Free Kindle Cookbooks for Mother’s Day
Posted on | May 11, 2013 |
Free Kindle Cookbooks for Mother’s Day Weekend. Yes, three of my cookbooks are available this weekend only for free download at Amazon Kindle. Enjoy!
Lavender Cookbook: Essential Lavender Recipes on Kindle
Cookbooks in general have always piqued my fancy and then I fell in love with lavender. In this cookbook and recipe collection, you’ll find a wide variety of lavender recipes that are all easy to recreate with simple ingredients. And lavender as part of a spa routine is perfect.
Lavender Cookbook: Simple and Delicious Recipes on Kindle
Lavender lemonade? Lavender scones? Lavender tea breads? Lavender in entrees? You’ll find recipes here.
17-76 Tea Party Recipes – Tastes of Home
And for those who enjoy tearoom tested jam and scone recipes, this Kindle cookbook is a terrific addition because we used these recipes in my tearoom for upwards of 20 years. There are 17 jams, jellies and spreads along with 76 scone recipes plus a few bonuses. Happy Baking!
Go for it! Have a lovely weekend and I’ll let you know when the next cookbook is ready for print or on Kindle. And after you download? If you’d leave reviews on Amazon, I’d appreciate it. Thank you for being a loyal reader at Over the Teacups.
Why You Need to Survey Your Customers Today
Posted on | May 8, 2013 |
There’s a common misconception among new business owners that customer surveys are futile, when really nothing could be farther from the truth. Surveying your customers is absolutely critical to running your company. If you never receive feedback about your products and services, how can you possibly know if you’re serving your customers? The Huffington Post reports that many businesses fail to use regular customer surveys simply because they undervalue the importance of satisfied customers to staying in business for the long haul. But it’s important not only to ask for feedback, but to ask for the right feedback, and to provide incentives for customers to respond to your questions and give detailed opinions. This is what you need to know.
1. What Response Rate Can You Expect?
A study by survey company Vovici says that many things factor into how likely a customer is to respond to a survey, including length, subject matter, and incentives offered. But perhaps the biggest single factor in response rate is how the particular customer relates to your business. You might think a customer that has already decided to stop doing business with you would be motivated to give negative feedback, but really a lost customer only has about a 10-30 percent response rate. The highest response rates come from prospective or current customers, who have a vested interest in seeing you change and improve to meet their needs. So even if the response rate to your survey is low in general, you know the response you get is most likely from the right people.
2. Feedback to Focus On
A simple survey where customers can rate their satisfaction with a number might seem like it would attract a higher response rate, but that’s not necessarily true. Customers who have the most valuable feedback to provide do best with open-ended questions, where they can discuss their specific experience and what they liked or didn’t like. This is the kind of information that is helpful to you. The way you design your surveys is crucial to how many responses you get and how useful the responses will be, because a simple low or high number rating doesn’t tell you exactly what you’re doing right or doing wrong. But you also don’t want to overwhelm the customer with too many complicated questions because they’ll give up on answering them. Often a number rating plus a follow-up question is best.
3. Be Proactive with Your Results
Customer surveys involve time, effort, and money, so you want to make sure you’re getting the most out of your customer feedback. You should discuss it with your staff, even if it’s less than positive, and open up discussion as to what you can do differently. Further contact with customers who responded to your survey, especially if they had negative things to say or specific bad experiences, is always a great idea. Personal follow-up tells the customer you really care about their opinion and about serving them the best way you can, and it’s a great way to change someone’s mind about you or solidify customer loyalty.
In order to help your business be successful, you shouldn’t look at customer surveys as frivolous or optional. Customer feedback is one of the most important parts of growing and improving your business. Rather than let the quality of your products and services be determined by sales numbers alone, you can stay one step ahead. If you find out what your customers need and expect, you can make sure they find it when they walk through your door.
Stacy Hilliard is regular guest blogger for business blogs. Interested in starting your own successful business? You may be interested in earning an mba from reputable schools such as Northeastern University.
Energy Drink Craze Creating a Public Health Risk?
