Gift giving doesn't have to wait until December, at least we don't think so. Rebecca Luminarias' adorable mason jar gift sets are a fun, easy way to say 'thank-you' to those on your gratitude list this holiday season. Read on to find out more about them!
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Wow, this year has really flown right by, hasn't it? I can't believe it's already November. I love this time of year--the hustle and bustle as the holidays draw near, the nostalgic scents of baking and spices and flavored coffees, the time to be thankful and the time to be giving. I've combined all of those things into my post today.
My projects center around giving and being thankful--they are humble gifts to bring to the hostess of the next party you attend, your child's teacher or a helpful civil servant (like my sweet friend at the Post Office). Simple and thoughtful things to extend your appreciation.
I will start by saying that Open Book makes creating beautiful pieces incredibly easy! The colors, the florals, the patterns, the shine...it is foolproof!
My first gift is a jar of flowers. Being that it's autumn, I wanted to try and use fall colors for my project--hues you'd find outside on a crisp fall day. This small card on the "Full Heart" 12x12 patterned paper that says "I treasure you" was an instant eye-catcher and had exactly the colors I was hoping for--deep green, light pink, yellow, burgundy. When I paired it with some orange and gold accents, it made a pretty tag for my bouquet of purplish-pink flowers. Most people appreciate flowers, and this inexpensive bouquet instantly brightened our house when I arranged this vase.
The next gift is something I actually put together for my sister...just because. We live 3000 miles away from each other and, after losing our mother last November, the holidays can be an especially difficult time. I wanted to make something cheerful and meaningful to send her this year, and so this little sewing kit was born.
It was really fun to put together and full of several "a-ha" moments! I mixed some vintage supplies that belonged to our grandmother with some Open Book embellishments to create a sweet little ensemble. The family pieces include the scissors, tape measure, thread spools, and the little rose card that houses needles (that was great find!).
I used an OR crepe paper tag to secure some cute heart pins (a-ha moment #1). I took buttons from the Embellishment Jar and stitched them onto 2 of the labels from the die cut ephemera pack (a-ha moment #2). Finally, I picked out some coordinating fabric brads and used their own backing (trimmed and turned on it's side) to create pretty packaging (a-ha moment #3). I don't know if you'd noticed, but OB came in some really lovely packaging with a lot of gold foil debossed details--like the 0002014 serial numbers--and I intend to use them just as I will use the actual product they came with!
My sister's name happens to be Emily so this E die cut was a-ha moment #4! I am guilty of being a little too excited about all of the matching and coordinating colors in this sewing kit! I know my sister will love this and appreciate having treasures from our grandmother's sewing box, as well as the pretty new pieces from Open Book.
My last idea is the very simplest and I cheated just a bit. It's just a muffin mix poured into a mason jar. If you've got a tried and true recipe for a yummy fall treat, by all means, use from-scratch ingredients (hold the liquid!). I'm not much of a culinary artist and was pressed for time so I settled for a box mix. I did spend time on the decorating here so hopefully no one will think I'm completely lazy ;)
I made a lid skirt with a doily from the OB Banner Kit. While there is also a package of just doilies in this collection, I found that the ones in the banner kit were a lighter weight and therefore worked better here. To make the tag, I just overlapped some of the longer, skinny die cuts in a fan-style and stitched them together, then added the stamped white tag which tells what is in the jar. The wood leaves are some that I hoarded way back when Acorn Avenue was released. **Whether from scratch or a box, don't forget to include baking instructions with your mix!
And there you are--a few simple displays of gratitude and thoughtfulness. They didn't cost much and didn't take too much time to arrange. Hopefully, they'll make someone happy.
Wow wow wow! These are amazing!!!!!
Posted by: Julie Tucker-Wolek | November 12, 2014 at 04:04 AM
Beautiful gifts! I especially love the flower filled one.
Posted by: Anabelle O'Malley | November 12, 2014 at 10:36 AM