Valentine’s Day Gifts: Making a Personalized Gift Basket

Entry #3260, February 13, 2014

Valentine’s Day Gifts can be a tricky subject for some. After all, you want to send the right message. When in doubt, a gift basket is a solid option. But rather than purchasing a pre-made gift basket online, think outside the box and make one yourself. Not only will going the extra mile win you tons of brownie points for creativity and thoughtfulness, but oftentimes the final product will end up being better-looking an cheaper than something that’s been pre-fabricated. Below is a guide to help make sure that your personalized gift baskets come out perfect every time. 

Valentine’s day basket “Date Night In”

Image via: BHG

Know Your Goal and Budget:

When shopping for a gift, the first thing to consider is budget, but it can be especially important when creating a gift basket. When shopping for multiple items rather than one, it’s easy for things to add up. So it’s best to keep an ideal price point in mind. Then, think about your goal for the basket. Is it something that you’d like for yourself and the recipient to enjoy together? Or, do you want your basket to help the recipient treat themselves? Knowing your goal will help make the next step a snap. 

Choose a theme for gift giving – a twist from the traditional basket

Image via: Pinterest

Choose a Theme:

Every gift basket has a theme to tie it together. Think about the person that you are going to be giving the basket to and his interests. Since it’s Valentine’s Day, the theme could be as a “Date Night In” basket featuring a comfy blanket, some of your favorite DVD’s, packets of microwave popcorn, a takeout menu from your favorite to-go place, and the ingredients for a cocktail you both enjoy.

Fruits baskets are healthy presents for anytime of year!

Image via: Pinterest

Make a List:

Once you have a theme, think of items that could fill the basket. Successful gift baskets usually have 4-8 items, depending on size, price, etc. The key is that you want the basket to look full, while still leaving enough room to showcase each one individually. Write out a list of items that could potentially fill your basket – just to get your ideas flowing. As a rule, aim for more items than you think you’ll need, so that you don’t start to panic if one item is nowhere to be found.

Shop for Items

Image Via: Luna

Do Your Shopping:

When shopping, it’s can be easy to get so caught up in looking for the perfect items to fill the basket that you forget about the items needed to assemble the basket itself. When you’ve gathered all of your gifts, head over to your local craft store. There you should be able to find an appropriate–sized basket, colored gift basket shred (the fluffy stuff that acts as basket filler), shrink wrap, and bows/ribbon to decorate the exterior of your basket. Choose colors that work well together and go with your theme.

Valentine’s day rose basket

Image via: Pinterest

Put it Together:

Start by fluffing up newspaper in the bottom of the basket. Then, set about arranging your items in a way that allows all of the items to be seen. If necessary, you can use more bits of newspaper to set the items at different heights. Once you have the items set the way you like them, cover the newspaper with colored gift basket shreds so that none of it is visible. Then, shrink wrap the basket, if desired, according to the package directions. Finally, decorate the basket with any bows/ribbon that you purchased and sit back to bask in the glory of a job well done.

Making a personalized gift basket is even easier than it sounds. Once you get the hang of it, they will become your signature gift-giving go-to. If any of you do end up giving a basket for one of your Valentine’s Day gifts, let us know in the comments. We love to hear what type of Valentine’s Gifts you are giving this year!

For more Valentine’s gift ideas on Stagetecture, click here,