Outside of the box, Norman Love Confections offers a variety of Gift Baskets, and our Chocolate Specialties, such as our famous Peppermint Chocolate Christmas Bark and fresh Chocolate-Covered Candied Nuts and Fruits, stand alone as affordable gifts and delightful stocking stuffers.

Want to take it a step further… Here are some creative ideas to incorporate chocolate into your holiday celebration in surprising new ways:

• Present Toppers – Heighten the natural anticipation that comes with receiving a wrapped gift by also putting a beautifully packaged treat on top with the ribbon. Gift Boxes and Chocolate Specialties, as well as Gift Certificates, make excellent present toppers. Christmas morning can’t come soon enough!
• Membership Privileges – Give someone a gift that keeps giving all year long. Sign them up for one of our four Chocolate Clubs. Members enjoy 4 or 12 shipments of signature line or Norman Love Confections BLACK™ boxes of chocolate throughout the year!
• Hidden Gems – You may have heard of the “12 Gems of Christmas” giveaway, in which Norman Love Confections and Mark Loren designs are hiding 12 pieces of jewelry and 12 gift cards in Norman Love Confections gift boxes Dec. 1-25. Surprise someone you love by placing a small precious gift inside on of our gift boxes or baskets filled with chocolate gourmet goodies. A bonus… they’ll never guess there is jewelry inside!
• New Year, New Tradition – Brighten someone’s New Year’s Eve celebration with a gift of champagne and chocolate. White chocolate confections, such as our Candy Cane and Eggnog flavors, make an excellent pairing with champagne. Best of all, you may start a new tradition of toasting with chocolate! Click here for additional wine and chocolate pairings to consider for your holiday preparations.
• Travel Friendly Gifts – This may not be all that surprising, but we thought we’d include it as a friendly reminder. If you or your gift recipient is traveling this holiday season, Gift Certificates and Norman Love Confections BLACK™ sipping chocolate make very travel friendly gifts. These gifts won’t melt on the journey and aren’t as likely to be confiscated at airport security if you take the appropriate precautions. Gift Certificates are also affordable to ship so you can give more!

Inspired? Please share new outside-the-box holiday gift ideas with the Norman Love community here!

When you bite into a Peanut-Butter-and-Jelly confection, you taste peanut butter and strawberry jelly that were made fresh in the Norman Love Confections kitchen by our very own artisans. Yes, we even bake our own New York-style cheesecakes to create the New York Cheesecake confection and Key Lime pies for Key Lime confections.

One of our newest lines, S’more Love, is a perfect example. We take this traditional campsite treat to the next level by preparing our own crunchy, freshly baked graham cracker, light and fluffy homemade marshmallows and salted bourbon vanilla caramel. These ingredients are then enrobed in dark chocolate. By producing each ingredient in every piece of S’more Love step-by-step, we can ensure our customers enjoy the freshest, highest quality gourmet ingredients possible!

If you haven’t yet tried S’more Love, Tuesday, Aug. 10 would be a great day to try it. It’s National S’more Day!

Do you remember your first taste of S’more? Was it a family camping trip, a Boy Scout adventure or a backyard BBQ? We’d love to swap stories with you so leave a comment!

A traditional campsite treat for young and old alike, each piece of S’more Love is enrobed in dark chocolate, filled with a crunchy freshly baked graham cracker, light and fluffy homemade marshmallows and salted bourbon vanilla caramel.

Founded in 2001 by Norman and Mary Love, Norman Love Confections creates and distributes ultra-premium, handcrafted artisanal chocolates. Based in Fort Myers, the corporate headquarters encompasses both production and retail operations. The Chocolate Salon is a stylish retail shop with an intimate ambience in which customers may purchase chocolates or linger over house-made pastries, gourmet coffees, lattes and smoothies. 

