Homemade Gift Ideas - Crafts

Homemade gifts blend your time, talent, and treasure to create a unique gift made with love. Whether you are on a budget and need to use what you have or if you simply want to create something unique, making your own Christmas gifts can be a great option. Here are a few homemade gift ideas our family has enjoyed:

CRAFTS

Christmas Tree Ornaments

The girls and I made angel ornaments by upcycling old pant pockets. We found a photo on the web for inspiration. We used the legs of the pants to make quilts some time ago and cut out the pockets thinking we would eventually find a use for them, and we did!


Angel ornaments made from pant pockets

There are many other great ideas for DIY Christmas ornaments out there. Here are some other ideas you can check into:
Ribbon Ornaments We made something similar to this several years ago. They turn out beautifully and are so easy!
Clothespin Ornaments Here is a site that lists 5 ways to make ornaments from clothespins.
More Ornament Ideas The Pioneer Woman has an article with 75 more ornament ideas.

Stocking Caps 

There are many ways to make stocking caps. If you already have the skill to knit or crochet, there are numerous patterns out there. If you don't have the time or patience to learn traditional knitting or crocheting, you can start with a knitting loom. These are easy to use and you can produce a hat in a relatively short amount of time. As a bonus, you can often find gently used looms for an inexpensive price at many thrift stores or yard sales.

A loom knit stocking cap

Scarves

As with stocking caps, there are many gorgeous patterns that you can use for making scarves, either knitted or crocheted. You can also loom knit a scarf. They make a special loom for knitting scarves, but we have seen people use a small circular loom to make them as well. Just flatten it after it is knitted!

A loom knit scarf

SEWING

Stocking Caps

You can make stocking caps out of fleece without the need for knitting or crocheting. There are a number of easy patterns online that can be made in a very short amount of time with minimal sewing. These are so simple to make that you could hand stitch them if you don't have a sewing machine.

Quilts

If you have a sewing machine, some fabric, and some batting, you can make a quilt. Baby quilts and lap blankets are great sizes to start with. You can also upcycle old jeans to make a jean quilt. See our article on making jean quilts here.


A baby quilt in progress

Aprons

Another relatively easy sewing project that makes a great gift is an apron. You can make them as simple or fancy as you like. You can also make a barbecue apron out of a stiffer material for the barbecue afficionado in your life.

WOODWORKING

Recipe Box

If you have woodworking skills, another option for a nice, handmade gift is a recipe box. Nice, resilient recipe boxes can be hard to find - a wooden one looks nice and will last for decades

A homemade cedar recipe box 

Trinket Box

Having a container in which to put miscellaneous items is another idea for anyone on your list. For adults, it could be used to store trinkets, documents, essential oils, a leather cleaning kit, a sewing kit or more; for kids, it could be a treasure box, a toy box, or a craft box. There are so many possibilities!

A homemade storage box

Wooden Sign

Another simple project is a homemade sign. You can easily make a "welcome," a "home sweet home," or another decorative sign with a bit of wood and some paint.


 We hope you have found these ideas useful. If you end up making any of these, post your projects in the comments below. We would love to see what you have created!

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