By a show of hands, how many of us have received a homemade gift and thought it was the worst possible gift ever?  On the other hand, how many of us have ever received a homemade gift and thought it was the greatest gift ever?  The thing is that a homemade gift is basically always the best, and if you think they are terrible than you are probably egotistical and materialistic.  (Just kidding. Not kidding).  This is because a gift doesn’t have to be expensive or even that pertinent to hold value.  Still, if you want to make a homemade gift that will be universally appreciated, I suggest you start handing out handmade candy boxes.

Allow me to explain.

Just about any craft store is going to sell unfinished candy boxes, which you would then buy and decorate and stuff with [preferably] homemade candy.  Or, if you are really gung-ho and not willing to cop out, you can make your own candy boxes using cardstock and templates.

Consider decoupage.  The word “decoupage” is obviously French, therefore you would think that it has French origins.  Well, get this.  Someone out there supposedly uncovered that original decoupage (which was obviously not called by this French word yet) was actually tomb art.  That’s right.  Tomb art.  In Siberia, of all places, they supposedly cut out pieces of felt and used the cutouts to decorate the tombs of their loved ones.  The Chinese caught on, and then the Italians became famous for it.  Don’t ask me where the French word came from all of that.

The point of me providing you with that free history lesson is to show that decoupage is quite artisan and classic, therefore beloved by all.  Thankfully, in our day and age, it is a lot easier to accomplish.  You can literally cut some pictures out of a magazine and Modge Podge them to just about anything.  In this situation it would be your homemade candy boxes.  Then, after your joyful recipient finishes savoring their final bite of homemade confectionary, they can use the decorated box for storing keepsakes, or jewelry.

The thing that I like best about making these is that I can personalize them.  I can theme them based on whomever I’m giving them to, and I can give them to just about everyone I know.  You can even consider lining the inside of the box with satin, or the bottom with a piece of felt.  You can paint the inside for added flare or decoupage a solitary cutout at the bottom, to be a little bit of a surprise when the candy is all gone.

If you own a business, either directly or indirectly, you are dealing with the shipping industry. Which means that you are dealing with everything from keeping the shipping boxes fully stocked to knowing about freight logistics.  Due to the exponential increase in shipping demands, primarily because of the exponential increase in ecommerce companies, freight logistics has been experiencing a lot of its own changes.

As a result, a lot of companies have begun to outsource their logistics management.  There are a couple things to look at when considering whether or not you should outsource, or if you are capable of handling your freight logistics on your own:

• Logistics business is incredibly large and keeps growing. Being able to stay on top of the trends and changes is crucial to improving margins and customer satisfaction.  Therefore, someone who knows what to look for needs to be in charge of this component of your business.  (Hint: the person ordering your shipping boxes should not be the same person in charge of your logistics).
• Logistics is international, with hugely emerging markets in countries like China and India. Part of the changes and trends related to freight logistics have to do with international policies, procedures, and regulations, which are also always changing.
• A lot of economic problems and challenges have begun to effect freight logistics. Regulations and taxes have become especially stringent and problematic.  Physical space being available for moving everything (truck space, place space, etc.) is incredibly limited compared to the demand.  The number of drivers is at an all-time low.  Profits are low, which results in equipment growing old and and not being properly repaired.  Whomever is in charge of your company’s freight logistics needs to have a working knowledge of all of these components and know how to navigate through them in order to find the best possible carriers to work with.

In short, freight logistics is a lot more complicated than putting some shipping boxes on the back of a truck and getting them from point A to point B.  Are you savvy enough to handle all of the ins and outs and ups and downs of maximizing your company’s resources?  Especially for an e-commerce business, shipping is a crucial component of the customer’s experience.  It is a large representation of how your company conducts their business.  You just might need to consider outsourcing to a specialized logistics firm.

Since the introduction of Pinterest, home organizing has never ben so simple.  Apparently there are a lot of people out there with really clever ideas on how to maximize space and efficiency in your home, using everything from cardboard boxes to old jars.  It’s pretty incredible.

