With only one weekend separating us from National Soup Swap Day, I thought it would be fun to share something other than soup to work on this weekend.
That's right! Get out your glue gun and glitter 'cause it's the door prize edition of Soup Swap.
Maybe about five years ago in Seattle, once we had the ritual down with Soup Swap, we threw in the added element of door prizes.
In Seattle, our traditional gifts are a large wooden spoon for the first soup picked, and a small wooden spoon for the last soup to go. I sometimes think we ought switch it and give the big spoon last, because no matter how much you are an adult about being picked last, it still feels bad. I ought to know, I've gone home with the little spoon.
Taking the idea of our spoons further,
Renee in Albany blew our mind with her SPOONS FOR EVERYONE! Seriously, we'd never even thought of this. But if Renne looks like Martha Stewart, then you gotta see what Not Martha's got up to: SILK SCREENING.
No, seriously. That's a lot of work for parting gifts!
We've heard of folks giving books, colorful potholders, and for all kind of reasons: first soup frozen, best Telling of the Soup, naughtiest named soup, most exotic ingredient. Do what makes your event the most fun!
What if all you want is your soup to be picked first? While I'm normally scrounging around for a pen and mailing label, you can always add a cute label to catch the swapper's eye.
Jenny in Rochester did a swell job with this one.
Maybe a cute label isn't enough? If not, you can send some crackers home with it, a box of raisins, or in the case of these
folks in DC, what looks like homemade cornbread! And while you're looking at this picture, check out the soup wrapped up in their own blankets!
On a new twist on ugly soup, this weekend down in
Portland, one of the intrepid swappers was offering romance with her bleak, dull gray black bean soup! That's right, you picked her soup, and you got the recipe and a pair of candles since candle light makes everything look better.
Finally, neither door prizes nor incentives, we can say that everyone appreciates a recipe and some order to the evening! Having some extra sticky labels and pens handy for folks to label their soup, for example. We're hardly this organized in our swap, but I thought this idea by the Not Martha crowd to making picking easier awesome.
As far as I can tell, these cards from our
pals in Indiana were used to not only describe the soups, but also gave folks a cool thing to take home with recommendations on what to eat with the soup! They are good looking, don't you think?
These are just a few of the ideas folks have shared with us, but we sure love them. If you browse our archives or take a look at all the contributers blogs and flickr feeds to see even more! Creative types must be drawn to Soup Swapping!
Labels: Doorprizes, Gifts, Labels, Soup Swap
