tips for shipping a gift basket

Gift baskets are the perfect gift anytime

Shipping pointers for gift givers

Have you ever shipped a gift basket? If so you know that there are special considerations. Sending a care package to a student cross-country or a special occasion basket to someone far away usually means bundling together several items for shipping.

Breakage, freshness and weight are all issues that should be top priority when thinking about a gift basket. Keep these in mind when choosing your items. Avoid glass, cans and other heavy Items, if possible. Cookies and other kitchen products will do ok but will not stay fresh very long, even in zip-loc bags.

The good news is the shredded paper can serve as a cushion. This can be supplemented with foam peanuts and airbags to keep fragile goods safe and secure. Consider going without a real basket, it will just add bulk and extra weight. Instead, why not use a box that you can cover yourself with woven strips of one-inch paper to simulate a basket. Or even a miniature version for just one gift.

The details of shipping can be sorted out by visiting your preferred carrier. If there are perishables (cookies and such) be sure what the delivery time will be. USPS, which is probably the cheapest, can take 10 days to go coast to coast. Your cookies will probably be stale by then, but still edible (with milk.)
These addresses will be helpful:
http://www.usps.com/tools/calculatepostage/welcome.htm
http://fedex.com/ratefinder/home
https://wwwapps.ups.com/ctc/request?loc=en_US&WT.svl=SubNav

Remember to allow extra time for the holidays.