Teacher's Appreciation Gifts

Hello Kitty Paint Cans


School Days Paint Cans





For Teacher's Appreciation Week I wanted to give my children's teachers a gift that I knew they could use in the classroom. Being a teacher myself, I know how much we need to be resourceful when it comes to purchasing supplies for our classrooms. I started saving a coffee can to place the "gifts" inside the can, but when I found the perfect gifts for them I realized that they were too big to fit inside. I took a trip to Hobby Lobby and luckily found the perfect size of cans that I needed-and in a twist of fate, I was saw that they were on clearance so I purchased the last four from the shelf for $2.00 each! Yes, that's right!!

All I did was measure and cut the theme papers to size. Covered the paper with Mod Podge (as you would with regular glue) using a sponge brush. Let it dry a little and repeat the process again over the paper to create a glossy look. You can also purchase the matte bottle if you don't want a glossy look. Then use coordinating ribbon around the cans to "seam" the edges. Let completely dry. Finally tie various ribbons around the handle and fill with gifts. Inside I placed plastic grocery bags to add height to the gifts then colored tissue paper. The final products ended up having items from Bath & Body Works respectively. The cans were wrapped with shrink wrap (use a heating tool for this, but a household blow-dryer should do the trick too) and tied it with colored curling ribbon. I forgot to mention that the girls helped me in the process! They spelled their teacher's name with the fun-foam letters and they also helped me choose the scents! Carolina found the pink Hello Kitty ribbon. She was so excited to have found this for me. I was only going to use a regular pink ribbon since there is limited products with the Hello Kitty theme. It was so special. She knew how important this was to find. I think they heard us scream at Hobby Lobby from all the excitement!

These are the perfect gifts for any occasion. All you would have to do is pick the theme papers you wish, coordinate, and mix & match. Plus, the cans can be used later and the recipient won't discard it because it can be used to store things inside and-it's especially personalized for them!