Gift Shopping? We have some suggestions - 10 gifts for the Special People in your Life

This selection of gifts includes Items from Backyard Patch Herbs and others from friends of mine on Etsy. I have grouped them by potential recipients. And if you want an extra Small Business Saturday coupon just join our Good Thyme Club and we will send out some special coupons to use Thanksgiving Weekend thru Cyber Monday!

For Him

Finding gifts for the men in life can sometimes be challenging.  But we found some great ideas:

DIY Grilling Kit - We make this great adventure gift so the recipient can blend their own grilling spices, from rubs to marinades they receive ingredients, containers and simple instructions so they can then regift in style.

If your man friends are budding mixologists, try out our Cocktail Kits:

From an easy just-add-booze Old Fashioned, to flavoring bourbon or making Faux Gin, these kits will let them stir up some great drinks for the holiday.

For Grandma/Grandpa

A fun welcome to visiting grandma and grandpa is this hand created Door Mat

If grandma or grandpa is a gardener, try out the Garden Stone personalized with names of family members.

Hostess Gifts

Give the gift of fun tastes with these Olive Oil Dipping Blends in a delightful gift box.  We have other versions as well, like Wassail and herb tea.

Teacher/Coach Gifts

This cute little Teacher Theme Ornament that can be personalized with the teachers name is a great idea

Celebration of teachers can include giving them something to do in their free time. Like these sweet Wassail blends that can be blended with Apple Cider for seasonal sipping.

 

For Her

Girlfriends, work associates, and other women in your life need a bit of fun too.  

Try out these Floral Book Markers for your bookish friends.

A great gift of flowers that will never fade or wilt, just like your friendship. Check out the variety of Crocheted Flowers.

And sharing a cup of tea even from afar is simple with this special Tea Cup Gift.  You get a vintage tea cup, tea bag and honey to sweeten.  Packaged wonderfully and shipped anywhere in the US.

Enjoy your holiday and time with friends and family!

Remember join our Good Thyme Club to get special discounts for Small Business Saturday!

How Tos-day Making Seeded Herbal Paper Bookmarks

Seeded paper bookmarks are not only lovely looking – you can reuse them by planting them into the ground and watching them grow into a plant or flower! This is a really fun project and makes a marvelous gift. One batch can make many bookmarks, so save a few for yourself!

What you'll need

• 8 jumbo craft sticks
• 12"x12" piece of window screen or cheesecloth
• White craft glue
• Black electrical tape
• Plain white copy paper or art paper
• Water
• Blender
• 13" x 9" baking pan
• Flower and herb seeds
• Dried herbs to match seeds
• Ground cinnamon
• Two old kitchen towels
• Hemp cord
• Spoon
• Sponge
• Scissors
• Hole punch

Helpful Tip:

Copy paper, construction paper, and even newspaper are all safe, compost materials. Avoid glossy papers such as magazines. Flower seeds, herb seeds, dried herbs, and even flower petals will look wonderful in your seeded paper. These bookmarks can be planted! Just tear into a few pieces and plant the whole thing right into the ground. Hemp is also a natural material, so it's not necessary to remove it. If you have extra seeded paper, tear it into a few pieces, wet a piece of paper towel, and put the paper towel and the seeded paper into a zipper sandwich bag until the seeds sprout!

How to make it

To make the frame for the screen you will need, glue together the corners of 4 jumbo craft sticks, and then lay the screen or cheesecloth over the frame, completely covering it. (See photo.) 

Glue a second layer of craft sticks to two opposite sides of the frame -- securing the cheesecloth between the bottom and top layers. Trim the ends off of the two remaining craft sticks and glue those along the remaining sides of the frame. Be sure to pull the cheesecloth tight as you glue the sticks in place. Let dry. (See photo.)  

Trim the edges, leaving a bit of cheesecloth hanging over the ends. Using black electrical tape, cover the craft stick frame, tucking the overlapping cheesecloth under the tape. Do not skip this step as it will help protect the craft sticks from the water. (See photo.)  

Tear pieces of paper into squares about 1-2" wide. Place squares into blender and cover with warm water. Turn the blender on and process until a thin paste is formed.  

Fill a 13x9 baking pan halfway with warm water. Pour the paper paste from the blender into the warm water in the pan. Stir gently. For flower bookmarks, add flower seeds, small bits of cut up hemp cord and sprinkle with ground cinnamon. For herb bookmarks, use some colored art or construction paper, herbs seeds, like basil, calendula, dill, lemon basil, greek oregano, or chamomile and sprinkle with a bit of dried herb too. Stir. (See photo.)  

Place a clean kitchen towel on a nearby counter and have a sponge and another towel waiting as well.  

Dip your screen frame into the mixture, going underneath the layer of paper and seeds. As if panning for gold, gently bring the frame to the surface and move back and forth to get a fairly even layer of pulp on your screen. Lift straight up out of the water and allow excess water to drip off. 

Carefully carry your screen to the towel on the counter and set the screen down on top of it. Place the second kitchen towel on top of the screen and flip everything upside down and place it back on the counter. Remove the towel that is now on the top.  

