Mother’s Day Gift Guide: Top Picks Both Posh & Practical!

Mother’s Day is just around the corner and this year most gifts for mom will be purchased online due the pandemic. Here is a “quick hits” list of items that will cover gifts that both posh and practical moms—and those in between—will cherish! Sometimes posh and practical meet and those are some of the best gifts! It’s never a bad idea to hint around at Mom about what you are thinking of buying her and gauge her reaction—or to keep in mind the type of items she likes to collect. If you are ever in doubt, remember that flowers always work! Our suggestions are unique but we think that they are “can’t go wrong” items!

I recently fell in love with the new FujiFilm Instax Mini 11 camera at their launch party at their Flatiron District store in mid-March which I feel is great for all ages. This camera is chic, lightweight and sophisticated and I just the love the selfie setting which comes with a little mirror! With its automatic exposure function, there is no need to adjust a dial anymore to take photos based on your lighting. Just snap and shoot! It’s so much fun to have instant prints and is a great departure from strictly digital photography. You can buy special Fuji film that adds specially themed designs to your pix, too! The Instax Mini 11 retails for $69.99 and comes in white, black, lilac and a whole series of fun ‘n futuristic colors. This camera can be ordered from Amazon or www.instax.com.

Shalini Amorem Rose is one of the most luxurious rose-based fragrances on the market at a whopping $500 for a 1.7 ounce bottle—but for connoisseurs of pure rose fragrances, this is a must have! All of the ingredients in Shalini fragrances are grown on a private herb and flower farm in Provence and all ingredients are handpicked. Shalini Amorem Rose also has a healthy dose of Amber which gives the scent a bit of earthiness and sensuality. It’s hard to get the description exact but it will stick in your mind straight from the moment you first smell it. Not only has this relatively new scent won several fragrance industry awards and tons of praise from lifestyle influencers but it is part of a very special getaway package called Scent Of A Woman offered at Fifth Avenue’s Pierre Hotel until the end of this year (the movie of the same name starring Al Pacino was filmed there). Order Amorem Rose (as well as check out the other unique Shalini scents including Paradise Provence) at www.bergdorfgoodman.com, www.aedes.com and www.thepierreny.com.

Oofos makes some of my favorite comfort shoes and moms who have to be out and about all day will appreciate their soft yet flexible inner soles. While Oofos originated as an after workout shoe, the truth is that you won’t find shoes any more comfortable for everyday movement. The thong sandal and clog styles seem to really be getting the most attention although every style that they make features their unique air bed construction. There is a built in arch but even people with flat feet like I have seem to get energized when wearing Oofos. The Oofo Foam material just really picks up all the impact that you have from walking on hard surfaces and your feet truly feel cushioned at all times. Oofos are very reasonably priced in the general range of $40 to $90 per pair and you will find that they come in a huge collection of colors and color pairings that are truly unique. For more info or to order, go to www.oofos.com. Oofos are also available at www.dsw.com.

I recently fell in love with Yunizon Eyewear and thought that a pair would make a great Mother’s Day gift not only because of their chic styling but because all styles are available in three different head widths to fit all sizes: narrow, medium, and wide. The redesigned nose pads offer enhanced grip, zero slippage, and maximum comfort. The frame designs accommodate high cheekbones, low bridge nose, and other unique facial features plus their modifier temple lengths are more secure and easy to adjust. Lightweight and shatter-resistant CR-39 lenses and thin acetate frames don’t weigh the wearer down. Gender neutral lines offer an unmatched focus on fit. Yunizon’s styles are inspired by the diversity of New York with thoughtful details, including chiseled angles and custom inscriptions. Prices start at $159. To learn more about this chic and comfortable brand, go to www.yunizoneyewear.com. BTW, Yunizon donates a portion of their proceeds to The National Alliance On Mental Illness. The fun ‘n funky style in the photo is called Festiv in Milky Magenta (size narrow). Now get outside with mom and her new shade—and enjoy the sunshine while social distancing.

