As you know, the goal of GiftStumped is to help you find those gifts that you wouldn’t normally think of and ya know, ‘Un-Stump Your Brain‘.

Aside from just helping you find unique and cool gifts we also like to feature gifts that give back.

This week we wanted to talk about Dell’s RED line.

Most people have seen or heard about RED through their clothing products or know it as Bono’s charity/foundation. The cool thing is they have partnered with companies like Apple, American Express, Armani and Dell to raise money.

In the case of Dell, Dell and RED have worked to create a line of computers. They have notebooks, a printer and of course the XPS One.

The XPS One is a desktop that comes with the works! Here is a little about it:

• Intel® Core 2 Duo E4500
• Windows Vista® Ultimate (PRODUCT) RED (sorry..maybe they’ll do it without Vista)
• Adobe Elements Studio for XPS™ One
• Norton Internet Security™
• 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive
• 8X Slot load CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW)
• Hybrid Analog/Digital TV Tuner with Remote Control
• Internal Bluetooth 2.0 Included
• You can of course find more specs at the Dell site.

The XPS One starts at $1599 but the best part is…for each computer purchased, $80 goes directly to Africa. And according to the site, $80 gets 6 months of life preserving antiretroviral medication for a person living with AIDS in Africa.

So, while a computer itself may not be a unique gift, one that contributes to a good cause is. Kudos to Dell and the other companies participating in this!

With the graduation season upon us we thought we would create a list of gift ideas for the high school and college graduate. But as you know we don’t just give you regular old ideas here at GiftStumped - we give you unique gift ideas.

We have put together some ideas for creating gift baskets your graduate will not only like but actually use.

For the High School Graduate

Going into college you think you need a ton of stuff. I had everything under the sun my freshman year but by the time I was a senior, I took about about half of that with me. Here are a few gift basket ideas featuring the things your high school grad REALLY needs:

	Laundry Basket - One word…Quarters. Doing laundry while in college can be a huge pain in the rear. I remember searching for quarters in our couch cushions and having to use my roommate’s detergent cause I was too lazy to go to the store. No fun. To create: Buy a laundry basket and fill it with the things you know your grad will need - detergent, dryer sheets, hangers and of course quarters. You may also want to throw in there towels, flip-flops (for the shower) and some bath goods.
	Keep-in-Touch Basket - While traditional letter writing has gone the way of the 8 track it is still nice to send mail every once in a while and your grad may appreciate it. To create: Buy a file folder/organizer and it fill it with stationery, envelopes and stamps. You could also add cards for different occasions (birthdays, just for fun, Christmas, etc). A great personal touch would be getting a matching address book and writing in the addresses and email addresses of loved ones and friends.
	Medicine Basket/Kit - Perhaps some of the most underrated products we as kids take for granted when living at our parents houses are the medicines we use. Need a BandAid? Which size? Cold medicine? Day or night? A medicine kit is a GREAT gift that will definitely be used. To create: Buy a small plastic container (Artbin’s work great) and fill it with the things your grad will need - Advil, Tylenol, Band Aids, Tums, Pepto Bismol, Cold & Flu, cough syrup, etc. Add a gift card to Target or some cash for an additional treat.
	Gift Certificate Basket - Yes, gift certificates aren’t typically unique…but they can be. Create a small basket featuring gift certificates to places like the college bookstore, fast food restaurants and the local grocery store. Fast food was a 2-3x week staple for me and not having to pay made it even better. To create: Get a small basket and fill it with a few gift cards to places you know your grad will go. Buy some candy and snacks to fill the basket.

For the College Graduate

When you graduate and move into your own apartment you realize a few things…Those three plastic plates you used for four years don’t really seem as great as they once did, the one pot you have isn’t conducive to cooking an actual meal and having a matching set of towels for the bathroom is kind of nice. Here are a few gift basket ideas to help the college grad get started in their new life:

	Kitchen Basket - A kitchen basket has endless possibilities. Have you ever walked into Williams-Sonoma? That place is amazing! The kitchen section at Ikea? Plates galore! Get your grad a few things you know they will need - plates, glasses, silverware, dish towels, a couple of pots and pans, tupperware, etc. To create: Buy a laundry basket or something that you know they can use and fill it with some kitchen goods. A great finisher would be a gift card to the local grocery store.
	Food & Drink Basket - Want to know one of the best gifts I have ever receieved? A cooler. A simple cooler that I can take with me camping, to concerts or anywhere else. They are cheap and one of those gifts you don’t realize how much you will use. To create: Buy a cooler from Lowe’s or Wal-Mart and fill it with some food and beverages your grad likes. There are also these personalized party tub coolers that might be a nice touch.
	Cleaning Basket- I didn’t know just how much went into cleaning a small apartment. Don’t get me wrong, I had cleaning chores as a kid but like the medicine, everything I needed was just there. Windex, Pledge, Scrubbing Bubbles, Mr. Clean, the list goes on and on. To create: Get a plastic bin and fill it with cleaning products for your grad. Sponges, dust clothes and paper towels are also a nice addition. If you are feeling crazy consider a Swiffer or vacuum as well.

Well, those are my gift ideas for high school and college graduates and I hope you find them useful. Of course you could always be unoriginal and just give them money…

Update: I came across a couple of other sites with some nice ideas so I thought I would include them.

• Purple Trail
  
• College Candy

Know someone who can’t find anything in the mess they created for themselves?

Then, a great gift idea is to treat them to a gift certificate for a professional organization session!

There is even a trade association, the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO), that can help you locate a professional organizer in your area through their searchable online directory.

Not only can you search for organization consultants by location, you can also search by area of specialty. Some of the specialties that you can use in your search include:

• Closet Design and Installation
• Closet Organizing
• Estate Organizing
• Feng Shui
• Financial/Bookkeeping
• Garages/Attics/Basements
• Garage/Estate Sales
• Home Office
• Kitchens
• Moving/Relocation
• Other Rooms
• Photographs/Memorabilia/Collections
• Time Management

Of course, you can always offer to do it yourself. But, you run the risk of ruining a perfectly good relationship!

My grandmother gave my mom the Betty Crocker cookbook when she left home and in turn my mother gave me the Betty Crocker cookbook when I left home. I guess if I have a daughter I have to give one to her right?

I probably will but I would also consider giving her a TasteBook. TasteBook is a site that allows you to create your own cookbook from recipes in their database (they have a ton from Epicurious…mmm) and/or recipes of your own.

The application is easy to use and for $35 you get a hardcover cookbook featuring 100 recipes and you can even include personal photos and your own title.

I really think this would make a great graduation gift, housewarming gift, wedding gift or birthday gift for someone special to you. It may take some time to create but the personalization can really mean a lot to someone. Plus $35 is a great deal!

Visit TasteBook to find out more. Tell them we helped you un-stump your brain.

Update: All Recipes and Big Oven also offer personalized cookbooks around the same price.

OK, you have a sports fan, music fan, or theater fan you want to give a gift to. And it would be great to send them to the game or the show.

But, what if they’re busy that night?

If it’s too hard to figure out your gift recipient’s schedule, or if you’re not sure what kind of event they would prefer to go to - just them them a gift certificate to choose their own tickets!

There are at least two places I can think of that have a wide variety of ticket types, and offer gift certificates:

StubHub -		StubHub Gift Certificates
TicketsNow -		TicketsNow Gift Certificates

Maybe they’ll bring back their ticket stubs for your collection…