I am completely excited about Christmas this year and I am more excited to be making homemade gifts. Part of the fun of giving at Christmas is wrapping the gifts and making them look special, ar  least for me it is. Because I give away a lot of baked goods, I have become somewhat of a pro at wrapping them.

All throughout the year I save tin containers, and I will hit up the dollar store and stock up as well. I am not picky, any size and shape will absolute do. About a week before I begin to assemble gifts I head out the garage and paint all of the tins and their lids in one nice uniform “Christmassy” color. I am not a huge fan of the usual pictures on the tins, so giving them a coat of paint cleans them up, and makes them all cohesive together.

Pack them full of goodies, tie with a ribbon and you’re done. Last year I decided to attach inexpensive ornaments that my kids painted to the top secured to the ribbon. That small extra step was perfect. To add more personalization this year I plan to bust out the chalk board paint. You can paint a small stripe of chalkboard paint straight onto your tins, and then write the name of your recipient right there. Make it more than a stripe and you can add the contents of the can as well. Super handy.

If you want to keep your tins one color, head to your local craft store. You can purchase small pieces of wood, in holiday shapes, that you can paint with chalk board paint. Attach a ribbon to those and they will become ornaments too. My kids had a blast last year coloring on their grandmother’s ornaments. In addition to her name, they created pictures for her as well.

-Stephanie Wright