Tocca Florence is a heavenly green fragrance that originally hit the stores back in 2006 and is such a popular sent that new items continually get added to the line—most recently a divine hair fragrance was added. It is truly a special feeling to accentuate one’s fragrance by having it on both the skin and hair. I fell in love with the Tocca Florence fragrance the first time I tried it because it is natural and earthy yet bold and romantic. It almost smells like a freshly picked herb garden with some gardenia, pear, tuberose and musk in the mix! The 1.7 oz bottle of the EDP that I have has lasted for close to a year (spritzing it on my wrists twice per day) and the scent is remarkably long lasting. Tocca Florence is one of those fragrances that lives up to its reputation of being high quality and unique, and for that reason alone it is one of my top picks for Mother’s Day. For more info and to order, go to www.tocca.com. (You can also get it via www.sephora.com.) The 1.7 ounce EDP is $76 and the 1.7 hair fragrance is $36 and you’ll love the decorative gold capped retro bottle.

I think taking mom on a JetBlue Vacation after all the quarantining is over is about as nice a present as you could give your mom! These packages are real deals and all the great islands that JetBlue flies to directly from JFK are featured including Aruba, Dominican Republic, St. Croix, Bermuda, Jamaica and Puerto Rico. For the most parts the hotels that are part of JetBlue Vacations are four star and packages include great sightseeing excursions. The hotels used by JetBlue are all very easy about cancellations and changes up until a week before scheduled arrival date. I was lucky enough to attend a press conference for JetBlue’s 20th anniversary at the W Hotel in Times Square two or three months ago and not only got to discuss these wonderful package trips with CEO Robin Hayes but got to meet some of the locals (nicknamed “ambassadors”) from different islands who actually meet up with JetBlue Vacation customers and give them grand tours of their homeland! I appreciate that JetBlue wants to give their vacation guests real local flavor and not just trips geared for tourists like many of the other major airlines do. They have the best on time flight records and in my personal experience of flying with them at least 50 times, I swear that only twice flights arrived late and only one was cancelled. Most of the time I get in almost a half hour early to my destination! I like they offer a great variety of free drinks and snacks (including the legendary blue potato chips that are their signature snack) and have the most complimentary cable and music channels of any airline! You can see in the photo above the easy-to-navigate screens at each seat. The cordial ground staff that always help at the kiosks and at the check in make your trip so smooth and their current terminal at LaGuardia (aka the Marine Air Terminal) is an adorable 1930s Art Deco building that is small and easy to get around in as all gates are a five minute or less walk from the front door! I love JetBlue for so many different reasons that I probably can writes book on them! For info on the aforementioned JetBlue Vacations (which you can use your True Blue points to book, not just cash), go to www.jetbluevacations.com.

Ask most people why they brush their teeth and they will probably say that it is to avoid cavities, have a sparkling white smile and fresh breath—but the risk of not brushing your teeth goes far beyond that. Poor dental hygiene can have serious impact on your health and lead to the spread of germs. BURST oral care’s Sonic toothbrush, which has been clinically proven to remove up to 10x more plaque than a manual toothbrush. Besides cleaning out germs so effectively that it reduces bleeding gums up to 3x more than a manual toothbrush, the BURST electric toothbrush is perfect for travel since it has four weeks battery life out of each charge. In addition, it has Charcoal Bristles especially designed to remove surface stains. Every 30 seconds you’ll feel a gentle vibration to remind you to move on to another part of your mouth. An incredible 25,000+ dental professionals recommend BURST; it was developed in conjunction with numerous dental professionals so that it would be the best affordable electric toothbrush on the market! BURST has been clinically proven to provide up to 91% greater plaque removal vs a manual toothbrush because of its incredible 33,000 sonic vibrations per minute. With one of the most powerful motors on the market, BURST will give you the deepest clean without damaging your gums. Versus a manual toothbrush, BURST reduces gum bleeding up to 3x more after just 15 days. BURST can be purchased at www.burstoralcare.com with an incredible bundle of supplemental oral hygiene goodies pictured above for only $59.99 right now!