Posted on | May 7, 2013 |
Energy Drink Craze Creating a Public Health Risk?
While many treat energy drinks as just another carbonated version of a caffeinated drink, it’s actually a whole ‘other ballgame altogether. At the end of last year, the FDA investigated an energy drink company after the death of a 14-year-old girl was believed to have been caused by an “overdose” of energy drink taken in a 24-hour period. Her autopsy showed that she died from cardiac arrhythmia due to caffeine toxicity. Though the medical examiner showed that she also had a genetic predisposition to weakened blood vessels, the role of energy drinks in the detrimental effects on public health still looms large.
Can We Really Call Energy Drinks a Public Health Threat?
It may sound extreme, but the consumption of energy drinks is one the rise. Last year energy drink sales raised by 17 percent making energy drink companies $9 billion. So the fact that a large number of the public is drinking them is proven. Now as to whether they are a threat to public health that gets a little trickier to claim. We can say that there are plenty of detrimental health scenarios caused by energy drinks. In 2009, at least 13,000 emergency room visits were associated with energy drinks. Not quite an epidemic, but a large enough number to raise some eyebrows.
How Much Caffeine is Actually in an Energy Drink?
Well, the answer to this question is actually a reason for concern. While the FDA limits the amount of caffeine in soda to no more than .02 percent, energy drinks do not have any such limitations. How does the energy drink genre avoid this restriction? They call themselves “supplements” to avoid regulation. So next time you reach for a zing zang drink, remember that the herbal inclusions are not monitored. Some levels of caffeine are healthy, but those in energy drinks can be, as we’ve seen, lethal. According to a study done in France, while caffeine does increase the energy being metabolized throughout the brain, it actually restricts cerebral blood flow.
What Are We Replacing with Energy Drinks and Why it’s Not Effective
Humans get tired because their bodies are communicating with them. They need sleep. They need food. They need water. They need sunlight. If a consumer gets a warning from their body that they need to address an issue and instead reaches for an energy drink to address that issue, they are replacing a necessity with a band aid. The need for sleep, water, and sunlight will still be there even if the energy comes back through the boost of caffeine. Our bodies shouldn’t need “energy shots,” according to Dr. Lorraine Maita, a board certified intern from New Jersey. Most studies show that you will end up feeling worse than you started when you drink energy drinks.
Our culture is becoming increasingly caught up in a “have now – pay later” frame of mind and that mindset is absolutely a threat to public health at large. Energy drinks, when abused, can definitely affect a person’s health to lethal extents. So next time you feel fatigue coming on, drink water, take a nap, or sit in the sunlight. If you’re thinking you’d rather take the quick-fix route, your body could be a next victim.
Tracy Rentz writes about the lastest fads in that effect our health and their consequences. The University of Southern California offers several health degrees that qualify you to work in the health sector.
Tags: antioxidant > energy drinks > health and wellness > natural supplements > sports drinks
Tea India Notes
Posted on | April 2, 2013 |
Plucking tea leaves in India
Tea from India
Did you know that the biggest buyer of tea from India is Russia? And the second largest buy of tea from India is Kazakhstan? Kazakhstan has a market size of 24 million kilograms per annum, and India meets almost half of this demand. During a visit by the Tea Board of India, major Indian tea exporters and importers will put up an exhibition and hold a tea-tasting session for the general public during the visit.
The exhibition and tea tasting program at Almaty, the country’s largest city, is christened “Day of India Tea in Kazakhstan” and it is coinciding with the Nowruz Festival there, marking the beginning of the Persian New Year.
From India, major exporters such as Premier Tea, JV Gokal, McLeod Russel, B K Birla Group and Harrison Malaylam will be part of the delegation.
Tea Tasting in Kenya
For someone who is accustomed to rows of tasting cups, backward aspiration, slurping sounds and slop bowls, it is somewhat disconcerting to learn there is a tea tasting machine with an electronic tongue. That’s right! According to Dominic Wandati,
All this is now changing. The Kenya Tea Development Authority, KTDA, has sought the services of Surajit Ghose, a renowned international scientist on tea matters with the Tea Board of India, who has catapulted Indian tea to the global market in record time thanks to technology in tea leaf sampling.
