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These DIY Mother’s Day gift jars are perfect for the foodies in your life, making a fabulous homemade gift that you can create in your very own kitchen.
Collect several food jars and fill them up to make a whole gift box, bag, hamper or basket full of tasty treats.
Something a little creative and a lot of fun for a Mother’s Day gift! Not only edible but also functional, as the jars can be reused and repurposed.
So, it turns out that Mother’s Day is just under three weeks away. One might think that’s quite a bit of time, but I think it’s never too early to prepare or at least think about it. Especially when you’re in the thick of things and life gets a bit crazy.
Therefore, I thought, a good time to send out an official reminder. That way you can get prepared (or at the very least save it for later/ take a mental note).
The beauty of these gift jars is that they’re pretty easy to put together, giving you the chance to be resourceful and also get a little creative! Plus it may just include a little added baking, which I am totally for!
Homemade gifts are some of my absolute favourites. They can be personalised to the receiver, with their unique likes and dislikes, favourites cookie varieties, chocolates, colours, flavour combos and well the list goes on. The only real limitation is your imagination.
But with imagination also comes inspiration and today I’m hoping this gives you a little push in the right direction. Because a little inspiration is often all it takes to get the ideas brewing and all the best foods pouring out of our kitchens.
So I decided to combine two of my favourite things right now and that is one glass jar (to be fair this hasn’t changed, more like further developed) and two, all the things homemade (anyone else here for all for DIYs?).
The best kinds of jars to use
These are possibly the ones that you already have! There are so many different vessels and containers you can use to house all your creations. Ones that may already be lurking around your kitchen, hiding away in the depths of your pantry. Time to go deep diving into your pantries!
My favourites are glass jars, as you can see what’s inside and that is present within itself. Plus it looks super cute. However, you can also get creative with what you end up using. Repurpose what you’ve got!
Ideas on what you could use:
- Instant coffee jars
- Sauce jars or bottles
- Peanut butter or almond butter jars
- Cordial, drink or syrup bottles/jars
- Jam jars or jars from various other spreads
And if all of that fails, you can opt to buy some fancy glass jars that match.
Following are a few ideas to fill all those glass jars with all the edibles. Particularly useful when resources and outings are rather limited.
Not to mention, functional! After all the treats have disappeared, they can be replaced and refilled. Don’t you just love a reusable, sustainable gift that keeps on giving?
What to fill your newly found DIY Mother’s Day gift jars with?
1. Assorted treats
And I mean all the treats. This one is rather versatile and flexible, you decide how to make it fun! Will you choose to reminisce in her favs? Will you introduce her to some new things you know she’ll love? Totally up to you, customise away. Treats could mean so many things to different people and the possibilities are endless.
Here are some ideas…
- Nougat or fudge – caramelly, fruity, nutty or chocolatey.
- Gourmet crackers to accompany some cheese, like these savoury herb shortbread crackers
- Bhuja mix or some type of other crunchy crispy snack goodness
- Coffee beans or ground coffee made with a special blend
- Her favourite tea in loose-leaf form
- Bliss balls – storebought or homemade such as these Raffaello ones
- Gourmet marshmallows – the deluxe ones with some interesting flavours like matcha or passionfruit (since they’re in season!)
- Chocolates – white, milk, dark or a mixture of them all? Also includes items such as truffles, chocolate-covered berries/ nuts/ coffee beans/ liquorice
- Dried fruits – apricots, apples, blueberries, banana chips, berries, kiwifruit or the more exotic green apples, mangos, pineapples – oh the luxury, so many options.
- Nuts – lightly coated and toasted party mix style
- Pretzels of all shapes and sizes (bows, sticks or even flavoured and freshly made!)
- Macarons – if you’re feeling a little fancy. Mini, medium or large different colours and/or flavours
You name it and you can do it! Think of all the different types of foods she likes to treat herself with.
2. A custom cereal or muesli/ granola blend
Who doesn’t love a bit of crunchy, crispy goodness? Gather all your favourite bits and pieces and toast them up.
Here are a few suggestions of the elements to include in your cereal or muesli/ granola mix…
- Grains – Oats, buckwheat, rice puffs
- Seeds – pumpkin, linseed, sesame, basil seeds, chia, poppy, flax
- Nuts – cashew, almond, pistachio, hazelnut, walnut, pecan, macadamia
- Cacao nibs or chocolate chips
- Freeze-dried fruit! to make it extra special. They all work pretty well from raspberries, blueberries and strawberries through to mandarin, plum, lychee etc
- Or dried fruit: dates, cranberry, apricot, goji, blueberry, raisins
- Yoghurt-coated raisins, cranberries or apricots (my secret addiction)
- Coconut shreds/flakes and coconut oil
- Sweeteners to sweeten the deal (honey, maple syrup, fruit juice/ syrups, )
- And a touch of salt or spice – cinnamon, nutmeg
Recipes for inspiration:
- Chocolate granola from Just Another Foodiegram
3. Homemade cookies
Homemade cookies compare to no other and are some of the best comforting foods out there. Whether they come crispy thin or gooey in the middle, smooth or chunky. They all look pretty attractive in a glass jar!
Afghans, shortbread, peanut butter, salted caramel or your classic chocolate chip, jumbo, mini, filled, plain, or iced, it’s all up to you!
Recipes for inspiration:
- Cloudy Kitchen’s perfect chocolate chip cookies
Wrapping it up
If you haven’t already had enough fun, the final touches are all that’s left! There are several ways to do this but here are a few tips:
- Attach a tag with a handwritten message
- Ribbon it up and attach a funky spoon or scoop
- Combine different materials and ribbons
- Attach some accessories to accompany – like mini tongs, tea strainers, wooden spoons, teaspoons or any other type of spoon
- Add in some flowers or greens/ herbs
- Print a little note and tie it to the lid
- Add in some twine
- Create a theme and multiple filled jars to fit the theme (I went with white, gold and jute )
- Make multiple jars with different items and put them into a basket, hamper, bag or box for the ultimate gift with all the things
Hope you were inspired to create this wholesome DIY Mother’s Day gift and picked up a few ideas! Made with all the love and mixed in with some of your ideas and creations.
Although, you are of course not just limited to Mother’s Day. You can turn this idea into gifts that extend beyond Mother’s Day… like birthdays, Christmas, or all the other types of celebrations or even just because you can!
If you do decide to give these a go, first of all, have the absolute best time putting them together. And second, don’t forget to share what you create by tagging #theculinaryletter and @theculinaryletter on Instagram or Facebook, I’d love to see them.
These DIY Mother’s Day gift jars are fun, versatile and an all-around good time. Not only a great activity for when you’re at home but also contains the feel-good factor, being homemade and customised and all!
Until next time, stay curious!
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