SAN ANTONIO – Ever wonder if Christmas could be peaceful? Then drop your cellphone and pick up a colored pen. The coloring book for grownups is the hottest Christmas gift for under $10 you will ever find.
Trinity University grads came up with some of their own. Blue Star Coloring books are flying off shelves and many only cost between $5 to $15.
From calming to comforting: Check out MiracleFoundation.org. It will let you buy a book, a blanket, a meal, a jacket and more for an orphan around the world, and your loved one will get the credit. It’s an Austin-based nonprofit that has helped thousands of orphans grow up healthy, educated and ready for the world.
How about a sterling silver charm necklace with all the missions? Distinctly San Antonio gifts, as well as cool stuff made of fossils, are available at an uncrowded retail spot. The Witte Museum Gift Shop is off the beaten path, but chock-a-block full of ideas.
Linda Gerber runs the retail services at the museum and said, “If you come in here and you see all these fabulous things and you still can't find a gift, there's always the Witte membership. It's a great time to buy one. It lasts a whole year."
And if you want to go big, bigger or biggest this Christmas, this is the year to finally buy a white diamond.
Jimmy Green at JGreen Jewelers said, “It's like having a sale on diamonds, all over the world.”
From $250 and $700 to a half-million dollars, jewelry stores are offering the best value ever with diamonds priced about 35 percent lower than they were last year. The discounts won’t last, so this may be the year of the diamond.
But for many of us, the sweetest gift of all is to give that most precious commodity -- time. Your time is special, so making something like cookies, candy or just a knickknack can mean more than any visit to the mall.