At two weeks to go, there was nothing online that would fit my cupcakes, arrive on time, and be affordable

I’m going to tell you a little secret. I mean, we’re all friends here, right? And you promise to forget this when my kids reach shidduchim.

I’m very practical. And… well… I don’t like to spend. Not on things I can get for free. Or on things that are meant to go in the garbage, like mishloach manos containers.

Another secret: My mishloach manos don’t not win prizes for creativity. I like themes, and I can come up with a few good ideas, but crafts and projects? Not me.

Still, I like nice and pretty things as much as you do. And I like to bake. The question is always what to make and how to package it in a way that’s respectable, but takes into account the reality that you won’t notice my mishloach manos over the 50 others on your table.

One year, I hit gold. My friend discovered a restaurant supply store.

That was the year I made cupcakes. My very artistic sister-in-law had done them the year before and flooded my inbox with different packaging ideas. Here’s the thing you need to know about very artistic sisters-in-law: The simpler their presentation looks, the more difficult it is to replicate.

Two weeks before Purim, I was scouring the internet for the perfect boxes to house the more than one hundred cupcakes in my freezer.

Then my very artistic sister-in-law tells me that the packaging comes before the product.