Mother’s Day is May 14th this year, and we have hand picked a few items found in Boise that will truly make your mom feel special! It can sometimes be a bit daunting trying to pick out the best gift for the person you love most in this world. We have your back and any of these gifts will be sure to make your momma feel like the spectacular woman she is.
The Chocolat Bar
Founders: Chris Preston and Kristi Echols-Preston
View Location Call 208-338-7771 Website
There are few moms (or people in general) who don’t enjoy chocolate, queue the Chocolat bar located in Downtown Boise. We were lucky enough to join founders & owners, Chris Preston and Krisiti-Echols-Preston in their shop during production hours. Watching the craftsmanship and detail that goes into each piece is truly staggering. Creating little masterpieces of sweets for Boise to enjoy has been their passion for many years.
How long has the store been open?
13 and a half years we've been open in Boise. We used to be located over on 9th St. for the first five years, and now we've been at 805 W Bannock for the past 8 and a half years.
Are you from Boise?
No, we're sort of from all over. We moved here from New Mexico 14 years ago with the specific game of opening the Chocolate Bar and opening it in the downtown area. Kristi is actually a biologist, and I was a finance guy, and we just loved to cook. Kristi has an incredible palate and she's very creative, so we decided to open our shop.
What made you think to move to Boise in particular?
The vibrancy of downtown. There's just so much to do here! And it's a real community and that really drew us in... Very few cities in the United States are like Boise.
For Mother's Day, are you putting together any packages that you recommend getting as a gift?
We have beautiful one-pound gift boxes, filled with milk and dark chocolate selections. They have really pretty packaging! I hand painted some solid chocolate high heel shoes, they are really beautiful and very special. If you're not sure what to get, I guarantee we have something that will take care of even the fussiest mom.
Stillwater Float Center
Owner: Tyler Crow
View Location Call 208-342-0228 Website
Have you heard about the biggest trend in relaxation & healing? At Stillwater Float Center you get into a water pod and seemingly float your worries away. Floating aids in combating hypertension, arthritis, back pain, muscle fatigue and insomnia. Pain reduction is one of the most beneficial aspects of floating. Many users report a significant decrease in pain levels after just one float.
What made you want to start a business in Boise?
My business partner and I at the time wanted to start a business since we got out of college. My partner found out about this from Joe Rogan, it was something he used to talk about on his podcasts. We thought it sounded interesting so we tried it, and it turned out to be really cool! We worked on it for about a year and then we finally got it open, and it's been doing really well!
Do you recommend any packages for Mother's Day?
Every time it's your first time in, it's only $45 for an hour float. You could buy a gift certificate for your mom! We also offer a massage and float combo for $99.
Help mom relax this Mother’s Day by giving her a float session with Stillwater Float Center and even better, go with her!
Title Nine
Owner: Missy Park
Local Store Manager: Robin Fregoso
View Location Call 208-342-1493 Website
For those active moms who are even busier today than they were yesterday, we suggest checking out Title Nine in their shop downtown.
Why did you want to start a business like this in Boise?
We are a privately held business from California. We are family owned. Boise is an outdoor, active community - which coincides with our business, it's a direct parallel!
What is unique about Title Nine in Boise?
What's unique about our business is that we are passionate about women and sports and we have the gear to support that. Our owner started our business with sports bras, and we are very passionate about having a good fitting sports bra and having the gear you need to do the activities you love... We have everything from dresses, swimwear, outdoor gear, running pants... Online we carry shoes and sandals, too! Anything you'd need to stay active.
We don't believe in dry-cleaning either - everything, aside from a few specialty items around the holidays, is wash and wear. And that's another thing I love about our company.
Fifty Flowers
Owners: Liza Roeser Atwood and Blu Atwood
Website
Send Love to your Mom this Mother’s Day with Fresh Flowers from FiftyFlowers.com! Choose from our pre-arranged gift arrangements, made specially for Mom, or choose our Mother’s Day Mixed Tulips or Peonies to give her a colorful assortment of gorgeous flowers that she can create her own arrangements with, perfect for placing around the house! Save 5% on your order by using code: TOTALLYBOISE5
Shop for Mom here: https://www.fiftyflowers.com/flowers/mothers-day_24303.htm
FiftyFlowers is headquartered in Boise, Idaho, but are solely an online company, so you can buy local, but from the comfort of your own home!
