How to make your own Christmas gift hamper...it’s easy!

Ideas for your hamper theme

It’s time to put your thinking cap on and decide what theme you’re going to base your hamper around. To make it personalised, think about the special someone who’s receiving it. What do they enjoy doing; what are their hobbies and how do they enjoy spending their time?

The options are endless when it comes to personalising a hamper... Here’s a few ideas to get you started:

• Gardening hamper – for the green-fingered ones
• Wild bird hamper – for those nature lovers
• Family Christmas Eve hamper – perfect for little ones
• Dog hamper – filled with woofly treats!
• Cat hamper – they'll love the pawsome gifts
• Pamper hamper – perfect for someone who deserves a little ‘me-time’

What’s great with homemade hampers is that you can work to your own budget and decorate the hamper exactly how you like.

What to include in your gift hamper

Once you’ve decided on your hamper theme for that special someone, now's the time for the fun part – what to include in it!

You can have so much fun putting together a gift hamper. For even more inspiration, here’s what we included in some of our favourite themed hampers:

For our garden lover hamper we included:

• Hand tools gift set
• Gardener's mug
• Garden gloves
• Seeds and bulbs
• Mushroom decorations
• Shredded paper
• Ceramic gift Star
• Hamper basket

For our pamper hamper we included:

• Scented jar candle
• Face scrub
• Skin Therapy calming mask
• Bamboo cellulite massager
• Skin Therapy vitamin C moisturising cream
• Skin Therapy skin cleanser
• Skin Therapy skin wipes
• Fruits red body mop
• Ribbon pack
• Shredded paper

For our pet lover hampers we included:

For your dog:

• wilko chewy strips turkey and sage 20 pack
• wilko turkey wrapped carrot twists dog treats 80g
• Gingerbread man dog toy
• wilko dog toy braided 8 rope
• Dog Christmas bow tie
• Wilko Christmas dog antler

For your cat:

• wilko interactive cat tunnel 90cm
• wilko festive catnip kicker cat toy
• wilko cat toys 4 pack
• single cat wand Santa
• wilko turkey cat cushion gift box 180g
• wilko Christmas cat treats filled pockets with turkey 60g
• wilko smoked salmon and cheese nibbles cat treats 70g
• wilko Christmas cat antler

How to pack your hamper

Baskets are normally used for gift hampers, but why stop there? How about a stylish storage box they can put to use afterwards. If packing up a gardening hamper, why not use a plant pot to store all the goodies?

How to pack a hamper

Before you start packing your gifts, pop a layer of tissue paper or shredded paper in the bottom of your container. This will help keep everything nice and secure

Top tip – if you have any heavy or breakable items, wrap their base in a layer of tissue or shredded paper for extra protection.

How to arrange items

Put aside your favourite products from the hamper – they go in last and sit front and centre for the wow factor!

Start with the largest items and place these at the back of the hamper, then use the smaller items to fill in the gaps. We love the shabby chic look, and this means it doesn’t have to be perfect. It is, after all, a hand-made gift! Finally add your favourite items to the front of the hamper.

Top tip – if you’re posting your hamper to a loved one, choose a well-fitting box, add extra packaging, and make sure there isn’t space for anything to rattle around.

Adding the finishing touches

Next, it’s time to make it look pretty! Go for ribbons, bows and a personalised gift tag. You could even use a personalised handmade bauble as a gift tag or just pop them in with the hamper gifts for that extra bit of pizzazz!