Celebrate your friend with an awesome friendship gift box! Show your friend how much you care by creating a special friendship gift box containing some of their favorite things, or fill it with sentimental mementos from your adventures together.
I never really had a “best friend” until a few years ago and today my life would be so different (and a lot less fun) without her. Holidays are a chance for you to acknowledge how much your friends mean to you.
A friendship gift box is a perfect gift for the occasion because you can personalize it to celebrate your chosen family.
It’s basic math.
1 present = yay
1 box full of many presents = YAYYYY!!!
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Friendship gift box: Top 5 tips
Who wouldn’t love receiving a box full of goodies from their bestie? Let’s review some key things to remember when building an awesome gift box for your friend:
- Make it personal.
- Use a theme to make it cohesive.
- Fill it with variety.
- Think outside the box.
- Have fun with it!
1. Make it personal.
The gift box should be a reflection of your friendship. If you care about your friend enough to put together a gift box for them, then you probably know a lot about them. Use that knowledge to create a customized box that demonstrates how well you know them and how much you care.
When trying to figure out what to include in your friendship gift box, keep these questions in mind:
- What’s special about your friendship? Is there something you love about your friend that you want to highlight? Are there special memories or inside jokes you want to incorporate?
- How do they like to spend their time? What are their interests and hobbies? Are they a big fan of something? Do they like to try new activities? Are they into arts and crafts? Do they prefer to chill and watch movies? Are they very active?
- What treats do they like to eat? Do they prefer sweet or savory snacks? Do they have allergies or a special diet? Do they like international snacks that they often don’t often find locally?
- What do they need? Can your gift box be an opportunity to help them stock up on something they’ve been needing? Is there a project that they’ve been wanting to start but don’t have the materials for? Are they working too hard and need some self-care products? Are there special treats they like but haven’t been able to afford?
Pro tip: Give your gift box an instant personal feel by including a customized item (e.g., something engraved with your friend’s name).
2. Use a theme to make it cohesive.
Keeping gift box items united by a theme will ensure your gift box appears thoughtful and carefully crafted. Having a theme will also make it easier for you to think of items to include in your gift box.
Without a theme, you might struggle to think of random, unrelated things that your friend might like. Once you pick a category or idea to build your box around, it becomes easier to think of things that should be included in the box.
For example, if your friend likes pottery, you could create a box of things that relate to pottery:
- Materials and tools they might need
- Accessories that express their love of pottery
- Tickets to a museum pottery exhibit
- Registration for a pottery class
- A book about pottery
3. Fill it with variety.
Remember what it was like to enter a candy store when you were a child? That’s the sense of magical excitement you are trying to create for your friend. You want to see their face light up with wonder when they open the gift box.
Mix it up! Include different types of items, such as:
- Something useful
- Something decorative
- Something edible
- Something you made yourself
- Something to read
- Something to do or make
Give them variety so that they struggle to choose what to pull out of the box first! This doesn’t mean you have to spend on a lot on gifts to put in the box. You could always have one pricier item in the box nestled among inexpensive goodies. The point is to make the box look full and appealing.
4. Think outside the “box.”
Sure, the goodies inside your friendship gift box are important, but the packaging itself is crucial! Don’t miss an opportunity to give your friendship box more of a wow factor by using a cool, unique container.
Go beyond the box. Check out these creative options that can double as a gift on their own. You can use a bag, a basket, a chest, literally anything that you can put things into.
5. Have fun with it!
If you have fun putting the gift box together, then your friend is likely to love it. Since you’re not under pressure to choose one ideal gift for your friend, you have the freedom to be playful with what you include in the box.
Don’t be afraid to get silly and embrace your inner child!
Has your friend been working too hard? Load the box up with silly string, slime, a puzzle, and whatever other cheap toys/activities you find at the dollar store and share a carefree afternoon playing like when you were kids and had less responsibility.
Does your friend love jewelry? Maybe you can fill the box with candy jewelry and hide a nice bracelet or ring in there among the sweets.
The best times between friends include laughter, so don’t lose sight of that and make sure the friendship gift box is a source of joy for both you and your friend!
5 DIY Friendship Gift Box Ideas
This is a collection of ideas for gift boxes that you can put together yourself. It’s so much fun to gather items to lovingly fill the box with, anticipating the joy on your friend’s face when they open the box!
You have much more control and freedom when you put together your own gift box. For each gift box, I’ve included ideas for:
- Creative containers: Unique packaging you can use instead of a plain box
- Gift box content ideas: Awesome items to fill your gift box with
- Pre-made option: Gift boxes you can purchase in case can’t make it yourself
Check out these uncommon ideas for friendship gift boxes:
1. Plant-Lover Friendship Gift Box
I kill plants. I have whatever the opposite of a green thumb is. Does your friend enjoy keeping plants alive? If so, this is a gift box they will love and probably won’t be expecting.
This gift box is a chance to give your friend some cool gardening accessories or other plant-lover items that celebrate their love of vegetation.
CREATIVE CONTAINER: Fabric Grow Bag
Make a unique and useful gift box by using a fabric grow bag as the container. With a 10lb capacity, you can fill it with awesome plant-related gifts, and afterward, your friend can fill it with dirt and grow some root vegetables!
GIFT BOX CONTENT IDEAS
PRE-MADE OPTION: Gardening Set
If you can’t put a gardening gift box together yourself, this garden tools set is a perfect alternative because it includes anything your green-thumbed friend might need. This adorable kit is both cute and functional.
2. Self-Care Friendship Gift Box
I feel so grateful that my best friend takes every opportunity to celebrate me and shower me with love. On one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had, she treated me to a self-care extravaganza of massages, mani-pedis, delicious food, and joyous relaxation.
