A little Xmas help
>> Thursday, November 13, 2008
I need some advice....
My daughter is in preschool three mornings a week. We love her teacher, more importantly she loves her teacher. I am trying to be organized about the holidays this year and I was making my lists and checking them twice. Doing budgets and such and I realized I need a teacher present this year...what to do?
My husband and I had a somewhat lengthy and terribly boring conversation regarding different gift options. I have a few ideas about what to do but I don't know if they will sound lame or what (we are back to my gift giving anxiety I'm afraid).
Here are some of the thoughts I had but I am totally open to suggestion.
1. A knitted dishtowel that we would use as wrapping around cookies.
2. This little knit bag from Handknit Holidays and fill it with some cookies or candy.
3. These bath mitts from Lily Sugar & Cream and maybe some nice lotions or bath salts.
4. Or maybe some mittens and a gift card to a local coffee shop (I have no idea if she drinks coffee but they have tea and hot chocolate)
These are my ideas....and here is my Xmas give-away to all of you. Leave me a comment on this post with either your vote or a different idea and I'll do a random drawing and send you a little present by Christmas time. I don't know what yet but I'll figure it out. It will either me something handcrafted by moi or something purchased that is local. A mystery give away if you will (neither of us know what the prize will be).
I'll leave this post open until the 23rd of November and then I'll do the drawing....
19 comments:
I don't know what your budget is, but I've always given my kids' teachers gift cards to Target or to the mall (and once, to a spa for a massage; she was a really good teacher!). In my experience, everyone gives the teachers candy, chocolates, and candles, or "World's Greatest Teacher" mugs or signs. I figure, a gift card allows them to pick out something they really want, and most teachers are on a pretty tight budget, so a little extra disposable income is always welcome.
The bath mitts and soaps or salts would be great!
We bake cookies for the kids teachers and put them into a ceramic mug with gift certificates for Tim Horton's coffee/donut shop. This year I'm going to make Knit Coffee Sleeves by MissKnittyPants on Ravelry to use for takeout cups, have gotten some unused Tim Horton's cups to slide them on and the cookies are going in to those. We wrap them in cellophane and tie the gift certificates to a ribbon with the gift tag.
oh, i love hte idea of the knitted bag filled with cookies! who would not love that?
This is ALWAYS a hard one. I almost always give gift cards. If you've got a local mall, that's a safe bet because they can spend it anywhere. Target is another good one - sounds boring, but teachers don't have a big salary and I think they appreciate the flexibility to buy what they might want or need.
You could knit a little pouch for a gift card? Or something for cookies and a card?
I love your ideas but I to have the same problem for two of my children so one thing I'm doing is getting a nice mug (dollar store) looks just like a pottery barn mug, and I am making a knitted cozy that buttons around it. They knit up in about an hour and there's a free pattern over at ravelry under coffee sleeves I think. It is a cabeled version but very easy. I did six repeats added a button and your done. I may add some chocolate to the mugs too.
My mom used to bake cranberry bread and all of our teachers (school and piano lessons and such) would get a loaf. We would just wrap it in aluminum foil with a ribbon around it. It seemed to work out ok. I don't think you have to spend much money. My mom has taught middle school band for a lot of years and often she gets Christmas tree ornaments as gifts - to give you an idea... But I like the knitted hand towel with cookies idea. :)
I love all of your ideas! But, I love the bag filled with cookies or candy best. The other comments about gift cards sound good too.
I don't know if it's the same in the US but over here all the teachers take it in turns to do yard duty. This means cold hands in January so my vote is for mitts. It also means your little one will see their gift in use! :)
I would love any of those gifts. As a teacher I loved getting a little something that showed the long hours were appreciated. I still have an embroidered cushion, six mugs, three bookmarks (crocheted) and a very nice hand made place mat. The best gift was from a student who bought me a journal. Inside he had created an award he called the CBA. The Creative Boon Award. ( Boon is my surname). Gift vouchers also work a treat. Sorry for the lenghty post.
As a teacher I can promise you it really is the thought that counts and little things like a handmade card from a child or a note from parents saying why they appreciate you mean so much more than material things over time. Just a small token gift is perfect.
All those ideas are great. Personally, I love the mittens and coffee shop gift card idea. Or instead of mittens a coffee cup cozy. But truly all those gifts sound great!
I'm sure the teacher would love any of those gifts, but the cloths could be used by anyone!
If they have a family I often put a movie package together. A gift card to Blockbuster, and packs of hot chocolate and popcorn. I enclose a thank you note (believe me as a former teacher this is what means the most) with the highlights of year so far and a comment about enjoying time with their family.
I knitted up a quick pair of fingerless mitts for each of my kids teachers, all the moms are wearing them these days and I thought they would really like them. (But I may steal your idea for the washcloth and cookies for any other last minute gifts, love it!)
I like all your ideas. They are lovely and would be perfect. One of my favorite knitted gifts that always went over great were the Fetching fingerless gloves found at Knitty. Everyone loves them! Link below:
http://www.knitty.com/issuesummer06/PATTfetching.html
I like wearing them in the house too when I'm on my computer or knitting. I'm always cold!
i vote for the mitts.
i made those one year, and they were a big hit.
my sisters still use them.
so fun you are doing a giveaway. please don't enter me......i have won before, and i want someone else to win something from you. i hope you understand. thanks!
I am a preschool teacher. I live in Austin,Tx and I think she would love something that is knitted. I would love opening a bag that is knitted to find treats or the bath mitts would be great too. I also like the idea of a dishtowel that is used to wrap cookies. You could do a gift card but most parents give gift cards. Something knitted would be unexpected and treasured.
Oh, I think the knitted towel wrapping homemade cookies is a real winner! Your daughter could help with the cookies.... such a special gift. (Lucky teacher, no matter what you decide. All of your ideas are great!)
my girls' preschool teacher loved to cook, so i gave her a selection of homemade spice mixes - garam masala, citrus rub, etc, along with a little knitted fairy (she collected fairies, and had them hanging around the classroom)
when i was a teacher, i always loved getting homemade goodies for the holidays. i also liked gift cards to the book store. :)
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