AmericasMart Kicks Off a New Year of Gift-Getting

Happy New Year! For retailers, January signals the start of the gift-buying season and a national round of trade events focused on what’s new in the gift market. Since children’s gifts are one of the most resilient product categories, buyers are encouraged to support the gift shows and discover ways to start or expand their gift selections. Here’s a preview of the first gift show of the season, The Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market, January 6-13 at AmericasMart. Also see January’s Trade Show Calendar on The Giggle Guide^® to plan your gift-planning schedule.

AmericasMart Atlanta has been making connections between retailers and wholesalers since 1957. As the largest event of its kind, it’s a great place to discover both new and time-tested gifts and home furnishings.

The Giggle Guide^® previews Family Time Fun Dinner Games, Christy’s Funky Furniture, Clementine Art and Lemon Loves Lime, just a few of the wide variety of gifts and furnishings showing at AmericasMart.

Family Time Fun Serves Dinner Games

Families today are busier than ever. Finding time to spend together as a family can be difficult. John Pandiscio decided to find a way to incorporate fun family time into his own family’s life. He came up with the idea of playing word games at the dinner table. When his game play met with incredible success, John decided to introduce his idea to other families.

His company, aptly named Family Time Fun, now offers a wide selection of games. Not only does Family Fun Time offer games for the dinner table, which promotes the value of family meals together, parents can also find games for fun bonding in the car and restaurants.

The games have won several awards, including Creative Child Magazine’s 2008 Preferred Choice Award, and The National Parenting Center Seal of Approval.

Family Time Fun will be in Building 3 on the 3rd floor, in Booth 407. To preview the entire selection, visit www.ftfgames.com.

Christy’s Funky Furniture Brightens the New Year

Christy from Christy’s Funky Furniture has been painting her entire life. When she made the decision to start selling her painted creations to the public, she used a spare room in her home. Her business quickly outgrew her back room, and she now has two 24’ x 24’ buildings where her creative juices flow.

Christy’s Funky Furniture offers one-of-a-kind, hand-painted children’s table sets, vintage suitcases, frames, trays, canvas products and wooden letters. Custom orders are also available upon request.

See her original furniture art in Building 3, on the 3rd floor, booth number 1214 at the Gift Show. For more information, go to www.christysfunkyfurniture.com.

Clementine Art Offers All-Natural Supplies

Diana from Clementine Art was concerned about whether “non-toxic” art supplies were safe enough for children. She knew that “non-toxic” on a label does not mean the product is chemical free.

With this in mind, Diana decided to create her own line of all-natural art supplies. Using flour, earth coloring and other all-natural ingredients, she went to work creating kid-safe art supplies. Clementine Art sells all natural markers, modeling dough, crayons, paints, and multi-purpose glue. In addition to child-safety, Diana is also concerned for environmental safety, so she uses recycled and reusable ingredients wherever possible.

Visit Clementine Art at the Show in Building 3, on the 3rd floor in Booth 1008. For more information, see www.clementineart.com.

Lemon Loves Lime Quenches Thirst for Girls’ Apparel

Lemon Loves Lime was created to express the depth of love a mother has for her child. Joy, the owner of Lemon Loves Lime, weaves her love for her daughter into every outfit she designs. Each garment brings to mind memories of children’s laughter and celebrates the wonder experienced when exploring their world.

New designs are added annually to the Spring and
Fall selections. Each line has at least two collections, as well as fanciful accessories. Lemon Loves Lime captures the innocence of children, with age-appropriate styles that offer a fresh flair for fashion.

Visit Lemon Loves Lime at the Gift Show in Building 3, 3rd floor, booth number 505. Preview the collection at www.lemonloveslime.com.

For more information on the Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishing Market, visit www.americasmart.com.