Random: Crafty Gifts?

auroranflash

I'm sure a good Pinterest explore would offer SEVERAL options, but until then...

Do you ever give homemade presents as gifts around the holidays? I am thinking jarred food (jams, fruits, etc), artwork, crafty gifts, etc?

Maybe even a pinecone bird feeder?

I wanted to see the creative side of MFP. Show or tell about some way you managed to put creativity into gift giving during the holidays. :flowerforyou:

(subtext: I'm poor this year. HALP)

HealthyBodySickMind

I'm learning how to make soap

nikinyx6

I'm poor this Christmas, so I'm taking orders and baking pies and tarts for everyone.

For those who live far away, I'm mailing the 'Cookies in a jar' things where they just add eggs and butter and bake 'em

auroranflash

I'm poor this Christmas, so I'm taking orders and baking pies and tarts for everyone.

For those who live far away, I'm mailing the 'Cookies in a jar' things where they just add eggs and butter and bake 'em

That sounds awesome. I may have to get in on this...

creech6317

My daughter and I make cookies and candies. I also crochet, so scarves are a good gift.

millions0fpeaches

I usually try to make my cards rather than just getting the printed photo ones... Last year I made snowflake ornaments, too. $8 for a nice 6 piece set of cookie cutters and a few bucks for some pearlized paint. I had oven bake clay, ribbon, wedding favor boxes, and tissue paper at home, but even if you had to buy all of it, you're probably only looking at like $30 tops. I think I made 50 of them?

misalillstead

Candles are pretty fun to make at home!

IronDame

I made people scarves last year for Christmas. They loved them.

michelletr

I'm baking cookies, and cheesecakes. I crocheted dishcloth. I am knitting slippers, hats,scarves and mitts. I actually have quite a few "homemade" things I am doing,lol.

_Elemenopee_

Thanks to my Pinterest obsession!

Draw on wax paper with permanent markers, wrap around candle and heat until image is transferred.


Donuts and milk


Elmer's glue then paint one color overtop.


There are more...there are always more!!! lol

RedHeadDevotchka

Jewelry. I did it when I was a po' hoe. Worked great

ukstarlight05

I often make homemade gifts, they are generally baked goods because I love baking and members of my family don't often make themselves breads/pies/cookies from scratch (and I try to make things as healthy as possible!). My grandparents love when I make them loaves of bread or muffins and freeze them; I can prepare them prior to the holiday/occassian and then they can decided when they want to enjoy the treats. I also enjoy painting so I've painted pictures, gotten frames, and given those as gifts. If I had more time I'd love to get into jewlery making.

_skittybang

Last year I made beer for friends and family :drinker:

I also will buy some gift they asked for and paint a small picture of something they like, something about their personality, music icon, animal, whatever to go along with it - and always a little canvas - because I think they're cute and if they hate the painting, it's easy to hide. :bigsmile:

azzkikin

Biodiesel

silvergurl518

i can only do the knit stitch, but i can knit scarves!

_crafty_

I will spend about 3 days straight, 10+ hours a day, in my kitchen baking about a week before Christmas. I give all of my family and friends holiday tins filled with homemade/hand decorated (scratch made, I DO NOT use mixes) cookies, candy and other confections.

Everyone always loves the homemade gifts. I give them to my friends and business partners before the actual holiday and they share them with their families over the holiday.

They've all come to expect the goodies and aniticpate the day I deliver them. I think that if I started going out and buying gifts for people instead of baking that I would get lynched.

_ylime_

I make these cute little pretzle chocolate things... I pack them in jars with a little ribbon around the top... everyone seems to love them (beware they are addictive little buggers.... )

the ones I make are similar to the link below... but I used melting chocolate instead of the hershey's kiss (you can get it at any craft store)

http://spoonful.com/recipes/holiday-pretzel-treats

fabandfunat51

Oh my goodness! For the past five years, all I've given are homemade, mostly edible gifts. Go to Livingonadime.com She has TONS of gifts to make.

One of my favorites is here: www.livingonadime.com/candy-christmas-wreath/

Fun to make, and inexpensive and customizable to everyone.