Use a kitchen sponge to press firmly down on top of the screen getting as much excess water out as you can.

Lift the frame up and gently loosen your seeded paper. You may need to clean off the edges of the frame and gently coax a corner loose, but the rest should fall out easily. Then repeat until all the pulp is used.

Place your sheets of seeded paper onto a wire rack to dry.  If it is humid, place under a light to speed up the process.

This method can cause the paper to curl. Once they begin to curl, fold a dry kitchen towel around the paper sheets and place several heavy books on top to help flatten your paper. Leave like this for a couple of hours. 

Cut each sheet into 3 pieces. You can cut them for a straight finished edge or place a ruler on the paper and make a damp line and then gently tear the paper.  This will leave an unfinished edge that looks very natural.

Use a hole punch to make a hole about ¾" from the top. Thread a string of hemp cord, ribbon or even raffia through the hole. Tie the cord in a knot and trim the ends.

To Use Bookmarks 

These bookmarks can be planted! Just tear into a few pieces and plant the whole thing right into the ground. Hemp is also a natural material, so it's not necessary to remove it. If you have extra seeded paper, tear it into a few pieces, wet a piece of paper towel, and put the paper towel and the seeded paper into a zipper sandwich bag until the seeds sprout!

 All info and images courtesy of FunFamilyCrafts 

Bath Ball Gift Jar

Need something class and special at the last minute.  Try this bath ball mix in a decorative jar. I have shared bath ball recipes in the past, but this recipe is minty and floral, curative, and makes a wonderful gift. Place a collection of bath balls, tied up in seasonal fabric in a quart canning jar, and present them to a teacher, pet sitter, or another person you want to reward with a little me time.

Bath Ball Blend

1 cup mint, dried
1 cup rosemary, dried
1 cup lavender, dried
1 cup rose petals, dried
1 cup comfrey leaves, dried and crumbled
1 cup lemon balm
4-inch squares of fabric
ribbon

Combine dried herbs. Scoop 1 heaping teaspoon of mixture into the center of the fabric and tie the ends up with ribbon. Place balls in a glass and tie on instructions

To use: Use one ball per relaxing bath. You can tie the ball under the tap and let the water run through it, or steep the ball in 1 cup of boiling water for 15 minutes and add the liquid to the bathwater.

Holiday Gift Items and a Craft show announcement.

 My first Craft Show in over a year is this weekend.  Close to home, so if I forget anything I can at least send hubby home for it.

For those local to me (Chicagoland) - Willowbrook High School WPO 5th Annual Craft show 9 AM to 3 PM Saturday 11/13/21

As a result I am making gifty items and getting a few things made up in advance for online sales.  There are more that 15 soups in our list of items now and we added two this year that will be available only around the holiday, then be retired.  These two new soup mixes are:

Hearty Italian Soup

This is a bouillon included (vegetable) add water only soup that has several kinds of beans.

Five-bean Soup

This interestingly flavored soup is rich in herbs.

And we have made these great gift items.

A Charcuterie Starter Kit that has herb cheese spreads and dips included as well as a recipe for serving 6 to 12 people with a Charcuterie tray.

DIY Grilling Kit with materials and instructions for making your own marinades, meat rubs and other grilling spices.

Popcorn Lovers gift with corn you can pop on the cob and two of our salt-free popcorn seasonings to use with it.

Olive Oil Dipping Sauce with a bottle of virgin olive oil.

We have a fun new item, Cinnamon-scented Fire Starters.  These special scented pine cones can be used as kindling in your fire place or just tossed onto a fire to give off the wonderful seasonal scent. Or you can hang them with the band included in your car, faux tree or on a wreath.

We also have our Wine Dips and Spreads which will be packaged with wine glasses and holiday plates and spreaders.

And something brand new (like this week) -- By client request we modified our spiced wine blend to create something you can use in cider or apple juice, so we now have a new product called Wassail Drink Mix and have changed the packaging on our spiced wine to match calling it Wine Wassail.  Both allow you to create flavored cider or wine with holiday spices and smells.

Holiday gift making posts are in the works, so stop by in the next couple weeks and I will share herby ideas for gift giving.  Also this year we are doing the advent calendar as a daily email.  Sign up now to receive these, as we will not just blast the entire mailing list with daily emails, only those who sign up.

You can do so here ===== Advent Calendar Daily Idea sign-up

Herbal Gifts DIY

Coming up on Nov 6 we are presenting our Making Herbal Gifts program at District 214 in the Arlington Heights, IL  Area, so I thought I could share this blog post I first wrote as a Guest post on the Supporting Artists blog in December 2012.  The best thing about this is it is timeless and these items are great to make and perfect as gifts.

Using and gifting with herbs is such a special holiday treat. I thought I would share a few simple ideas that you can use to herb up your Holidays.

As an herb gardener, I enjoy the scents and smells of herbs, but this time of year the smell of spices is just as appealing. I craft these simmering spices to give my home the smell of gingerbread even when I do not have time for baking.

