The Gift Detective » How-To

Members Monday: Personalized Father’s Day Gift

The Gift Detective — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 04:34:00 +0000

This idea isn’t just great for Father’s Day, it is great for any person for nearly any occasion because you have the option to really personalize this gift in so many different ways! In fact, the example I’m going to show you is a more romantic/sweet gift that I created for Alex so that you can see the versatility of this type of gift.
Please Login or Register to read the rest of this content. It is free and easy to become a member!

Origami Paper Hearts, A Green Gift of Love

The Gift Detective — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 05:01:32 +0000

Okay, it could be any color you want it to be – I mean “green” as in “eco-friendly” not the actual color!

Photo Courtesy of Paper Source

Check out this sweet how-to from Paper Source – Recycled Origami Hearts show your love for the planet for Earth Day, make some for your mom for Mother’s Day (Dads, help your kids make some for Mom!!!) or make some for your Sweetheart! Brighten someone’s day with this spectacularly easy recycled gift. Below is a picture of one I made using a paper bag – it took less than a minute to make!

I made this heart!

Personalize these little hearts any way you want! Make a love note into an origami heart and mail it to your love or tape one to the bathroom mirror for them to find. Pack one into your child’s lunch, make the mobile pictured above for mom on Mother’s Day, send one to a family member, make one for a friend and tuck it into the book you are gifting them so they can use it as a bookmark…what ideas do you have? Leave me a comment and let me know!

I {heart} Paper Source and this fab how-to!

Happy gifting!

Crisscross Coasters

The Gift Detective — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 07:02:13 +0000

I found this post for sewing Crisscross Coasters over on Creative Attempts and I thought it was a great idea for a hostess gift or a housewarming present! You can easily personalize this by incorporating the colors of your recipient’s home. Usually coasters find themselves on the coffee table so be sure to put on your thinking hat and visualize your recipient’s space so that you can help ensure that you create something they will love!

Sewing really not your thing? Making anything not your thing? Well, I have oodles of other gift giving ideas so use the magnifying glass (to the right) to search for the recipient or occasion you need to get a present for, check out some other posts (handy links below and to the side!) or fill out a Sleuthing Sunday form and get some help from me! (it’s free!)

If you love this idea or the idea of making stuff, let me know (and visit Lacie’s blog and let her know too!) so that I can consider bringing these types of ideas to you more frequently.

Happy gifting!

Ready for Easter?

The Gift Detective — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 04:33:28 +0000

I’m not! Yes, you read that right, I feel completely unprepared for Easter. Sad but oh-so-true.

Easter is one of the holidays that has many interpretations on how to celebrate. Some people are very religious about Easter and some not. For some the highlight of their Easter is attending a sunrise service, others hide eggs and eat candy and some don’t celebrate it at all.

I’ve been feeling a bit under the weather, which doesn’t just put me behind work-wise…this means I haven’t gotten anything done for Easter!

Amazon.com Widgets

So, what is a girl to do? How to salvage Easter at the last minute? (Yes, I goof sometimes too!) Easy – think with my heart and go from there. Traditionally, I buy Alex a bunch of Cadbury Creme Eggs and hide them all around while he grumps a little bit because working to find surprises is not his favorite thing, although he loves that I go to the effort. Yes, I could make that my plan this year but a.) I think that might be a stale idea, at least for Alex and at least for this year and b.) I think I’d like to infuse his Easter with something more Spring-like and fun. Alex’s family wasn’t big on Easter which means that Easter is something he isn’t really big on, but there is more to Easter than just the traditional and the expected. There is the celebration. The celebration of life, Spring, renewal…from a religious standpoint, a nature standpoint and/or just an anthropological standpoint. So, I am going to create a celebration for us!!!

Tomorrow we are supposed to have lovely weather here in Massachusetts, so I am going to plan for a picnic. I have a veritable ton of tissue paper and am going to make him a tissue paper flower bouquet that, at the centers, have his fave Easter “surprise”, Cadbury Creme Eggs. For Isabelle, I am going to play one of her favorite games, “Find it!” which entails hiding bits of carrot (how perfect is that for Easter?) around the living room for her to find. I’m also going to set up an outdoor game like Blongo Ball or grab the Aerobie Pro Flying Ring and head to the park to play. It will be a simple celebration but, more importantly it will be fun and, although it won’t require tons of planning, preparation or money, it will show Alex and Isabelle how much I care. This simple celebration, inexpensive gift and time spent together is exactly the type of thing that will make them both the happiest! And that is the point of gift giving, whether it be inexpensive paper flowers or expensive Easter baskets full of toys and goodies, finding the way to make your loved one happy is the key.

So, maybe I am ready for Easter after all!

What do you do to celebrate Easter? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Happy gifting!

Sleuthing Sunday: Investigating Martha Stewart Valentines

The Gift Detective — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 06:10:59 +0000

So it is just about that time…getting ready to mail out Valentines to loved ones or just that one special someone.

photo credit: lovelihood

Of course, Martha Stewart’s site has many ideas for Valentines – from easy to intricate. All are beautiful, but I decided to peruse the batch and pick a few of my faves:

* Block Print Valentines - I thought these Valentine’s had nice visual impact with the bold colors and pretty designs – but the beauty of this is that you can personalize this any way you want to!
* Hearts and Blocks Valentines - These Valentines have a much simpler feel with muted tones and each one you make will be unique.
* Hand-Stitched Valentines – Not too intricate but still homemade – I like the multi-dimensional aspect and different textures of this card.
* Pop-Up Valentine – Sappy yet so sweet! You have to see this cute pop-up utilizing photos.
* Paper Heart Wrappings – These are a “one ingredient” project! All you need is paper. Love the way these have a little bit of mystery to them.
* Rosy Stationary – These gorgeous cards can be made with a “stamp” found right in your produce aisle!
* Clothespin Valentines - Makes a great Valentine for friends – they aren’t overly romantic and you can fill them with something yummy or with something like relaxing bath salts or gels, maybe some festive paper clips for an office mate.
* Ribbon-Punched Valentines – Just plain pretty.
* Secret Messages - Is it any surprise that I love this one?

Visit the collection of 39 Valentine card ideas and let me know which ones are your favorites! Leave a comment on the post – are you going to try any of them? If so, contact me to submit a pic of your creation!

Happy gifting!