[guide.chat] gift hampers
- From: vanessa <qwerty1234567a@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "GUIDE CHAT" <guide.chat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2012 16:49:58 +0100
How to Make Christmas Gift Hampers
Over the last few years I have made several gift hampers as people?s Christmas
gifts. A gift hamper is basically a collection of items arranged in a pretty
basket or container. The filled basket is normally wrapped in cellophane and
decorated with a bow. After the introduction below, there is a step-by-step
guide on how to produce a pretty gift hamper.
Gift hampers normally contain fancy groceries or toiletries that follow a
certain theme. For instance, you often see Italian-themed hampers. These might
contain Italian cheese, wine, pasta, biscotti di Prato, panettone, etc. Food-
and toiletry-based hampers are ideal gifts for people who have limited space
because all of the items will be used up.
While there are many stores that sell ready-made, themed gift hampers, there
are two reasons why I prefer making my own. Firstly, I find it fun to do!
Secondly, if you choose your items carefully, you can normally make a hamper
with more content for the same price as a store-bought hamper. Note that online
stores often charge a lot for delivery. So unless you are planning to post your
homemade hamper, you will also save on delivery costs. The third reason I like
to make my own gift hampers is that I can pick and choose items that
particularly suit the recipient. So I can make it personal to them. When buying
a store-bought hamper, it is sometimes difficult to weigh up which hamper is
the most suitable because they normally always have one or two items that you
think won?t be used. Having said this, I have seen online stores that allow you
to pick items individually. They then make the hamper for you. So this is an
option if you don?t mind paying for delivery.
Mini homemade lavender-themed gift hamper containing lavender soap, lavender
shower gel, a lavender candle, a nail file, an exfoliating glove, a net sponge,
and a Christmas tree ornament made of glittery pine cones.
The first hamper that I made contained all kinds of spicy food, such as spicy
table sauces, hot salsa dips, chilli-flavored potato chips, stir-in curry
sauces, spicy poppadoms, etc. I chose this theme because the recipient loved
hot and spicy foods. I contained the items in a store-bought, fake shopping
basket made of chrome.
Another hamper that I have since made contained entirely gluten-free products.
I made it for my Mum, as she requires a gluten-free diet. As gluten-free
products are sometimes difficult to come by, I collected the products over
several months. I made sure to check the ?use by? dates as I didn?t want
anything to be spoiled before or even just after Christmas. I used a
material-lined basket for this hamper.
Most recently, I made a mini hamper containing various lavender-scented
toiletries and personal care items. I placed the items, along with a few
decorative pine cones, on a Christmas-paper-lined straw plate and covered the
lot with cellophane.
Ideas on how to make a Christmas gift hamper
Decide roughly how much you would like to spend (optional!).
Choose a theme. While hampers normally contain food, you could make a hamper
containing just about anything. For instance, if the recipient is a keen
gardener, include some seeds, tools, gardening knee pads, bird food, and
outdoor accessories. If the recipient is going away somewhere on vacation,
consider making a hamper containing a guide to their destination, a suitable
phrasebook, and some suitable travel essentials (e.g., adaptor, water filter,
mosquito net, mini toiletries, earplugs etc.). Art-lovers may appreciate a
hamper containing art supplies and, if they are beginners, an instruction book.
Hampers containing toiletries are always a popular option, espeically for
ladies. Cranberry based toiletries would be particulary suitable for Christmas.
Some food theme suggestions are as follows: chocolate, tea/coffee, cheese and
wine, traditional Christmas food, Mexican food, Indian food, Scottish food,
etc. The possibilities are endless?
Choose a pretty container (or even platter) that you think will be able to hold
the right amount of items. If you will need to carry the finished hamper any
distance, bear in mind the size and weight that it might be. Try to pick a
container that the recipient can use in some way. If possible, pick a container
that is in line with your chosen theme. Here are some container ideas: straw
basket (these are often light weight), metal serving platter, plant pot, tray,
plate, wooden box (of recycled wood would be good), light-weight bird bath, and
bag.
Start collecting items to put in your hamper. It is best to start early so that
you don?t run out of time. By starting early, you will be able to easily
purchase a wide range items from various stores. Always check the ?use by?
dates on food, drink, and toiletry items. If needed, go back to the store at a
later date to get products with later ?use by? dates. You can always add a
relevant non-food item to a food-based hamper. For instance, you could add an
Indian cookbook to an Indian food hamper, a mini-fondue set to a
chocolate-based hamper, a cheese grater to an Italian-based hamper, etc. One
piece of advice I offer from personal experience is to be conscious about how
many items you purchase. It is very easy to get carried away and buy loads more
than will fit in your container!
There are various ways to put your hamper together. For instance, you can put
your items in your container and then wrap the whole thing with cellophane.
Alternatively, you could wrap your items in one large piece of cellophane
before they go into the basket. In both cases, the cellophane can be taped
invisibly underneath or gathered at the top and tied with a bow.
There are many ways to decorate your hamper. Depending on how you put it
together, it may already have a pretty bow holding the cellophane together. You
can include decorations within the cellophane, so amongst the items, or on the
top on the cellophane. Tinsel, ribbons, mini (shatter-proof) baubles, and holly
are some suggestions. Once again, you could use decorations that are linked to
the theme. For instance, if it is a French-themed hamper, you might decorate it
with a few garlic bulbs tied with a ribbon. Just use your imagination!
You may want to wrap the hamper in opaque Christmas paper (in addition to the
cellophane) so that the gift remains a surprise!
from
Vanessa The Google Girl.
my skype name is rainbowstar123
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