Your Top Hand Made Christmas Gifts

[Oola]

Given the global economic downturn, there's been a lot of coverage recently for hand made and home made gifts at Christmas. Home made gifts are being touted as more thoughtful, more luxurious yet more frugal.

Do you regularly make your own Christmas gifts, and if so, what do you make?

My cousin has made us red onion chutney and this year I think we're getting special chilli-infused olive oils, using the chillis she grew herself. I was thinking of making some seed packets for a few people, giving them seeds collected from my own garden. Just a small gift with something else, but I like the personal touch.

How about you? I would love to hear your ideas, as I need extra inspiration...

[jazzactivist]

The gift of seeds sound like a great idea, Oola. I would love to receive a present like that. I haven't recently made any home-made gifts for people, but in the past have made fudge and also some lovely truffles. I always like receiving home made presents myself, and the best have been a crate of 6 bottles of home made fruit wine, a pin cushion made out of a 1950s hanky, and a draft stopper in the shape of a snake.

This year, I am going to make a couple of felt tea cosies for friends. I'm doing a class in felting and finding it fantastic, as it is quick, always looks pretty good when finished, and is very cheap to do - A small 100g bag of wool tops can make an entire small bag or tea cosy and costs about £3. The rest of the equipment is just cheap stuff like bubble wrap, soap, and an old net curtain. I am going on an individual tutorial on Thursday to make a performance waistcoat for Andy to wear when he is on stage. He usually wears some kind of flamboyant coloured shirt, but often complains that it can get too cold as there is no heating on stages. However, a sweater or jacket is too hot to move around in. He has been going on about a waistcoat ever since he saw one on another poet, so I have roughed out a design based on one of his poems and am going to give it a try, with expert guidance from my felting tutor...

[Crocus]

......or even mini christmas cakes, or some christmas tree stuff made from felt, buttons, etc.? Or perhaps some of your recipes you don't mind giving out written in a nice notebook or something? Little jars with jam?

[franbee]

Depends what you're good at. If you can cook, then home made jam, chutney, biscuits, chocs, sweets etc, in a charity shop tin or a mug. My Mum always made Christmas cakes for everyone. If you can sew, I've done pretty covered coathangers, lavender bags, or homemade jewellery made from reclaimed beads. I think people appreciate anything homemade.

[franbee]

Garden gifts are good too, home potted bulbs in a nice pot.

[sunflower]

Last year I went overboard with making gifts for family and friends. I had lots of fun though making knitted purses out of silk ribbons, and jars of mixed fruit basking in brandy. This year we have decided stockings only except for our Grandchildren. I'm planning more games for over Christmas this year.

[eleanor2]

i would love to make gifts but havnt got round to it.i have enjoyed making some special christmas cards.i have made jewellry ,lavender bags and boxes of home made cards as presents in past years.

[annie fenbug]

Our family tradition is to buy for birthdays and make as much for Christmas as possible, so currently in the middle of....

Table mats and pot holders to fit the new oven-to-table casseroles, to match new dining-room decor. Dead easy to do, certainly an improvement on the assorted kitchen towels being used at the moment!
Bespoke workbag to carry all the paraphernalia for new weaving/tapestry enthusiasm - she goes to weekly gossip session (sorry, classes).
Keepsake box (I won't say what it looks like because I think she visits here - anyway the theme is a personal joke that's been running all year).
Annual stupid crochet hat for gardening in - trying to make rabbit ears on this year's but they're not working out at the moment. A joke's a joke, but obscenity probably isn't.
Money box (for a neurotic accountant).
Another money box (for the wealthiest man I know - he's neurotic as well).
Fish-themed mirror for my mother - she's been dropping heavy hints for the last 5 years so I really should get on with it.
Album (photos and notes) from my trip to India for my godmother. I'm ashamed to say that's also about 5 years overdue (excuse being computer crash when I was 2/3rds of the way through the first edition and, of course, that was the bit that couldn't be recovered).
Woke up on Sunday morning at about 3am with an absolutely brilliant idea for my best friend, was too idle to write it down and of course now can't remember a thing about it except it was Absolutely Brilliant ... damn!