They ship flowers fresh and direct from our partner farms straight to your door, so you get the freshest flowers available at wholesale prices.
Need flowers for a wedding, special event, holidays, or just because? FiftyFlowers has you covered!
FiftyFlowers is owned and operated by husband and wife team, Liza Roeser Atwood and Blu Atwood. They live here in Boise with their two daughters. With about 20 employees in the Boise office and we also have an office in Quito, Ecuador.
Liza spent time in Ecuador while she was in the peace corps and then stayed to work at a flower farm. It was there that she saw the need to bring flowers direct from the farm to customers, or the DIY Bride, and she started FiftyFlowers. Her husband later joined and brought his background of marketing and tech.
Even though FiftyFlowers is an online company and they ship all over the US and Canada, and are very much a part of the local community.
They have donated flowers to many local events/fundraisers, like the Idaho Youth Ranch and March of Dimes, plus have donated in other ways with organizations like the Ada County Sheriff Shop with Cop and the City Light Home for Women.
Although they send their flowers fresh from the farm to our customers, they often get flowers into the office to test quality and photograph, so when they have flowers left over, they sometimes have Free Flower Friday in their front office and give out flowers to those people walking by!
Flowers make people happy, so they really try to spread the love! They also organized the Petal it Forward event in here in Boise. This is a national event that was started by the Society of American Florists to spread the joy of flowers, so every year, hundreds of cities participate by handing out 2 flowers or bouquets to people, one for them to keep and the other for them to give to someone else, or petal it forward! It's through events like these that we really try to connect with the local community!
Blue Fringe Boutique
Owner: Keri Kinzel
View Location Call 208-921-4272
Blue Fringe Boutique in Meridian offers unique women's clothing, accessories and footwear all which are affordably priced.
Their clothing is perfectly blended between trendy & boho to edgy with a vintage vibe. From the clothing to the jewelry and shoes, each item has been handpicked for an expressive style.
Blue Fridge Boutique's owner is a native of Idaho and was raised in Jerome. We asked her to tell us a little about herself.
Keri: I have lived in Boise for 27 years and feel lucky every day that I landed here. Boise has to be one of the best places in the world to live. I remind my three children of that all the time of the amazing city they are growing up in and the opportunities that are all around them. As luck would have it, I was working part time at Bella Blue Boutique when the owner decided to sell her Meridian location. I jumped at the opportunity because this was something I had wanted to do for the longest time. I changed the name to Blue Fringe and have been up and running for a year and nine months.
Blue Fringe Boutique is a complete shopping experience from the fashionable clothes on the racks to the shop's displays and decor.
For Mother's Day gift ideas, anything from jewelry, handbags, hats and scarves are the perfect one of a kind outfit.
For Mother's Day, Blue Fringe wants to honor all the wonderful women that we have in our lives whether it be our own mother, an aunt, friend or someone you know who has all the qualities of a great mom.
Follow, share and tag on Facebook or Instagram 3 mom role models in your life to be entered into their contest to win a Lipsense color and gloss and a $50 gift card from Blue Fringe. You may enter 1 time per day thru Saturday, May 13th. Two winners will be announced on Mother's Day, May 14th.
Hunt and Gather Gifts
Owner: Drew Alexsandra
Instagram
We found Hunt and Gather Gifts on Instagram and knew we needed to feature their gorgeous and custom boxes for Mothers Day. The thoughtful items that are put into these gift boxes will make any mom feel so special.
We asked Drew to tell us a little bit about how Hunt and Gather Gifts started.
Drew: I started making gift boxes for friends years ago. I would spend lots of time on each box to make sure it went together aesthetically and everything in it was useful. After helping with some corporate gift boxes I decided to turn it into a business.
We offer several different box themes including a housewarming box, a new baby box, and a man box. But the thing I love most about this business is that it's not limited to just a few themes. If someone comes to me because they need a box for their bridesmaids, for a graduate, for their Aunt Susan's 90th birthday - you name it! - it's an opportunity for me to go on a scavenger hunt and build something beautiful that will really be a personalized gift they'll cherish.
**all images by Totally Boise or used with permission from business.