The Chatter Tree in Statesboro, GA

I am going to share with  you a little history of the beginnings of the sorority gift ideas that are offered on this website. We have to  reminisce a little  into the past.

If you remember when Georgia Southern University was just Georgia Southern College, then you might remember The Chatter Tree, the gift and craft shop  that was housed in an enormous old Victorian house  in downtown Statesboro in the 1980's and a while after that.

Sorority gifts made in the early 1980's

It was there that I met the sorority girls from Georgia Southern, which at that time only included KD, DZ, AD Pi, ZTA, Phi Mu, and Chi O. Later AKA and Sigma Delta Theta came along.

The Chatter Tree had a small hallway at the very back of the store that was the sorority room. This was where I displayed all the handmade sorority gifts that I had painted and sewed. The brown jugs which are shown (partially completed) in the picture never lasted long. They were made from large recycled bottles from the local drug store and were finished with a great big colorful bow tied around the neck of the bottle. They sold for $5.95.  The handpainted plaques like the ones shown sold for $1 - $4 depending on size and intricacy of the design.

Everyday, girls stopped by to talk to me about what they wanted personalized. I took many orders every week to make one-of-a-kind sorority gift items or awards according to what the girls desired.

I painted so many turtles, frogs, butterflies, owls, lions, and lady bugs that I had the designs all in my head and didn't rely on patterns anymore for most of them. I only took a few pictures of some of the sorority gifts that I made.

One of the favorites of the sorority gifts was study boards. I painted so many study boards.  They were made of smoothly sanded plywood cut in a retangular shape with a half circle cut out on the bottom edge.

The boards were almost always special orders to be painted a particular color-  with the mascot on one corner and a little sister's name on the other corner. It would be so neat to hear from somebody who used to have one of these handpainted study boards.  There might still be some that have survived. (I have one that I painted for my husband from that time period, but it is stained instead of painted and has a mallard duck on it instead of an owl or a turtle.)

1980's Handmade Sorority Gifts

Well, now I paint crowns for ZTA, lions for Phi Mu,  and bears for KD, but 30 years ago it was butterflies, ladybugs, and frogs.  I wonder if those sororities at Georgia Southern have continued with  butterflies, ladybugs, and frogs.

Do any of you have handmade sorority gifts that are vintage like these? We'd love to see them.

If you want to order a pillow for your sorority like these, you should purchase the "Custom Sorority Hang up Pillows - Made by Order" for $12.99. I have to relist it each time a pillow is ordered so if you don't see the item, "Custom Sorority Hang up Pillows - Made by Order", check back a little later or send me an Etsy Convo message about wanting to order a pillow and I will get back to you.

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If you like to make your own sorority gifts, you can look at our Gamma Phi Beta pillow post idea.  There I explain there the basics of making pillows like this on.  We also have more sorority gifts ideas  on our Sorority Crafts page.

Remember, I need a few days to get a pillow made. They are completely handmade. No factory involved here. They also can be personalized with a name somewhere if you like.

I get busy with orders this time of year, so if you need one, please get your order in soon so you won't be disappointed.

Place your order by purchasing "Custom Sorority Hang up Pillows - Made by Order" at Etsy Sorority Gifts.

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I still enjoy making the pillows, even creating new designs for sororities.  My next  order is for a Kappa Delta Chi with the Penguin mascot. I'll be making that pillow for her next week. Do you need a sorority pillow?

Sorority Sisters has a page about various types of  sorority pillows that are available.  For more information about  Greek pillows, click over to  Sorority Pillows.

Do you like to make sorority gifts?

I am really excited about a new group on Flickr where we all can upload pictures of sorority gifts that we make.

We can  share pictures of any or all of our handmade sorority gifts. This is your chance to inspire the rest of us with your great ideas or just to share the results of your latest sorority craft.

Have you decorated a picture frame with your Greek letters?

Have you made a sorority pillow?

Have you made a sorority paddle?

Have you made a sorority scrapbook or do you have some pages in a scrapbook dedicated to sorority events and special times? Take a picture of those pages and share.

Show your best sorority gift ideas and inspire others.

Join the new  Flickr Group: Sorority Sister Crafts and Handmade Gifts

Take a picture of any sorority item that you make and then upload it to http://www.flickr.com/groups/sororitysisters

If you don't have a picture, then just leave a comment and tell us what you have made.

What sorority presents have you made??

photo credit: EverySpoon

A doorhanger makes a great sorority gift for your big sister.  Here we have a picture of a Zeta Tau Alpha design with the sorority crown theme.  A door hanger is an easy gift to make and the materials are available at your local craft store.  I have seen the wooden crowns at Michaels.  Hobby Lobby carries a different line of painted wooden cut outs, but they have a very good selection also, from what I have seen.  Look for your sorority mascot, your sorority symbol, or your sorority flower.  You can always paint something if it is the wrong color.

Click below for:

Directions for making a Sorority Doorhanger

Thanks to Sorority Ebay store (Stefis Corner Stones and Gifts) for this sorority crown  door hanger picture. They offer a lot of handmade sorority gifts as well as sorority jewelry if you would like to take a look for other ideas.