Making Life Easier - the Gift Box

When I was growing up, my mother always had a 'Present Box'.  A large box of carefully selected treasures - for babies, for boys and girls, for adults.  Oh how I used to covet the items in that box.  I recall one beautifully wrapped scented soap - it's embossed paper featured a swirly floral print in lilac, white and charcoal, and I loved to cradle it, sniffing and stroking, each time my mother pulled out the present box.  Who did the soap go to in the end?  I cannot recall!

Now that I am a little time-poor, I have started my own present box, an Aladdin's cave of enchanting small gifts.  I really enjoy stocking it up!  Whenever I see something which would make an excellent gift - for a baby, child or adult - I buy one (or two!) and squirrel them away.  Sometimes I have someone in mind as a recipient, but often not.  Every item in the box is something I would be personally thrilled to receive.

Now, if I have a gift-giving occasion, I can go 'shopping' in my present box, pouring over the contents and selecting something just right.  Often, of course, I still go out shopping with the intent of purchasing a gift for someone.  For example, this morning I bought a colourful, fluttery kite for one of Tabitha's friends.  The kite is the same as hers, and is thankfully simple to get up in the air, even for a toddler.  This morning, however, I bought two of this kite - one for the intended recipient, and one to tuck away in the present box.

Here are some things which have lived in my present box - feel free to copy, if you have (or want to start) your own:

Jellyfish Kite - a single-string kite with beautiful fluttery tails.  Recommended as a 'first kite'.   Australian-made by Windspeed Kites.

Edison Trainer Chopsticks - not your standard joined-at-the-top full-sized pair, these are the right size for small children, and have loops for the fingers and thumb, thus placing the hand in the correct positioning for chopstick use.  Within five minutes of using her pair, Tabitha was able to eat most of her meal with her training chopsticks, and enjoys playing games with them (e.g. picking up small toys and placing them into a bowl) for practice.  Great for fine-motor coordination too!  Oh, and they come in super cute styles.

Eggling ceramic planter - I am totally in love with these.  A realistic ceramic egg, crack it open, water, and a tiny garden will grow - you can get flowers or herbs.  Hand made in Japan, the plant will grow for a few months in its egg home, then can be planted straight into the garden.  I think these make a lovely gift for children or adults!  The company also has some other cute mini plant products for children, on their website.

Queen B Candles - these 100% pure beeswax candles are made in Australia from local beeswax.  Free from any nasties, and smelling divine - like honey sitting in the sun - these are a nice gift for many occasions.  I personally love their tealights which come in clear cups and jam jars (we have them hanging along our back decking in THESE holders, which look spectacular in the evenings) and their Bee Lights - skinny, pretty little mini tapers, which make elegant birthday candles or beautiful bathtime lights.  Their roll-your-own tapers and poured candle kits are great for older children.  Not particularly gifty, but a favourite of mine, is their furniture polish.  Take ten minutes to click around the site, and I promise you will find something gorgeous!  I had these candles all around the house when in labour with both Tabitha and Zachary, and love supporting an environmentally friendly small Australian business as well!

Stockmar Crayons - these come in blocks and more traditional crayon shapes, and in small or large sets.  The saturation of colour, the smoothness of the draw, and the divine pure beeswax smell combine to make these my absolute favourite crayons.  I can sit and draw with these for hours with Tabitha.  You can also get a nice combination set here.

Sarah's Silks playsilks - These 90cm square silk scarves some in the most divine colours - rainbow and starry night sky are favourites here - and are the ultimate playtime accessory for small children.  They can be used as dressups (superhero capes, princess skirts), baby doll blankets, a circus tent for the dollhouse, some 'water' for the farm animals to swim in...  I wish we had one in every colour!  Sarah's Silks also make a gorgeous silk rainbow streamer that will bring out the inner rhythmic gymnast in anyone!  In fact, the company makes dozens of beautiful silk products, well worth having a browse through their range.

