Showing Some Love to My Shower Hostesses

It's been a little while since I shared with you guys the pictures from my bridal shower. Some of you may remember it was at a cozy bed and breakfast, and it was hosted by one of Momma Coach's closest friends, and Aunt Coach. These two ladies were so generous to plan such a beautiful day for me, and I really wanted to give them something special in return.

My shower hostesses: Aunt Coach and Momma Coach's friend, L
(As well as Little Cousin Coach, who got her own unique gift!)

At first, I had a hard time deciding what to give these special ladies. I considered getting a nice floral arrangement for each of them, or maybe even a spa gift certificate (although I quickly decided that wasn't going to be very budget friendly). I started browsing the 'Bee to see what the brilliant ladies before me had come up with, and stumbled upon a wonderful idea by our own Mrs. Latte from a few years back.

Basically, she took a few simple items - a bar of soap, freshly baked cookies, and tealight candles - and turned them into a fun and unique gift for her hostesses. I loved the idea so much (and thought the ladies would too) that I decided to do the same!

I wanted to find some yummy handmade soap, so I headed over to Etsy and bought a couple of these Shea Butter Soap Bars from Anderson Soap Company.  I was a little pressed for time (what is with me and waiting until the last minute for items for the shower??) but Dennis, the owner, was quick to respond to my message and told me he could send the bars out right away, so props to Anderson Soap Company for a quick soap delivery! :)

Image via Anderson Soap Company on Etsy

For the candles, I decided to head over to Ikea (having one so close is both a blessing and a curse) and grab a few of their reasonably priced options. I found these pretty and inexpensive candles in nice glass jars that I thought would look great next to the soap bars.

Image via Ikea

Once I had all of the "parts" of the gift, I had to put it together. I used scrapbook paper and twine that I already had to make tags for the candle and soap, and stuffed boxes filled with wood filler (both from the Container Store) for a nice little presentation.

The outside of their gift, just waiting to be opened!

The inside of the gift, complete with a fancy soap bar and yummy smelling candle!

The cute tags were my favorite part of Mrs. Latte's gift, so I followed in her footsteps and made tags that read: Thank you, "for lighting up my day" for the candle and "for showering me with gifts" for the soap. Too cute! I just used a hole punch to make a hole in the tags and attached them to the items with pieces of twine. (I opted not to include cookies in my gift like she did because I was traveling to the shower and had no way to bake them and keep them fresh!)

I really love how it all came together, and think the lovely hostesses did as well. It was a simple gift, but also very practical. Hopefully they thought it was as unique as I did!

For those wondering, here is a little budget breakdown for these gifts:
(2) White Container Store boxes - $1.49 each
(1) bag of shredded wood filler (which I still have over half of) - $3.99
(1) Roll of Satin Ribbon - $2.49
(2) Soap Bars - $3.50 each
(2) Glass jar candles - $3.99 each
Scrapbook paper - free, already owned
Twine - free, already owned
Total: $26.46, with tax OR $13.23 per gift

Not too bad in my book! What did you all give your shower hostesses? Did anyone choose to make their own gift?