Well, here we are once again... right around the corner from Christmas! 

Giving great gifts shouldn't be as difficult (or UNfun) as it can be. Can I get an Amen??

The good news is that I'm here to help :)

Today I'm going to give you an awesome idea for a gift for that special someone that they will love, and that you can DIY on the cheap!

It started for me as a trip to the local Hobby Lobby for something I could create as a gift for my husband's mom's surprise birthday party. I didn't really have any agenda going in. Just hoping and praying something would speak to me. And happily, it did :)

I started with this shadow box that I got there. It was on sale for around $7.00...

Perfecto! Because I knew it would hold some of the flowers that I had dried from grandma's (her mom's) funeral that I had at home.

OK - I can hear you from way over here "Who has dried funeral flowers just laying around???!"

You could use this idea with a pet's picture, or dog collar; you could change the phrase on the front to something about little boys and use a pair of baby socks or little baby shoes. Work with me here, sister! There are plenty of ideas for this gift!

Now then, back to the project at hand...

Next, I just needed the background to be pretty. So I picked up a package of craft paper that gave me about a dozen background options.

 And then last, I just needed some pretty lettering for the inside of the front glass (I printed it backwards so cleaning the outside of the shadow box would never harm the lettering). I wish I had gotten a better picture of the finished product, but I was literally wrapping it to get to the surprise party (which is SO me...).

It did turn out beautifully. I went with silver lettering since the frame had a sort of silver rub on the barnwood finish. She loved it and I was pretty proud of how well it turned out. 

And that, my friends, is how you create a priceless gift with very little dough :)