To the Moms & Sisters (and others) Who Keep Traditions Going

One hundred sixty-two cups. That is a lot of cups. And when it’s your tradition to spend a day making 162 cups of something special (let’s say, Chex Mix) to share with others, it can be downright exhausting.

My mom, Pat, with 162 cups to share. And Deanna, my sister, working hard behind the scenes to make it all happen.

Lucky for me, I get to be on the receiving end of this love and generosity. My mom and sister carry on this Christmas tradition for us, and everyone in our family eagerly awaits being handed a bag of special-recipe Chex Mix – with our name written on it.

Whether it’s Chex Mix, cookies, candies, popcorn – or in these parts, lefse – the holidays are a time when the dedicated few come together to carry on fun and meaningful traditions.

Frankly, those of us on the receiving end don’t always realize (or appreciate) all the time, planning and expense that goes into it all. But the dedicated few know there’s something pretty wonderful about coming together – and making something special to share with others. 

So if you’re someone who keeps a family tradition going (on top of all your other holiday to-dos) a big thank you and a “cheers!” to you.

 You truly are a Giver ❤

 All the best this holiday season,

Karen

PS  If you’re someone who likes to make and give unique thoughtful gifts, just a reminder that all our Just Wow! gift kits make it fun and easy to create special gifts that you’ll be proud to share with others. I invite you to check them out. Who knows … you might be inspired to start a new tradition!

PPS   I also invite you to follow us. You’ll be the first to hear about our latest gift kits and business updates. (I’d love to hear your feedback on all of it!!

What is Just Wow! Kits?

We make it fun and easy to make mason jar gifts that you’re proud to give, and others are delighted to receive.

You supply the jar and goodies to go inside -- and we supply the wow! With your creativity and our finishing touches, you will LOVE the reaction your jar gifts get. Plus, all our kits come with our exclusive mason jar totes. You won’t find them anywhere else!

Saw Wow!® Stackers Gift Kits

Our Stackers gift kits make it  it's easy to add layers of fun to your jar gifts –  with colorful stacks and special treats.

Say Wow!® Peepers® Gift Kits

Our Peepers® Gift Kits are guaranteed to bring smiles – when you make your adorable gifts and when you share them with others!

15 Ways to Craft Your Mason Jar Gift Kits

A creative and adorable gift to give this holiday season.

View Our Kits Now!

Decorations

Materials that come with your Peepers Kit to decorate your Mason Jar Gifts.

​​Let’s see if I get this right: You like the idea of changing it up for your holiday gifts this year – but you’re not sure how. And ideally, your gifts would be fun and easy to put together – and they’d have a wow factor. Is that about right?

Great news! You can check all of these off your list, with one of our Say Wow!® Stackers or Peepers® mason jar gift kits.

You supply the jars and the goodies to go inside – and our gift kits provide all the finishing touches to create impressive, one-of-a-kind holiday gifts. (Including our exclusive jar totes!)

But wait. You’re drawing a blank – you’re not sure what to put in your mason jars. No worries. Here are 15 ideas to help spark your creativity … but really, the sky's the limit. 

Get ready to have some fun with mason jars!

Karen

P.S. We’re all taught when we’re little that there are instructions to everything - legos, furniture, cooking, math, every little thing. But sometimes it’s fun to venture outside of the control, and be the one calling the shots! That’s exactly what crafting allows you to do - make something your own, and enjoy the process of doing so. 

HERE ARE 15 CREATIVE WAYS TO CRAFT YOUR JUST WOW! KITS!

Travel:

T-Shirt Gift

Fill your Mason Jar Gift Kit with a rolled up t-shirt as a gift.

1. Do you have to occupy little ones on your way to holiday festivities? Fill your jars with printed coloring sheets and crayons! This would also make such a cute stocking stuffer. 

2. Going on a trip? Bought tickets to a concert? Craft your surprise! It’s no doubt it’s a gift that keeps on giving, especially if it involves a sandy beach and warm weather - so make it cute!

3. Did you take a trip recently and purchase a couple touristy t-shirts? Why not roll them up and gift them creatively? Who wouldn’t love their “Washington DC” t-shirt gift wrapped in a Peepers® Mason Jar Gift?

Treats: 

Yum!

Fill your Peepers Mason Jar Gifts with Party Popcorn.

1. For some of us, snow is right around the corner - and you know what goes best with snow? HOT CHOCOLATE! Fill your jar with hot cocoa powder, mini marshmallows, and all your other favorite hot cocoa fillings! Yum!

2. Looking to pamper the person receiving your gift? Fill your jar with nail polish, bath bombs, bath salts, chapsticks, mini hair care products, maybe even throw in some face masks! There’s no better gift than the gift of self care!

3. One of the best parts of the holiday season is the Christmas Cookies! Why not fill your jars with the key ingredients to make them happen? Start with a powdered dough mix, add a little bag of sprinkles - or your other favorite cookie decorations! Deliciously adorable. 

4. Okay, but who doesn’t love candy? Are you the secret santa to someone you’re not as familiar with this year? You can’t go wrong with chocolate - especially when it’s crafted so adorably! Or, utilize all your leftover halloween candy and put together a sweet surprise! 

5. Provide some fuel and fill your jars up with coffee! Don’t like coffee? Fill it up with tea! You can’t go wrong with most people’s favorite morning pick-me-up. 

