September is here, which means that “Pumpkin-Flavored Everything” Season has started…especially spiced coffee! I guess chilly weather and hot beverages were on my mind the last time I was in my local Goodwill store because while I was in the kitchen section, I found these two cute wooden bins!

I *love* wooden anything from Goodwill- it means I can paint it and really personalize it to my taste!

A crafty gift idea started to bloom in my mind, and since the bins were labeled coffee and tea, I did a quick pass by the shelf holding all the coffee mugs. There is always such a great collection of mugs, and I found two perfect mugs right away- one for each bin.

After wiping down the wooden boxes/bins, I set out to paint them using a creamy off-white color.

When the paint was dry and I was satisfied with the coverage, I distressed the bins just a little bit here and there, to give them a shabby chic/vintage look. I just used a piece of fine-grain sandpaper that we had in the garage, and spent a little extra time on the front where the carvings were.

Now it was time to assemble everything! I had decided to turn these into gift boxes, complete with a cute mug and coffee/tea from the grocery store. How great is that? The perfect thank-you gift for a co-worker…or a perk-‘em-up gift for a college student…or a gift for a tired mom that looks forward to stealing a few moments with a mug of joe or tea.

I put coffee K-cups in the coffee box and packets of tea in the tea box (of course!) along with a freshly-cleaned mug in each one. And to finish of my gifts, I wrapped them in clear cellophane and tied them with pretty ribbon. Ta-da!

I love that thrifting can be used for gifts as much as it can be done for yourself. I’m fairly certain that no one would have guessed that these were inspired by and created from items found at Goodwill – but my wallet sure knows.

Craft on!

Sadie Seasongoods