Themed Gift Baskets

I enjoy giving themed gift baskets as presents for the holidays!  They can be inexpensive to make, if you know where to shop. They are also fun to put together.  

Here are a few I ideas for some themed gift baskets:

Italian Gift Basket - Items that go well in this basket included pasta, marinara sauce, olive oil, grated parmesan cheese, a bottle of red wine, and Italian bread mix.

Soup Lover's Gift Basket -  I fill this basket with a couple of large soup crocks, several packages of differnt types of soup mixes , pasta, grated parmesan cheese and bread mix.

Hot Chocolate Lover's Gift Basket - In this basket, I add several boxes of gourmet hot chocolate, some pretty holiday cocoa mugs, peppermint sticks, candy canes, and cinnamon sticks.

Movie Lover's Gift Basket - For a movie basket, you could add a few favorite DVD's, packages of microwave popcorn, video store gift certificates and an inexpensive throw.

Sweet Bread Basket - This gift basket is a family favorite.  Along with a loaf of fresh, homemade sweet bread, I include jars of assorted jams, gourmet hot chocolate mixes and individual  packages of flavored coffee.

You can also personalize your gift baskets by adding items that you know the recipient enjoys.   For example, I have a friend who collects nutcrackers.  I added a large wooden nutcracker to the center of her gift basket, along with some other goodies I know she'll enjoy.

To make my gift baskets, first I purchase inexpensive baskets in a size that will accommodated the items I plan to include the basket.  I like to line the basket with a decorative holiday dish towel or cloth napkins.  I also purchase shredded paper gift basket filler, cellophane gift basket bags, gift tags and curling ribbon at the dollar store,   After lining the basket with the decorative towel, I add the shredded paper filler.  I then arrange the goodies on top of the paper filler, so that it looks pleasing to the eye.  I then carefully place the basket in a gift bag, which can be purchased at any dollar store.  I close the top with a piece of curling ribbon and add several more pieces of curling ribbon to the top of the basket, curling each piece to make a curly bow. I finish the basket with a gift tag.


Happy Holidays!