Giving a homemade gift basket can help you to save money on Christmas presents, but it can also help you find the perfect birthday or holiday gift for that hard to buy for someone on your list.
Gift baskets can be made for every occasion and every person.
Why Give a Gift Basket?
The first step to putting together your own gift basket is to decide what type of basket it will be.
1. Think about their interests or hobbies:
2. Decide on what their needs are
Now that you know what type of gift basket you are going to create, it is time to select the container.
Gardening Gift Basket
Date Night Gift Basket
This can be one of the intimidating parts of the gift basket making process, but remember there is no right or wrong way to do it.
1. Start with the tallest items first
This is the easy part, because all you are doing is choosing some type of material to act as filler in your basket.
This is only needed when using an actual basket, though you can also add ribbon or a bow to other containers you are using.
Holiday Gift Basket Ideas
Some more ideas for Christmas gift baskets that will be appreciated by people of all ages are:
1. Fruit Gift Basket
Gift baskets can be made for every occasion and every person.
They can be costly to buy and sometimes to make, but with a little planning and creativity you can craft the perfect gift - even for that person has everything!
Why Give a Gift Basket?
Some people are so easy to buy gifts for, whilst others leave you shaking your head.
You can solve the problem of what to buy for that difficult person by making up a gift basket filled with delights that you know they’ll use and appreciate.
When you personalise a gift it says a lot about you, you could even make the gifts to go in the baskets.
It says you cared enough to put love and effort into creating something for someone who’s important to you. And that special someone will be impressed.
Sure you can buy gift baskets from a professional and spend any amount you want.
Sure you can buy gift baskets from a professional and spend any amount you want.
They'll look great and could come in a variety of themes and containers.
But, wouldn’t a basket fashioned personally by you send a more meaningful message?
Not to mention it’s a lot cheaper and fun to make.
How to Plan a Gift Basket
Before you get started on a gift basket, ask yourself three questions:
- Who is it for?
- What are their interests?
- How much am I willing to spend?
A gift basket fills the bill for everyone regardless of age or gender, as long as you choose a theme based on their interests, hobbies or an upcoming event in their life.
You can spend as much as you want but assuming you’re on a limited budget, your basket can still be something you can give with pride.
What Container to Use for a Gift Basket
For your container, wicker baskets are probably the first choice to use because they’re easy to work with and can be found inexpensively at dollar stores and even yard sales.
Other containers work as well such as trays with an edge, tin pails (best for kids), coffee mugs, flower pots, and if the person you’re giving to happens to enjoy cooking use a baking pan, a mixing bowl or even a colander.
Let your imagination run wild utilizing various shapes and materials.
Let your imagination run wild utilizing various shapes and materials.
When making a gift basket, choosing the container and the gifts can be almost as much fun for the giver as the receiver.
How to Organise a Gift Basket
When making the gift basket up, place your main theme gift in the centre or high enough that the eye is drawn to it.
Additional gift items can then be added around the sides, then add filler material such as coloured paper or straw available at hobby stores.
If you have a paper shredder and coloured paper make the filler yourself and save some more money.
Remember, an overflowing basket looks better than one that’s sparsely filled.
Set your basket inside a cellophane bag and tie a bow with coloured ribbon streamers flowing down.
Set your basket inside a cellophane bag and tie a bow with coloured ribbon streamers flowing down.
Attach a card and you’re good to give.
If you need to secure items inside the basket to keep them from moving around, clear tape works well, or you could use glue dots.
Give genuine thought to the appropriate theme to make the basket more expressive and personalised.
Give genuine thought to the appropriate theme to make the basket more expressive and personalised.
Consider the person’s personality, whims and passions.
Fashion something you would like to receive and be assured others will like it too.
How to Make a Gift Basket to Solve Your Gift-Giving Dilemmas
As we've seen, gift baskets make excellent gifts for everyone including friends, loved ones, neighbours and co-workers, but you might not want to get a generic basket.
How to Make a Gift Basket to Solve Your Gift-Giving Dilemmas
As we've seen, gift baskets make excellent gifts for everyone including friends, loved ones, neighbours and co-workers, but you might not want to get a generic basket.
A lot of people buy gift baskets that are already assembled, such as fruit and cheese baskets or wine baskets, but while these are beautiful and contain quality products, there is no personalisation.