Simmer Spices

§  6 whole cinnamon sticks, broken

§  1 Tbls. whole allspice

§  1 Tbls. orange rind

§  1 Tbls. whole cloves

§  A handful of pine needles or fir needles, or you can substitute 2 Tbls. of Rosemary

Place all the items with water to cover in a simmer pot or place in a saucepan on the back burner with enough water to cover and keep on simmer. Refill the water whenever it gets low and enjoy the smell of Christmas!!

Seasoned Nuts

This is a recipe I share with my friends each year. I make it to serve at open houses. As a favor or gift I give my Backyard Patch Cinnful Dessert Blend with the recipe attached to those visiting. It is simple and easy to make and you can change up the nuts to suit your palate. If you do not have any Cinnful Dessert Blend, try pumpkin pie spice or just plain cinnamon.

Stirring the seasoned nuts, just before the oven

Cinnful Nuts (Cinnamon Roasted Nuts)

§  1/2 cup pecans

§  1/2 cup walnut halves

§  1 cup peanuts (see note below)

§  1 egg lightly beaten

§  1 tsp. water

§  3/4 cup sugar

§  1 Tbls. Backyard Patch Cinnful Dessert Blend

§  3/4 tsp. salt

Steps:

Combine the nuts. Mix together the egg and water and toss with the nut mixture. Combine the sugar, spices and salt and toss that with the nuts until they are well coated.

Spread nuts in a single layer on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 300 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. Break up any large clusters and allow to cool.

(* NOTE: You can remove peanuts and increase the other nuts by ½ cup to make a different mixture. Or substitute hazelnuts for the peanuts.)

Inspiration Stimulation

When your creativity starts flagging because of all the pressure and use this delightful recipe for tea that combines sweet and savory herbs to construct a creative frame of mind. As a gift I tie 2 teaspoons of the herbs into cheese cloth squares or coffee filters and stack them in a decorative jar with a label including instructions.

§  1 Tbls. Hibiscus

§  1 Tbls. Lemon grass

§  ½ Tbls.Basil (Holy Basil if you have it is even better)

§  1 tsp. Rosemary

§  1 tsp. Cardamom seed (if you have pods crush and extract only the seed)

 

Combine in a container with a tight-fitting lid and use 2 tsp. per cup of hot water. Allow to steep 5 to 7 minutes.

Energizing Bath Bag Blend

Need more energy this holiday season? This combination of energizing herbs could do the trick. Create this blend of herbs and use it for yourself or make up a batch with your family and give them as gifts. The recipe makes 8 cloth bags of bath blend.

§  ½ cup lavender flowers

§  ½ cup peppermint

§  ½ cup spearmint

§  ½ cup lemon grass

§  8 drops lavender essential oil

§  10 drops lemon grass essential oil

§  5 drops peppermint essential oil

§  5 drops spearmint essential oil

Combine all herbs in a plastic bowl. Add oils by the drop and stir with a plastic spoon or spatula (not with your hands.) Allow to meld for an hour and then place about ¼ cup in a cotton muslin bag or heat sealed tea bag.

TO USE: Allow bath bag to steep in hot bath water for 3 to 5 minutes before bathing.

I hope you enjoy these recipes and if you like herbs, please visit my Shop where I highlight not only my cooking and tea herbs, but also baking mixes, soups mixes, and seasonal spices: www.backyardpatch.com or you can visit me at www.backyardpatch.etsy.com

 

 

DIY Refrigerator Pickle Kits - New Product Launch

We are very pleased to announce after a summer of experimentation we have perfected our DIY Refrigerator Pickle Kits. Now you can make easy pickles at home. No canning needed.  They are ready in about 24 hours.  Use them on burgers, in sandwiches and for snacking.

You get instructions, seasonings, and even the jar so you can make pickled vegetables in your refrigerator. All you add is vinegar and water and your favorite vegetables, be they cucumbers, zucchini or other veggies!

You can make perfect pickles in three easy steps:

1. Prep the jars and clean and slice the vegetables
2. Make a flavorful brine with the enclosed ingredients and the addition of vinegar and water
3. Pour the warm brine over the vegetables, seal and refrigerate.

We developed 5 different recipes that make tasty quick pickles that require only about 10 minutes of prep work to give you snacks or sandwich condiments!

       Dill Spears

  

                    Hot and Dill Pickles 

                                    

Secret Recipe Pickles

  

Sweet Pickles

                                            

    Mustard Pickled Vegetables

Ways to use these -

• Use them on sandwiches
• Blend them into tuna fish
• Use in Bloody Marys
• Mix into your salad
• Make part of a Charcuterie Board
• Or use the pickle juice in vinaigrette

You can pick out your favorite pickle recipes on Etsy or our website.

We love these kits because they make is so easy to make your own pickles with out the hassle of canning.  You get detailed step-by-step instructions, a specially crafted seasoning packet and a jar just the right size to make a batch of pickles you can enjoy in 24 hours.

Get yours today from our website.