Small Gifts With Big Impact

While most of the products we imprint are typically done in larger quantities, it is possible to produce a gift that is very special, and inexpensive, for just a few…or, yes, even one piece!

I’m referring to etched glassware. In addition to pint glasses and ashtrays, there are other items made of glass that are perfect for etching as well. A few years back, one of my cousins was getting married and for a gift I etched a glass cookie jar. Our artist prepared a nice rendering of the families last name in kind of an 1800s style, which fit perfectly with the families values. On the bottom of the jar, I etched the name of the couple and their wedding date.

The etching on the bottom of the jar was done in such a way so you would actually read the text through the empty cookie jar.

The etching is reversed and on the outside of the bottom of the cookie jar.

The completed jar was wrapped and presented with a note that read, “When you get to the bottom of the cookie jar, you’ll always have each other.” Do you need a kleenex? See, it really is the thought that counts…that…and the cookies!

What do you give the guy that already has everything? Last year my mom was battling cancer and things weren’t going so well for her. My parents live in a small town outside Columbus, Ohio, and I live in West Michigan. It’s a five to six hour drive each way.

A friend of mine is a corporate pilot. As luck would have it, his company was in the process of opening a new office in this same town. After a few emails with the president of the company, I was given permission to hop along on a flight that allowed me to visit my mother, and be back home in the same day. What a treat!

How do you say thank you for something that special! I learned from the pilot that the company president had invited a group of friends and business associates to a rather exclusive golf resort. They would be flying to this resort in the same plane I had just returned on. That information helped me with my thank you gift.

I realized there just might be adult beverages involved at some point on their trip. So, for my thank you gift for my trip to Ohio, I decided to give the company president eight scotch glasses that he in turn could give to his friends and associates while on their golf outing.

We etched the logo of the resort on the side of eight scotch glasses. One glass for each person going on the trip. On the bottom of each glass, we etched the tail number and nickname of this particular plane, the date of their trip, and the first and last name of every guy who was invited. Yes, there were eight names on the bottom of each glass! What a souvenir!

The glasses were then shrink wrapped and dropped off at the hangar where the plane is kept, along with a big thank you from me.

You can imagine what it would be like to be invited on such a golf trip, and then while sipping your scotch, you happen to look through the bottom of your glass and see all the details of this very special excursion! I’d love to show you how the etching turned out, because frankly, it does look very cool. But, I want to respect the privacy of the people on the trip, so you’ll just have to imagine this one!

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