Knitting Mushroom - when I was small, I had a 'knitting Nancy' doll, which produced endless feet of knitted tubes.  I used to stitch them into little circular dolls' rugs.  They are sort of pointless however encourage good fine motor coordination, and children always seem to enjoy them.  This knitting mushroom is one of the sweeter versions I have seen.

Le Toy Van dolly family - these also come in fairy and princess styles.  I think these are some of the nicest basic doll families out there, and make for hours of engaging rollplay games for small children.  Tabitha loves putting a tiny baby doll (sold separately) into a small cloth 'wrap' on the mother's chest.  Teeny Tiny Babywearing!

Le Toy Van Honeybee Cake Stand Set - what child (or adult) wouldn't enjoy playing with these?  Always a hit gift, Tabitha also adores her set, and they seem to encourage plenty of imaginative play - preparing tea and cakes with her tea set, but we also sort them into categories together, e.g. 'cakes with chocolate on them', 'fancy or plain' etc. which gets her little mind ticking!

Stockmar, Sarah's Silks and many other beautiful Steiner type products can also be purchased from my aunt's gorgeous shop in Hobart, Lyrebird.  She doesn't have online shopping BUT she will happily post anywhere, and her prices are generally cheaper than 'mainland' shops, particularly for larger items.  You can also follow them on Facebook.

Dragonfly Toys and Honeybee are two of my favourite toy shops, worth a browse online for gift ideas.

I'm not great with adult male gifts.  Any ideas?  I tend to go with a good, interesting bottle of wine.  Or an art / travel / architecture book.  Not that those are terrible things!  But it would be nice to mix it up a little.

For babies, I generally make or buy something specifically, however for unexpected babies (obviously not unexpected to the parents, but for people I don't know as well, and haven't followed the pregnancies) I keep a small stash of pretty bits and pieces - lovely soft organic muslins, embroidered bibs, handknit beanies.


For female friends, I also tend to buy for the individual.  When in doubt, Champagne or a box of Koko Black chocolates.

Stored next to my present box is a stash of wrapping papers - geometric prints, florals, tissue papers, alphabet prints and others - and some ribbon and cards.  I keep a decent stack of cards - birthday cards, get well cards, thank you cards, new baby and wedding cards, and some blank ones.

The last category of gifts I often give?  Small handmade gifts, most often given as hostess gifts.  A jar of fragrant Spaghetti Spice (a Nigella Lawson recipe, I will post one day), a jar of homemade roasted almond praline, a jar of glittery, lavender-scented playdough (for a child, naturally).

Of course, I am always happy to bake something as a gift - a tin of gooey chocolate brownies, two dozen decadent triple chocolate fudge cookies, a wholemeal apple cake.  Most people are happy to receive baked goods!

What are your favourite gifts to give?  Or receive?  I love to receive anything beautifully wrapped.

Oh and finally - since we were talking about toys - I can't resist a couple of quick snaps of my kiddie winkies, playing with their toys earlier today.

Zachary (at just on 5 months) has 2 teeth completely through, and more on the way - he is constantly chewing and licking his lips, poor dumpling.  He loves to chew on fabric (felt teething rings, scarves and cloth books, teething rag dolls) but also on smooth wood.  Both of the below colourful toys are popular with him:

Tabitha received her dolls house for her 2nd birthday, and nearly a full year on, it remains her favourite toy.  She can play in it for hours, with all of her little dolls and animals.  Hours.  And she likes me to play dolls house with her.  My friends, there are only so many hours of doll-talking I can handle without loosing my marbles a little.  Plus, she is a bossy britches, and gets cranky if I am holding the dollies wrong (they must be held forward-facing, with one finger / thumb on each side of the waist - never the head - and must move slightly while they are talking).  But then she tells me she wants me to play with her because, and I quote, "You're my best friend Mama and I love you so much" so of course, I play.  Little darlings!