With Christmas coming up soon, It’s time to start thinking about Christmas presents, especially if you like to make some or all of the components of your presents.
For a few years now I have liked the idea of making hampers as Christmas presents. Although people most frequently think of a Christmas hamper as containing Christmas themed foods and drinks they are a very versatile present and can be adapted to suit almost any recipient. The size of the ‘hamper’ itself can be changed and all sorts of different themed contents can be used. With a little inspiration and some supplies you can make some very professional looking presents!
I have mainly made hampers which contain edible goods, a selection of wintery foods and drinks and maybe a few homemade goodies in there as well, but it would be possible to make a hamper up which contained all sorts of different things.
Some ideas of hamper themes are:
- Handmade items (crafts etc)
- Crafting supplies suited to the gift recipient e.g. knitting supplies, fabric, scrapbooking items
- A kitchen item and related food, e.g. a mug/cafetiere + hot chocolate/coffee, a cheese baker + cheese, chutnies/pickles
- A selection of favourite foods and/or drinks
- A pamper hamper (bath goods, pyjamas, candles etc)
The ‘hamper’ doesn’t necessarily have to be packed in a traditional basket, instead the items can be packed in virtually anything (try to make sure it fits with the theme of the contents though…) some hamper containers can form part of the gift, or be able to be reused after the contents have been consumed.
Ideas include:
- Jars for smaller contents or things such as cookie mixes.
- A small bucket
- A themed container; e.g. a mixing bowl for baking/kitchen themed goods, wellington boots/wheelbarrow/windowbox (depending on size) for gardening items.
- A bag (can be personalised/handcrafted)
- A stocking
Here are a few examples of food hampers I have made, and some other gifts which are in the style of hampers.
These are more traditional food hampers; a few homemade items, some food bits from the store and a bottle of drink, finish it up with a cellophane wrap and a nice bow and it all looks very professional.
This was a drinks themed box with a selection of hot drink sachets. You could also include a mug, marshmallows, or other flavourings to make the box more varied.
This was a craft box I created for my stitching santa, the present included some sewing gifts such as a pin cushion, pattern weights, needle holder, scissors and project bag, The whole thing was packaged up inside a sewing project box which folds up into a hexagon for storing your craft items.
This last themed one was a travelling present for a friend who was making a long-haul trip. I deemed it the ultimate long haul survival kit and it contained toiletries and items to make the long haul journey more comfortable. This was packaged up in a folding zip bag that I designed myself to hold the kit on the journey.
Hopefully that has given you a few ideas to help create some gifts for Christmas this year. I’d love to see what some of hampers/gift boxes other people have come up with!
Lovely hampers – anybody would be delighted to receive any one of them. Thank you for giving us lots of ideas 🙂
Thanks 🙂 I find the food ones really useful for people who already have all the things they want, and if they don’t want any clutter they can always return the hamper basket afterwards and you can reuse it!
Lovely hampers – so nice to be able to make a present so personal too 🙂
Love these and have made non-food hampers in the past! Such a lovely way to present a gift.