It happens often—you stock up on office supplies, many of those including stuff you can use to ship items, and then the supplies sit there unused for years. You forget about them (much like other home essentials that have been untouched for ages) and they continue to sit there.

What gives? If you’re going to spend the money on supplies, you surely meant to use them at some point, right?

Well, we all have good intentions on most of our purchases. Shipping supplies is no different. Life just . . . gets in the way. But luckily, there are ways to make use of those supplies you once intended to use, and you can have fun using them, too. It may take a tad bit of work on your end, but it almost always guarantees to make someone else (and yourself!) happy in the long run.

• Send a memento to an old friend. When life gets in the way of your household and items you don’t use, it also tends to impede close friendships. People move away. You fall out of touch. What better way to rekindle a friendship than to randomly send a piece of memorabilia to an old-time friend of yours? Pack it in a box, tape it up, label it, and ship it out. They’ll be surprised and see that you cared enough to think of them.
• Mail a care package. Whether you choose to send one of these to your elder family members that you can’t always visit or someone you know who’s away at college, care packages are nice little surprises for people that may not always be able to get out and buy snacks and essentials. These also live up to their name in that they show you care when you send them to someone close.
• Organize your house. Do you have stuff lying around but don’t have a place for it? Think about using some of your cardboard boxes and packaging tape to put away what’s unneeded. You can simply box up the clutter and store it in the attic, basement, or a closet (especially since it’s tough to throw certain things away).

There you have it. Three simple ways to repurpose the shipping supplies you once bought but never got around to using. Whether you’re making an old friend’s day, making your kid at college smile, or decluttering your home, you can be sure to get some use out of these common items that you’ve neglected for too long.

Moving can be incredibly stressful. Ideally, you will have plenty of notice that a move is happening and time to figure out the details. However, you may find out you need to move on short notice, or you might have a tendency to procrastinate. In any case, moving quickly is possible, though you may need to shift your approach. Here are 6 tips to help you have a successful move, even if it’s rushed:

1. Logistics First

The first step to the moving process should be to figure out the details of how things will go down on moving day. Are you hiring movers or renting a truck? Will you have friends helping? When do you need to start, and how late should people plan to help? People need notice, so figure this out first before you start packing.

2. Get Rid of the Clutter

In order to save time when packing you should start by going through your home and getting rid of anything you don’t need. Sort everything into 3 piles: trash, recycle, and donate. Don’t spend too long trying to make decisions, the important thing at this point is speed. Once your piles are done be sure to clear them out before tackling the packing so your space stays organized.

3. Pack the Essentials

Any move should start with the packing of an essentials bag. Include anything you might need in the next couple of days like toiletries, chargers, and a few outfits. Also throw in any important paperwork you need to keep track of. This way you don’t have to worry about accidentally packing something you need when you’re in a hurry!

4. Pack the Rest

Don’t overthink it, just pack! You goal now should be getting things in boxes. Here are a few tips to help you do that:

• Don’t sort, just pack.
  Don’t worry about organization or keeping similar things together. Just make sure everything is packed safely!
• Use what you have efficiently.
  Use things like clothes, socks, and towels to pack more fragile items. This saves you money on packing supplies and cuts down on time since you will have less to pack separately.
• Keep box clutter to a minimum.
  Set up your cardboard boxes as you need them. Once one is finished, tape it up, put it aside, and set up a new box. This will help you stay organized and cut down on cutter.
• Pack what you can as-is.
  Put garbage bags around hanging clothes and tape shut any dressers and file cabinets that can be moved with their contents intact.

5. Get Help

The fastest way to move in a hurry is to get friends and family to help you pack. Be sure to provide a meal or some baked treats as a thank-you, and stay on task. Don’t let packing turn into a purely social gathering.

6. Let the Movers Do Their Thing

If you are hiring movers, many companies will help you pack your items in addition to loading and unloading everything. You might end up paying more for supplies and services, but it might be worth it during a rushed move!

The candy buffet trend is strong and has become popular for parties, weddings and baby showers. The way to begin is by picking the colors and theme. This way the printable items can be chosen according to the colors. The next step is choosing from the four types of candy available. The first is loose or bulk candy. This is purchased by the pound. Candy that is packaged individually is offered to guests one at a time. Designer candy is also individual. Display candy is a filler or decoration. The candy can me mixed together and displayed in containers. There are even tools online to search for candy in specific colors to match the theme.

The Table should be set up first to determine the available space prior to ordering any candy. If the table is in coordinating colors, use clear containers filled with matching candy. Make certain guests can scoop out the bulk candy by using a container with a large opening. The table is then divided into three horizontal zones. The containers in each zone should be height appropriate. Tall containers, glass jars and photo boxes are for the back zone. If the containers are too tall the guests will tip them over while getting candy. The middle zone is for bulk candy. This can be balanced with apothecary jars filled with chocolate and gum balls. The front zone is for shorter containers, trays, candy boxes, ribbon candy, cotton candy bags, jumbo marshmallows and swirl lollipops.

The general rule is eight ounces of candy should be ordered per guest. For larger parties, less individually wrapped and more bulk candy works best. The individually wrapped candy is ordered one for each guest. The types of bulk candy include M&M’s, gumballs, chocolate balls and jumbo marshmallow twists. Individually wrapped candy includes swirl lollipops, cotton candy and rock candy sticks. Designer candy includes jumbo marshmallows and ribbon candy. Display candy includes jelly beans and sugar candy beads. Most places show the amount of candy required to fill a one gallon glass jar. There are even charts showing the shelf life of the candy so it can be ordered at the appropriate time. This ensures the candy will be fresh for the party and eliminates the extra cost of rush shipping.

