receiving a basket full of all the fixings for a hearty night in is the start of one fantastic evening. Happy holiday shopping from all of us at BisketBaskets.com!

We’re so pleased to have connected with Aine Norris and her blog, AineNorris.com. We love her eclectic, bright spirit, and are glad to have her guest posting with us today! She’s a writer currently hanging her hat in Richmond, VA. Specializing in copywriting, themed-writing, and all things vintage, Aine can usually be found with her nose in a book or scribbling ideas on napkins, cereal boxes, or any other flat surface unfortunate enough to be in her path when an idea strikes. Follow her on Twitter via @a1ne or catch up on www.ainenorris.com.

A Little Bit of Everything, by Aine Morris

It’s that time again: Your anniversary. His birthday. Her birthday. Your hard-to-please best friend’s birthday. Your college roommate’s bridal shower. No matter the occasion itseems as though August is chock-full of reasons to buy gifts. These gifts can be stressful on the dutiful giver as they ponder the implied meaning, the cost, the likelihood of it standing out amongst others, and before you know it the entire idea of gift-giving is overwhelming and you end up sliding a small, white-enveloped gift card onto the present table.

Wouldn’t it be more effective, and dare we say fun, to create a gift for your special occasion, pay for it, and be done? That’s where a Gift Basket comes in. Gift baskets are an easy way to create and customize the perfect gift in a short amount of time with your particular budget in mind.

Gift baskets are like the buffet of the present world; a smattering of things custom pickedwith one person’s enjoyment and appreciation in mind. They’re especially convenient for those…ahem…hard to please friends and family members who have and have seen it all. Customize a basket with gourmet goodies, candy, wine, and more all on Bisket Baskets. There are even options for dog and cat lovers and, let’s face it, we all know one of those!

Don’t get stuck in the downward spiral of gift cards or expensive trinkets. This time around skip the headache and the severe dent in your wallet. Build a basket and you’ll not only stand out from the crowd of other gifts; you’ll also give them something they’ll truly appreciate and won’t consider re-gifting.

We can’t help but chuckle a bit over the anonymous quote, “Families are like fudge – mostly sweet with a few nuts.” We know you love your family and your friends-who-feel-like-family, and you’re glad you’re inviting them to your wedding. If they live out of town, you want to welcome them in and show how excited you are. Thoughtful gifts, like Wedding Gift Baskets For Out Of Town Guests, welcome them in with style and get your guests even more excited for your wedding and glad they could make the trip! Here’s some great ways to welcome those special out of town guests to your wedding:

Personalized welcome card – Doesn’t it always feel special to receive a hand-written letter or card? Ask the hotel to place a personalized “welcome” card in each of the hotel rooms for your wedding. Simply choose a blank greeting card and fill it with a message welcoming your guests to the wedding, thanking them for making the trip, and showing your excitement for the wedding festivities ahead.

Photo Memories – We love that warm, sentimental feeling we get when we just so happen to come across a photo of the friends and family we love. Look for photos of your out of town guests, and once you find a photo for each guest room, simply tape it to a blank piece of paper and write a thoughtful message, such as “We love you, thank you for sharing in our day!” on each. Then, place in each guest room.

Delicious bottle of wine – Visit a local winery or liquor store and look for small, affordable bottles of wine – perhaps 750 ml bottles at around $10 each, and include one bottle in each of your own of town guest rooms. Tie a ribbon around the stem in your wedding colors to add a personalized touch to your gift of wine.

Wedding Gift Baskets – Wedding gift baskets for out of town guests are another beautiful way to thank your guests for spending hours in the car or plane to be a part of your magical day. Select a wedding gift basket for each out of town guest room, such as our Ghirardelli Chocolate & Cookie Tower, to give them some so scrumptious sweets and treats to nosh on before your wedding and after all that dancing at your reception!

You’re on the verge of having a spectacular wedding surrounded by the friends and family who mean the world to you. Show your out of town wedding guests just how excited you are for them to be at your wedding with meaningful accents, such as welcome cards and a bottle of wine, as well as wedding gift baskets, in their room. They will be so touched that you thought of them, only adding to the warmth and splendor of your wedding day.

Love ‘em or loath ‘em, bridal shower games are an absolute tradition at bridal showers, along with bridesmaids creating bridesmaid gift baskets for the guests to win! Could you really envision a bridal shower without playing bridal shower bingo or competing for the best toilet paper wedding dress designs? We didn’t think so. Here’s a few of our favorite bridal shower games – sure, we’ve played them time and time again, but a bridal shower wouldn’t be complete without them!

• The Clothespin Game – Each guest receives a clothespin when she walks in, with instructions that if she crosses her legs, her clothespin can be “stealed” by another guest. The guest with the most “stolen” clothespins wins a bridal shower gift basket!

• Bridal Shower Bingo – Just like regular bingo, but instead of numbers, think “wedding” lingo – “rings”, “vows”, “bouquet”, “honeymoon”, and etc.

• Wedding Trivia – The bride asks the guests about ten or so questions about herself and the groom-to-be. The guest with the most correct answers wins a bridesmaid gift basket!

• Toilet Paper Wedding Dress – Separate your guests into teams, and give each team a roll of toilet paper. Each team will designate its own “bride” and create her wedding dress out of toilet paper! The real bride-to-be will judge the winner.

• Changing Gifts – Create two sets of the same group of numbers. Give each guest a number, and pour the other set of numbers into a basket. Have the bride randomly select numbers, and when that guest’s number comes up, she can choose a fun prize. When the next person’s number is called, they can either choose a new gift, or “steal” the gift from the previous winner. “Stealing” should be encouraged to build up some playful banter and keep this game going!

