Give Thanks This June

June is a big celebration month. Summer starts; school ends.

June is the time when we acknowledge our dads, grads and teachers. School officially ends for all Anchor Bay Area students June 10  and many parents send their child’s teacher a thank you gift in appreciation of their children's academic success throughout the school year.

Last year, a friend of mine who is a teacher showed me a very clever gift she received from one of her students that really touched her--a little garden in an egg carton decorated by the child. This egg carton garden was filled with the teacher’s favorite flowers for her to replant in her yard.  This homemade gift was appreciated by my friend and I think that many of you will find this crafty little project makes a wonderful thank you or thinking of you gift for teachers, co-workers, friends, your book club host or anyone who gardens.

This is a very timely project this year, as many flower and vegetable gardening enthusiasts have delayed planting due to the heavy rains this spring. This little egg carton garden is perfect for the flower or herb gardener. I personally like to cook with fresh herbs whenever possible and thought that the egg carton garden would make an excellent herb garden starter kit. To start your own herb garden kit or to make one you will need:

An empty egg carton
Potting soil
Seeds (your favorite herbs)
Construction paper
Ribbon
Scissors
Glue
Tape

 Directions:

Decorate egg carton (you can paint it,scrapbook it, decoupage it;  you are limited only by your imagination and the supplies on hand).

Place potting soil in each hole

Plant a couple of seeds in each (this herb garden contains Basil, Dill, Lemon Balm, Oregano, Rosemary, & Thyme)

Add gift wrap and tags as desired. I like to personalize my gift wrap whenever possible by cutting out quotations or sayings that fit the gift or occasion and adding them to the final product. This is super simple, takes no time and adds that little extra touch to your package.

If you would like to personalize a gift box or package all you need is:

Construction paper
Pencil
Exacto knife
Scotch tape

Directions:

Cut the construction paper into 2 to 3 inch wide long strips
Write the quotation, saying, or name on the strip
Cut-out with exacto knife
Run clear tape over the saying and affix to box

When finished you should have an eggscellent thank-you gift. I know my child always had more than one teacher I wanted to thank at the end of the year, so check back in a day or so for more thank-you gift ideas.

As a sidenote: the New Baltimore Farmers Market is hosting their 3rd Annual Herb and Flower Sale this Sunday morning to kick off the Farmers' Market season here in New Baltimore if you'd like to pick up some fresh herbs or flowers to use for this project.