While I definitely suggest you should jump on and check it out for yourself, here are a couple pretty cool ideas to wet your whistle:

• Instead of throwing out those little jewelry cardboard boxes (you know you hate to), clip them together, side by side, to use as drawer organizers for small office supplies, craft supplies, or jewelry.

 

• Baby food jars make amazing woodshop/tool bench organizers. There’s a reason you saw old jelly jars full of nails in your grandpa’s garage back in the day.  You can even attach the lids to the underside of a shelf so that all you have to do is screw and unscrew the jar.

• Shower curtain hooks hanging from your closet bar are an awesome way to store purses.

• This is one my favorite: those tissue cardboard boxes with the hole in the middle?  Save them!  And then stuff them with plastic bags and keep one under each sink in the house.
• If you are big into gift-wrapping, or scrap-booking, a paper towel holder makes a great post to hold your spools of ribbons.
• If you have the extra space, you can use a dish-drying rack to store coloring supplies. Put the coloring books where the plates would normally go, and then fill the utensil caddy with markers or crayons.

• Plain old Velcro makes a great electric cord organizer. You can buy all sorts of crazy, inventive items to help do this same task, but why not just spend five bucks and keep it simple?
• Once again, if you are into gift-wrapping, scrap-booking, or all other types of craft-making, using a pants hanger to hang up gift bags, sheets of wrapping paper, or pieces of cloth is an awesome solution to making sure that nothing gets crinkled or ruined.
• Using a desk organizer to sort your cutting boards and cookie sheets on the counter top is an awesome clutter- (and noise-) free option.

• Assign a bin to each member of the family where you can put things that you find laying around, or where you can prepare for the day ahead of you. Like Katie’s pair of sunglasses goes in Katie’s bin (if you are feeling generous), or Katie’s signed permission slip goes in Katie’s bin.

People consider moving to be one of the most stressful moments of life.  From trying to find cheap moving boxes to trying not to get ripped off by a moving company, it really is a harrowing time.  However, there are definitely things we can do to walk ourselves through the process with as little hair-pulling as possible.  When we are prepared and organized it really diminishes a lot of the feelings of chaos, and that is a really important thing to keep in mind.

Here are the four stages of moving and how to manage them with the least amount of stress:

Stage One: Preparing

This is the part of the “move” where you want to be procrastinating because it doesn’t feel like a move yet.  This is also the part of the move that is going to make it or break it for you.  Moving is not as simple as packing up your house and unpacking in a new one.  One of the first things you should do is start calling your insurance providers, and anyone else that sends you a monthly bill, and notifying them of your change of address and when its taking place.  This is also the time to start trying to find a reliable moving company, or the best deal on a moving truck.  Keep the lookout for cheap moving boxes (ask department stores, Craigslist, and other freeby sites).

Stage Two: Packing

You should start preparing to pack long before it’s time.  This is also going to save you some serious grey hairs.  If you start packing early enough, you should be approaching moving day with a much lighter heart.  This is when you will become thoroughly grateful that you gave yourself plenty of time to get your hands on cheap moving boxes, because moving boxes are NOT cheap, and you wind up needing WAY more than you think you will.  Purge your belongings and hold a garage sale.  Pack as you.

Stage Three: Moving Day 

Be prepared that things are not going to go as smoothly on moving day as you would like.  This doesn’t mean to have a negative attitude; it just means to have a realistic attitude!  And then, if things go positively swimmingly, you will be pleasantly surprised and incredibly relieved.  If they don’t, you will be no worse for the wear.

Stage Four: Unpacking

In your new home, as you begin to break into all of those boxes, and a giant pile begins to accumulate, you are going to be really glad you saved so much money on them.  Because after the move is over it all just feels like a giant waste.  There’s no rule that says you need to be unpacked immediately.  Take some time to explore your new surroundings!