With Mother’s Day around the corner, it’s time for some serious shopping. Here are a few ideas to start your gift brainstorming.
>> Pick up something for mom while exploring the island. Sea Life Park recently opened a charming new Seaside Boutique that offers a variety of locally handmade jewelry and body-care products; beach attire; jewelry made from flower petals, ferns and limu; Kula Herbs Excellent Soaps in Plumeria and Ocean scents; Pacific Tea Garden Teas; and much more. You’ll have to pay park admission to shop at Seaside Boutique, but Monday through Mother’s Day, moms can get in free when accompanied by a guest paying full admission. Visit sealifeparkhawaii.com. Regular park admission is $39.99 for adults.
>> Kahala Mall is giving shoppers a jump start on Mother’s Day with a gift of a limited-edition cotton tote bag designed by local artist Nicole Ferrara and filled with mall goodies. Spend $200 mall-wide, with receipts dated May 1 through 14, to receive the tote. Redeem receipts 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays at the Kahala Mall management office or at The Face Shop during mall hours. Items in the bag are a mall-exclusive Wrappily gift wrap pack, kid’s meal voucher from CPK Kahala Mall, The Face Shop gift pack, $1 off smoothie voucher from Jamba Juice Kahala Mall, and a coupon for 20 percent off at Jeans Warehouse. A maximum of three receipts per store is allowed; totes are available while supplies last, at one per person.
>> Malie Organics introduced itself with scents for bath and body. Beloved scents of mango nectar, coconut vanilla and plumeria are now available for the home, creating heavenly spaces with reed diffusers that allow the subtle release of Hawaiian aromatherapy. The 8-ounce diffuser is Malie’s top-selling product, lasting for a year. A limited-edition Pikake Rose Island Ambiance Reed Diffuser is available for Mother’s Day, $73 at Malie Organics Poipu, and at Ala Moana and Royal Hawaiian centers, or at malie.com.
>> VitaJuwel delivers a beautiful way to get more H20 into our bodies. Its ViA Wellness glass bottles contain a gem vial that uses the “vibrations” of various gemstone combinations to “energize” water. Even if mom doesn’t believe in gemstone healing, the bottles make an elegant travel companion. VitaJuwel was created and designed in Germany, where, due to the popularity of drinking gemstone-charged water, a more hygienic and safe method was deemed necessary. The bottles are $78 to $140, available at The Ritz-Carlton Spa, lobby level at the Ritz-Carlton Residences, 383 Kalaimoku St.
>> Mom may have everything, but she may not have beautiful imagery of Hawaii’s landscapes, oceans and sky, to wear. At Morgan Lane Tanner, Morgan and husband Josh Astern combined their passions for design and photography to create handcrafted, wearable art pieces cured in resin to make each image waterproof and durable, framed in 14-carat gold, at $50 to $70. Get a 20 percent Mother’s Day discount at lanetannerjewelry.com.
>> Is mom a Luddite nostalgic for the look and ambiance of old-fashioned film rather than digital photography? The Lomography Lomo’Instant Automat South Beach camera ($169) will allow her to explore her creative side. The camera grew out of a Kickstarter project that was part of the analog camera movement to recapture an image style reminiscent of Polaroid photos of the 1960s and ’70s. At Nordstrom or Nordstrom.com.
>> Gifts don’t all have to come from one’s keiki. The Face Shop Hawaii is thanking moms via a Mother’s Day Scratch Card promotion through May 14. Each card comes with a mystery discount of 10 to 100 percent that will be revealed at the register and applied to your entire purchase. (Psst: You don’t have to be a mother to receive a scratch card).