For a gift that is a little more meaningful and gives you full control over what goes into the basket, you should consider making one yourself.
It can be a little intimidating in the beginning but, as we've discussed, it is actually quite simple to do – and a lot of fun.
How to Make a Gift Basket
Follow these simple step-by-step instructions for putting together a gift basket, from choosing the container to arranging the items inside.
Follow these simple step-by-step instructions for putting together a gift basket, from choosing the container to arranging the items inside.
Remember that you can choose anything you want, from a theme, to just a basket with a variety of items you know the recipient would like.
Step 1: Choose a Theme or Type of Basket
The first step to putting together your own gift basket is to decide what type of basket it will be.
Remember that if you don’t want to choose a specific theme, you don’t have to!
Just get a large basket or container and fill it with smaller items that your friend or relative would enjoy.
Like non-food gift jars, there really are no set rules for a DIY gift basket. Just get creative.
If you want to give something a bit more conventional and personalized, a themed gift basket could be the way to go.
If you want to give something a bit more conventional and personalized, a themed gift basket could be the way to go.
This will allow you to give some smaller items, such as gift cards, along with things like food and drinks in such a way that it all looks rather elegant and fancy.
You can get premade gift baskets or create your own stocked up with things that you know they like.
You can get premade gift baskets or create your own stocked up with things that you know they like.
How to Pick a Theme
If you do want to choose a theme, there are some different ways to come up with the decision.
Here are some tips for choosing a theme:
1. Think about their interests or hobbies:
If your best friend is an avid runner, then she is probably interested in items related to running or fitness in general.
You can put together a runners’ gift basket with things like an armband to hold her ear buds, a brand new set of ear buds, and even running shoes and gear if you know her size.
For someone who loves cars, you might create a car care gift basket with a sponge, glass cleaner, car soap, and car wax.
2. Decide on what their needs are
The next thing to do is consider what the person’s needs are.
Instead of just getting something they want, think about what they truly need.
You might have a sister that just bought a new house, so you want to create a nice housewarming gift basket with kitchen tools, a small rug for her bathroom, and picture frames to help start the decorating process.
For teenagers, think of any items they will need for school or home.
3. Consider the types of items they enjoy
Finally, don’t forget about the types of items the person enjoys.
Think of what drink this person goes for first, whether that is coffee or a glass of wine.
Think about the treats they keep on their desk at work or what concerns and events they go to.
All of this information can be very handy when thinking of a good theme for the gift basket.
Step 2: Select a Container
Now that you know what type of gift basket you are going to create, it is time to select the container.
While many of these gift baskets obviously use an actual basket, that is entirely up to you.
Sometimes, a better container is one that doubles as a bonus gift for that particular theme.
You can use anything from a basket to a bucket to a bag and even more types of items.
Generally, you want to think about the types of items included in the gift basket, what the theme is, and what other gift the recipient might like when choosing the container.
Here are some different ideas:
Step 3: Purchase Gifts For the Basket
- Use a large plastic bucket for a car care gift basket. They can use all the included car wash items and the bucket itself.
- Put travel items into a small carry-on bag. The container will be the carry-on bag which includes all of the different travel essential in the ‘gift basket’.
- Select a big basket for a general gift basket. Some baskets don’t follow a theme, so that is when an actual basket is perfect.
Now for the fun part – choosing the gifts!
You already know the theme of your basket and what container you are using, so you probably have a good idea of what to use inside.
For a good gift basket, you want a variety of utems in different sizes and at different price points.
You don’t need to spend a lot for enough items, but it is good to choose different types of gifts that follow the theme and that are different sizes.
If you are using a basket or other open container, you want to layer the items, so having small, medium, and large items definitely helps.
Gift Basket Theme Ideas
Here are some different themed gift baskets and recommended products you could include:
Gardening Gift Basket
Use either a basket or a gardening tote for the container, then fill it with items like vegetable and herb seed packets, handheld gardening tools, pruning snips and shears, a good pair of gardening gloves, and perhaps a small knee rest.
Include a small watering can if it fits in the basket.
Date Night Gift Basket
There is a lot of room for creativity here.
You can have a date night gift basket with a cosy blanket for two, a bottle of wine, 2 wine glasses, and some DVDs, or provide gift cards for them to go out for a fun date night.
