Parties and Presents: 2013

Monday, 12 August 2013

Fathers Day...

This year I'd been so busy planning my holiday I had to buy my dad things online. I find shopping online is so useful and practical. Just order from your computer and it will be delivered to your house.

We were actually on our holls on the day of father’s day so I decided to give my dad his presents the day before we went away. Like myself my dad has quite the sweet tooth. I treated him to Thornton’s chocolates (you can never go wrong with Thornton’s!)

I thought the dove mini toiletries set would come in use for breaks away as packing minis is so much easier. They also came in a lovely travel bag which gave the gift that little extra something.

I used quite vibrant colours to decoratively wrap the presents. I used a mixture of pastel coloured tissue paper. Tissue paper adds a lovely handmade effect and it’s fairly easy to buy in craft stores. I actually picked mine up in Poundworld in a large pack – bargain!

I had some left over yellow paper bags from a previous party (there great for filling with party favours!). I put one of the bags of chocolate in there with some multi coloured shredded paper to make it extra special to open.

Thorntons.co.uk

Continental Viennese Bag (105g) £2.99 (Free with 3 for 2)

Continental Cappucino Bag (95g) £2.99

Continental Diplomat Bag (112g) £2.99

Amazon.co.uk

Dove Men Plus Care Mini Travel Pack £4.99 (Amazon.co.uk link)

How do you like to wrap presents? What materials do you like to use? xx

Saturday, 27 July 2013

My Dads Birthday Presents

Being a typical dad, my father is quite hard to buy for so at birthdays, Christmas etc etc I always have to put my thinking cap on.

This year I thought I would get my dad a book of fishing as each year we go fishing on our holls. My dad brought the book with him and really enjoyed reading it.

I also got him a writing set as it’s a good thing to have for general use – he seemed pleased with this also.

The gardening book I bought him was a something I thought would give him some ideas for our garden. The book had good reviews on Amazon and was reasonably priced.

I used a general brown bag and stuck a handmade topper on the front – I thought this looked quite effective. For the other gifts I used retro patterned wrapping paper in bright colours.

Do you struggle with present ideas for you dad? Did you get any ideas from this post?

Deluxe Writing Set £4.00 (Amazon.co.uk)

Alan Titchmarsh How to Garden: Gardening in the Shade [Paperback] £4.00 (Amazon.co.uk)

101 Golden Rules of Fishing: Rob Beattie [Hardcover] £6.99 (Amazon.co.uk)

Tuesday, 16 April 2013

Nans Birthday Presents

My Nan came to stay over the Easter period and it was really lovely to see her. While she was here it was her birthday. My mother bought a crime fiction book, a Baylis and Harding bath set and a box of Bassett’s sweets for her.

I wrapped these gifts with lots of care, making the designs interesting and special. I used a premium flower wrapping paper from The Card Factory Shop. I used the leftovers to make a wonderful 3d gift tag for another gift.

I used white tissue paper and recycled thick pink ribbon to decorate the Bassetts liquorice allsorts. I enjoyed this gift wrap project and wanted to make an impression with my designs.

Mothers Day Presents

I treated my Mother to a selection of goodies for Mothers Day. Firstly I went into Primark and bought her some cotton rich socks for £3.00, four mini nail polishes at £2.00 and a pack of two scrunchies at £1.00.

Later I visited Amazon.co.uk and bought Good Food Soup book as my mother has really been interested in making different kinds of soup so thought it would be a thoughtful gift. I made my own key ring with a photograph I had taken. I bought a blank key ring on Amazon.

The Mums Book of Glamour was a fun buy and a great idea for Mothers Day. It can be bought at most book stores but I picked it up at The Works online for £1.99 (+P&P).

I used a theme of vintage and pastel colours in the wrapping paper design. I used a premium tissue paper, old sheet music paper and magazine pages to develop this theme. To finish the look I added recycled ribbons from chocolate boxes etc. They were pink, white and purple in colour.

My Brothers Birthday Presents

I bought my brother a Nivea men tub of mini bath treats which was in the valentines section in Home Bargains It didn't have any obvious valentines associations and was a bargain at £1.99. Also in the home bargains valentines section were chocolates and I picked up an after eight chocs set for £1.99.

My brother is quite hard to buy for but I had a good browse on Amazon.co.uk and bought two DVDs Source Code and A-team. In addition I picked up an extraordinary chickens mini photo book because he keeps chickens in the garden.