I thought it would be fun to do a little homework on some fun homemade Christmas gifts! My search lead me to plenty of suggestions. I weeded out all of the horribly tacky, non-useful, and way too difficult projects. Leaving you with all the good stuff 
Without further adieu, Plug in your glue gun, open the kitchen cabinets, and let’s go homemade this Christmas!
First up, the wrapping:
Let’s think “outside the box”
- Reusable shopping totes cost just as much as a gift bag yet they are reusable! Tie a bow to the top and there ya go!
- Baskets also make a great reusable gift presentation.
Inside the box
- When wrapping a box, instead of wrapping the box and lid as one unit, wrap each separately. When you use the wrapped box, secure it closed with ribbon or another tie, not tape or glue. Also, tie on the gift card and trimming. Reuse the box without re-wrapping it until it looks shabby.
- Newspaper, butcher paper, and paper bags (laid flat and cut) are all great wrapping paper alternatives.
Now the gifts!
- Conversation starters booklets. A cute book of lots of fun random questions like:
What’s the longest you’ve gone without sleep?
What did you do for your 13th birthday?
Perfect for car rides or date night and a great gift for a couple.
- Herbal infused Olive oil Got a Rosemary plant? Got olive oil? Why not make a super easy rosemary infused olive oil.
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Warm olive oil in a sauce pan. Pour into the bottle with a few freshly harvested clean rosemary sprigs. Put the bottle (perfect opportunity to re-purpose an old bottle) aside to cool. Seal with a lid or a cork. Set the bottle in a dry, cool place with no direct sunlight for at least one week. And there you have a fabulous gift for the chef in your family. More details here.
- Homemade candies, chocolates, cookies and cakes are always a hit. Try this recipe for homemade truffles!
- Give the gift of your time or skill. Whether you are Mr. Fix it, a hairstylist, or you can babysit. Offering your service is a great gift!
- Themed baskets/or buckets are always fun. Fill a popcorn bucket with packages of microwave popcorn and movie tickets for a date night basket! Other ideas are: Spaghetti night baskets with sauce, noodles, garlic bulbs all in a colander. Or (my personal favorite) a watering can filled with gardening gloves, seed packets and a trowel.
- The gift of family history. This is one of my favorite ides. Each year choose a topic to write about your family’s history. Every member contributes their own unique story to the theme. Example themes are: how you met your spouse, the first home you lived in, a funny story about when you were a kid. What a treasure these stories would be from our 80 year plus grandparents!
- Reasons why I love you. Just take an empty jar, then type out all the reasons you love that person. Print then cut into strips and place in jar. Recipient can pull one out a day to be reminded of your love.
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- A memory jar. Similarly to the reasons why I love you this gift is a GREAT idea for a grandparent or other older relative: Contact friends and family members and ask them to send memories and old pictures. Memories can be placed on folded card stock placed in a large jar or may be better in a homemade booklet. They will LOVE it!
- Family Recipe Books collecting all your families favorite recipes (if they are not a secret) and compiling them in a book to share with everyone is certain to be a crowd pleaser.
If homemade is not your thing, please check out my gifts with meaning post. Whether your gift is homemade or fair trade what a wonderful difference you are making!
Join the conversation. What is one of your favorite homemade gifts you have given or received?
Part of the Green Resource at Sorta Crunchy, the Greenbacks girl, Life renewed, and a Delightful home
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