There are baskets and gifts everywhere.

www.etsy.com

     Look around your home.  There are baskets and gifts everywhere.  Why wait until after the funeral for the will to be read?  Give the kids the inheritance now while you can all still enjoy it together.  Box up the china tea set they have loved since childhood. Fill the cups with a selection of different teas.  wrap liek the one here or box it up and add a bow.   

http://www.thecluelessgirl.com/2010/05/diy-teacup-bird-feeder.html

     If you have tea cups that have no sentimentality attached, make them into a bird feeder for the gardener.  This is an easy craft.  this blog offers instructions.

     Share some of those salt and pepper shakers you got from your grandmother.  For your prepper, you might want to give a bag of salt and a big box of pepper with the shakers.  You can jump start someone's collection and free up some shelf space while giving a gift that reminds the receiver of someone past.   A gift that gives more than it's contents is more than a gift.  

     Maybe you have some large apothecary bottles filled with colored water.  Empty them, wash them and fill them with peppermint hard candies or butterscotch or even M& Ms. tape the lid on securely and add a bow.  It's a gift "basket".  No wrapping needed.  

www.ebay.com

www.kitchen-craft-cookware.com

I found two of these stackable aluminum 'lunch boxes' at different yard sales for no more than a dollar.  You can get them online on Ebay or Etsy or this site to the right.  Gift baskets don't have to be wicker or even a true basket.  Imagine receiving a gift stacked in one of these containers.   You can use them to make an emergency med kit or a sewing kit to go.  Maybe you plan to do some massive baking.  Stack the containers full of goodies and add a bow.  Get the kids in on the fun and use up some of the stash of stickers you may have, letting them decorate the gift container.  

     Clear out your craft room.  Bag up some of those opened packages.  If you are a crafter, you know the ones I mean.  You bought a pack of 200 sequins because they only come in packs of two hundred and you used around fifty.  Put the remainder in these little zippered baggies and give them to a friend.  Make several packs in similar colors or at least enough to create n ornament.  Maybe you can type up instructions and give enough pieces parts to make an ornament or other project.  Give home made craft kits as you thin your excess.  

     

More gift baskets for the Prepper

www.buildingourstory.com

Seed Baskets: 
Gather a selection of non hybrid seeds from your collection.  Label them, best by hand, and put in a basket.  

This gift allows your prepper to share in the bounty of your garden and to help spread the wealth of heritage seeds.

Add a few garden tools to bulk it up!

www.humbleseed.com

Make it an all around garden starter kit. 

www.takeontheroad.com

Tip:  If you are using seeds from your personal collection, make sure to package them in brown paper bags or letter envelopes.  Do not vacuum seal them.

www.deerhorngiftbaskets.com

If you really LIKE the recipient, add some of the fruits of the garden to the basket like some preserved fruits or vegetables!
  
I like the example above.  The one in the brown box just screams to the crafter in me.  Use a shoe or boot box instead of a basket.  If you have the joy of children at home, let them decorate the box.  This is not only a craft time for them during the long winter break from school, but a sweet part of the gift, when the box is reused to store ornaments or other items.  

To trim the size of your gift and the costs, use a nice coffee mug as the gift basket.  It makes a small In order to put together a great gift basket when you don't garden.....Trade a gardener for seeds.  Maybe you make soap and everyone you know has soap.  Find a gardener, or prep farmer and trade your soap for some of their seeds or preserves to make a garden gift basket.

www.johnnyseeds.com

The example on the left ( I found on pinterest) is an indoor herb garden.  Who knew you could do your Christmas shopping at the Home and Garden Store?  You can.  For the home cook, an indoor herb garden might be fun.  Purchase a seed starter kit  or put one together yourself.  Purchase the coconut seed starter pellets or cups, a bag of potting soil and seeds.  With a red bow, it's a Christmas gift.  With a pastel bow, it's a birthday gift.  

Make a gift basket with The things you do or the things you make.  If you are a candle maker, make a candle basket or a basket of raw supplies with hand written instructions for your prepper to learn a new skill.  If you do a lot of sewing, make sewing kits in several sizes.  

www.tripleblaze.com

For an example, make your own emergency mending kit.  Take a piece of card stock and wrap it with a selection of camouflage colors.  Pierce the stock with two good hand needles and maybe stitch a couple buttons on the card.  Add a pair of small scissors and place it all in a zipper bag with a bow.  You can get a lot in an altoids can.  

nerdreactor.com

Remember, a gift basket doesn't have to be a basket.   A gift basket can be a candy tin, a Mason jar, a shoe box, a recycled jewelry gift box. a coffee cup, a toilet paper roll, or even a rolled up magazine.  Roll up a catalog from a preppers store like Major Surplus or Emergency Essentials and stuff it with the gift item (seeds, ammo, supplies).  If you have the extra, add a gift certificate.  