Now onto the gifts! Bridesmaid gift baskets have become so popular as bridal shower game prizes. You’re already busy enough planning the shower and getting ready for the wedding, so simply order from us! They’re jam packed with chocolates, tea, cosmopolitan drink mixes, cookies, and more, and we’ve kept our prices low so you can choose a few bridesmaid gift baskets for your guests.

If you’ve created a bridal shower gift basket on your own before, you know it isn’t cheap to buy the basket, cellophane, ribbons, and gourmet goodies. Our business pricing allows us to purchase the best of the best at lower prices, and coupled with our thirteen years in the gift baskets business, let us create the most beautiful bridesmaid gift baskets for you! Here’s to a fun bridal shower – share your favorite bridal shower games and prizes by leaving a comment!

We had the pleasure recently of being able to connect with Joan the Dog Coach and Poncho the Dog over at The Inquisitive Canine – dog training, workshops, and even virtual dog training! Joan is known for her simple, but lasting dog training techniques that will withstand the test of time, ensuring you have a well-trained dog at home. Her training isn’t simply helping your dog be “good”, it’s all about helping dog and dog owner connect better together and understand each other.

Be sure to check out their “Out of the Box” dog training game that helps you establish dog training techniques that add a positive approach to dog training – it’s even available as an iPhone app! The Inquisitive Canine Blog is a great resource for learning more about Joan and Poncho and their approach to dog training, along with tons of great tips. We hope you’ll head on over to their Dog Training website and check out their services!

As a bride-to-be, you’re so happy to have your bridesmaids by your side, helping you choose your wedding colors, select the right wedding favors, and most importantly, deal with all the inevitable drama that comes along with planning a wedding! Gifting your bridesmaids before the wedding is tradition, but it’s only natural that you would want to sincerely thank them for lending an ear and a helping hand. Presenting them with jewelry is a common bridesmaid gift, but well, isn’t it nice to do something a little outside the (jewelry) box once in awhile? Here’s some new bridesmaid gift ideas for you!

Luxe Dinner: Most brides spend about $100 on each bridesmaid gift. If your bridesmaids tend to prefer getting together for a nice dinner and drinks compared to receiving another piece of jewelry, ask them if they’d prefer you take them out for a fancy dinner and drinks, on you. After all, the memories you make getting all dressed up for a delectable dinner will last forever, and will surely make for one fantastic evening.

Spa Gift Certificate: It’ll be nice to relax after the wedding, won’t it? Same goes for your bridesmaids! Visit a local spa and choose spa gift certificates for them, to be used towards any spa service that they’d like. Getting a massage or facial is always a welcome treat, and your bridesmaids will likely be so excited to use them!

Create A Registry: Isn’t it so great to choose items for your bridal registry? Let your bridesmaids have some fun by creating their own registry! Give each bride a list of several local stores and the total $ amount you’d like to stay within, and let them “create” a registry of 5-10 items they’d like! This way, you’ll be able to choose gifts each bridesmaid actually wants, while letting them have some fun writing up their own registry.

Bridesmaid Gift Baskets: You can really get creative with bridesmaid gift baskets – check out our Bridesmaid Gift Baskets page for some ideas! It’s always fun to discover all the goodies nestled inside a gift basket, and we just know your bridesmaids will adore bridesmaid gift baskets like our Luxurious Vanilla and Ginger Spa Gift Basket, Godiva Favorites Gift Basket, and the CosmoRita mixes inside our Cosmopolitan Gift Basket!

You’re strapped for time planning your wedding, but treating these great ladies in your bridal party is so important. Sure, choosing jewelry or a “typical” bridesmaid gift is a cinch, but taking the time to put some creativity into their gift really shows how much you appreciate their help as you tie the knot!

Out of the bridesmaid gifts you’ve received, which gifts stood out as your favorite and least favorite?

If your Dad is the master of the grill, then a barbecue style Father’s Day is in order! Most of the Dads we know love to command the grill (even if Mom secretly does it a little better!). Celebrate with Dad by making your new favorite barbecue sauce together – give it a fun name, and it’ll be forever known as the barbecue sauce that only you and Dad can expertly create. Here are some recipes to get you started, and remember to order your Dad’s Blue Ribbon BBQ Father’s Day Gift Basket, filled with so-good sauces, rubs, and seasonings to complement your bbq sauce, along with tasty Dad-themed treats in the rest of our Father’s Day gift baskets!

Carolina-style Barbecue Sauce

Courtesy of About.com

Makes about 2 ¼ cups

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup prepared yellow mustard

3/4 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon white pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 teaspoon soy sauce

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon liquid smoke, hickory flavored

Directions: Mix everything together except the soy, butter, and smoke. Simmer for 30 minutes, and then stir in remaining ingredients and simmer for 10 more minutes.

St. Louis-style Barbecue Sauce

Courtesy of About.com

Makes about 3.5 cups

Ingredients:

2 cups ketchup

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons yellow mustard

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

Directions: Blend all of the ingredients together in a saucepan over low heat. Begin stirring occasionally, and simmer for 20 minutes. The sauce should be thin. Allow the sauce to cool, and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and allow to sit for one day.

Mustard-style Barbecue Sauce

Courtesy of About.com

Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients:

1 cup prepared yellow mustard

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon cayenne

Directions: Mix everything together and simmer on low heat for about 30 minutes. This sauce is delicious, but particularly tastes great with pork.

Want to vary up the recipe? Go ahead! Ingredients like brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, honey, cayenne pepper, onion powder, yellow mustard, and ketchup all work beautifully in barbecue sauces, so feel free to experiment! Then, cook up some barbecue, get the family together for one amazing cookout, and gift Dad with his Father’s Day Gift Basket. Oh, and prepare to be buying custom jar labels in the near future, as we have a feeling you’ll be getting some order requests for you and Dad’s secret barbecue sauce!