According to Ghose, tea quality varies as crop grows new leafs and that change had not been controlled or anticipated, since those manning processing plants relied exclusively on one system of tea testing. The use of technology has been embraced by global tea producing countries keen on embracing quality and precision. For example when Chinese researchers used an electronic tongue to test five different types of green tea, they found that it could “discriminate all of the samples very well”.
Moreover, the situation becomes complicated because the composition and character of a leaf shoot varies widely from the tip of the bud to the toe of the shoot, which necessitates the need for precise sampling technology.
And in partnership with KTDA, Ghose has now introduced a tea-sampling instrument in Kericho. The equipment, which features an electronic tongue filled with sensors, analyses the flavor compounds present in tea by specifically measuring the concentration of a class of compounds in tea called theaflavins, which contribute to the astringency and brightness of tea.
I wonder if they add milk first or milk last?
Tea Foodies Cooking with Tea
Posted on | March 22, 2013 |
Cooking with Tea
It never ceases to amaze me that there is such a correlation between tea and food, culinary tea, tea and food pairings and tea tastings. Tea is currently a very popular topic with culinary insiders from the Culinary Institute of America to local tea tasting classes such as these (try search engines for “tea tasting class” and your city name): The Jasmine Pearl in Portland, OR, NW Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony, Cooking with Tea – Le Cordon Bleu, Fezziwig’s Marketplace, Breakaway Cooking with Tea – San Francisco, or Cooking With Tea – Philip Gelb, amongst others.
Ellen Leaf-Moore
Cooking with Tea and Chocolate
Culinary Tea Trends – 2013
Bon Appetit includes tea in their Top 25 Trends for 2013, commenting that “tea is the new coffee”. Really?
One of the best tea and food books that I’ve read and used lately is Culinary Tea by Cynthia Gold and Lise Stern. Editorial reviews for the book are outstanding. Culinary Tea will not disappoint the reader looking for tea, culinary and recipes for most cooks and chefs.
In addition to other credentials, Ms. Gold serves on the Specialty Tea Institute’s Advisory Board and its Education Committee.
Tea soup? Tea dessert? Tea on the grill? Tea greens?
Chris Cason, in an interesting Adagio Tea blog post article, Think Outside the Cup: Cooking with Tea, gives us a variety of ways of use tea, camellia sinensis, reflecting tea’s versatility.
If you enjoy short videos, Robert Godden, The Devotea, has fourteen cooking with tea videos on You Tube. Do you know Robert? He’s @The_Devotea on Twitter, “I see you when you’re steeping, I know when you’ve a cake, I know if you’ve used loose or bagged, so stay loose for goodness sake! Devotea is coming to town “ Such fun!
STI, Specialty Tea Institute, announced on March 11 the addition of two new classes for their members and I heard that a tea culinary class is in the works. I’ll keep you posted!
To develop your own tea recipes, it is wise to have a good foundation in tea. That means learning about it with teacup in hand and tasting, tasting, tasting. Search your local area for tea tasting events and tea festivals. A high end tea tasting, A Guided Tasting Seminar with a Tea Master from Japan, is a premier place to be.
The Japan Foundation, New York presents an evening of tea tasting led by a tea master, Mr. Kazuo Hayashiva,
Green Tea, the Essence of Japan. A Guided Tasting Seminar with a Tea Master from Japan
Time & Date: 6:30pm – 8:00pm, Thursday, March 28, 2013
Location: The Nippon Club, Rose Room 2F (145 West 57th Street, New York, NY 10019)
Cooking with Matcha Tea?
Green tea, especially matcha, is very easy to incorporate into recipes. It blends well with a variety of foods. Here is a quick recipe for your next tea time (and a recipe from one of my cookbooks available on Amazon).
Lavender Tea Bread with Matcha
Lavender Tea Bread
(For icing substitution, I brush the hot tea bread with Monin brand Lavender syrup – found at specialty food stores or restaurant supply companies.)
