By Jessica Wilson
Sometimes we find the most perfect gift but feel that because of its size, it won’t be enough. Why not take time to wrap it up so that the presentation is a gift as well? When I speak of perfect gifts, I think of beautiful bars of soap that smell of coffee, quirky rings, handmade bookmarks, vintage glitter, cookware, tins, etc. So I’m pulling out all sorts of fun from my bag of tricks. Follow along and let your imagination take over.
Gift 1: Retro goth style
I have a friend who is a born librarian; think old-fashioned iconic marm with a touch of modern day tech goddess thrown in. She oozes clever bookishness with a Jane Austin lilt, so this ring is a perfectly perfect gift for her. Playing on her love of retro gothiness (we are children of the 80s, after all) I discovered an awesome plastic joke finger from a party store, placed ring on finger, and wrapped it all up thusly.
Gift 2: For the glitter lover/scrapbooker
I have another friend who is a scrap-happy awesome crafter and glitter enthusiast. I once gifted her with an awesome vial of vintage glass glitter. It was itty bitty and kinda ho-hum until I ditched the tiny vial (it was plastic anyway) and moved the glitter into a trio of pixy stix straws after I had evicted the sugary goodness from inside. To go along with the gift, I wrapped up a vintage book perfect for cutting up and used the pixy stix as the bow, and viola! An awesome gift that is almost too cool to give up.
Gift 3: Vintage camera gift box
Know anyone besides me (hint hint) who collects vintage cameras? Some hip and/or fancy-pants cameras sell for quite a bit of money, but many a photographic underdog can be scooped up for under $5! Depending on what she or he is into, you can tuck all sorts of tiny goodness inside, so why not use the camera itself as a gift box?
Gift 4: Nesting doll gift box
Another fun gift that makes a great gift box is a nesting doll. I’ve seen a fair share of incomplete sets at the thrift. Who needs all of them when you will be filling each wee matryoshka with a gift and then sending them off to new homes? At my favorite L.A. shop (Reform School), I can pick up an unfinished set that won’t break the bank. And I think there is something swell about an unpainted matryoshka. Rather than spend more money on another gift box that would eventually end up discarded and on its way to a landfill, I say go for the dolls. They are cute, they are decorative, and currently, they are IN.
Gift 5: Wrapping soaps
Sweet-smelling, store-bought bar soap can be elevated to pretty with a wrap of vintage lace pinned in place with a pretty straight or hat pin. The lace itself can be a part of the gift. Liberate the soapy goodness from its plastic wrap, wrap in wax paper, then wrap the lace around it. Don’t have lace? Use a scrap of vintage fabric or a piece of beautiful paper. If you have the time, making your own soap is an even better idea.
Gift 6: Handmade bookmarks with thrifted book
Last but not least, handmade bookmarks can be quite pretty and useful. You should see how many dog-eared corners my poor books have due to lack of bookmarks around here. This year I am making a few as gifts and thought I would gift them in a thrifted book that I dolled up purely for decorative use. It’s amazing what a coat of paint and some paint pens can do.
About the Author:
Jessica Wilson is most happily known as ‘jek in the box’ and spends most of her time crafting it up and taking pictures. She can often be found standing on benches over on Flickr and creating all sorts of kiddie crafts on her blog scrumdilly-do! She lives a life of scrumdillydilly and loves to share.
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