Bereavement Baskets

When you begin making gift baskets, you take a silent oath to create designs for good and sad times.

Most baskets will be created for happy occasions such as birthdays, anniversaries, housewarmings, and goodwill between people and companies.

But there will be times when you're asked to make gift baskets to comfort one person or an entire family when a loved one's life expires.

That's when your creativity and sensibility come together to make a design that provides comfort and stirs warm memories for grieving family members.

Think carefully before creating bereavement baskets. Traditional products that guarantee a great design are:

• Biscotti
• Shortbread cookies
• Tea cup and saucer
   
• Small teapot
• Coffees and/or teas
• Hard candies
   
• Soups
• Crackers
• Poem book
   
• Tissues
• Photo frame
• Blank notecards (for the recipient to thank funeral attendees)

Other products will depend on the recipient's preferred colors and foods, which you learn when asking the gift giver specific questions about the receiver.

I add fruit to some bereavement baskets, but only when the gift is delivered locally and non-bruised fruit is easy to find at a local source.

Most of all, it's satisfying to meet the person who receives the basket and see the joy on their face when presented with the gift.

Bereavement baskets are not ordered as often as happy-occasion gifts, but when it's time to make a design, we craft masterpieces that are treasured and appreciated.

The Gift Basket Tutorials Web site will soon include a sample bereavement basket for you to create.