¾ cup milk
6 Tablespoons lavender flowers, finely chopped; divided
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon matcha
6 Tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
Icing
3 Tablespoons water
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
3 Tablespoons Lavender petals (crushed, dried or fresh)
Procedure
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan. Heat milk with 3 tablespoons lavender almost to a boil, then let steep until cool. When cool, strain and discard used lavender. Sift flour, baking powder, salt and matcha together in a bowl.
Cream butter; gradually add sugar, then eggs, one at a time, beating until light and fluffy. Add flour mixture alternately with lavender milk, in 3 different batches. Mix until batter is just blended; do not over beat.
Pour into prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan 10 min., and then remove to a wire rack to cool.
While hot, ice with a powdered sugar glaze made with 3 Tablespoons water, 3 Tablespoons lavender, and confectioner’s sugar to make a thick but still runny paste if desired. Garnish with sprigs of fresh lavender around cake or sprinkle additional finely chopped lavender on glaze before it hardens.
Servings: 12 Yield: 1 loaf
Oven Temperature: 325° F
Preparation Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 50 minutes
After completely cooled, brush with additional lavender/sugar glaze. Wrap in foil and freeze for up to one month. Before serving, brush off the lavender petals as they can be a little woody and unattractive.
Cooking with tea at any time or with anything?
A cup of tea is a great kitchen companion, stimulating other creative ideas to take a recipe from ho-hum to hallelujah!
Tags: cookbook > cooking > culinary > culinary institute of america > Japanese Tea Ceremony > recipe > tea > tea tasting
Easy Book Collections with Collectorz
Posted on | January 30, 2013 |
Libraries and Book Collections Made Easy
My tea friends live on my bookshelves. There’s Norwood Pratt, Alda Ellis, Jane Pettigrew, Elizabeth Knight, Letitia Baldridge, Jill Yates, Pearl Dexter, Frank Murphy, Todd Walton, Katrina Munichiello, Lisa Richardson, Gretchen Iler and others. So many happy tea memories! And always looking forward to seeing familiar faces at World Tea Expo, Coffee Fest, SCAA, Fancy Food Show or Northwest Tea Festival….
Inspiration and enthusiasm abound when an easy method of cataloging books became available at a reasonable cost.
Tea books needed reviews (some are hot and some are not), etiquette books arranged mannerly, cookbooks sifted through, and theology books lifted to higher ground. The Dewey decimal system was decimated as well as destroyed.
Is there a single day(s) in your life that you could actually devote to hand typing your books into an Excel spread sheet to cross-reference titles, authors, ISBN’s, # pages, publishers, and then to capture cover photos.
You understand my squealing pleasure for the convenience of swiping the bar codes with a hand-held scanner by Collectorz.
Simplicity and Style in a Book Scanner
Collectorz’ has the software and tools available for tracking your library and then manipulating the information to suit your needs.
The screenshots show different ways to view information after entering books. The software automatically searches and syncs your books to cover images and book details.
Titles by Author
For the occasional book that did not sync, I did manual online searches and/or contacted authors for cover photos and permissions to use.
In the upper photo, sortation is by cover image. If I’ve forgotten the title or author but know what the book looks like, I can find it by cover search.
If however, I want to organize by author or title, it’s a quick click to sort A-Z in a different direction. There were interesting discoveries such as duplicates and triplicates of books. I must have really loved those books and then of course because they weren’t organized and I couldn’t find them, I bought more copies.
Am I finished? No, but with Collectorz, book life is better controlled. You know the thought pattern for can’t find a book: where did I have it last? Did I loan it? Did I miss it? Do I have every title the author has written?
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- Graph by Author
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- Book Sort Variation
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- Book Sort Variation
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- Book Review Gallery
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- Titles by Author
Reminders and task lists are another result: need to write book reviews, want to read again, want to cross-reference, want to buy another title, should buy this book for a friend.
The rating system is new in Collectorz 9. Version 8 helped weed out books destined for charitable donation. With the star rating system, if a book is less than 5-stars, why would a person really keep it?
