Made by Little Hands {Father's Day Ideas}

Does anyone really know what to buy their father?  I know I spent years not knowing.  That’s why as a kid I fell into the same gift pattern many do and bought my businessman father ties for every gift giving holiday there was. 

At first I tried to find nice ones, but later when I was old enough to realize he only wore them because he had to and not because he wanted to...I got a little cruel.  I would find ties with the craziest prints or the ugliest color combinations and give to him with a straight face and innocently ask if he liked them.  The poor man would gush and wear that ugly tie at the breakfast table the next morning and surprisingly was still wearing it when he walked in the door for dinner.

Years later, when I finally started to get to know my father as a man with interests outside me and my brothers, gift giving became a little less formal, but I often kept the tradition alive by wrapping his concert tickets or DVD box set in a hideous pink tie.  Last Christmas he even started giving them back.  Each one of my brothers and I got a tie in our stocking.    My brothers were going to give theirs away but I took them home instead.  I figure with a few more holidays I’ll have enough of those old ties to make something like the tie wreath I recently found on Pintrest.

But until then I need to find a way to incorporate a tie into this year’s father’s Day gift.  And while I found tons of cute ideas including one where children paint their handprints on a white tie, my favorite was a simple greeting card made from scrapbook paper.  Using a legal size patterned paper, fold to look like a dress shirt then adding a knotted piece of paper for the tie.  (The exact instructions can be found on marthastewart.com). 

Just remember, no matter what you give him, your dad’s sure to gush and use it proudly, but it just wouldn’t be Father’s day without a little bit of patterned silk.  Even if you just use it to wrap a six pack.

Love you Dad!

Jenn.