6. Wanna get a little spicy? Throw in some mini liquor bottles! There’s nothing wrong with gifting an ADULT friend an adult drink, or two. 

7. Who doesn’t love cash!! Ditch the generic card, and put a little life into your gift! If you’re not so much of a cash person, gift cards work great too! Fill your mason jar up with the physical monetary item of choice, then make your money come to life as a Peepers gift! Definitely the kind of gift to stand out!

Gifts:

Woof! Woof!

Fill your Peepers Mason Jar Gift Kit with treats for your four-legged friends.

1. Remind that special someone why you love them - and fill your jar with tons of little reminders, memories, maybe even date night ideas! Or better yet, make it a date and fill your jar together!

2. We can’t forget about our furry friends! Our Stackers Mason Jar Gifts makes amazing stocking stuffers for your favorite four-legged friends this holiday season!

3. Have an artsy friend? Why not gift them new paint brushes, colored pencils, or other art supplies in a crafty way? Stuff your Mason Jar Gifts with art supplies! 

4. Looking to put together the perfect gift for your gardening guys or gals? Fill your jar with their flower seeds! You could include a couple packs of seeds, some new gardening gloves, maybe even a giftcard to their favorite flower shop? The opportunities just keep on growing!

Ca-Ching

Fill your Peepers Mason Jar Gift with cash for an “extra” suprise.

Lastly, maybe you aren’t looking to gift your Say Wow!® Mason Jar Gifts, and that’s okay! These crafts are creatively adorable to decorate your house! Spice up your entryway table, counters, fireplace, table setters, or even under the Christmas tree! Fill your Mason Jar Gifts with red and green glitter, holiday wrapped Hershey Kisses, festive ribbon, or even simply wrapping paper! 

We hope we’ve sparked some creativity - and would love to see what you do! Visit our Etsy shop to get your Mason Jar Gift Kits and make sure to post your Mason Jar Gifts, and tag us, @JustWowCreations! 

Wow! Is this really happening?

That’s what I’m asking myself right now as I pull together this first blog post. It’s an exciting new beginning. But it has also been quite a journey to get here. I’m glad to have the help of some talented folks who are guiding and nudging me along. I trust them when they say I need to tell my story … So here it goes

It started by creating special gifts for caregivers

How did you come up with Just Wow! Kits? What was your inspiration? I hear those questions often.

The short answer is that it started as a simple volunteer project/idea to help me feel creative and connected to others. 

But the real-life answer includes a few more details. Like knowing my husband and I would have an empty nest in a few years. So I was definitely on the lookout for something to add to my nest. I wanted my “next chapter” to be challenging, meaningful and fun! 

For me, that meant focusing on something that would bring joy to others – and that would tap into what brings me joy: creativity and “sharing the love.”

My first project idea was to create and donate care packages made especially for caregivers. The care package included a few pampering items, chocolates or another treat, and a handwritten message letting them know they are recognized, valued and appreciated for the important care they give.

My plan was to create a dozen packages at a time and then donate them to local churches, organizations so they could distribute to caregivers in their community.

Time-out for a few lessons learned

With my first batch of gifts, I quickly  realized #1) it can be really hard to assemble thoughtful gifts and make each one look as lovely as the next.  And #2)  I was going to need a system to make my gift giving easier – so when I was ready to create a few care packages, each one would come together quickly and look great. I wanted to love how each one looked  – so each person would be delighted with their surprise gift.

(What I didn’t realize immediately is that this “system” would become Just Wow! Kits.)

The aha! moment … and how mason jars came into the picture

I knew that a LOT of people love the idea of creating thoughtful, handcrafted gifts – but they are intimidated by it, and don’t know where/how to start. That was my “aha” moment. I decided to start creating gift kits for all the “Givers” out there. I wanted to make it easy for anyone to be creative and to make impressive and foolproof handcrafted gifts.

But hmmm. What to add to the kit? I had given many mason jar gifts over the years. And because there are so many fun and creative things you can do with mason jars, I decided to build my gift kit idea around them.  I love the fact that they are both functional and creative. For generations they have helped us share (and receive)  thoughtful gifts of home cooking and canning. And they are always a fun and creative “package” option, to hold other goodies.  

But one problem with mason jars … they can be awkward to carry and to give. They’re also heavy and breakable. So instead of including mason jars in my gift kits, I focused on creating a sturdy and stylish jar tote that would highlight the jars. I worked with a local box manufacturer to design and create the Just Wow! Kits jar tote. So instead of jars, you’ll find jar totes in all my gift kits.

There you have it. The longer real-life answer about my inspiration for Just Wow! Kits.

Working hard to celebrate all you Givers!

I have bootstrapped this fun and exciting side-hustle of mine for the last five years. (I also have a day job that I love, btw) I’ve spent many late nights crafting ideas for new gift kits and assembling them around our dining table. I’ve set-up tents at weekend craft fairs, opened an Etsy shop, and networked and presented to fellow entrepreneurs for feedback at events like 1Million Cups.

Now I’m ready to pull back the curtain and share my gift kits more broadly – which is why I’m here. I’m excited to see if you like the idea of having a kit to help you create impressive, thoughtful and fail-proof handcrafted gifts. I hope so – but either way, I know I can learn a lot from you.

In the meantime, I am loving this journey… and thrilled that my next chapter will include serving and celebrating all you Givers out there. 