Category Archives: Practical and smart

Fun Custom Doormats

20th August 2018

 

I love funny things and I love custom things.  I also love practical things and believe in making everything you have from spatulas to doormats full of personality.  What could be even better than all of those things all together in these custom doormats from the Etsy shop Olive Creative Company????  Check out their shop and even get a custom order if you a funny girl and such!  These are awesome and earned a spot for sure in my gift giving category because, I love giving gifts like Oprah…minus her budget.  We are only partially alike in that way.

*All images belong to Olive Creative Company and are used with permission

 

AND THE ONE I WANT SUPER SUPER BAD…..DRUM ROLL…….

 

 

If I were a doormat, I would be this one.  This is my personality inscribed on a doormat.  I love you mat.  Come to my door.

Pin, share, enjoy and go visit this lassie’s shop!

Sentimental Farmhouse Decor & Gift Idea

11th July 2018

 

Okay so, check it.  My sister made copies of handwritten recipes that my grandmother had written for me, my sisters and my mom for Christmas.  I’ve framed them for my kitchen and I LOVE it!

So this is a double whammy:  awesome gift idea AND crazy cheap and sentimental home decor!  I adore it!  What do you think?

 

Birthday Gifts for Kids that aren’t Toys

25th May 2016

 

1-266H (1)

You know ALL those toys your kids have that they have played with once?  They get gobs of exciting toys at their party and play with them for a short time and then they’re yours to store.  Good luck.  You have two options:  have a big house or know how to get rid of clutter.  When I go to birthday parties, my kids brings non-toy gifts about 95 percent of the time.  It’s something much more practical to do, fun for the child, and something a parent can really appreciate.   Here are some ideas and some of the gifts that we like to give.

 

1.  Gift card to self-serve yogurt shop.  A small gift card gives several visits which can all be used for the child, their siblings, and maybe the whole family.  It’s a special treat, a fun trip, and they will love getting to build their ice cream/yogurt and pick all their toppings.  This can be packaged in really cute ways.

2.  A balloon filled with a dollar for each year of their life that they have to pop.  Even young children know that cash money means you get what you want!

3.  For a toddler, buy a bunch of carousel tokens from the mall and package them by wrapping the coins in a tiny box and using them as a balloon weight to a bundle of birthday balloons.

4.  For a little girl, get a gift card to a spa that offers children’s chairs and pedi/manis.  She can take a friend along or do it as something special with a mom or sister.  She will remember this forever, unlike a toy.

5.  Passes to a zoo or children’s museum.  If you know the parent’s well and live within an hour of one of these locations, this is a gift that many won’t mind driving for if there aren’t zoos or museums in their hometown.  It’s active, stirs the imagination, and gets the whole family going.

6.  Gift card to a painting place.   Again, they can do this with friends or family and use their imagination picking and painting their own pottery.

7.  Gift certificate for bowling, putt-putt, ice skating, go karting, or roller skating.  Get them out of the house and active, doing something they only do maybe once or twice a year at best.

8.  Do your research on your hometown and see what’s offered locally.  Where I live you can go on cave tours, boat cave tours, butterfly gardens, zip lining (offers a course for children),  and horseback riding which is offered in most towns. Buy them a gift certificate to do some of what makes your city special. Let a little one get to know what’s neat about their town and get them experiencing new things!

9.  If you are going to a summer party, buy a pass to a local or near by water park or amusement park if it’s offered near your town.  Have your child give the gift and package it with flip flops or sunglasses in a confetti filled cellophane bag with a tag that says “A day at the water park with me!”

10.  If you can’t attend a party for a toddler or young child but want to do something special for them, go to Baskin Robbins and get one of their classic clown ice cream cones made up with their favorite ice cream.  Grad a balloon or two and stop by their house with their clown cone.  They will be excited for the unexpected surprise and yummy, personalized treat!

11.  Give a gift card to a play place where they can run, jump, and slide no matter the time of year or weather!

12.   I bought two one dollar stinkin’ cute pails from the one spot aisle at Target and filled it with tokens to Chuckie Cheese.  The party was for two kids so I bought 150 coins and split 75 in each pail which is 75 games and or rides/kids!  Whoa.  This means they will get more than one trip from the gift.  The coins were tucked inside in a Chuckie Cheese coin cup that I put down in a clear bag tied with decorative ribbon.

