Homemade Gift Baskets

From: Donna

I have a great and cheap idea to share for Christmas savings. I love giving gift baskets. They’re versatile, personal, and best of all… cheap.

This year I am making a candle and potpourri basket for my sister in law. I bought a bunch of the $1 tiny jar candles from Wal Mart and Dollar General so she can test out new scents, and a big bag of potpourri on clearance for $2. ($10.00)

My best friend’s husband loves to grill, so I bought a basting brush, paper plate holders, grilling spices, and marinades. ($6.00)

And for my best friend (an Air Force wife and employee and mother of a one and a half year old), a spa basket. She always seems to be stressed out and never gets downtime. I bought a 4 piece green tea bath mix ($3) from Wal Mart, added two small candles, potpourri, a bath pouf, and a sleeping mask. ($18.00)

Needless to say, most of my ideas came from Dining on a Dime. I just switched them around a little to compliment my friends and family. I have a few more people to shop for, but so far I have not spent over $20 on any gift, and everyone is getting about 6 different items.

 

Dining on a Dime contains a very large section on gift baskets and jar mixes. At different times in her life, Tawra worked in floral shops and part of her job was making gift baskets, so we added that as part of the cookbook.

In addition to the large lists of ideas to use for gift baskets, Dining on a Dime includes many recipes for gifts in a jar that you can make yourself and add to the gift baskets. For example you could make an Italian basket with bread, noodles, sauce and some homemade Italian Seasoning from Dining on a Dime or make a basket with soup fixings with our Bouquet Garni Bags. If they like spicy we have a Cajun Seasoning, BBQ sauces or special mustards.

You could make up a basket with the ingredients for pumpkin pie, adding our homemade pumpkin pie spice and our recipe for pumpkin pie. And of course, there are lots of cookie mixes, muffin mixes, etc.

Besides the holidays you could give a laundry basket of cleaning supplies for newlyweds or for a housewarming gift. Make up some of our homemade cleaning supples (and of course a copy of Dining on a Dime 🙂 or use a cute container to help stock the couple with spices and seasonings, filling it with cinnamon, nutmeg, chili powder etc. and adding homemade seasoned salt or taco seasoning from the book.

Dining On A Dime also includes recipes for hot chocolate, flavored coffee and spiced tea mixes, kids things like Easy Bake Oven mixes, play dough and slime. There are potpourri and sachets recipes. Homemade ornaments.

These and many more ideas are included in Dining on a Dime. Hopefully these get you started!

 

photo by: merelymel