Of course, I have far more fun in the making than the poor recipients! I can't match my cousin for quality - every year she produces beautiful albums with photos of her family so we really feel we're up to date with what they're doing. It does help that her 2 girls are classic Norwegian beauties and very photogenic, of course!

[Pippa]

For girlfriends, a sewing buddy with matching pincushion. Baked gingerbread shapes in a recycled box with ribbon and felt tree decoration as label, assortment of hand made tree decorations which have been embroidered or made from left over felt scraps, jar of mincemeat and of course, all gift tags home-made and a page with a beautiful photo or illustration on it, torn from a magazine is big enough to wrap a small present like a bar of soap, use raffia to wrap instead of expensive ribbon. Remember to save packaging, cards and paper for next year.

[Ivy]

Felt slippers it is this year. I always try to make something special. Last year it was Christmas cakes and the year before it was anything you can make from sloes. Unfortunately we didn't have any sloes for two years running now. Also I am planning to make my daughter a sweater. Also I made 30 Lavender hearts to decorate Parcels with.

[Crocus]

You lot are so arty and crafty, goodness me! xxx

[dragonfly]

As we are all being encouraged not to use plastic bags I think a home made shopping bag in bright material would be very useful. I have just seen a large work bag on the shopping channel with lots of pockets inside for wool, patterns, scissors etc. which I think would make a lovely present especially if home made.

[baab95]

I just stumbled into the Martha Stewart website and the found quite a few projects that I think I might tackle. Does anybody know of other sites that provide festive inspiration?

[TIGGYWINKLE]

This is for you Oola, as I know you love hedgehogs. Easy to Make. Cut out a 12 inch and a 5 inch circle. Cut out a kidney shape for shawl. Cut out little pinny. Glue a strip of fabric on to a pipe cleaner for arms. You need some wadding, some lavander, 3 coloured pins, and a teazle or pine cone for the face. Knit a few lines with 12 stitches on stocking needles. Transfer to 2 cocktail sticks, and make a little ball of wool. Do runnung stitch around the big circle. Pull in and fill with wadding and lavander. Pull tight and secure. Do same with little circle stuffing in the teazle with eyes and nose positioned. Gather shawl 1 inch in from each edge,and stick on. stick on pinny, stick on arms, and stick on head. Place knitting in hands and stick on the ball of wool

[eleanor2]

very nice tiggi that hedgehog is a real cutie... oh i have made a present.i have made a box of handmade cards for a special friend.they will go in a fancy box with a personalised pen.then i will attach fancy glitzy ribbon to tie round the box and leave a big bow on top.

[Rustic Pumpkin]

I love to make. Anything. Sew it, bake it, paint it, grow it, cook it, glue it and on and on. I would love it if my cousins, Aunts and Uncles who get gifts from me appreciated home made things. But they don't! Bizzarre folk. The last time I gave home made gifts (20 years ago) the response was so poor that I nearly said, "If that's how you feel, give it back and do without!" Even though I cannot afford bought gifts I have drained myself buying what they expect (bottles of single malt, wine, chocolates etc). It has put so much financial and emotional strain on me that I refuse to let them do this again. Next year I am planning to give all home made gifts, whatever the occassion or event. Hopefully, the garden will provide the basics for several chutneys, jams and pickles, as well as cordials. My extensive stash of craft supplies will provide the necessary for all maner of sewn things, and my kitchen will see a rash of baking taking place.

Possible ideas are gift baskets, with quilted and pocketed linings, with lids to be filled with home made preserves and cookies. Patchwork cushions. Patchwork coasters with a bottle of home made cordial. Fleece hats and scarves. Beaded and appliqued scarves. Framed prints of one of my photographs.

Thinking hat now on.