Date In A Jar::Guest Post by Katie Evans

Hello Crafting Chick readers! I’m thrilled to be guesting posting today. Before we begin let me share a little bit about me…From the time I was very small I have LOVED being creative. Some people find themselves getting lost in gardening, shopping or cooking but find myself getting lost in arts and crafts. Even before I had kids in school I would buy markers, crayons, scissors and glue sticks every year just to stock up and have them on hand!

Along with arts and crafts my creative side finds me drawn to photography. Over the lsat several years I found myself becoming a professional photographer and just recently wrote a photography book called, The Key to Taking Pictures like a Professional Photographer. I wrote it in response to the many people who are buying digital slr cameras but don’t quite know how to use them to their full potential and create those amazing pictures they desire.

Okay, on to the topic of today…Creating a thoughtful inexpensive gift. When I give a gift I usually like it to be homemade. I feel like most people today can and do go out and buy whatever they want so I like to try and give them something that they can’t go out and buy. Not only can you give them a more unique gift but you end up saving a lot more money when you make it yourself.

The gift we will be creating I like to call, “Date in a Jar”. I gave it as a bridal shower gift. I knew the young couple wasn’t going to have a lot of money to spend on going out once they were married so I wanted to give them some fun ideas to do for only a dollar.

To start, I made my apothecary jar by buying a glass vase and a glass candlestick holder from the Dollar Store. (Don’t ya love that place?) And then I glued them together using E-6000 glue. (I bought mine at Michael’s using a 40% off coupon.)

For the date ideas I typed up 12 ideas to do for a dollar each in Photoshop Elements (PSE). Things like, “Buy a kite at the Dollar store and go to the park to fly it together”, Start a “trade up” scavenger hunt with a dollar bill”, “By 2 apple pies from McDonalds and talk about your favorite holidays”, and “Get 100 pennies and play “toss the penny in the cup”.

Don’t want to go to all the trouble of typing it all out? No problem! I’m saving you a step because you can download the file here for free. (When you go to download, make sure you only click on the “Download Now” box.)