Gifts in a Can

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

19 Nov 2007 04:24 AM

You have all heard of gifts in a jar, right? Well, what about gifts in a can? Take your gift giving one step further with this easy and very frugal gift giving idea!

Gifts in a jar are a nice way to show someone you care this holiday season. You basically create a food gift mix and place it in a large glass jar, which you've decorated with ribbon, raffia or fabric. A tag attached, tells your gift recipient how to prepare the mix.

Here is a much more modern take on this idea that suits todays busy families who might not have time to blend together a mix during the crazy holiday season.

First, you'll need to create one of your famous food gifts. It is easy to do this in bulk and create several gifts at once. Some ideas for food gifts include homemade granola, cookies, candy, quick breads, jams and jellies, honey butter, snack mix and more. Next, package the food gift in some pretty cellophane paper. You can also use colored plastic wrap, which is less expensive and readily available during the holiday season. In the case of jams, jellies or butters, you will first need to package them in sterile canning jars or other appropriate containers, obviously.

Next, purchase inexpensive empty paint cans in quart or gallon sizes. Wash and dry the cans. Decorate the cans. You can spray paint the cans with a paint that is suitable for metal, cover the cans in gift wrap, wallpaper, fabric or construction paper, whatever works for you. You can also leave the cans blank.

With a permanent magic marker, write the recipe for your food gift on the can. This gives the recipient the ability to enjoy the gift and yet still have the option to recreate the recipe when they have the time.

That is all that there is to it!

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.

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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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