By ERIC SCHELKOPF - eschelkopf@kcchronicle.com

Linda Ruhl of North Aurora has a hard time buying gifts for her nieces and nephews because they live out of town.

So this Christmas, they will receive MasterCard gift cards.

“They live in Atlanta, where they don’t have our stores,” Ruhl said. “They can use it at any store.”

Gift cards are becoming increasingly popular. The National Retail Federation predicted that gift-card sales would total $26.3 billion this holiday season, compared with $24.8 billion in 2006.

“As consumers become more strapped for time, they are constantly looking for ways to make holiday shopping easier and less stressful,” said Phil Rist, vice president of strategy for BIGresearch, which conducted a consumer survey for the National Retail Federation. “Gift cards allow for a faster and more convenient way to buy gifts for family and friends.”

According to the survey, 56.6 percent of consumers planned to buy gift cards.

In addition, 87.7 percent of shoppers said they would buy two or more gift cards this holiday season.

The survey polled 7,982 consumers between Oct. 31 and Nov. 7.

Wool and Company in downtown Geneva has been selling gift cards for four years.

“They are very popular as a gift, especially for specialized merchandise like we carry,” store co-owner Neil Edmondson said. “We realized the value of them early on.”

The store carries cards in any value that a customer wants, he said.

Procrastinators who stick their gift cards in a drawer and forget about them also are in luck. Beginning Jan. 1, state law requires that all gift cards bought on or after that date remain active for at least five years.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan urged consumers to be informed before buying gift cards.

Gift cards are required to clearly display all terms and conditions, including expiration dates and fees.

If an expiration date is not on the gift card, a toll-free number must be provided for the customer to find out when the card expires.

In 2004, she helped draft and pass a law with these requirements.

“But even with legal protections, a consumer’s No. 1 protection this holiday season is to read the fine print and find out about any expiration dates or fees before purchasing gift cards,” Madigan said.

Karole Masters of North Aurora has found that gift cards are perfect gifts for her children now that they are grown.

“I give them cards for gas or food,” Masters said. “I also give my nephew a gift card to Amazon.com because he loves to read.”