The secret magic of a gift basket!

So this has been a hard year for everyone, there is no question on that one right? And to finish the year off, the stress of the Holiday's rolls around. The holiday season can be tough enough as it is, but a holiday season in the year 2020 during a pandemic? Almost impossible!

While self isolating and quarantining as much as I can, I found myself with an abundance of time to perfect each and every gift. With lots of time and little money, I had to get creative. I did not want to just give everyone gift cards like I usually do. This year was a whirl wind for everyone, I really wanted my family to feel loved this year.

This is where I discovered the magic of gift baskets and all their glory! A gift basket shows effort was made, little do they know how inexpensive and easy it was to put together this awesome gift.

So the first secret of a gift basket is (pause for drum roll)...

The dollar store! Yes I said it, the dollar store. Of course some other stores and shops had to come into play, but the dollar store was always my top choice. Any dollar store in your area should work, whether its a dollar tree or a 99cent store.

So I'm sure you're still asking yourself, hmm I wonder why the dollar store? And here's why. The way to make a basket look good is to fill it with multiple items of different sizes, ultimately making the dollar store the place to do this. Candy, bags of chips, and individual drinks are great fillers that take up a lot of space. The dollar store is also the place to get tissue and crinkle paper, ribbons and bows, and the basket itself!

Now I found the best way to find the perfect items for your basket is to pick a theme. For example, a spa/beauty basket. I made one of these for my sister this year and it came out so cute! I was able to buy so many of the items from the dollar store. Nail polish, nail filers, candles, mini bottles of lotion and scrubs! The list goes on and on, just tons of mini beauty products. Most of them are meant to be gifted too, so they have cute Holiday patterns which is a bonus!

My favorite basket to make was the one I made for my boyfriend. I think it is because I know him so well, so it was a breeze looking for items he would like. My boyfriend is into mens' lotions, grooming tools, and hair products for his long curly hair. So these were all items in the basket as well as from the dollar store. I also threw in socks, candles, and some mini hand sanitizers in there from the dollar store. He loved it! It was not only something he could enjoy but it had a lot of essential items. If I have learned anything from this year it is that you can never have too many of them.

So to sum it up, I am basically here to say I am team gift baskets. This is probably going to be my go-to way of giving presents. And I hope this post convinces you too. In my opinion, it is probably the most inexpensive way to go about a gift besides DIY projects. It shows effort was put in and also shows you know the person you care about them and the products they use. Next time you have the opportunity of giving a present, give a gift basket a shot. You will have so much fun while making it too! Everyone wins!