12 May 2017 A Few Of Our Favorite Things

 For Playstation’s 20th anniversary, Sony Computer Entertainment teamed up with CharityStars to auction 50 PlayStation®4 (PS4™) 20th Anniversary Editions to support Terre des Homme. These consoles feature the most innovative technology along with the original gray paint scheme, recalling the first PlayStation design. This limited edition console is a true must-have for every gaming fan.  The winners got a unique collection piece and supported a great cause. The proceeds supported the Terre des Hommes project, which provides direct care to over 600 minors suffering from physical or psychological violence. The campaign reached a goal of more than $100,ooo in support of the Terre des Homme project.   “Here at Playstation, we think that every kid should have the possibility to grow happily, without knowing what violence means. Unfortunately, not all of them have had this privilege. For this reason we’re proud to collaborate with Terre des Homme for this project that we hope could bring happiness and fun to all those children that didn’t have this opportunity.” - Marco Saletta - Sony Computer Entertainment Italy General Manager.

Do you need advice on finding the perfect gift for your grandmother? You could buy her flowers, a book, perfume… or you can do what one bidder did and surprise your granny with a lunch with Silvio Berlusconi, the renowned former Italian prime minister.  It’s not the cheapest gift. The winner bid €70,000 to win the lunch, auctioned by CharityStars. The amount, however, was completely worth it. The proceeds directly supported the central Italy earthquake victims.  To make the gift even more special, the lunch is going to take place at Berlusconi’s personal residence in Arcore.  “Dear friends, I decided to auction this experience to support the victims of the Italian earthquake. I think everyone should do everything in his/her means to help our fellow citizens, and sometimes we can be helpful even with smaller gestures. I’ll be really glad to meet and have lunch with the generous winner of the auction, that I hope is going to be sold to a high price, since the proceeds will support the Italian Red Cross!” - Silvio Berlusconi

Mother’s Day is just around the corner! Are you still looking for the perfect gift for your mom? Here’s our advice for finding a truly original gift. It’s not easy to find something different to give your mom on Mother’s Day, especially if you’ve already given many gifts in the past. Jewelry, perfume, books.. yawn.. Why not try a unique idea that’s sure to add that wow factor this Mother’s Day: Gifts for music-loving moms: If your mom adores music and you’re all out of ideas why not treat her to a meeting with a famous singer? CharityStars gives you the chance to meet Italian and International singers from Alessandra Amoroso to Piero Pelù, Arisa and Aerosmith. Another great way to leave your mom speechless this Mother’s Day is to send her a personal video-message from her favorite singer! And that’s not all. At CharityStars you will find a host of original gift ideas such as signed t-shirts or guitars, Xfactor tickets, meet&greets with singers and much more. All you have to do is find the auction you want to bid on or ask us for a personalized experience via our dedicated page. Gifts for food-loving moms: Does your mom love cooking but you’re tired of giving her cookery books and kitchen utensils? We’ve found the solution! There are plenty of sites that offer cookery courses at all kinds of different schools but what if it was Cracco or Canavacciuolo in person to reveal their secrets to the perfect dish? CharityStars gives you the chance to treat your mom to experiences with some of the biggest celebrity chefs. Bid on the chance to meet Carlo Cracco or have a dinner personally prepared for you by Alberto Barbieri or Antonino Cannavacciuolo.   Gifts for fashion-loving moms: Is your mom a fashion follower? Don’t know what to give her this Mother’s Day? What if you could surprise her with tickets to a fashion week show? You’d be giving a unique gift and an unforgettable experience! At CharityStars you can buy passes for some of the hottest fashion week runway shows. Or instead bid on bags, accessories, pieces worn by celebrities and many other items that you’ll find in our Auctions section.   If you’re wondering where you can buy these unique Mother’s Day gifts all you have to do is check our current auctions or ask for a personalized experience via our dedicated page!  

We’ve all played Candy Crush, the addicting app that broke so many records. Conceived by Riccardo Zacconi, the app reached the highest position in every game ranking and had over 45 milion unique monthly users. It was this amazing result that convinced Francesco and Luca, two entrepreneurs in the app business, to bid 25,500€ for the opportunity to have lunch with Riccardo Zacconi. “Both of us really admire Riccardo, since he is one of the few Italians who created a billion dollar company in the same market we operate in. He represents an example from which we can learn so much, and that is why we were extremely interested in the opportunity to visit King headquarters and have lunch with him”, said the auction winners. The proceeds of the auction supported Liberamente Onlus and its project, which helped renovate “La Casa Pediatrica”, the pediatric wing of the Fatebenefratelli Hospital in Milan, Italy. However, Francesco and Luca were not the only winners. Our CharityStars team had its own little victory as well. The hospital thanked CharityStars for the collaboration and the visibility of the campaign, and a plaque with the CharityStars logo was hung in the hospital to remind everyone that even an app can have a “sweet” impact on people in need.