Gift Taggs

Following on from last weeks article, I thought I would add a few notes on what to store in your gift closet, again from my research I found several themes that I think can be adapted to suit your needs.
Think about how you need to buy presents for.The majority of our friends are in their Thirties who are getting married, newly weds or have young children, we don’t have children so I don’t need to worry about buying gifts for their friends. Family are a lot more varied, from young children to grand parents –  but we don’t have any teenagers to buy gifts for.

As I have just started setting up my gift closet,  I am opting to look for decent items to store – ideally I should have started this before Christmas so I could buy all the gifts in the 3-2 promotions the stores have around then, so instead I am looking to buy items in bulk or take advantage of discount shopping centres and sales.

Bicester Village in Oxfordshire is a great place to start, we tend to do two major trips here one before Christmas and over of the summer. With so many shops to choose from it is easy to get gifts from here.

So far my gift closet, contains some wash bags (brought at the Cath Kidston discount store), Philosophy and L’Occitane bath products (brought in bulk at QVCUK.com), some photo frames (perfect for all occasions), bottle stoppers, (to be given with a bottle of wine for hostess gifts), and some candles.

Further Reading for present ideas

Home Organization Suite 101
Pier 1
Creative Homemaking

Tags: gift closet, organisation

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Gift Toppers

I actually found this tutorial before Christmas when looking for interesting gift wrapping ideas, but hadn’t had a chance to use it until now. Bugs and Fishes by Lupin uses a variety of brooches and badges on her gifts, from antique brooches to felt flowers (which can be brought in her store).

This got me thinking about all the varieties I could try – using only brooches and badges I found in my own home I was able to achieve all these different looks. I am going to start hunting around charity shops in preparation from Christmas.

Tags: gift wrapping

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Last week I mentioned the lace bookmark I had made as a gift, in case you were interested in making bookmarks to accompany a book you are gifting, here are some of my favourite patterns or tutorials, the great this is no matter what your favourite craft is, there is a tutorial for you!  

Crochet Bookmarks by cantstopknitting

The Beaded Book Thong by Crochet Me, is really simple to make and even easier to personalise due to the variety of beads or charms on the market, you could spell out the recipient name or initials with letter beads or add their favourite animal  

Harry Potter Book Scarf by CaiaG

Don’t crochet, try this knitted Harry Potter Book Scarf, perfect for a budding wizard or for your muggle friends knit a plain coloured scarf. Alternatively you could knit one in school colours or the team colours.   

Scrap Material Bookmark by 7 Layers

I love 7 Layers, idea behind making these Scrap Material Bookmarks, like most crafters I can’t seem to throw out, to me this just prove that even the smallest scrap of material can be turned into something fabulous! 

Corner Bookmarks by Stamping Moments

Instead of making a traditional rectangle bookmarks, why not try on of these,  Corner Bookmarks, the tutorial uses stamps, but you can use any scraps of paper or wrapping paper.

Tags: bookmarks, gift wrapping, paper crafting, tutorials

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Whenever I send a gift I like to add an original touch, either by using creative wrapping or adding a little personal touch. I think books are one of the best ways to show your originality, the box nature of their shape means you can get really creative with the wrapping. Or for a really personal touch why not make a bookmark.

Lace Bookmark

I have to admit, I am one of those people who uses receipts or airline ticket stubs to mark my page in a book. Last year before going on holiday, I made myself this lace bookmark (pattern by crochetroo), my crochet skills are very minimal, and it did take me an evening to complete. But I just adore the finished project, and soon started making more for my family members.

Finally, it is a little pet hate of mine that the price is there on books for all to see. With any other gift you carefully remove the price tag, but you can’t really do this with a book. So when giving a book as a gift, I like to put a little sticker over the price tag. You can buy mini stickers in several high street stores like Accessorize or Paperchase (I prefer the non-padded ones).

Tags: bookmarks, gift wrapping

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Last month I wrote about the Gift Card Holders, I send out as Christmas presents. In the next few weeks I have a couple of awkward gifts to buy, one for a child but the present needs to be posted and the second is a house warming present where I have no idea what the couple need. So I looked online to find some more interesting ideas. These are some of my favourite tutorials I found. 

Present Gift Card by Custom Crops

This present ideas from Custom Crops is extremely versatile although it is from Christmas, it can be easily altered using scraps of paper and other embellishments. I am thinking of using pink card, some of the Disney Princess scrap-booking paper and stickers from Over the Rainbow, and of course a gift card for the Disney Store.

Box Gift Card by Angel Stamper 2

To add an extra dimension why not try this box holder by Angel Stamper 2. Although this one is very girly, I think it would be amazing for a wedding present, using white or cream paper, with hearts or flowers, and maybe use a romantic lyric for the quote inside.

Gift Voucher Card by Erica's Artistic Attic

The simplicity of this card by Erica’s Artistic Attic makes it perfect for adapting, how about using a football on the belly band and making the whole card in the recipients favourite team colours. Or a steering wheel, with racing stripes or checkerboard paper.

Gift Card House by Paper Monkey

Again, this house card by Paper Monkey is from Christmas, I think it is perfect for a house warming present. Using a flower punch for the “hinge”, changing the trees to flowers, and the greeting on the window to good luck.

Tags: gift cards, gift wrapping, paper crafting, tutorials

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I think a lot of people feel bad giving gift certificates or money as a gift because they think it was an unimaginative present, however there are times we have to give vouchers. Last Christmas, I had to buy several presents at short notice with no real time to hunt around the shops, so I opted to get them gift vouchers from HMV.

Disappointed that I didn’t have a chance to be very creative and I experimented with clever wrapping. I brought some Popcorn Boxes, filled them with packets of microwavable popcorn and Maltesers and the gift vouchers. I then attached a little card saying.

“As the days are getting colder, use this vouchers to buy some DVDs or a computer game and have a night in on us!”

The gifts went down extremely well, so this year I had to do something equally amazing, I opted to get cinema vouchers (checking where the recipient local multiplex was first). I found these Jolee’s Boutique Movie embellishments, and made some booklets, listing some of the big blockbusters that released around Christmas. On the front page I wrote…

Last year, we told you to have a night in on us…
This year we want you to have a night out on us!

Cimena Gift Card Ideas

Tags: gift cards, gift wrapping, paper crafting

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