Fire, Fire, Get the Fire started.

     Obtaining lighter to quick start your winter fire is easy.  You know in your heart, if it's something you want, Amazon is selling it!  But, you can obtain it yourself and store for use when needed. 

Fatwood Firestarter 9951 

1.25 Cubic Feet Fatwood 

for Fireplace in Bulk Box, 

50-Pound

http://www.amazon.com/

     Lighter or "easy light", also called "grease wood", "fatwood" or "heart pine" occurs when a pine tree is cut, knocked over, struck by lightning or in some way damaged above the roots.  The roots continue to send resins up to the wounded area of the tree that has been broken off. That resin contains highly flammable turpens.   
     A simple walk in a pine forest could net you a supply of pitch.  If you find a stump, it's as easy as putting a knife into the heart and scraping out the resin.  Caution:  It's Gooey! Sticky, Gooey!

     You could also plan ahead for pitch by taking the wood for your fire in stages.   Cut branches and leave the pitch to leech out for later harvesting.  Later, cut the pine trunk leaving the stump and mark it for your return for further pitch harvesting.  

     If using the fire for cooking, please allow all the resin to burn off before grilling or exposing food to the flames.

www.backyardbrilliant.com

     You can make your own fire starter sticks by cutting curls in a shard of lighter.  You can also make dryer lint and candle wax starters or use wood scraps and sawdust held together with the melted ends of old candles.  

DIY Pinecone Fire Starter | POPSUGAR Smart Living

www.popsugar.com

Another method for fast starting the indoor fireplace is to gather pine cones from the ground.  The pine cone is already easy to light but you can make it light faster without having to blow on it or fan the flame by dipping the pine cone in scented or non scented wax. 
     Those left over candle stubs com in to play here.  Use materials you have on hand.  But, stop by this blog that shows a step by step dip and dry method in pictures.

     Now you have your source of pitch, your starter sticks and waxed pine cones, you also have a source for the multi useful pine pitch for everyday use.  

     Pitch was used to waterproof boats throughout the history of man.  It is also the stuff of medieval warfare legend.  I have another post titled Pine Sap and it's uses you might like, but today I'm thinking Fire, Fire, Get the Fire started! 

Creating Storage Space from items you may already own

     I have been shifting and sorting things in the spare room.  I wondered when I came across a box of shower curtain rings, why I had an extra box.  I believe I have all I should need hanging the curtain from the rod in the bathroom, so, why, I wondered did I have an extra?    

     I know I often say one is none and two are one, meaning to always have a backup, but shower curtain rings?  Then, later I sorted the hall closet next to the bathroom and found I owned yet another box of curtain rings.  So, I either had to come up with a good use for the 'extra' rings or I had to donate them to charity before I turn into my grandmother with a case and a half of A-1 steak sauce stored in three different cabinets throughout her house.  Yikes!  

apartmentgeeks.net

     I came up with some ideas for shower curtain rings.  Then, I found some great sites with even better ideas.  Apparently, I am not the only one with extra shower curtain rings!

     Open the rings and attach them to a single heavy duty clothes hanger.

www.fullmeasureofhappiness.com

     Use the ringed hanger to sort and organize belts, ties, scarves, handbags, and bulky jewelry that doesn't fit in the standard jewelry box.

www.acehardware.com

My mother came up with this next tip.  We had towel racks, long after we had a real need for them.  She folded a half inch wide piece of velvet ribbon over the arms, she whip stitched it shut around each arm and used the towel racks for a jewelry display.  Her clip on earrings were on the top arm, bracelets on the second arm and necklaces on the bottom arm.  Clip on earrings are out of style, but it still works for for the kidney wire earrings.  If you use a large needle to punch holes in the ribbon, you can affix post style earrings.  These racks are available on Ebay and ETSY, also, yard sales and brand new at your hardware store.  

www.spacesavers.com

     These are two good ideas to organize the bulky accessories that tend to clutter up drawers or dresser tops.  