1-20160520-IMG_0246 (1)

Fun to receive, fun to get gifts that require activity, encourage family fun, and ones you will NEVER have to store….except in your memory box in your head.  All the moms will think you are one smart cookie and the kids will have something as unique as them and something tailored to what they already like or a chance to try something new!

Follow me on Pinterest by clicking the button in the right hand column.  Happy giving!

Gift Idea For Siblings Of A New Baby

6th February 2016

 

Usually I feature gift ideas that I’ve come up with but this time, this was a gift given to my girls by my long time friend, Katie Dendy.  These gifts below are busy bags for big brothers/sisters.  She went to the dollar store and filled up bag with lots of dollar items from Grow A Flower kits and sunglasses, to pre-bagged crafts and sticker books.  For a dollar a piece, anyone can give this gift and both mom and kids appreciate them for very different reasons.  Kids feel special and mom has something to entertain the kids with while she is busy and nursing or when she just needs rescue from the kids boredom.

I LOVE this affordable, fun, thoughtful and helpful gift idea!  Thanks, Katie!  My girls loved them!

P.S.- The cupcake book came from Target, not the dollar store, and was for my new bundle.

1-WP_20140624_14_00_44_Pro

 

Practical Just Because Gifts For Under 10 Dollars

14th December 2015

1-H1qWQbyKw_hYEZmKxq1ySoLulZ_RVKnTlrScIs05iT8-001

These are two gifts for under 10 dollars that you can grab on the fly just because you are thinking of a friend.  Most people don’t know that every year at this time, for just 7 dollars, you can buy a Chic Fil A calendar card that gives you free food once a month for a year!  Free nuggets, free sandwiches, free milkshakes, free chicken biscuits…these guys are the cheapest, a ton of bang for your buck, and who doesn’t love the heck outta some Chic Fil A?  Perfect for anyone from a college student to the mom who always lives at this fast food joint.

The next item is a shopping cart bag sold at Aldi and if you Adli, they are a dream come true!!!!! DREAM!  BUT, no fear, they fit any standard shopping cart.  Forget all of the plastic bags and have just this one sturdy little guy who folds up, holds 30 lbs, has an insulated compartment and zipper pouch for coins, and two handles for carrying the bag to your car.  LOVE THESE and they sell out any time they are carried and you never know when or if that will be.

I will give both of these items away to one lucky party animal who likes to give and receive helpful just because gifts!   To enter, follow herpartypants on Facebook, share this post, and tag herpartypants in that post!  I’ll announce the winner Friday.

 

1-H1qWQbyKw_hYEZmKxq1ySoLulZ_RVKnTlrScIs05iT8

1-Cart Bag-3144

1-Chick-fil-a Calendar-3120

Photo Credit:  Joel Ham Photography

Gifts in Jars: DIY Mixes and Seasonings

24th November 2015

20141110-IMG_3160-003

Do you know someone who is a mom, loves to cook, likes to eat more naturally, loves creativity, likes practical gifts, and loves to save money?  Me too, sister.  Enter this gift idea that I can’t wait to give and would love to receive.

Make knock off baking mixes/seasonings and put them packaged in cute jars.  Above I made onion soup mix in the large jar which is great for roasts.  In the smaller jar, I made Rachel Ray’s homemade taco seasoning.  It’s all of the yummy with none of the junk and preservatives that come in the pre-made packs.

I embellished the jars with washi tape a.k.a my new addiction, twine, craft paper, a chip board letter colored with a metallic pen, dye cut doilies and gift tags tucked in mini craft bags.  The recipes were written on the tags inside the bags with a gold pen.

The full recipe for the onion soup mix is shown. 5 tablespoons = 1 packet. I tripled it for this jar.  The full taco seasoning mix is not shown on the card because it’s two sided so don’t make it how you see it here.  You’ll be bummed.  See that recipe here.

20141110-IMG_3157-2

20141110-IMG_3149-2

20141110-IMG_3180

Follow me, Pin, Try & Enjoy!  Search “gift ideas” on my site for more inspiration.