Easy Teacher Gift: DIY Flower Garden
Yikes – it’s the end of the school year! Have you become an “end of the year parent” like the ones here, here and here? Do you need a quick and easy teacher gift that you can do yourself in less than an hour and for very little money? If so, you came to the right place.
You’ve probably seen them in your doctor’s office or at any counter where you have to sign in (like the school front office). It’s those pots or jars full of flowers that are actually pens, and while it may not seem like the perfect gift, for anyone who’s had their pens stolen, or who likes to garden, or who would rather look at flowers than an ugly pen cup, these can be a godsend.
My daughter happens to have a teacher who loves to garden, and since this is her last year in her elementary school, we made a bigger year-end gift as a special thank you. We incorporated the pens into a full gardening set with a flower pot, seeds, gardening gloves and a cute garden stake. But if the pen set is all you need, it couldn’t be easier.
The Ultimate Easy Teacher Gift
All the items I used can be found at your local dollar store, so this project comes out on the cheap end of the gift spectrum as well. If you don’t have a dollar store near you, look around your house before shopping. Grab some stray pens from the junk drawer, an empty jar from your cabinet, duct tape from the garage and have at it! Then, you can always head to Target, Wal-Mart or you local craft store to gather any additional supplies you need. You should be able to finish this project for $5 or less!
Simple supplies from the dollar store
Here’s what to get:
- Pens – pack of 10
- Silk flowers – the more stems per bunch, the fewer bunches you’ll need
- Tape – colored duct tape works great. I happened to have floral tape at home, so I used that instead of buying anything new
- Container – a medium size jar, cup, flower pot, small bucket or whatever will hold the pens and look nice. If you have something at home, even better!
- Glass beads, stones or something to put in the bottom of your container (optional) – we used glass beads because they look pretty, but as long as your pens will stand up, you don’t actually need anything.
- Scissors or wire cutters
Here’s how you do it:
- Remove the caps from the pens.
- Cut the flowers from the bunch, leaving enough stem to reach almost to the bottom of the pen. Keeping the stem long will help you avoid having an unsightly bump along the length of the pen and make it easier to hold.
- Tape the stem to the pen by wrapping it around and around from one end to the other. Make sure your ends are tightly stuck so they don’t unravel.
- Continue wrapping flowers to the pens until you have enough to fill your container.
- Put them in the container – sticking them in the stones or beads if you’re using them – and stand back and admire your work!
You’re done!
Add Some Little Extras
As I said, for my daughter’s teacher, we added the pen cup to a complete garden set, but you can add some small touches to make the gift more personal without adding a lot of cost or effort.
For example, have your child write a note to accompany the gift. Teachers love hand-written notes, especially if they’re written from the heart. You could also put the teacher’s name on the container (or have your child do it), or decorate it with simple materials you probably have at home. Wrap a ribbon around the top, stick pom-poms on the container, paint a picture on it, and/or “name” your gift. Something like, “Ms. Nancy’s Pen Garden” would be cute. Be creative and involve your child in the process. They can clue you in to things like their teacher’s favorite color or animal, and they can help create the gift, themselves.
The whole process takes almost no time at all, and you can make this easy teacher gift in under an hour. And no one will know that you waited until the last minute.
Bonus: if you’re already too late to make this gift for your teacher(s) this year, file it away for next year. AND these make great summer projects, too. Make them for friends, grandparents or for yourself!
What other ideas do you have for an easy teacher gift? Share them below and spread the love!