My favorite gifts to give are personal and handmade. It truly is the thought that counts. Nothing shows more thoughtfulness than a DIY gift. Handmade gifts are also perfect for the “person who has everything”.
I am always collecting handmade gift ideas. I have a Pinterest board I recently started to help me keep track of and organize my gift ideas. I am using it for mostly handmade ideas and DIY wrapping ideas, but there are also a few buy ideas mixed in.
I love helping my kids make handmade gifts. It is another way I DIY to teach. They love to help with the project. It teaches them the best gifts aren’t purchased, they are made. Here are a few of the gifts the boys helped make.
Kitchen Towels – My oldest helped write his “recipes”, draw the food, and then iron the transfers on the towels. We made a set for both his Grandmas.
Magnetic Paper Dolls – These were a gift for one of my sons’ little girl friends. He helped pick out the dolls to include.
Stuck on You Magnets – A fun little project we made for our nanny on Valentine’s Day.
Modern Bird Feeder – Another gift for Grandma, who has a spring birthday.
Besides making the gifts, I also like DIY gift wrap for both handmade and store-bought gifts. Simple embellishments can make all the difference. Here are a few of the techniques I have used for wrapping:
For my sister’s birthday, I passed on the gift of giving. She is always giving to her friends and family. So, I made her a gift giving kit with everything she might need to wrap up a beautiful gift. The contents of the kit were mostly handmade.
Handmade gifting is in my blood. I have been known to stay up past midnight making cake in a jar treats for my coworkers. Now that my oldest is in school, I fully expect a few late night crafting events for the kids. I have already figured out what were are making for Halloween. I am getting better and better at starting well in advance to make sure my handmade dreams come true.
I’ve decided that I want to make all my Christmas gifts (for the adults) this year. The only downside is that I don’t have a lot of room for DIYing crafts in my home. I love that you’ve included your son in making gifts. I have a tendency to take over which I need to work on.
Lisa, space is always a challenge. When we were in our townhouse, I made a bit of space in our laundry closet on a shelf. I kept all my gift projects in a canvas bin about the size of a laundry basket. I pulled it out to the table whenever I had time to work on them, then I could put it all away.
Love love love these ideas!
Love these. I wish someone would make me a gift giving kit. That is spectacular!