Pretty Packaging: Graduation Gifts

Two of my favorite people graduated this May: Melanie with her B.A. and the Boyfriend with his J.D. A lot of ideas ran through my head about what to gift both of them. Although my ideas were not grandiose (except for the surprise weekend trip to the Caribbean with either of them that could logistically never happen) none seemed to be exactly right for this year.

I love letterpress, as you all are beginning to notice. So when the new spring prints from SeeSaw Designs popped up in my Google Reader (on multiple blogs), I knew I found my gifts. Then Maggie posted them on Mighty Goods as a great graduation gift. I felt kind of cunning for having thought of the idea first.

Melanie and the Boyfriend each got different prints, but were wrapped in virtually the same way. Melanie's print said "Upward Onward" with hot air balloons. The Boyfriend's had a quote that I've seen attributed to Mark Twain, but is really John A. Shedd: "A ship in harbor is safe - but that is not what ships are for." Dean Koh actually use this quote in his commencement address to the law school graduates!

I "wrapped" the print in presentation envelopes from Paper Source. I love these envelopes. I bought them in the chartreuse color to carry my resumes to D.C. job interviews last summer. I received many compliments. I picked this papaya color because it was on sale in store (aught nine, save a dime!).

I lined each envelope with paper I had laying around. They were literally scraps of paper so each liner is really pieced together.

See how it matches!

I used my new label/gift tag trick that I first used on Melanie's birthday gift. I wrote each a note on a strip of white cardstock that I then wrapped around the envelope.

A sticker closure.

To finish the package, I used the mortarboard stamp I had left over from some of my own graduation crafting two years ago. Melanie's got a stamp on the sticker, and the Boyfriend's got a stamp on the corner to mask a greasy fingerprint/glue smear. I blamed that on the dog, since I was crafting in the living room.

The final product, propped up in a window for some natural light photography.

Both graduates loved them, and I fully expect to see them hanging in their new offices this fall.