Thank you sarahnity for letting me guest host Frugal Fridays on this fine Friday the 13th! There are so many reasons to make, rather than buy, gifts for friends and family, not the least of which is that is a great way to save money. I have combed the tubes looking for some unique ideas for handmade gifts, and will also share ideas that I have done myself. It's only November, so there is plenty of time to implement any of the ideas here.
Some things to keep in mind:
- These are handmade items, so they will not be perfect or look factory made and that's OK. In fact, that's the point!
- Packaging is an important component in many handmade gifts. Even something as simple as a dozen chocolate chip cookies can become a great gift stacked in a jar with some ribbon or in a box with tissue.
- Even if you don't consider yourself a crafty person, you can do many of the following projects.
For the wine drinker, you can make these super simple drink charms. If you click on that link, be sure to scroll to the bottom, because this is a great example of how the packaging can make the gift.
Here are some that I made, and it only took minutes!
For those that drink any beverage, how about some handmade coasters. Here are some really cool ones using recycled magazines, and some using napkins and tiles .
I know that it is sometimes difficult making gifts for men, but this business card holder and duck tape wallet are fun and frugal gifts.
If you know anyone, male or female, that loves the sweet and spicy nuts that smell so wonderful when the street vendors roast them, make a batch and pack them in jelly jars or even cellophane bags. Sometimes I just use ziploc bags and put a paper topper on it. I use this recipe, and if I don't pack them up right away they disappear!
* 1 egg white
* 1 tablespoon vanilla
* 1 pound pecan halves, walnuts, or almonds
* 1 cup white sugar
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Grease one baking sheet.
2. In a mixing bowl, whip together the egg white and water until frothy. In a separate bowl, mix together sugar, salt, and cinnamon.
3. Add pecans to egg whites, stir to coat the nuts evenly. Remove the nuts, and toss them in the sugar mixture until coated. Spread the nuts out on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Bake at 300 degrees F for 1 hour. Stir every 15 minutes.
An entire diary could easily be devoted to handmade food gifts, such the truffle, fudge, and toffee recipes that were shared in one of last year's Frugal Friday diaries.
Gifts in jars are a great way to give food that people can prepare at their convenience, and you can get tons of ideas, recipes, and printable tags here and here. You can also take a simple jar gift and make it a little more substantial by packaging Beer Bread Mix, Friendship Soup Mix, and a six pack of beer in a basket.
Almost everyone uses magnets, so why not create some unique magnet sets. These are cool and because they reuse pop cans so they are great for tree huggers, and these would be so easy to personalize. I like to buy packs of super strong 1/2" magnets, glue various items on them, and pack them in old tins.
Here are some examples: A box of rocks, silk flowers, and googly eyes. (h/t to rkelley for the googly eyes)
Speaking of tree huggers, I happen to be one so I have to share some great ideas that reuse everyday items or encourage others to be more eco friendly. These newspaper and glue beads are easy, but a little time consuming. You can be sure, however, that the recipients will have something unique.
I haven't put wire through mine yet to make bracelets, but here they are at various stages in the process.
Mixing the paper and glue:
Rolling the balls:
Putting them on a cookie sheet to dry:
After they dried, one coat of paint, second coat and glaze:
A hand made journal would be a fantastic gift for anyone in your life that enjoys writing. If you can sew a straight seam, use this pattern and join morsbags in their quest to eliminate plastic bags. Get the kids involved and make even more magnets. Body products are always appreciated, so here is a sweet scrub recipe using common ingredients. You can get many more ideas here.
What about grandma and grandpa, you ask? I found this idea that came from flylady.net and I think it would be great for any family members that are difficult to buy for.
1. I got this off the Fly Lady website last year and did it for my parents: Make a memory jar. I wrote one or two sentence memories from my childhood on my computer (15 minutes at a time) and over the course of a few weeks I had 365 memories to share. I printed them off on a variety of colored paper, cut them into strips (one memory per strip) and put them in a mason jar, decorating the lid with a piece of cloth from a childhood outfit my mother made me. A fun by-product of this was that I really enjoyed stirring up all those old memories and sharing them with my kids as well as my parents. My parents have repeatedly told my how much they enjoy this gift! They take one memory out at breakfast together and chuckle over what I wrote, and sometimes their own memories are jogged. This is a gift that keeps on giving! - Fly Baby in MN
These encourage-mints are a similar idea that would make a thoughtful gift.
If you enjoy stamping, you can make sets of cards from one sheet of stamped paper, get a free stamp, and pack it together for teachers or other acquaintances.
Finally, there are some great tools out there to help you stay organized during this busy season, especially if you do plan on making some or all of your gifts. I have a Christmas planner that I put together years ago using ideas from here and here.
I already have mine out and am using it.
Good luck with any projects that you will be doing, and please share your ideas in the comments!