Homemade Christmas Gifts 2011

Time to make merry again! With Christmas approaching again, the festive season is back with a bang. Decorating Christmas homes and trees, purchasing gifts and trinkets to adorn the aisle, buying new clothes and preparing delicious traditional foods, all make way for the cheerful festival coming up. So why not take out some more time and indulge in preparing gifts for your loved ones at home? Instead of hunting through the markets for a special gift, add a drop of love and personalize your gift to make it even more special. Not only are they inexpensive, but the thoughtful idea and efforts gone into making that unique gift will, all the more, reflect your love and affection towards the recipient. Given here are some homemade Christmas gift ideas that you can try making and see the smile that it brings on your beloved’s face.

 

 

Using the unique and fancy buttons of different designs, you can put together last minute but beautiful gifts items like bracelets and necklaces. So get yourself some buttons, an elastic thread, and a pair of scissors and start working on it the moment you’re done with reading this. Take the elastic thread and hold it around your neck or wrist to confirm the measurement and now cut 6 inches more than what the measurement was. Now tie about 3 inches from one end to secure it so that buttons don’t fall off. Now start stringing the buttons and beads into the thread. Once you have the desired number of buttons, tie the two ends together and you have a beautiful little gift ready to hand out.

Remember the fun you’ve had and joy you’ve shared on Christmases over the years? If not then make this Christmas even more special by gifting your family or friends a collection of photographs of the Christmases that have gone by, sticking them onto a scrapbook with personal comments written under each of the photograph. The personal touch of the togetherness seen in the photographs enhanced by hand written comments will surely make this Christmas merrier than it has even been. The whole family can just sit together over a hot cup of coffee and revisit the moments that they had together as a family.

This one’s for all the sweet-tooths out there, kids and adults. Well, mostly kids. It doesn’t matter if it’s Christmas, Halloween, or a regular day of the month; kids crave for candies and love to receive them as gifts. However, don’t just keep a chocolate in their pocket and wish them Merry Christmas. Use the candies and make them into a gift that will have them screaming with candy-pleasure but will also tease them enough that they’ll think twice about consuming all too soon. Candy plant is the way to do that and here’s how you make them. Take a 3 inch clay pot and paint it in any color you want. Stuff enough tissue paper into the pot that’ll stick out for decorative measures. Now, stuff the pot with green floral foam. Now, glue the the wrapped candies on one end of the craft sticks and paint the sticks green. Poke the craft stick stems into the foam and once all the candy flowers are in place, cover the foam with shredded tissue or Easter grass. The candy plant is now good to go.

 

To your relatives or friends who have a nice green lawn in front of their home or love to attend to the birdies or both; clay pots made of terra cotta will make as a fine gift to give. Terra cotta clay pot or pots, terra cotta clay saucers or saucers, paint, strong glue, and acrylic glue are the items you’re going to need. The clay pot, flipped upside down will serve as the base and the clay saucer will fit on top of that. You can either use several pots and saucers to make one giant bird bath, or just make do with one. Use the glue to to fix the clay saucer on top of the pot turned upside down. Use several coats of acrylic spray on outside the pots to seal the deal. Decorate them as you like and you’re done!

Who said anything about gifts being worthless if they are not physically possessed? No one! Sometimes, the best gifts are the ones that are not kept or used but felt. And you can make your loved ones feel the spirit of the season by hosting a loving dinner with their favorite dishes being served hot and fresh, right at the table, followed by mouth watering desserts. The feeling of being full with food that was prepared personally for you is the best that you could ask for. The whole family can eat and celebrate together the joy that is around.

 

Nothing can be easier than baking cookies for Christmas. You can try out a recipe from a cookery book or television. Or give your cookies a special feel with your own creative recipe idea. Your cookies will make your gift receivers adore you even more. However, if you want that special place in the receivers’ hearts, know their flavor preference in advance. This would help you in baking the right cookies for the right person. Christmas cookies can be a real gift to present on this festive season. In case the person whom you would be gifting is very special, gift wrap the cookies in an attractive pack. But, if they are meant for family members, the gift wraps can be given a miss.

 

Gift baskets have always been a favorite on every occasion. And when Christmas is around, you have numerous options to fill them up with. Pull up your sleeves and make some homemade chocolate truffles. Lay them beautifully in the basket and fill it up with marshmallows, candied nuts, granola, caramel corn, etc, either made at home or purchased from the grocery store. Add a Christmas card for the personal touch and you are done with your Christmas gift basket. You can also try out other homemade basket ideas, such as body wash basket, fruit gift basket, chocolate gift basket and jewelry gift basket.

 

Create a collection of Christmas songs or carols and burn them on a CD for another great homemade Christmas gift. If you intend to give the CD to your family members, friends or the special one, then the task would become all the easier as you would be aware of their song preferences. Hence, compile a list of their favorite bands or songs on a CD. It sure will be a pleasant surprise for your loved ones as a CD containing their all-time favorites will be a least expected gift. Definitely, a memorable and cherished gift idea!

 

Get hold of those oldie photo albums or snaps from your digital camera and select the best one from among them. Collect some cardboard, colored papers and color pens. Surf the internet and search some innovative photo frame shapes. Using the desired shape cut the cardboard into that shape. Paste colored paper onto the cardboard and decorate it with creative drawings or innovative Christmas messages with color pens. You can also use glitters or stickers to adorn it further. Finally, paste your photo over the cardboard and voila! Your homemade photo frame is ready for gifting.

 

If you love to knit or crochet, then how about creating handmade scarf, sweater, gloves, or hats on Christmas? A great way to beat the chill, knitted items would surely make a good bet. Select the colors and designs that would best suit the receiver. If you plan to gift children, you can make some amigurumi dolls. Give these dolls the shape of their favorite cartoon character or a doll of your choice. While making sweaters, hats and gloves, make sure you know the size of the person whom you would be gifting else, the whole effort would turn in vain.