Collectorz has database software for movies, music, games, videos, mp3′s, and comics. Life becomes more organized day by day.
Tell me about your books! And click over to Collectorz to help yourself to book organization simplified. No affiliation, by the way.
Books and Tea and Me
Posted on | January 29, 2013 |
The Farmer in the Dell of Books
Jennifer’s Book Farm – here a book, there a book, everywhere a book book.
In one of those great organizational days with Brandie Kajino as an accountability partner, I decided that something simply had to be done about my books. If you love books as much as I do, then you surely know what I mean.
It is a genetic condition and I cannot let books or sheet music leave the house. It is an eclectic collection and well, I never know when I might want to reread them. As much as I appreciate Kindle, there is much pleasure in holding a book, the cover, the paper, the text, the print and the authors’ expressions. It’s called pride in possessions.
The Time Has Come
My book world was messy with books tucked in any space available. Sometimes I couldn’t find a reference book that I was positive I’d purchased. Ethan Harris remarked that he was cataloging his boxes of books (thousands of books) using a scanner and software. With Brandie’s and his encouragement, the project began.
“The time has come,” the Walrus said,
“To talk of many things:
Of shoes—and ships—and sealing-wax—
Of cabbages—and kings—
And why the sea is boiling hot—
And whether pigs have wings.”
Through the Looking Glass
The time has come to organize my books. Tomorrow, I’ll tell you how I cataloged my first 425 books and share with you the joy of a well-organized book collection. Christmas gifts of Barnes & Noble gift cards are ready for new tea books.
Are you an avid reader, too? Have you counted your books lately? Loaned a book? Have a collection of tea books? What’s your favorite?
Valentine’s Day Tea Party Finds
Posted on | January 27, 2013 |
Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day is my favorite holiday. Yes, it exceeds my love of all things Christmas! That’s a huge statement considering that I owned a part-time Santa’s Surplus store for nine years and sold Christmas décor year ’round for about ten years.
Oh! Happy Day!
Valentine’s Day is such a happy day. How can anyone not feel exuberant from all the loving well-wishes, tea parties, chocolate, and warm fuzzies floating in the air. I can already see mini-hearts mixed with the snow flakes drifting by my office windows. Well, perhaps that’s an exaggeration.
Valentine Tea Tasting
Tea Party Ideas
Do you start with your favorite tea as the centerpiece for your Heart Day Celebration? How about a Valentine Tea Tasting? Adagio pops up first for tea ideas – great SEO! and Country Living features a slide show of Valentine Tea Table décor.
Do you start with a tea party centered around scones or desserts? Or what about your favorite Valentine decorations?
Wilton’s Valentine Tarts
For me, I start with Hoffman Media, Tea Time Magazine (check out the Pavlova recipe) and Southern Lady. Next to Burton and Burton and Nashville Wraps.
After that, I browse Michael’s and Hobby Lobby. Seeing the Wilton Individual Fruit Pies makes my mind travel to where I’d find fresh raspberries (and the number of fat grams in the crust – but they look *small*, don’t they?) and should I serve raspberry-flavored tea? Which raspberry tea? Chocolate Raspberry Truffle or just plain old everyday Raspberry Crème Tea? Which would guests prefer?
Around the ’Net with Valentine’s Themes
Homeschooling ideas are terrific for tearooms too, especially when you are a DIY owner or you need to rework previous years’ Valentine’s décor.
Urban Homestead in Vancouver, B.C. is hosting Valentine’s Teas. Although they have a pansy on their tiered tea tray, perhaps violets will be in bloom by then and I can scavenge the outer yard for violets. Checking for wholesale florists because I need to buy in large quantities for table décor as well as giftees, Portland Flower Market is usually my first trek although it seems I cannot better Costco for fresh flowers if needing carnations, roses, baby’s breath, bird of paradise and other anchor plants. But if I need florist picks, gossamer and other floral needs, I might as well go to the market anyway.
Top Party Ideas – yes, they do have some eye-popping, colorful ideas.
King Arthur Flour has numerous Valentine ideas, products and recipes. I
love their Foodoodler for making heart shapes on white sugar cubes and for easy cookie decorating.