Pasta Cooking Gift Basket
Fill a tall cooking pot or other conatiner with a bottle of pasta sauce, box of pasta or noodles, a pasta spoon or other cooking utensils, and a bottle of wine.
You can also choose to add wine glasses or other glassware, but that is optional.
Step 4: Arrange the Gifts
This can be one of the intimidating parts of the gift basket making process, but remember there is no right or wrong way to do it.
If you are using a bag or anything that closes, then you really don’t need to do anything but put the items inside.
Try to put the larger items on the bottom so that when opening it, the recipient sees all of the products easily.
When you are using a basket or an open container like a cooking pot or plastic bucket, these tips will help:
1. Start with the tallest items first
With a basket, you want to be able to see everything that is included, which means you don’t just want to throw everything until it fits and then wrap it up.
You really should have the taller and bigger items in back, so that when adding the rest of the items, those taller items can still be seen.
2. Try to make sure every item can be seen
Arranging a gift basket sometimes means trying a few times until you get it right.
You can move things around as needed until everything can be seen when someone receives the basket.
When you are giving something like a nice towel or small blanket as part of the gift, use that to line the bottom of the basket.
This keeps it out of the way, but can still be seen, and it makes a great base for everything else to go on top.
Step 5: Add Filler to the Basket
This is the easy part, because all you are doing is choosing some type of material to act as filler in your basket.
Filler is sometimes added to the bottom of the basket, but this is optional.
What you are doing with the filler material is filing in any empty spaces so the basket looks full and the items remain in their intended position.
Most people will use some type of shred, whether you get packaged shredded tissue paper or shred it yourself.
You can even shred wrapping paper that matches the gift basket.
Just fill the little holes around items with the filler.
Step 6: Decorate and Wrap the Basket
This is only needed when using an actual basket, though you can also add ribbon or a bow to other containers you are using.
With a basket, once the items have been added and you have added the filler, you need to wrap the entire basket.
This helps to keep all of the items in place and makes it easy to carry the gift to the recipient.
Get enough gift basket wrap, a large piece of plastic cellophane, and wrap around the basket.
Gather the plastic at the top of the basket, twist it, and secure with some ribbon.
Tie it in a bow and you’re done with your gift basket!
Try tulle or voile fabric or burlap or hessian for a more sustainable alternative to plastic wrapping.
Holiday Gift Basket Ideas
Some more ideas for Christmas gift baskets that will be appreciated by people of all ages are:
1. Fruit Gift Basket
Fruit is always appreciated as a thoughtful gift.
You can choose to fill a gift basket with gourmet fruits such as Red Sensation pears, Fuji apples and California Navel oranges.
Spiff up the basket for Christmas with cheese, chocolate covered cherries and gourmet nuts.
These holiday goodies will delight anyone who receives them.
2. Corporate Gift Basket
To show appreciation for those businesses that you do business with, there’s no better way than to put together a Christmas gift basket filled with items the entire office will enjoy.
Gourmet items such as unusual chips and salsa, Amaretto almond cookies, Brie cheese and crackers can be festively presented in a basket of your choice.
3. That Special Someone
Show that special someone in your life how much you care by sending a Christmas gift basket that contains a quality bottle of Champagne.
Pair it with a box of delicious chocolates and you'll have made the impression you hoped for.
4. Calling All Goodies
For the sweetest Christmas gift basket ever, put together a basket containing caramel corn, Jordan almonds, gourmet cookies and chocolates or candy that you know they’ll love.
5. Popcorn and More
Who doesn’t love popcorn? You can either buy bags of fancy popcorn or put in the ingredients to make chocolate toffee popcorn.
These days you’ll find just about every type of popcorn you can imagine – cranberry, Ranch-style, caramel, chocolate and much more.
Add some Christmas jelly beans, candy canes, peanuts and pretzels and you’ve got a very sweet Christmas gift basket.
But don’t wait for Christmas to send a delightful Christmas gift basket.
But don’t wait for Christmas to send a delightful Christmas gift basket.
Gift baskets are suitable for every occasions, including birthdays, weddings, newborns and more, so get creative and have fun making a beautiful gift basket for someone.
More gift basket inspiration:
More gift basket inspiration:
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