I’m absolutely in love with the idea of a “spa in a jar.”  Take a mason jar and fill it with pampering items for the special women in your life.  Could there be a cuter gift for Mother’s Day or your friends’ birthdays?!

My older daughters have four preschool teachers between the two of them, so I decided to make spa in a jar gifts for the last day of the school year.

Since I’m an over-achiever, I designed a printable tag to fit on the top of the jar.  I couldn’t decide if I liked it better centered or slightly to the top so we could sign the jar and forego a card, so I included both options in the free printable:  Pamper Yourself Jar Tag.

I filled our jars with homemade body butters, homemade chapsticks, and mesh bath sponges from Target. Here are some other items that would be great for a spa in a jar:

• Lip gloss (store-bought or homemade)
• Homemade edible lip scrub
• Nail polish
• Nail file or buffer
• Foot cream
• A cute wash cloth
• Pumice stone
• Sugar scrub (store-bought or homemade)
• Lotion (store-bought or homemade coconut oil lotion or lotion bars)
• Soap (store-bought or homemade)
• Small bottles of shampoo and conditioner
• Face mask
• Body spray (or homemade roll-on perfume or solid perfume)
• Make-up
• Hair ties

If I didn’t already have the materials on-hand to make the body butters and chapsticks, I would have gone shopping for all of the items at Target and called it a day.  The sample-sized travel section has a lot of great options.

I didn’t calculate the exact amount, but our jars cost about $6 each to make.  If you want to spend more money, add a giftcard for Starbucks or a massage.

To assemble, simply add 3-5 items to a wide-mouth quart-sized glass jar.  I had some leftover from when I took up canning last summer, but you can buy individual jars at Target, craft stores, and grocery stores.  If you don’t use a mesh bath sponge, add a pretty piece of colored tissue paper to the bottom of the jar to help fill it up and cushion the items inside.

Do you make homemade gifts for family and friends?  Please share in a comment below!