Last Minute Gift Giving: Gifts That Won't Break The Bank

As we quickly approach the holiday weekend, many of us (myself included) are scrambling to find that last minute gift for a friend of family member.  It's easy to get caught up in the frenzy of it all.  Yesterday I went to Target for scotch tape and left with about $100 worth of additional purchases that I didn't know I needed when I walked in the store.  The holiday shopping can easily spin out of control.

This year my husband an I decided to make an effort to buy at least a portion of the gifts used or refurbished.  We decided to do this for a variety of reasons.  One being that BrickSmarts is based on the concept of taking used Lego sets and refurbishing them to "like new" condition.  We wanted to personally test this concept in other products and see how feasible it is when it comes to gift giving.  I think there is generally a stigma with giving a gift that is used or refurbished.  Refurbished, or Up-Cycled gifts are great because they usually save you money, and they are great for the environment.  Unfortunately, I think most people expect that a gift should be shiny, sparkly, and packaged neatly in a factory sealed box.  Well, I believe that isn't always the case.  So I came up with a list of 5 used or refurbished gift ideas to help last minute shoppers save their wallets and the planet!

1. Technology:  Big brand technology companies sell many of their products refurbished at deeply discounted prices.  I recently purchased a refurbished Nikon SLR camera refurbished for $200 less then the retail price.  It came with a 1 year parts warranty and included a case, lens, and wifi adapter.  I purchased it at http://www.buydig.com.  It arrived in a timely manner and was as described on the site.  

2. Brand name small appliances:  I enjoy cooking and trying new recipes so my husband knows that he can always score big points by buying me a high quality appliance.  Last year he bought me a refurbished Vitamix blender.  I had wanted one for a long time, but couldn't stomach the $500 price tag.  After scouring the Vitamix website, my hubby stumbled across the refurbished section.  https://www.vitamix.com/browse/s_refurb/ He was able to buy this industrial grade blender for hundreds of dollars off the original price.  It still works greats event though it's a refurb! 

3. Luxury handbags: I LOVE handbags...I think most women do.  I HATE paying astronomical prices for a beautiful bag.  Several years ago when living in Scottsdale, Arizona, I was a regular at the popular Women's Designer Consignment Store, http://www.mysisterscloset.com.  They had an amazing variety of luxury purses (as well as other clothing and accessories).  It's a great way to get or give the designer brands you love for a fraction of the price.

4. Toys: Many toys can have more then one life!  For example, my kids are ages 7 and 5.  This year my 7 year old was asking for a Nintendo 3DS.  They really haven't had much exposure to any type of gaming system so we had a Wii packed away from before my husband an I had kids.  We decided to unpack it and set it up for the kids to try out.  They LOVED it!  And because it's an older system we were able to buy popular used games online for around $7-$10.  I bought 4 games at www.half.com and used them as stocking stuffers!

And...of course Legos!  What I've realized when refurbishing our BrickSmarts sets, it's truly what is inside that counts.  The Lego bricks work just as well the first time they are used, as the 101st time they are used.  The magic of building still happens every time the Lego bricks are put together.  My kids love building and rebuilding their BrickSmarts sets.  Their favorite parts are the mini-figures and accessories.  Our goal is to restore each set so it can have many more lives, and bring as much joy to as many kids as possible!  Check out all of our Refurbished Lego Sets at www.BrickSmarts.com!

Building A BrickSmarts Online Community One Brick At A Time

After being in business for a little over a month, one of the biggest challenges of building an online business is social media.  I think as a new business owner, in your mind you think that if you build a website and post it, that people will see it.  Well...not exactly.  If you think of the internet as the universe, your website is basically one little speck of dust that is just floating out there waiting for someone to notice it.  Sounds depressing right?  Well if you are willing to put in the leg work and time of connecting to an online community, the chances of people (ideally your target customers) seeing your site, or something connected to your site, improve!

Several weeks before we launched BrickSmarts, I started gearing my social media sites, FB, Instagram, Twitter to reflect anything Parenting or Lego related.  My goal was to connect with readers that would be interested in my website and/or be potential customers.  Along the way I was able to connect with mom bloggers and parents that were sharing some really exciting and insightful content on the web.  I realized that there are so many moms out there who are interconnected though their blogs and social media and it serves as a virtual support system for their readers.

One of the Mom Bloggers that I crossed paths with was Amy Webb, PhD from The Thoughtful Parent.  Her site is a wealth of information related to parenting, family, and child development.  She brings a fresh perspective to her site.  She was so kind as to add BrickSmarts.com to her holiday gift guide and write a glowing review of a BrickSmarts building set.  We LOVE that her kiddos loved their BrickSmarts set and hope that her readers will check out BrickSmarts for themselves.

http://www.thoughtfulparent.com/2016/11/holiday-gift-guide-for-raising-unselfie.html

http://www.thoughtfulparent.com/2016/12/blocks-childs-holiday-list-lego.html