How to Customize Baskets and Containers
Brandy asks:
“How can I customize some of the baskets and alternative containers I use to build gift baskets?”
There are several methods available to customize these vessels.
Baskets can be sprayed with non-toxic paint to change the wood color or style. For a Mother’s Day event, I spray painted numerous baskets before bringing them to Macy’s to create gift baskets for customers and topping them with matching bows.
Boxes can also be sprayed, but it may be better to cover the thin cardboard material with light cloth and tacking it down on the inside with glue. One designer I met in the 1990s mastered this technique with great results.
Some home decor shops will provide you with more ideas on customizing your baskets and containers, and the photographs at BasketsGiftBaskets.com may also be helpful.
If you’re a designer who specializes in customizing your vessels, what advice can you share with us?
Three Tips to Make Spa Gift Baskets
Jamie asks:
Are there tips you can give me about making spa gift baskets?
Creating gift baskets with soaps, scrubs, and other skin soothing products is similar to making baskets filled with food. However, there are certain methods to making these specialty gifts that are different than the basic snack assortments.
1. Try not to combine too many fragrances in one basket. Two or three at the most are agreeable without too many scents clashing.
2. Baskets are a terrific vessel. Also, look for miniature claw tubs and other containers that can be found through many of our favorite local and national wholesalers.
3. Don’t shy away from the high-end products that ladies and men appreciate. There are times when lower-priced spa baskets are appropriate, but when it comes to pampering, customers and receivers want to see lavish items, such as products you’ll find on the Organic Wholesale Supplies site that cannot be found everywhere.
I remember seeing the first spa gift baskets ever photographed, which appeared in a New York-based magazine back in the early 1930s and cost less than $25 for a grand basket given to a family of four. Since then we’ve come a long way in product selection and price. I know your spa gift baskets will be everything your customers want, and they’ll also return to buy more.
How to Pack the Inside of a Gift Basket
Paula asks:
“Can I use Styrofoam peanuts to elevate products in my gift baskets, or is newspaper better?”
Unprinted newspaper, the type that resembles brown grocery bags, is a popular item that’s placed inside of baskets or containers. Newspaper is also acceptable. Many designers shun newspaper because of the ink transference from the paper to hands.
Some designers add peanuts inside of baskets, but this technique seems to be reserved for those who know how to stabilize them properly.
Peanuts have a habit of shifting inside of a basket or container, and if products are not set on top firmly, snacks and gifts can shift, causing the design to become unattractive when it finally reaches its destination.
Try adding peanuts as part of your exploration into gift basket designing. You’ll know if that material is best or if newspaper will make gift basket creation more manageable.
