A day in the GIF-TREE studio: how we assemble 200 sets a week by hand

From sourcing to sealing — follow us through a full day of gift-making and meet the team behind every box.

The studio smells of cedar, dried citrus, and something faintly floral — probably the chamomile sachets from Tuesday's Cozy Home run. By 8am, three of our team are already at their benches, checking the day's order manifest against the inventory shelves.

Each shelf holds the components of a specific collection. The For Her shelf: face mist, botanical soap, linen eye mask, tea assortment, tissue, ribbon. Everything is counted, quality-checked, and arranged in the order it gets packed. This is not an accident — the sequence matters for how the box looks when it is opened.

We assemble around 200 sets per week, all by hand. There is no machine that can replicate the way our team places a dried eucalyptus sprig or adjusts the fold of the kraft paper. These are the details that make a GIF-TREE box feel different from the moment someone lifts the lid.

By 11am, the first batch is sealed and labelled. The afternoon is when the personalisation orders come through — handwritten cards, custom ribbon colours, special requests for milestone birthdays or new arrivals. Each one takes a few extra minutes. We think those minutes are worth it.

By the time the last courier collects at 4pm, the studio is already being reset for tomorrow. It is repetitive work, but it is also deeply satisfying. Every box that leaves here is going to make someone smile.