By Belle Du Chene
Still have some shopping to do? Panicked over what to get Uncle Charlie or sister Sue? Gift cards may be the answer, and to help you (and us) out, we asked our Facebook fans for the best local places to buy them.
Many of the suggestions centered on health and beauty. As Katie Theulen said in recommending Penelopie Beauty Bar: “Everyone deserves to get pampered over the holidays!” Daphne Christensen suggests The Spa at West Glen because “if you buy a $100 gift card, you get $20 in Spa Bucks free!” And at Sahar’s Salon and Day Spa, you can buy a card through its website–you choose the amount and the design, and the spa will send it to the recipient for you.
On the food and drink front, Sylvia DeWitt promises that “everyone (will) find something they like” at The Juice Co. on 42nd Street in the Shops at Roosevelt. Jessica Gabriel Tursi suggests a gift card from The Cheese Shop of Des Moines, while Carrie England recommends Zanzibar’s Coffee Adventure. An unexpected idea: Ladora Bank Bistro along Highway 6 (about 82 miles east of Des Moines).
We learned from Jenna Eckstrom that at the Des Moines Art Center, gift cards can be used for memberships, classes or in the museum shop. And in the “who would’ve thought” category is a gift card from Willis Auto Campus, which Josh Dreyer says would be “good for any service or accessories purchase.”
If you have any more ideas, let us know on our Facebook page. And we encourage you, as Jody Valentine put it, to shop “local, local, local” this holiday season.
