I first spotted Madame Fortuna’s “Relic” line at a great little shop called Sleep in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and immediately asked the sales lady who designed them. All the Relics are delicate hand-blown glass globes that contain a meaningful object - a Victorian die-cut, a petit-point rose, a scoop of red soil or yellow coral, or my favorite, an exquisite little feather from a robin, peacock, or cardinal.

The prefab pieces are seriously breathtaking, but Madame Fortuna will also custom-make a Relic from the tiny object of your choice - putting an elegant new spin on the time capsule. It’s early to start thinking about Valentine’s Day and all, but I can tell you now that no woman on earth can resist a personalized memento housed in a pretty little sphere - as long as it’s in good taste, of course (hint: not her medication).

From $175 at Etsy.

Rare is the Father’s Day gift that might delight the giver just as much as her hubby/babydaddy. So if your man’s already got enough golf clubs and neckties, and you’re into the selfish sharing thing, consider the Te Quiero, Papi gift set from Carol’s Daughter. The almond oil and ylang-ylang shaving lotion, tui hair oil, and vanilla sandalwood shea souffle and eau de toilette are all sure to gloriously groom your guy, but their heavenly scents should entice you to indulge every now and again as well.

Also available: the Fit for a King set (with fancy soap and all sorts of royally skin-smoothing lotions) and the Big Kahuna set (featuring some Hawaiian-ginger-infused products perfect for surfer dad).

Sadly discovered just a wee bit too late for Mother’s Day, Gagatree’s Winter Garden pop-ups are some of the sweetest greeting cards I’ve ever seen. Mailed just like a regular card, the prettily printed paper wonders unfold into keepsake ornaments (watch how it works here). I like the one with bunnies best, but there are also kitties and squirrels and butterflies and birds.

(via Oh Joy!)

So you no longer have to fake like you actually know the meaning of those leaves left lingering in your tea cup: the Tea for Two set by Atelier Daguerre has tealeaf reading hints inscribed right inside its two porcelain cups. The saucers, meanwhile, offer a dictionary of symbols and their meanings. A lovely Mom’s Day gift for the tea lover, and one that might actually inspire some sweet old fashioned mother-daughter bonding time.

For the francophile mom: the Basic French Adult Wish bracelet, a sweet little piece of satin silkscreened with a message scrawled just for the recipient - en francais, bien sûr.

With its lovely fuschia ribbon, the Mother’s-Day-perfect Adult Wish reads “Maman…je t’aime” (“Mommy…I love you”). But there’s a bunch of bracelets for other occasions (or non-occasions). Some of our favorites: “Je voeux des fraises” (“I wish for strawberries”), “Je te voeux” (“I want you”), and the somewhat intense “Jolie Princesse Voeux Namoureux…pour cros calins” (“Pretty Princess wishes for a Lover…for big snuggles”). Whoa.

Peter Cottontail may have some company on the bunny trail this year. The ever-fabulous Vosges Haut-Chocolat has introduced a line of “exotic bunnies”, all of whom are so much more enticing than that hollow Easter rabbit who’s been stubbornly turning up in your basket since forever.

For a more epicurean Easter, Vosges gives us the Volcano Rabbit (made with all the ancho and chipotle chillies, Ceylon cinnamon, and dark chocolate of their Red Fire bars), the Black-Naped Hare (curry and coconut and milk chocolate, oh my), the Ryukyu Rabbit (a friend of the Black Pearl bar, featuring ginger, wasabi, dark chocolate, and black sesame seeds), the Italian Hare (with straight-outta-Sicily hazelnuts, almonds, and milk chocolate), and the Tarragona European Rabbit (satisfying both savory and sweet cravings with his Hickory smoked almonds, grey sea salt, and milk chocolate).

Adopt four bunnies and you get one bunny free. And all their ears are extra-long and so adorably floppy - all the better to be bitten off first.

There’s a reason why “BFF” isn’t text message-ese for “boy friend forever.”

Though I love you fellas.

Nope, your BFF is your best friend for ever (and a day), so skip spending your time hunting for wearable chocolates and edible lingerie for your boy, and invest your Valentine time and money in your true love.

You could do her a box of See’s candy heart chocolates, though I know my platonic lover would play polite - smile, “Thanks,” trash - but have none of that.

We like to keep fit for each other.

ThisNexter Chantel gets it:

“Girls should get practical and sparkly gifts for Valentine’s Day.”

Type that a little louder, I want everyone to hear you. Shiny shiny is key.

“Buy her a [Aspects butterfly-print suede clutch],” says Chantel, “she’ll use it and think of you a lot longer than she would trying to lose the weight from the chocolate.

...continued: V Day with Your BFF