Presentation is
everything!
Making gifts in a jar are a wonderful, personal yet
inexpensive way to show someone you care. There really is no end to
the ideas a person can come up with, let your creativity flow and
think also about who the gift is for to really make it especially
for them. Jar gifts are a wonderful, creative yet inexpensive ways
to give gifts to family, friends and teachers and other loved ones.
Are you helping a child to make the gift? If
the gift is from a child for a grandparent, parent or teacher,
decoupage the child's photo on the outside of the jar, then trim the
edges of the photo with lace or some other finishing type of
ribbon. The child could even paint a little something on the
opposite side of the jar or his or her little handprint with paint.
One common way to decorate a jar is take some
fabric and cut a circle, square or heart shape out of the fabric
that is 6 - 8 inches across. You can use pinking shears or other
decorative type scissors to edge the fabric. Lace can also be sewn
as a trim to the fabric. Place the inner round section of the jar's
lid on the jar and center the fabric on that. Screw the other
section of the lid in place to hold the fabric. Fluff out the fabric
where it comes out from under the lid.
You can use already decorated type jars, or
standard canning jars. The most common sizes are the pint and quart
sized jars, but baby jars are also great for smaller portion drink
or spice type mix gifts.
Hang tags can be made either by hand, computer
graphics or a label glued to the jar itself, but these can be
customized to a central theme if desired. However you choose to do
this, they will need the recipe’s final instructions. Try your hand
at calligraphy!
There are many wonderful recipes that can be
made specifically designed for jars. These include soup mixes,
spice mixes, cookie and other baked goods recipes, coffee and
creamer recipes and so many more. These can be quite easy to make
ahead of time, so you always have a gift you can grab whenever you
need one, especially great for those last minute gift needs, or for
the person who seems to have everything and is difficult to buy for.
You can paint the jar before filling it. Buy
paint that is specially designed for glass and follow the specific
directions. Can't paint? Try finding a card or picture or
something you'd like to put on the jar, and get it on paper. Place
the paper inside the jar, and then simply let your painting
basically be tracing the design and adding your own personal touches
to it. Again, this can really be used for a theme and the jar
itself will remain a keepsake long after the recipe has been used.
Layer the ingredients for a beautiful effect.
Put at the bottom layers the finest ingredients, like flour but be
sure to mix in the baking sodas, salt, etc that's called for in the
recipes. You can use a funnel to help keep things orderly. If the
flour dusts the rest of the jar, let it settle a while then gently
wipe the jar with a paper towel before adding the rest of the
layers. Brown sugar can be packed down to save a bit of space.
You can accessorize your jar gifts by either
gluing dried flowers, pinecones, beads, shells or whatever to the
top of the jars as well. Or tie small items with ribbon or raffia
to the jars. Common items that work well are measuring spoons, tiny
whisks, cookie cutter, ornaments, cinnamon bark, vanilla beans or
any other small whimsical item you may find.
There are many beautiful ribbons out there and
different styles and sizes of bows can be made and simply glued on
to the lid. Lace can also be hot glued around the rim of the jar.
For a holiday themed jar try a luscious hot
cocoa mix or other goodie recipe, gluing some wrapping paper decor
around various sides of the jar, or you can use some glitter paint
for a snow type theme. For a wild west theme, try perhaps a bean
soup recipe, wrap your jar in a bandana, or use the bandana itself
as tied around the lid. Perhaps you can find a cowboy boot or hat
graphic to decoupage on the jar itself, or paint one on.
Get creative in how you want to present your
jar gift. This might mean a gift basket filled with several jar
gifts, or simply one with other components making up the whole gift
basket.
What about the tea lover you know? Try some
small baby jars filled with different flavored teas, cocoas and
coffee mixes and put in a basket with a coffee mug and muffin or
scone. Paint the jar lids coordinating colors to match the mug.
Perhaps adding some gourmet tea bags and cinnamon sticks would be a
nice touch as well. Let your creativity guide your senses.
