{"id":992,"date":"2012-12-16T19:53:21","date_gmt":"2012-12-16T23:53:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/santacruzfoodie.com\/?p=992"},"modified":"2012-12-16T19:58:51","modified_gmt":"2012-12-16T23:58:51","slug":"12-days-of-christmas-giveaway-day-five-homeless-garden-project-wreath-many-gift-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/santacruzfoodie.com\/?p=992","title":{"rendered":"12 Days of Christmas Giveaway Day Five: Homeless Garden Project wreath & many gift ideas"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Treats at Homeless Garden Project’s holiday boutique include tea, jam, and wreaths<\/p><\/div>\n

It\u2019s Day 5 of Santa Cruz Restaurant Examiner\/Santa Cruz Foodie\u2019s \u201c12 Days of Christmas Giveaway.\u201d Today\u2019s prize is a beautiful wreath from Homeless Garden Project\u2019s holiday store. See end of article for how to enter<\/strong>, and keep reading for gift ideas from HGP and others.<\/p>\n

You only have a few shopping days left \u2018til Christmas \u2013 so I\u2019m going to share a bunch of ideas in this article. How about buying some \u201cgifts with a cause?\u201d You can find lots of these at Homeless Garden Project\u2019s holiday store (more details below) in article. Another idea is to make a donation to a non-profit in your gift recipient\u2019s honor. If you do this via Homeless Garden Project, HGP provides a beautiful gift card for notifying your recipient that a donation has been made in their name. Many non-profits do similar things. Or purchase a CSA for a friend of family member; here is one directory of local CSAs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Another alternative for a fun gift or stocking stuffer: buy Downtown Dollars at Bookshop Santa Cruz, Pacific Cookie Company or Old School Shoes. These dollars are like cash and accepted at dozens of downtown Santa Cruz shops, cafes, and restaurants. See full list and learn more here<\/a>. Of course, there are always gift cards. Some places are even doing holiday deals: Pacific Thai is offering 10% off gift cards (minimum $25 purchase) through December, and at Hoffman\u2019s you get a free $10 gift card for every $50 you purchase in gift cards (the $50 can be divided up among one or more cards). Johnny\u2019s Harborside has a similar promotion; with the free $10 you can either add it to the gift card you\u2019re buying for someone else, or keep it for yourself.<\/p>\n

If you are going to be shopping in downtown Santa Cruz, you get 2 hours of free parking at parking meters from now until Dec. 26 (just look for the bagged meters, and make sure you don\u2019t stay longer than 2 hours).<\/p>\n

Have you tried Serendipity Saucy Spreads? This mother-daughter Santa Cruz company makes jams and more; their products can be found at several local venues for your holiday shopping needs. Co-owner Kristen Cederquist shared on Dec. 16 that \u201cStripe, DIG Gardens, Mountain Feed & Farm Supply, and The Garden Company were restocked with jam in the last two days. They are also all carrying my new Honey & Sea Salt Caramels and Whiskey & Honey Caramels that are made without corn syrup.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Homeless Garden Project (HGP<\/a>) holiday gift boutique, open seasonally in downtown Santa Cruz, offers a variety of affordable gifts — such as tea — including products made in its training program from herbs and flowers grown at the HGP organic farm. Income from gift sales helps provide job training and transitional employment for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, and volunteer and educational opportunities for community members who want to learn about and practice sustainable agriculture and social justice.<\/p>\n

A few selections from HGP’s food gifts:
\n<\/strong>Lavender Shortbread Mix (Organic ingredients, including lavender hand-picked from HGP\u2019s farm) and lavender sugar
\nHerb biscuit mix and herb salts
\nHerb-infused vinegar
\nStrawberry Jam<\/p>\n

Non-food gifts available at the boutique include ornaments, bath salts, wreaths, jewelry, soap, hand-dipped beeswax candles, a variety of soy candles, lavender sachets, an HGP calendar, potted succulents, t-shirts, hand-knitted scarves, hats, a selection of Alice Waters’ cookbooks, and handmade cards. <\/strong>HGP is also offering granola (supports Food What?!) and coffee (supports Project Homeless Connect).<\/p>\n

The shop is located in the Cooper House Breezeway on Pacific Avenue between O\u2019Neill\u2019s and Verizon.<\/p>\n