The table should have an amazing tablecloth, a centerpiece and a backdrop. The table should be the first thing the guests notice when they enter. The backdrops usually include a top pocket rod so a backdrop stand can be used for the set up. The centerpiece should match the theme of the party and be sensational. Cupcake towers are amazing as a centerpiece. Clear tubes and plates can elevate the centerpiece to make certain it is visually powerful. The cupcakes can display everything from little t-shirts to crystal pacifiers to little bows.

The tower should be in the middle of the table and adds extra sweets to the event. Cupcakes can be purchased at the store and embellished with additional touches such as sprinkles, cupcake toppers and glittery wrappers. The finishing touches are when the details are added. This process is a lot of fun. Once all the candy to match the palette has been added, simply add any finishing touches. This will enhance the table’s theme and the table will be ready for the event.

For a long time, brands have been defined by two key elements: a name and a logo. The uniqueness of the company name and insignia, coupled with the firm’s marketing strategy across traditional and, more recently, online platforms have determined the success of the business in question up until now. However, the so-called “Maker Movement” has been gaining traction in recent times, forcing both brand owners and designers alike to visualize their brands in a three-dimensional manner in order to get them effectively across to potential consumers.

Basically, the Maker Movement is the term of choice used to refer to and document the rise of individuals or small groups of people creating new, innovative, low-cost products using discarded electronic parts and open source knowledge available on the Internet. The proponents of this “do-it-yourself” culture, usually small businesses, have captured the imagination of a greater audience of modern-day consumers than the large companies using standard methods to mass-produce generic goods in China and shipping supplies across the globe.

The Maker Movement has thus led established companies towards pursuing policies of acquisition. An example of this is the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry, where large legacy firms are acquiring smaller maker businesses in order to attract millennial customers who prefer healthier and more natural and organic food options made available by those ‘makers’. In addition, big CPGs have conducted surveys and set up online portals asking for innovations in their products that their customers would like to see, all in an effort to remain competitive in the rapidly changing market of today.

Whether the products are borne of an artisanal approach or are simply mass-produced, the maker method is followed to get the desired level of branding. This involves combining the traditional concept of a brand, which is an effective name and logo, with creating and testing a 3D model of the product, a prototype, to see if it works well with the brand.

The multiple facets of creating a popular brand name, such as market research, demographics, consumer demand, nature of competition and selection of appropriate channels to propagate the brand are now expected to leave an impact on the physical characteristics of the product itself in order to form a complete brand. This necessitates model making and testing to see not only if it works as intended, but also if it fits with the image a company wants to establish for itself in the eyes of the public.

Therefore, the Maker Movement has turned brand creation into a more holistic process, combining all aspects of market research with effective design and model making so that all three deliver a consistent image of the company to potential customers. Model making, the major aspect of the do-it-yourself culture, helps manufacturers get a realistic preview before finalizing the product design. This realistic preview is the main purpose of the Maker Movement and one of the primary goals of its developers and founders of the project.

The Maker Movement method is one of the most realistic and up-to-date projects in the creation of a 3d modeling project, and because of that it is very recommended that everyone in the field checks the method out, as it has a lot to teach producers in the field and developers who are starting their first lessons as well. The Maker Movement welcomes all types of approaches.

What is so important about packaging designs? I would say there is skin deep beauty in impressing your would-be customers before and after sales for the different products. As they say, an image can be everything for various products.

Chinese Peaches Packaging

Peaches can be dressed in small panties to portray the image of butt peaches. This may sound ridiculous, to say the least, but the peaches end up looking ‘sexy’ and eye-catching to the prospective customer. Sales for these products can be targeted to romantic outlooks and days such as Valentine.

Earphones

The best choice, which if often used, in packaging supplies of earphones is by wrapping them in a plastic wrap for delicate products. This way the customers can see the product through the transparent enclose. Contrary to the belief that it may not suit the needs of the product, this method concludes the saying that “less is more.”

Japanese Pastry Packaging

A creative way to package is through a “Black Melon Bread” packaging design where the pastry appears to snack out creatively from a vending machine.

Gum Packaging

An interactive way to package these supplies is by driving the main message of teeth protection. Each park of a range of six packs can have a demonstration of a mouth with well-designed lips or a mustache. Blister chewing gums are then drawn to bring out a sparkle of white bright teeth pink gums of a mouth’s die-cut window.

Paintbrush

The covers of the paintbrushes which are preferably made of paper can be drawn to bring out the image of crafted mustaches where one side shows the eyes and the nose while the lower side can demonstrate a tongue-out.

Jam Bottles

The bottles can be uniquely designed in the shape of their respective fruit flavors. For example, if it is a pineapple jam flavor, the bottle can be crafted to represent a pineapple for ease identification of the customers without reading the jam’s description. The bottle or jar can also be branded with colors in line with the flavors to communicate the fruit in question.

Pasta Packaging

A creative and eye-catching design where pasta is made to look like hair is the way to go in packaging supplies of pasta. Quite brilliant, right? The hair-like pasta can then viewed through the transparent cutouts of the box and is an excellent way to stand out on the shelves.

Waterproof Watches

They can be sold in clear bags of water to bring out an impression of the real content and its descriptive features.

Fruity Toilet Paper

The aim of creatively packaging fruity toilet paper can be to make it more visually acceptable and to make it appear as freshly-picked fruits. The appearance of fruits such as watermelon can be used.

Oven Cupcakes

The idea, in this case, would be to play around with the colors of the boxes where you can choose to package in polka dot especially the printable ones. The boxes can also be uniquely designed into a little house, complete with a clear window to showcase the rich content. Further, you can create a retro vibe of the floral cupcake boxes to add more spice to the outlook.