Money has many names all over the world: dough, moss, gravel, or pebbles are just a few terms in circulation. All these terms make for a fun money gift. With a few accessories, money can be presented to the recipient in a fun way. Because it's not just teenagers who are happy about 'pocket money' for shopping; nowadays, money gifts are also often requested for weddings or birthdays. Personally, I find just an envelope boring and like it when some thought is put into it. While looking for nice packaging for our monetary donation, I came across this idea. You need a box with compartments (or a ready-made tea box), a few accessories like edible gummy frogs and mice, some dried moss, children's modeling clay, and gravel, and the gift is ready to be crafted. I have written down my instructions for you here:
Money gift: mice, toads, dough, playdough...
Depending on how many compartments the tea box/box has, more or less accessories are needed. I chose a beautiful wooden tea box with 6 compartments. If you don't want to buy an extra tea box, just take a shoebox and divide the compartments with construction paper.
What is needed
- Tea box, preferably with a glass lid and 6 or 9 compartments (e.g., from Amazon
) or shoebox and construction paper
- Banknotes & coins
- Edible mice, e.g., from Trolli (available at Merkur)
- Edible frogs, e.g., from Haribo (available at Eurospar or Merkur)
- Children's modeling clay (available in toy stores, stationery stores (Pagro), or Amazon
- Moss, from the forest or garden, or also available to buy as decoration, e.g., at Amazon
- Coal (e.g., charcoal), e.g., at Amazon
- Gravel, at the hardware store or at Amazon
- Pebbles, at the hardware store or at Amazon
- Cotton wool, from the drugstore or from Amazon
- Paper flowers (available in stationery or craft stores (Pagro), or Amazon
- Paper for labeling the compartments
- possibly pens, stationery stores like Pagro or Libro, or Amazon
- Scissors, possibly additionally pinking shears
- Tixo
- colored paper and/or clear film to line the compartments
- possibly a pen for labeling
Instructions
Depending on whether the tea box has 6 or 9 compartments, more or fewer materials are needed accordingly. Furthermore, care must be taken that the tea box does not get dirty and can still be used afterwards. That's why I first lined the compartments with beautiful wrapping paper (I often have leftover strips that can't be used anymore!) and then with clear film. The money can be placed inside in coins or bills, folded or rolled. With the edible items, I even placed the money under the clear film, as you can't really wash the banknotes.
I printed out the terms using a printer and cut them out with pinking shears. Anyone with nice handwriting can, of course, do it by hand. If you want to make sure the label doesn't slip, you can tie the note to the money roll with a thread. Or use a small piece of tape to stick the label onto a coin or the decoration (if it sticks).
Now the individual compartments are filled, here are a few ideas:
Playdough
Fill the compartment with some paper and place the clear film over it. Shape the modeling clay into elongated rolls, if not already available. Fill the compartment with the modeling clay and, instead of a roll of modeling clay, add a rolled-up banknote. Roll the banknote into an elongated roll and tie it together with a nice ribbon. To ensure the compartment is recognized, write or print the word 'Knete' (dough/playdough) on a piece of paper and cut it out.
Toads
Fill the compartment with some paper and then with clear film. Now add coins or rolled-up bills and fill up with Haribo frogs. Write 'Kröten' (toads/money) on a piece of paper and cut it out.
Charcoal
Line the compartment well with paper and add a few pieces of coal to the compartment, again filling it up with coins or nicely folded banknotes. Write 'Kohle' (coal/money) on a piece of paper and place it in the appropriate compartment, or glue or tie it on.
Flowers
Line one compartment of the tea box with paper and then clear film and fill it with coins and/or nicely folded banknotes. Sprinkle beautiful paper flowers over it. Label a strip of paper with 'BlĂĽten' (blossoms/money) and place it in the compartment.
It looks great here if you fold the banknote into the shape of a flower. To do this, fold the banknote crosswise into small pleats, like a fan. Then fold it in the middle so that a circle is formed. Use a small piece of tape to stick the 'money flower' together at both ends and pull it apart into a circle. Now just place it in the box under the paper flowers.
Mice
Line a compartment with beautiful paper and some more clear film. Possibly fold the banknote and fill the compartment together with the Haribo mice. Write 'Mäuse' (mice/money) on a strip of paper and add it.
Gravel
Line the compartment well with paper and clear film. Place a banknote or coins on top and finish by filling it with the gravel. Write 'Schotter' (gravel/money) on a strip of paper and add it.
Moss
Line the compartment in the tea box with paper and clear film, add folded banknotes and coins, and cover slightly with moss. Write 'Moos' (moss/money) on a piece of paper and place it in the compartment or glue it on.
Pebbles
Fill a compartment in the tea box a little with paper and line it with some clear film, add coins or folded bills, and fill up with some pebbles. Write 'Kies' (pebbles/money) on a piece of paper and place it in the compartment.
Flakes
Line a compartment in the tea box with paper, as well as some clear film, add the folded bills and/or coins, and fill up with cotton balls. Write 'Flocken' (flakes/money) on a piece of paper and place it in the compartment.
If you like, you can also decorate the tea box or write a text on the lid.
I chose a tea box with 6 compartments and filled the compartments with mice, toads, dough, blossoms, gravel, and moss. Here is also my template for the various small notes for all the terms to print out:
Money gift template: names for money
Read also:Â Chocolate box with money
