Teacher Easter Basket Tutorial with Printable Tags

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March is here, and Easter is just around the corner! (It’s March 27 this year!)  It’s time to gather up your favorite Easter goodies and create some fun Easter Baskets!  Of course, the Easter Bunny has the kids covered, but what about the adults?  Are there any special adults in your life that would get a little joy out of an Easter basket this year?  Perhaps a neighbor, a grandmother, or a teacher?

As someone who always “loved school” and “loved learning” I’ve always had a huge appreciation for teachers.  In fact, when I was kid I either wanted to be a writer or a teacher, and if I wasn’t working from home, I’d likely be teaching English or history.  That being said, I generally love the profession, and I appreciate everything that the teachers in our local schools do.

Generally the kids give gifts to the teachers at Christmas and at the end of the school year, but I personally love giving gift baskets, and what better time to give one than at Easter?  If you happen to be the head room mother, this is something great that you can give as a class gift to your teacher!  If you have an adult child or other relative who’s a teacher, it could be a great project to put together for them as well.  Today I’m going to show you how I put together a fun Teacher Easter Basket using MARS & Wrigley’s products and other items.  Plus, I’ve got some free printable tags that you can add to your baskets!

First you need to gather your supplies:

You’ll need a good basket or box.  In my case, I used a wooden crate.  I was originally going to use a plain crate and paint it, but I found this adorable Easter Egg Crate at Walmart for $10.  (It was in the craft department.)  If you don’t find these, you can easily make one like it.  You can use paint and stencil some Easter eggs on the crate.  Or you can decorate the crate using washi tape or decoupage.

Next you need some Easter grass or other stuffing.  I used some Easter garland.  I used garland, because it is very cute!  It’s also not as messy. You can do a lot more with it inside the basket.  And your gift recipient can even keep the garland and use it for a decoration or their own craft project next year!

And you’ll also need a tag and some ribbon or twine to attach the tag.  For this project, I made some printable tags, which you will find a link to at the end of this post.

And of course you will need some candy!  MARS and Wrigley’s have a great selection of candies and treats available this year.  Their selections include

• 8oz M&M’s® Easter Sundae
• 12oz Starburst® Strawberry or Original Jellybeans
• 12oz DOVE® Milk Chocolate Easter Bunny
• 4.5oz DOVE® Solid Milk Chocolate Bunny
• 23.5oz Easter Mixed Brand Chocolates (package includes SNICKERS®, DOVE®, M&M’s®, TWIX®, MILKY WAY®, 3 Musketeers®)
• 11oz Easter M&M’s® Milk Chocolate
• Hubba Bubba® $1 Bubble Tape
• Skittles® $1 egg
• Skittles® $1 tube

You especially need to look out for the M&M’s® Easter Sundae.  They are only being sold for a limited time and are exclusively at Walmart.

You can pick up all of these great candies in the Easter aisle at Walmart!

You can also take advantage of these money saving coupons! 

• SAVE $1.00 on any TWO (2) M&M’s® bags, DOVE® eggs (8oz or larger), SNICKERS® or TWIX® Easter Minis (11oz or larger)
•  SAVE $1.00  on any (2) bags of Starburst® Jellybeans (13oz or larger)

You should also place other items in the basket.  I chose some health & beauty items.  They include lip balm, lotion, pain medicine, nail polish, a couple of little bracelets, and a makeup bag.

Not only does the makeup bag serve as a place, for the gift recipient to store the items, but it also serves as a place for you to store the items inside the gift basket!

Then I chose some ink pens, note pads, and a little candle.  You could also choose items that you know the teacher would enjoy: an issue of a popular magazine that she likes, a book from a favorite author, a puzzle book, extra snacks, or even a coffee mug.

Next you have to fill the basket.  This can actually be more challenging than you think.  You may find it challenging to fit everything inside the basket, or you may find that the basket is too big for the items you have chosen, but there are a lot of ways that you can work this out!

First you want to start with your stuffing and your largest items. See the above photos.  In the first picture, I’ve placed the largest bag of candy, along with a little tissue paper in the very bottom beside this bag of candy (because I have no other items that are as tall as the crate).

Next I wrapped the garland around.  I actually used 2 pieces of garland, because I wanted to drape the ends of outsides of the crate, just to give it a more decorate look.

Next I put in the books and make up bag filled with health & beauty items.

Next you need to get really creative to properly layer and stack the other items so that everything fits and so that you will have a great presentation at the end!  Here are some tips (from the pictures above).  I decided to add a pair of slippers to the basket!  Next I rolled the slippers up, and then I placed the DOVE® Milk Chocolate Easter Bunny on top!  In this example, the slippers double as a gift and stuffing!

On the next row, I added some hair ties.  This, again, is a good and useful gift item that is soft and flexible, making it great to double as stuffing.  I placed the Skittles® eggs on top of this.  And I used another hair tie to bundle the pens together so that they can be placed in the basket without sinking to the bottom.

Finally as your placing the items in the basket or crate, you will have to adjust things accordingly.  Items will likely sink, as you put them in.  I find I can sometimes put them in and then pull up a bit, and they will stay in place. If this doesn’t work, you may need to come up with other items you can add, so that your items can be more layered or packed in tighter.  You should also try to fan your items out so that your gift recipient can see as many things as possible.

Finally you need to add a gift tag!  I created some free printable tags just for this project.  The tags say, “I’m so HOPPY you’re my teacher!”

These can also be cut out and given to teachers much like a Valentine!

Download the Printable Here

 

Now I’d love to hear your thoughts!  Is there anything special you’d add to this teacher Easter Basket?

Is there a special teacher to whom you’d like to give an Easter Basket?

I also invite you to check out more fun Easter Ideas!