A gift basket can be assembled for any person or occasion with items from the thrift store, but the easiest ones to create are those associated with the holidays, or a baby shower. It’s best to have a list of the things you want in your basket, or better yet, a photograph from a catalog or magazine of the basket you wish to recreate. You’ll see Halloween, Easter and plenty of Christmas items throughout the year. There’s also lots of things for the baby. And, if you’re lucky you’ll find new items donated to the store from a local discount chain.

Start looking for new or lightly used items to put in a basket as soon as you know a baby is coming. For the mom-to-be, there are photo albums with baby motifs on the front, books on pregnancy and rasing children, toys for the baby, baby clothes, children’s books, pictures to hang in the baby’s room and lots of stuffed animals —all kinds and sizes.

At Christmas, your basket can include holiday mugs, candles of every description, old and new tree decorations, Christmas cookie cutters, tapes and videos, stuffed Christmas animals, figurines of Santa, angels, reindeer and snow persons, tree lights and my daughter’s favorite gift — little buildings that light up (the ones used to create Christmas scenes or villages on a table or mantle).

The small baskets at the thrift store can be used to make personal gift baskets. Filled with toilet articles, candy and baked goods, potpourri, pens and small notepads, they make the perfect "Secret Santa" gift. Finding the appropriate big basket for your gifts may be difficult, so you may have to purchase one at a craft store along with the finishing touches—ribbon and colored cellophane.

If you shop at the thrift store often, you’ll find the items you’ll need, and you’ll teach your children to buy recycled. And, that is the best gift you and your family can give to Mother Earth!

-Elvira Howard/ Youngsville-