How about you? Are you teacentric and what ideas or tips can you share for a more sensual experience (taste, smell, visual, music, tactile)? For example, for music, one year local barbershop quartets were offering on-site entertainment for $75 as a fundraiser. Ha! They came to the house and sang wonderfully for a heart-stopping 15 minutes that encored to 30 minutes. Fantastic! and their fundraiser was a huge success in the community.
Happy Valentine’s Day! Feliz San Valentín! ~ Jennifer
Te Quiero Dijiste
Te quiero dijiste
Tomando mis manos
Entre tus manitas
De blanco marfil
Y sentà en mi pecho
Un fuerte latido
Después un suspiro
Y luego el chasquido
De un beso febril
Mun`equita linda
De cabellos de oro
Tus dientes de perla
Labios de rubÃ
Dime si me quieres
Como yo te adoro
Si de mà te acuerdas
Como yo de ti
A veces escucho
Un eco divino
Que envuelto en la brisa
Parece decir
SÃ te quiero mucho
Mucho mucho mucho
Tanto como entonces
Siempre hasta morir
A veces escucho
Un eco divino
Que envuelto en la brisa
Parece decir
SÃ te quiero mucho
Mucho mucho mucho
Tanto como entonces
Siempre hasta morir
A veces escucho
Un eco divino
Que envuelto en la brisa
Parece decir
SÃ te quiero mucho
Mucho mucho mucho
Tanto como entonces
Siempre hasta morir
Siempre hasta morir
Siempre hasta morir
Te Quiero Dijiste
(I Love You, You Said)
“I love you,” you said
Taking my hands
Into your little hands
Of white ivory
And I felt in my chest
A heavy pang
Then a sigh
And next the spark
Of a feverish kiss
Pretty little doll
Of golden hair
Your teeth of pearls
Ruby lips
Tell me if you love me
As I love you
If you remember me
As I do you
Sometimes I hear
A divine echo
Enveloped in the wind
It seems to say
Yes, I really love you
So very much
As much as then
Until I die
© 1992 Golden Sands Enterprises, Inc. ASCAP
All rights reserved.
Sung by Nat King Cole and Available at Amazon
Written by Maria Grever – Lyrics at Lyrics Mode
Tags: flowers > king arthur flour > party > valentine tea party > Valetine's Tea
Children’s Party on a Shoe-String Budget
Posted on | January 15, 2013 |
Great Ideas For a Children’s Party
Creativity is important when generating great ideas to set up a children’s tea party. Store bought items are incredibly convenient but unnecessary depending on individual resources and available skill sets.
Fun Ideas on a Shoe-String Budget
The following advice helps adults create a successful event.
Choose a Theme:
Decide what type of tea party to host. Talk with the guest of honor to select an overall theme: princess, Victorian, etc. Some children wish to emulate popular television or movie characters. Use the idea for future inspiration in the party planning process. This sets the flavor of the party. It is essential that you pick a theme which is well loved by the kids and is popular.
Select a Day and Time:
Write out a guest list to determine approximately how many guests will be at the event. Choose a party day that does not coincide with a major holiday or any other event. Decide whether morning (10 a.m. to 12 noon) or afternoon (2 p.m. to 5 p.m.) tea is appropriate for intended guests.
Create a Memorable Invitation:
Make sure the invitation coincides with the overall party theme. Construct invitations from light-colored paper and lace fabric scraps. Handwrite party details or use a computer printer. Visit selected websites with free tea party event templates to create a quick invite. Be sure to mail out invitations at least two weeks before the event. Ensure that you sent out the invites to all the members you have listed. Cross check with the list you have prepared so as not to miss any of the guests.
Get some Party Supplies:
Visit second-hand stores for lace tablecloths, napkins and teacups that create the right atmosphere. Consider purchasing teatime attire to help guests get into the party spirit. Look for tea party kits if time constraints are an issue. Obtain small toys and extra tea bags to create gift bags for departing guests. Remember that all these should coincide and gel with the theme you have selected for the tea party.
