Brown paper packages tied up with strings

...these are a few of my favorite things! Do you find that this time of year is crazy with gift-giving? There seem to be endless holidays, birthdays and special occasions. Personally, we had two birthday presents, three Mother's Day presents, and three presents for events at school to buy...all this week! I want to spend, spend, spend, but we can not afford to do that right now. (Have you seen the gas prices lately?) Here's an example of a less expensive alternative to packaging presents. You may like it, you may think it is tacky. But there is nothing more discouraging than finding the perfect gift, at the perfect price, and then spending $5 to wrap it!

This gift is for the secretary at Jackson's school. She has been there for at least a decade and this is her last year. So tomorrow the school is honoring her at the spring musical. I decided that I needed a gift for $5, packaging and all! I found these kitchen towels on sale at Kohl's for $2.99. The wrapping was free from my art closet. (Wow, I guess I actually came in under budget!) I took a simple brown lunch bag, embellished with a bird stamp, and tied it together with ribbon left over from a sewing project. I made a home-made card with scrapbook paper. Cut it in a small rectangle, trim two corners, punch a hole at the top and you have a tag.It looks funny in the final picture because I was trying to cover our name, but you get the picture. (No pun intended.) Hope you all find good bargains this spring, too!