I also make handmade jewelry for all the women/girls on my list.

Enjoy!

Alex_is_Hawks

I bake for my family. I did it when I was on Mat Leave and I had a baby and an asshat that decided to go back to school while I was on Mat Leave.....

so things were interesting.

as a result the baking tradition has continued via requests...

dad - shortbread
mom - chocolate dipped biscotti
brother 1 - hot toddy mix (in cute mason jars, he really really likes this)
brother 2 - rum balls, strong on the rum
sister 1 - nanaimo bars (if you do not know this, it's a Canadian treat...just google it)
brother 3 - rum balls, again strong on the rum.

so yeah....relatively cheap and they love it.

Dad also gets a cheap but interesting bottle of wine, you can find cheap ones that had a great year.

Mom gets bailey's irish cream.

My daughter one year picked up plain ornaments and craft pens and decorated an ornament for each grandparent and all her uncles and aunts....that was awesome.

oregonzoo

Last year I made pumpkin spice brown sugar sugar rubs.

Qarol

I don't know if this helps. I found a poem I liked about moms. Found a cross-stitch alphabet book and freestyled it.

I made a frame mat out of those free paint stir sticks at the hardware store. Spray paint them the color you want. Then cut them to fit a standard mat and glue. And voila.

My mom totally digs homemade crafts as presents.

MichelleLaree13

I'm learning how to make soap

I cheat and re-purpose soap to make new pretty stuff. I made some coffee ground swirled stuff.

Eat_clean_stay_tiny

I make soap, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, things out of clay, I bake, draw, sketch, knit, sew, play piano.. Heh I'm really crafty.

horseplaypen

- I'm handwriting a quote on a pale pashmina scarf with fabric markers for my sister-in-law... not sure what quote yet though!
- everyone will also get a jar of different flavoured roasted chick peas in their stocking
- I make jewelry as a hobby, so most female family members get that in their stocking too
- thinking of making some quirky fridge magnets for brother-in-law by buying cool plastic toys (dinosaurs, robots, star trek figures?), spray painting them a uniform colour, and gluing them onto magnets
- rice hand warmers... cut shapes out of fleece, fill them with rice, and then you heat them in the microwave and stick in your pockets/gloves when it's cold out!
- coasters with printed/modpodged Harry Potter quotes for my bestie

All of these are on my Pinterest project board: http://pinterest.com/victoriasarah/projects/

HealthyBodySickMind

Last year I made beer for friends and family :drinker:

I also will buy some gift they asked for and paint a small picture of something they like, something about their personality, music icon, animal, whatever to go along with it - and always a little canvas - because I think they're cute and if they hate the painting, it's easy to hide. :bigsmile:

I would love it if someone gave me their own home brews for xmas. For all that goes into brewing, that is beyond generous.

jennco3

I make chocolate covered peanut butter balls. I get the packaging at the after christmas sells then use those the next year. Home made gifts are awesome! Way more personable.

I so want to try that elmers glue painting. That is awesome!

SuperSexyDork

Fudge. I'm the girl everyone expects fudge from every year. They've even started telling me which kinds.

I just can't escape it and my arms scream every year.

Oh and snickerdoodles.

BritneysStuntDouble

Have you considered making Caganers? They're pooping figurines sometimes included in Catalan nativity scenes.



You could even make them cute and trendy, for kids and teens!





Cute, huh?!

MeMyCatsandI

Bump, because I could use some ideas myself. I already did the knitted scarves, so I can't do that again.

HealthyBodySickMind

I'm learning how to make soap

I cheat and re-purpose soap to make new pretty stuff. I made some coffee ground swirled stuff.

Coffee in soap! That sounds awesome! I suppose it would work a bit like a scrub then?

kenazfehu

I've tried all kinds of things. I made one of my sisters a Christmas tree garland this year because she sent me a box of wooden beads that I didn't much like last Christmas, so I thought I'd send them right back to her.

I buy semi-precious beads and make rose beads for necklaces; might get a few of those made this year. And I bought a kit to try silk scarf painting but don't know if I'll be any good at it. If I am, someone will get that.