Set the Right Environment:
Download songs related to the party theme. Select pieces with “tea” in the title. Play songs lightly in the background and use special selections for party games during the event. Popular entertainment includes beanbag tosses and parent-assisted croquet matches.
Tea and Various Accompaniments:
Offer a range of teas dependent on guest ages. Make caffeine-free selections available for young children and weaker options for older guests. Display lighter foods like scones, candy and finger sandwiches on elaborate trays. Make sure alternatives such as juice and milk for guests who do not want tea are available. Ensure that you do not run out of food or drinks, so make sure the quantity is appropriate so as to avoid embarrassing situations.
An expensive party planner and tons of ready-made items are not necessary when planning the perfect children’s tea party. A little ingenuity goes a long way. Self-planning the event also creates an invaluable family project. It is fun to plan such projects so next time, make your plans with your family.
About the Author:
This guest post is contributed by Zara, a financial guest blogger. At present she is focusing on ppi claims. catch her @financeport.
About This Post:Unfortunately, when the automatic keyword research tool and Mendeley go into action, they pick up unwanted reference material. My apologies to my readers and to Zara, the guest blog author for any objectionable political references. It is completely unintentional. ~ Jennifer, Cuppa Countess
Tags: birthday party > birthday party supplies; birthday party invitations > children > invitations
Home-Made Christmas Gifts Your Family Will Love
Posted on | December 21, 2012 |
Home-Made Christmas Gift Baskets Your Family Will Love
Christmas is a time when most of us want to show our loved ones how much we care by giving presents. The stores are full of items that make good gifts, but sometimes it’s nice to give something that’s a little more personal. Creating home-made gift baskets is a thoughtful way to commemorate the holidays, and it can be much less expensive than buying things from the store. Here are some home-made gift ideas that are sure to please.
Homemade Cookie and Candy Jars
* Christmas ornaments – There are lots of ways that you can make home-made Christmas ornaments. One of the simplest and least expensive is to bake them. Use flour and a pinch of salt, and add enough water to make a thick dough that will hold its shape. Roll it out flat, and cut shapes out using a knife or cookie cutters. Make a hole at the top to hang by, carve designs in it with a toothpick if you like, and bake at 250 degrees Fahrenheit for about 12 to 14 minutes. Paint with acrylic paint when cool.
* Baked goods – Speaking of baking, everyone loves yummy homemade treats during the holidays! You can make them into a wonderful gift by presenting them in a festive tin. Some good candidates for gift giving include cookies, toasted nuts, candies, and brownies. I love cookies, do you? What is your favorite cookie recipe?
Here are some ideas from eHow for beautiful, creative cookie gift baskets. Cookie Gift Basket Ideas
* Clothing and accessories – If you can sew or knit, why not make your family clothing for Christmas? Nice, warm sweaters are always appreciated during the winter. Accessories such as hats and scarves are also appropriate for the season. If you don’t sew, there are even some accessories you can make out of fleece that do not require a single stitch.
* Gift baskets – Tea gift baskets filled with goodies sell like hotcakes in stores and online during the holidays. But there’s no reason why you can’t create them yourself. Simply decide on a theme, such as bath and body, coffee, or candy, and fill a basket with items that the recipient will love. This requires little or no crafting skill, yet makes a wonderfully personal gift. Love Chai? Here’s an easy recipe for tea gift-giving. Homemade Chai Tea Gift
* Jewelry – Handmade jewelry makes a wonderful gift. You can make pieces using wire and gems or elastic and beads. Even if you’ve never made jewelry before, there are plenty of simple patterns to be found online and at your local craft store that virtually anyone can make. If you like to work with clay, you could also use that to make lovely pendants or earrings.
*
Spa Creations – There’s nothing quite like receiving a gift of indulgence and relaxation. How about stirring up a Sugar Scrub such as the one from Elizabeth Anne Designs? You can do it!
Making your own Christmas gifts can save you money, and it ensures that the items you give will be unique and memorable. If you start a few months beforehand, you can easily create something special for everyone on your list.
Merry Christmas to all!
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