Give your best friend a gift box that says “you deserve to be pampered.” I’ve selected items that will help you create a self-care gift basket your friend will appreciate. These items will encourage your friend to take some time for their own physical and mental well-being.
CREATIVE CONTAINER: Woven Storage Basket
Use this lovely storage basket to put together a relaxing, self-care gift package for your friend. Fill it up with goodies that will make it easier for your friend to spend some time on themself and they will be able to use the basket as decorative storage for their home afterward.
GIFT BOX CONTENT IDEAS
PRE-MADE OPTION: Spa Gift Basket
This gift basket includes everything your friend might need for a luxurious and relaxing home spa experience. Encourage your friend to take care of themself without you having to stress over putting the gift box together yourself.
3. Fun & Games Friendship Gift Box
This gift box idea embraces the joy of hanging out and being silly with your friends! You can fill this fun, and potentially unexpected, gift box full of toys, games, and whatever fun activity you can think of for a playdate with your bestie!
CREATIVE CONTAINER: Foldable Storage Ottoman
Can you picture the look on their friend’s face when you hand them an ottoman? This is such a cool container for your fun and games gift box because the ottoman itself is already a great gift, plus it serves as a sweet storage spot for your friend to keep all the toys and games you give them!
GIFT BOX CONTENT IDEAS
PRE-MADE OPTION: Toy Pack
If you don’t have time to select individual, fun items for your gift box, this bundle includes a bunch of items for you and your friend to unwind with.
It includes a variety of different fidget toys, squishy toys, puzzle boxes, and a hypnotic bubble liquid timer. It even comes with a little “peas in a pod” toy to symbolize how close you are with your friend.
4. Sentimental Friendship Gift Box
This is an opportunity to commemorate meaningful photos, mementos, and anything that speaks to how grateful you are to have such a good friend in your life!
CREATIVE CONTAINER: Fabric Storage Box
This fabric storage box can serve as an attractive and inexpensive memory box for your sentimental gift box. I love this because your friend can keep it in a closet or on display and it looks great.
GIFT BOX CONTENT IDEAS
PRE-MADE OPTION: Scrapbook Kit
This scrapbook kit is a great alternative for your sentimental gift box. It includes a beautiful scrapbook album, plus accessories that you and your friend can use to commemorate happy memories together.
Pro tip: Print out some of your favorite photos of you and your friend so that they can get started scrapbooking right away!
5. Movie Night Friendship Gift Box
Do you and your friend love watching movies? If so, this is the perfect gift box idea. See below for a bunch of movie-watching essentials (popcorn, candy, and other snacks). You can also include movie-related games, movie memorabilia from your friend’s favorite film, and any fun, movie stuff you can think of!
CREATIVE CONTAINER: Large Popcorn Bucket
What’s a more fitting container for your movie night friendship box than a jumbo popcorn bucket? Fill it with the movie-lover items below and your friend will be thrilled when they see it!
This bucket is definitely big enough for sharing, so help your friend enjoy the treats as you watch an awesome movie together.
GIFT BOX CONTENT IDEAS
PRE-MADE OPTION: Movie Night Gift Box
This awesome gift box includes everything you and your friend might need for a great movie night together.
It includes a variety of candies, popcorn and popcorn buckets, other sweet and savory snacks, plus a Redbox gift card so they can rent a movie of their choice!
10 Pre-Made Gift Boxes
Don’t have the time or energy to put together a friendship gift box yourself? No worries! You can buy one of these pre-made gift boxes that still shows how much you love your friend. Plus, several of them offer customization options so that you can tailor the friendship gift box to your friend’s likes.
1. Wine Country Gourmet Gift Basket
Gourmet treats in a beautiful fabric basket? Yes, please! This gorgeous basket is filled with sweet and savory goodies from cheese to chocolates. Warm your friend’s heart while filling their belly!
2. Royal Gift Basket
Make your friend feel like royalty with this luxurious gift set. It includes crown-embellished items for self-care, stationery, and more that are fit for a queen!
3. Dan the Sausageman Gift Box
Does your friend love sausage, cheese, and overall deliciousness presented in a masculine cardboard box? Look no further.
4. Yard House Spa Set for Men
This is a distinguished set of manly bath products. It includes everything your friend might need for a bit of pampering, and it comes with a great leather toiletry bag.
5. Cute Cat Stationery Gift Set
Cute. Cat. Stationery.
If your friend even sort of likes cats, they’re going to love this adorable set. In addition to a handy, telescopic pencil pouch, it includes a bunch of cat pens, stickers, and memo notes.
6. Survival Gear Gift Set
Do you, or do you not, want your friend to survive in the woods? This gift set is full of tools and gadgets that will assist your friend in the great outdoors.
7. Sweet and Savory Snacks Basket
Lindt truffles, dried figs, caramel popcorn, creme brulee trail mix…YUM. The gift basket brings over a dozen delicious treats. Your friend deserves this.
8. Bathtub Gift Basket
I can’t get over this mini-bathtub! They really nailed the “creative container” element of gift boxes. This set includes soothing lavender bath products to help your friend relax with some calm bathtime. Other scents are available!
9. Wine Gift Set
If you’ve ever witnessed your friend struggling to open a bottle of wine, this set will be a great gift! It includes an electric wine bottle opener, wine preserver, and other wine accessories.
10. Gamer Gift Box
Encourage your friend to display their gamer pride with this gift box that contains gamer-themed products such as socks, tumbler, keychain, etc.
Your friend is fortunate for all the time and attention you put into creating a wonderful gift package for them. They are lucky to have you!
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