Girlfriend Charity Christmas Party and Give Away

Each year I host a Girlfriend Charity Christmas Party at my home on the first Friday of December.  I have been doing this for several years.

Every year each girl brings a beautiful gift to exchange that some or all of the proceeds from buying this gift benefit their favorite charity.

It always touches my heart to see the beautiful gifts that everyone comes up with for the gift exchange.

Each girl will be able to talk about the gift they bring for the exchange and why the benefiting charity is important to them.  The stories are heart warming.

We gather at my home and I usually have a theme for the party.  Last year's theme was Tequila and Tiara's.  We all wore Tiara's and had yummy Margarita's.  Anyway you get the idea about the theme!!!

This year is a Let's Whine (wine) that this is probably the last Girlfriend party in this home! (Since my home is up for sale.)

All my favors and prizes are wine themed.

Each girl wears their favorite Christmas jammies.  We all know it is more comfy to drink and eat in your jammies.  We really have a wonderful group that gathers each year to celebrate our love and friendships for each other.

This is my dining room table from the other day.  I started with all the stuff I needed to make up favors and prizes for the party.

I found these cute magnet Christmas lists at Michaels in the dollar bins.  Just adorable.

I added some Hershey's kisses and a red pen. An instant favor for less than $2 for each girl.

Michael's also had the sweetest note cards in the bins too. 

Look at these cute wine gift bags they had in the bins too.  They had several different designs one cuter than the next.

 I put each memo pad in a clear cello bag with some chocolate kisses and the pens and then tied them off with ribbon and small candy canes.  I think these will be a cute favor for each girlfriend to take home.  These will come in handy as they start their lists for the holidays.

Just wanted you to see my design assistant Libby is on break in the upper left corner.  Apparently her union contract states if the sun is streaming in the french doors she gets to sun herself.   She needed to nap while I was doing all the work!!!!!

Cute straws for our drinks in all different designs like the bags.

Since the Party is wine themed.  I got these cute wine purse/clutches.  Each girl is going to bring their favorite bottle of wine.  I will give each of them one of these cute wine purses for their bottle of wine.  We will play a game with the purses and wine and each girl will win a cute wine purse and bottle of wine to take home.

Loved this cheetah pattern.  Too cute!

Each wine purse comes with an insulated interior so this could be a multi tasking purse.  Maybe even used as a cute lunch tote!

Inside the zipper compartment each purse comes with a wine opener.

I found these cute wine purses at Marshall's and Home Goods.  They were on clearance for $7 each.  What a cool wine purse for $7.  They came in so many pretty patterns.
The hot pink is my favorite.  Love the cheetah pattern too.  Should be fun to play the wine game so everyone gets a nice bottle of wine and cute wine purse to take home.

One of the prizes I made up was this wonderful glamour satin pillow case.  If you sleep with this on your pillow it will give you smoother skin and healthier hair.  I found this at Home Goods and they came in different designs.  I got one for myself!  So we will see if my skin gets smoother and younger looking lol!
Also put in with this pillow case a wine mask.  Yep found these wine facial masks too.
So happy to find cute inexpensive wine themed things for prizes.

Now on to the Give Away.  You gotta love Home Goods.  I am addicted to Home Goods I will admit it!  That is my happy place to go!!!  Each year Home Goods brings out a shopping tote that when purchased the proceeds go to a wonderful charity.  They are only 99 cents to begin with but they sell so many of these it adds up quickly to benefit the charity.

This years tote proceeds are going to the Dana-Farber Jimmy Fund that helps kids with cancer.  My younger daughter Kim works as an pediatric oncology nurse at Lurie's Children's Hospital in Chicago.  I loved that Home Goods picked a pediatric cancer fund this year for the proceeds.

The art work used on the tote was done by a young girl (Kate 6 yrs. old) that is undergoing cancer treatments.

Love the sweet flowers she painted for the design of this tote.
 I am giving each of my girlfriends a tote to take home all her treasures from the party.  

I bought extra's so I have a few of these to give away to some lucky blog friends.

All you have to do is just leave me a message.  That's it no hoops to jump through or sign ups!  Just leave me a message and I will enter you into the giveaway for one of these totes.

If you are a no reply blogger please make sure you leave your email address so if you are picked I have a way to contact you.

Have a wonderful week ahead.  I want to wish safe travels for each of you traveling this week for Thanksgiving.  For all the rest of you that will be home for Thanksgiving have a wonderful day with family and friends.

I am thankful for all the sweet friendships I have been blessed with in this land they call blogging!!!  So blessed to know each of you.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Kris
:)