For more information or to place an order, call 239-561-7215, or toll free 866-515-2121, or visit http://www.normanloveconfections.com/. The Chocolate Salon is located at 11380 Lindbergh Boulevard, east of I-75, off Daniels Parkway in Fort Myers, and is open Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Summer Schedule – Remaining Classes:

July
21st – Truffles (This Wednesday Night!)
28th – Molded Chocolates

August
4th –  Liquid Love: Making Fondue with Flair
18th – Cupcakes (Sorry this class is full!)
25th – Molded Bittersweet 61%

September
1st – Black Tasting

If so – be sure to join us in our Gourmet Chocolate Classes where you’ll be assisted every step of the way by my team of gourmet chocolatiers.

We’ll help you make your very own mold of candies, from buffing, to coloring, to casting and boxing — and the best part?

Every confection you make is yours to take home!

I do try to be at every class, however, if I’m not able make it, my team of chefs will help you every step of the way.

If you’d like to learn more about our Gourmet Chocolate Classes be sure to visit our web site.  Please keep in mind, you must make reservations in advance as space is limited and our classes sell out quickly.

If you’d like to make a reservation, please give us a call at (239) 561-7215.

Thank you,

- Norman

…contest where people nominated Mothers throughout the state of Florida to our Storybook Mother’s Day contest.

Last week, Mark Loren and I delivered our gifts to the winners of the contest, be sure to check out our photos from our journey.

Thank you to everyone who participated,

Norman

Maura, our Production Manager, worked with Jennifer Hicks (and her staff) of the North Carolina Museum of Art to create a gourmet chocolate version of the Kirchner’s Panama Dancers painting!

Using 2,400 flat, square shaped Norman Love Confections dark chocolate shells filled with Tahitian Vanilla Ganache, they recreated the painting.

We used 12 colors to produce the 2,400 pieces, and then mixed and matched the colors out of cocoa butter — airbrushing them to match the painting.

They assembled the piece in the studio at the end of April (here’s the video!)

Panama Truffles from The North Carolina Museum of Art on Vimeo.

The event was on Thursday, April 29th, and the guests were allowed to eat the chocolates during the evening, uncovering the artwork underneath!

Here’s a funny photo of the male servers passing the extra chocolates out in tutu’s to match the girls!

Thinking of Gourmet Chocolate?  Be sure to check out all of our offerings on our web site at www.NormanLoveConfections.com.

Be sure to watch the video above to see our segment with WinkNews, where Mark and I describe the contest, and how you can get involved by nominating your mother, or a mother you may know.

Please note: This contest is open to residents of Florida only.

If you’re interested in entering the contest, you’ll have to do so by midnight of Saturday, May 1st, by:

* Going to www.WinkNews.com.
* Clicking on the “Mother’s Day Contest” (you’ll see a button on the right).

If you can think of a mother you’d like to nominate – please do!

The winners will receive a personal visit by Mark and I, and some very special gifts, as well.

Thank you,

- Norman (and Mark Loren)

…for the Boston Red Sox Foundation’s Heart Walk Team with the American Heart Association by purchasing our Valentine’s BLACK Heart collections for Valentine’s Day this year!

On Monday (April 29th), Mary & I will be presenting the check to the Boston Red Sox Foundation at 6:30pm (before the 7pm Red Sox game) at the City of Palms Park in Fort Myers.

Our partnership with the Boston Red Sox Foundation and the American Heart Association is particularly one that hits close to home because the Red Sox train here in Fort Myers, only a few miles from Our Salon.

We are glad to have had this opportunity to raise funds and awareness for this cause.

Be sure to learn more about The Red Sox Foundation, the American Heart Association, and us!

-Norman

Just recently, I divided my staff into three teams to create three gourmet chocolate centerpieces (pictured above).

The three pieces are on display at the Our Salon through Friday, April 2nd. Each piece will be raffled off for the benefit of the Pediatric Hemotology/Oncology Program at the Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida.

You can purchase tickets for $5 for your chance to win one of our creations.

100% of the proceeds will be donated to this specialized program for children with cancer and blood disorders.

I have a special place in my heart for Dr. Salman, and these children.

If you’re in the Southwest Florida area and want to help us support this amazing organization, be sure to stop in Our Salon no later than Friday, April 2nd, and purchase your ticket.

Thank you so much for your support,

Norman