I recently discovered the wonderful world of Catrice Cosmetics at a press event in their offices near Hudson Yards. This German company is all about high quality at a great price. I discovered their HD Foundation at the event I attended and even compared it to Fenty’s No Filt’r Foundation which costs more than three times more and found that I preferred HD Foundation. It’s my dream foundation because it’s a light liquid with great coverage and there are 23 great shades available for only $10.99 each. I was also able to check out Catrice x PETA Limited Edition lipstick which is just came in sale on 4/1! To celebrate Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month Catrice will be donating 10% of profits from these lipsticks to PETA, and that really impresses me. All Catrice X PETA lipsticks are vegan, alcohol free, oil free and paraben free and only available on www.catricecosmetics. You will also fall in love with their palettes, blushers, eyeliner pencils and liquid, primer and more—and most of them are on sale at the Catrice site right now. Catrice Cosmetics are also available at ULTA stores and www.ulta.com. A great gift for mom is to let her mix and match six or seven items that really work for her skin type and coloring. She’ll undoubtedly go crazy this line just like I did—sizes are generous and the quality is remarkable!

Leona Jewelry is truly a a combination Art, Fashion, Science and Technology—their incredible fashion forward designs are inspired by the limitless beauty found within the continuous fluid forms and structures in nature. They are created with organic seamless patterns that make each piece unique, fun, and alluring. The smooth shape of the jewelry is created by the Selective Laser Sintering 3D printer, and is made from a flexible nylon plastic material. It’s also extremely light weight and molds to the body comfortably. Cutting edge and timeless at the same time, Leona’s designs add a chic touch to day and night looks! Prices are super reasonable for jewelry so chic! I fell in love with everything on the Leona site but the Voronoi ring (pictured above and available in both gold and silver) blew me away! I have never seen a ring like this—it looks like a pile of metal bubbles to me. It is sized at 6 3/4 to fit most ladies’ fingers (it is intended to be worn on any finger). It makes a great Mother’s Day gift because it is such a conversation starter. The ring is priced at $165 and available exclusively on www.leonany.com. I guarantee that anyone who buys Leona jewelry will get addicted and have to add more to their collection! Hats off to Leona’s award-winning designer Akiyo Matsuoka for all her hard work, dedication and super creativity!

New York photographer Andrew Werner apparently loves flower pins as much as I do and that is why he created his classy Fleur’d line in 2013! These Chanel-inspired leather and other luxury material pins are crafted to look like many different flowers from camellias to roses and back again. They generally are priced at about $100 and will never go out of style! I love the diversity of flowers and fabrics, but I am especially loving the fact that they are all made right here in the Big Apple. My heart belongs to the camellia and always has! This is a gift for mom that she will wear for decades. Fleur’d pins can dress up any type of outfit and instantly lift your mood. For more info and to order, go to www.fleurdpins.com. (By the way, I also think this that these make lovely wedding favors just left in a center of tables at the reception or put into the welcome gift bags for attendants; the smaller ones can work as boutonnières for the guys!)

Lo And Sons’ Waverley 2 bag can be worn four different ways—as a wristlet, crossbody, belt bag and shoulder bag! It’s the perfect size for everyday, and extra great for that mom who likes to be hands free while running around town. This is a high quality real leather bag available in several colors with gold hardware and retails just over 100 bucks. The company’s classy embossed logo is embossed on the top front and you’ll find that this simple style appeals to all tastes and works for day into night! The Waverley 2 is actually available in two sizes (small and large) as well as a multitude of colors and both sizes weigh under 3/4ths of a pound! Waverley 2 may be small but it’s got three interior and one exterior pocket (which is the place New York’s most highly organized moms keep their Metrocards)! To order, go to www.loandsons.com. Sign up for the mailing list on their home page and get 15 per cent off your first order. Special note as of 4/28/2020: the entire site is 40 per cent off as we go to press with the code WELOVEMOM!