Good Little Gifting

Next week I’m going to be at an antiques show, one that I have really wanted to shop, but it’s going to be even more fun as a seller.  When the booth is set I’ll give you the details, but while the theme and style are still being developed, and we have a little lead time, I started to think of some nice little freebie for shoppers in our booth…Something easy to make in quantity, something useful, something a bit French….

I recently received a little thank you of a candle and fancy box of matches, and I had to smile, because when I do  corporate Christmas gifts, I usually include a scented candle and box of matches along with a bottle of wine.  Gifting matches with a candle is thinking it through; remember when you could pick up nice matches at every bar and restaurant?  Now that there is no smoking inside, even in France, few establishments give away matches.  I have a large box of the Diamond matches on hand, because I don’t like those trigger-pull lighters.  I still have a large collection of old matches.  I don’t use them anymore, and they sit in a Chinese lacquer box.

The oversized matches I received last week are the same ones I like to gift.  They are made by HomArt and I usually buy them online HERE.  You can never go wrong with the Paris box, though I love them all, especially those sold at Christmas time.  They are elegant and long, and everyone can use them.  And even when not being used, they look pretty next to your candles or in the powder room. 

So what to do for a giveaway…?  I didn’t get past my first idea before I settled on it: matches.  You can order all kinds of great matchbooks online, custom printed such as those HERE, but these will cost you $1 or more each with a minimum of 50.  Those are probably great for a wedding, but a giveaway needs to be cheaper than that, at least for me.  A few weeks ago I happened to notice that Smart & Final sells match books.  These are plain white, made in the USA by D.D. Bean.  If you search Amazon for “white matches” you will see these for various prices, but in a box of 50 at Smart & Final they are $1.50.  That’s 3 cents per matchbook, so that works~

 

But who wants a plain matchbook?  I got out my little Merci stamp and an ink pad in lavender….

And I stamped the back, where the match strike is~

On the front, I put a quick but thick brush of glue~

And poured some new lavender buds from Paris onto a plate.

You know how much I love lavender, by the kilo please.  I started out covering the entire front side of the matchbook, but then decided that a small dab across the middle is visually better.  These will be in a large glass vase full of them.  Taken home, they are better than a plain box and infinitely better than a trigger lighter.  This is something I’d use at home, on my patio table; how about you, would you take one home?~

And best yet, this cost me 3 cents plus some glue and lavender.  Not much.  And easy to make, quickly.  I could see these used for other events with something else glued on, though I think in quantity (I’m making 300) it’s hard to beat the lavender.