Amazon.com

     Pants hangers are great for pressed pants but you can also use them to double up on space in the closet.  They tend to hang one from the other, literally stacking your clothes.  In the space you can hang a single dress you can hang six pairs of pants.  The type of hanger, above, will allow you to hang a pair of pants folded over the bottom while using the clips to hang a matching belt and/or tie.  The type pictured here at the left allows for use as not only a pants hanger, but, a way to stack any hanging prep supply.  If you are organizing a surgery, four sheets or table covers can be hung.  If you have cammo netting that needs to be deployed quickly, take it out of it's packaging, and re fold to hang making it easy to grab and go.   The same can be done with plastic sheeting.  No time to wrestle with static and peeling layers apart in an emergency.  have it ready to use and easily stored in layers.

www.howardsmalta.com

www.countrycurtains.com

     Utilize your closet space better by installing expandable tension poles.  These rods shown are curtain rods and can be placed in the closet, behind your hanging street clothes to hang folded items, concealed from view.  they may be used in the space inside the windows to hang blackout curtains or insulating plastic.  Use larger rods to hang bags and heavier items as well as drapes.  

     

www.amazon.com

     Use that bathroom shower organizer in the corner of a closet to store the easy grab weapon out of sight of children or invaders.  Use the dark empty space in the corner of closets for storing foods and other supplies.  

www.craftionary.net

     Attach spice racks inside closets to continue making use of empty spaces in cool dark places.  Spice racks are designed for storing small bottles and would be great for an additional med station.  Door mounted spice racks take spices out of sight while keeping them nearby.  The door mounted spice rack can give you the same out of sight remedy for every door in your home.   

     Small devices like these solve huge problems throughout the prepared home.  Use what you have, then get more !

Gifts in a Cup

     First, I would like to take you by the shoulders (gently, but firmly), look you in the eye and scream...."Get yourself to a charity thrift store!  Stop buying new trinkets and make something thoughtful!  Thrift store!!  Go!"

     But, that's just me.  I was at my favorite thrift store today.  I saw a huge new collection of coffee cups, coffee mugs and what I like to call the cappuccino vat with the handle on it, those things are huge!  I thought what a great way to wrap up a gift for a grownup.  And, because I tend to think prep, what a great way to wrap up a prepper's gift this gift giving season!

the hershey's s'mores cup
gift cup.

     Sure, gift baskets are fine, but, a gift cup or a gift mug is easier to fill at a lower cost and just as good as a basket.  We have all been shopping and seen the new in the box cocoa cup gift sets.  In a huge box with a lot of raffia comes two cups, several packs of cocoa flavored or plain cocoa powder and maybe a small pack of marshmallows.  The last minute gift shelf at the pharmacy sells a single cup wrapped in cellophane and a bow with a couple packs of Swiss Miss cocoa and a peppermint stick.  So, why not prep it up a bit for a fun gift?

     Find a cup.  Try to make it fit the person you are giving it to.  If your recipient is a big coffee drinker, get a big mug.  If your recipient is a real joker, get a funny cup.  I am always seeing those joke cups with the handle on the inside or a pig at the bottom of the cup.  I saw one that had the head of a cow on the outside and the back side of the cow on the inside.  And if your recipient is a cappuccino drinker, get the fat squat cappuccino vat.


     Fill a cammo colored cup with ammo.
     Fill the hunting themed cup with a folding knife, an emergency fishing kit(hooks, stren a bobber), waterproof matches, and a small field guide for survival.  

     For the sweet girl in the family, fill the cappuccino cup with the girlie gel eye mask, moisturizing socks, a fine brand name moisturizer, a soft scrubbie sponge for the bath and maybe a couple packs of instant cappuccino mix or some bubble bath....your choice.  

www.etsy.com 

     For the hand sew-er pack in some needle threaders, a pack of fine embroidery needles, some embroidery floss, some cross stitch fabric and some thimbles.  
     For the seamstress, pack white, black and clear thread spools, needles, a pair of scissors, needle threaders, thimble, a leather quilter's finger protector, 

     I put the credit for the website where the pictures of the cups came from because well, credit where credit is due and all that!  But, for cryin' out loud, get out to a charity thrift shop and pick up some gift cups.  Check them for cracks, stains, or chips.  There should be NONE!  think it over, who do I know?  What do they like?  What can I stuff it with?  

End of Year Teacher Gifts | Felt So Cute

feltsocute.wordpress.com

       To finish off the cup for giving, you can use regular plastic wrap to wrap it.  Pull off about two feet of plastic wrap and lay it down on a table or counter.  Place the cup in the center.  pull up the corners toward the center of the cup.  Gather all the plastic wrap together and secure it with a saved bread tie, zip tie or tape.  Cut the edges all even and put a ribbon bow over the gathered tie.