The Gift Box

Christmas has come to an end and now its the new year. I am sure a lot of you are not even thinking about the following Christmas/holiday and buying more gifts and spending more money already. You are most likely ecstatic that its over. BUT... you should be thinking about gifts. Now is the time to get the after holiday deals and get a jump start on your holiday shopping or any occasion that involves giving someone a little something. Don't worry there is a way to organize it all for the 365 days that remain until Christmas. It's called the GIFT BOX.. or boxes.

Ally and I have a system that we call the Gift Box. We stock up on gifts throughout the year and put it into a designated area in our house (usually a closet). As of right now, since we are not in our own home yet, we have one plastic draw organizer filled with everyone's gifts. Once we move, I would like to get more organized by person. Ally's mother, Kathy, uses decorative photo boxes labeled with each person/couples name to organize small gifts. When she has a birthday coming up or Christmas she finds that persons name and pulls something out of the box. Its a great way to have something on hand when you accidentally forget someone's birthday...because we all know it happens.  

After the holidays is the best time to start your gift box. Crazy deals are happening all over. Walmart has 50-75% off all the holiday related gift sets such as old spice bath sets for that man in your family to bath play dough sets for the kids. 

I bought all the items in the above picture for $16. My family loves scents so they are a great deal for gifts after the season. The play-doh sets were originally $4.88 and I got them for $2.44 and my cousins will love having them under their tree next year. Getting steals like this right after the holiday saves you tons for the following Christmas. 

Target had the same after holiday sales for all their seasonal items (50-75% off). I got tons more smelly items that I can use as gifts. 

                                         

Tons and tons of stores are all doing the same thing. Dick's Sporting Goods has their whole center isle filled with clearance items with up to an additional 75% off. Same goes for Kohl's, Bath and Body Works, Cabela's, and many more. 

Okay, okay, now that you have all your bargain deals lets get back to the gift box where you are going to store them. There are many ways to get started but here are my few tips on where and how you should begin.

First, find a spot. You don't just want to throw all the stuff you just bought in a corner and forget about it. Clean out an area in your house. I suggest a closet with a high shelf. This type of area is hidden but still can be organized. 

Second, find a container or box. If you are keeping this project inexpensive then use a left over box from all the things you ordered online for the holidays. If you want to be more creative then you can do something like Kathy does and use small decorative boxes like photo boxes. I like to use dollar tree color coded bins.

Third, create a reference sheet. Instead of always digging through the gift box to find something, create a spreadsheet that you can reference to see what you have for who. Make the top column your name column and then have the list of items you have bought and placed in their box under their name. I will be creating a reference sheet and if you are interested in the free sheet leave a comment. 

Last, Fill the box! Start shopping now and find great deals. 

It's a pretty simple project but so helpful. If you need more help getting started with your own GIFT BOX feel free to comment with your questions and I will be happy to assist.