Top Handmade Gifts

I just decided this is my project for this year. My daughter just called me for the third time this month for my Chicken Chalupa recipe. I'm making cookbooks for Christmas this year. I'll put in my moms cottage cheese pancake recipe and my great grandmothers peanut brittle with information about where the recipes came from and when I traditionally made them.

Do you sew? You need a sewing machine for this one, but some of the patterns are really easy. This would be great for toddlers through teens. Keep them simple, especially if you have several to do.

Especially at Christmas.

At a craft store, buy letters for their name in wood. Then paint and decorate. Really good for teens, especially if you know their favorite colors.

If you have digital pictures of your family, this one is a great gift. You can do it on your computer with software, or through the many online photo places. I did them for grandparents, my kids and myself. This has been a great gift and I think they were about $9 a piece to do. They have family pics on every month, with little pics on their birthdays or special events.

For children, for grandchildren, for sweethearts...nothing says love like a warm blanket. The No Sew Fleece Blanket is an easy one. And there is so many patterns of fleece out there. Baby blankets really need about 1 and a half yard. Any smaller and they aren't really useful. You can make them any size for older children and adults. I LOVE getting a new blanket to use as a lap blanket on the couch. Prices really vary on fleece yardage so check it out. And you really want the no pill type.

If you can, make extra...especially anything red...Salsa, strawberry or raspberry jam, etc. Add a bow on the lid and you have great Christmas gifts. If its Salsa, add a bag of chips and wrap them in a paper bag you've decorated. If jam, make or buy some great bread to go with it.

By hand or on the computer. A montage of photographs of family, pets or a car...add a couple of words and laminate.

Throughout the year and giving them together in a book.

This might be pushing the homemade part. Think about something that a family member wants. I'll give you an example. My son and his wife want to start camping only they don't have any gear. I've kept my eye on garage sales and craigslist for a cooler in really good condition so I can Clorox it. I'm also looking for old pots and pans and other camping paraphernalia. I'll fill up the cooler with bits and pieces I've gathered over the last couple months and give it to them as part of their Christmas. You could do this with dishes for a new apartment, or baskets filled with towels for car-washing and car supplies.

If your children are starting to have children...now might be the time to gift them with their baby book. This way they can have a reference point for all the firsts. If you don't have a baby book, maybe a photo album of them as a baby up through toddler years so they can compare looks.

Especially good for adult children or children ready to leave for college or their first apartment. Go through your photos, if every things digital, get print copies of the pictures you want. If you have a lot of pictures, this may be an ongoing project and you might start at the beginning. Do a little pre-planning. Decide on four or five sections...School pictures, family vacations, chillin at home...etc. And then arrange the pictures in sleeves that can go in a three ring binder. With dividers for sections.

make handmade for someones favorite pooch

For cookies or back rubs or car washing. Make them look great and be a gift in themselves.

Find recipes on the internet for Kahlua, Cranberry, or many others.

Craft stores have ceramic figures or ornaments that you can paint. This is also good for Halloween, Easter, etc...not just Christmas.

Sew simple long, thin bags. Fill loosely with rice or barley or corn (dried) and maybe a little dried lavender. Sew shut. These can be heated in the microwave for a few seconds and make great heating pads for neck or sinuses.