A Tisket A Tasket A Foot Pampering Basket

This is attempt number three at this post. The first two attempts were sidelined by a two year old who is now napping. I have pizza dough rising for dinner and Amish Friendship Bread in the oven. (I've never tried Amish Friendship Bread, but I'm thinking it will be the subject of a future post)  So today's subject is a gift idea that promises to pamper tired feet.

As a sidebar, I'll quickly try to explain my knowledge of gift baskets.  When I was fourteen, almost twenty years ago (holy moly I am getting old), I wanted to go on a trip with Spanish Club to Mexico. My parents agreed to help with the funding if I came up with a percentage myself. I started doing crafts and selling them at church and school shows. From there I transitioned to making gourmet food baskets. As the years went on I came up with hundreds of ideas for baskets, and my little business was born.

Over the past couple of decades I have literally done thousands of gift baskets.  They are really quite simple and in future posts I will explain specifics. For today I just want to put the idea out there of pedicure gift ideas.  I have done many many "pamper yourself" baskets, but the idea of a pedicure one specifically was brought back to mind almost a year ago.  I was enjoying a pedicure at a spa in Buffalo with my dear friend, and we started brainstorming gift ideas for our families. I thought a gift certificate for a pedicure was great, but then wondered if I would get it for the right place.  So why not a pedicure basket???

The basket that is featured today has spa slippers, a pumice stone kit, soothing foot gels, a scrub & lotion, and nail polish. I also included a gourmet chocolate bar and cookies.  The "basket" itself is a basin that the recipient can fill with warm sudsy water and enjoy a soak.  The basket is then wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbons.

Okay, here's the "tricks of the trade" to making a nice pedicure/spa basket. First the "basket" does not have to be a basket. For today I used a basin, aka dish tub (Walmart has them in various colors), that serves dual purpose as basket and foot soaker. Secondly, use nice products. Dont' get me wrong, I love the dollar stores for things like cards, wraps, shred, but when it comes to personal care products go for the nicer ones. (I shop throughout the year when things are on sale and put them in a gift tote.)  Then to fill in space you can always put in a few food items. For this one, I specifically chose treats that could be enjoyed while soaking. Finally, add a personal touch. I happen to know the recipient of this basket and found out her shoe size, so I was able to order spa slippers. This makes it more personal and not so generic.

This idea can be scaled down or super-sized to fit any budget. If you need a gift for under twenty, try a nail polish and nice foot scrub, nestled in a latte mug with their favorite coffee.  For those who want to really impress, instead of the more frugal basin, give a foot spa.  Homemedics makes a nice one for around $30. Also look into Philosophy, they have wonderful body scrubs and foot creams.

Below are a few pictures to help spark your own ideas. Take this one and run with it, get it, run...feet. I know I'm goofy, but I couldn't resist. I am off to taste some friendship bread :o)

lucked out & found a card to match

choose nice brands