Updated May 2020
Edible Gifts
Edible gifts are generally well received and pretty cheap and easy to make. Chocolate truffles go down a treat. There's a recipe for it here on BBC Food and you can put them in Christmas themed tins. This year I'm going to try making Chocolate Bark using these recipes from Lindsey Love at Gardenista. Wrap them up in cellophane and ribbon. Gingerbread men and shapes are also very popular at this time of year and this Jamie Oliver recipe should go down well. I saw these swan biscuits on Pixabay and they look so beautiful. You can get a small swan cookie cutter here and use this recipe from Linzer Cookies from A Fox In the Kitchen.
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| PhotoTop Left: Lindsey Love |
DIY Jewellery
Chokers and tassel earrings are still trending and luckily they're easy to make. The wrap around suede choker tutorial can be found on Sarah Najafi's blog. The peach and gold tassel earrings are from Honestly WTF and look very elegant. I think this lanyard bracelet from Love Maegan looks unisex and would make a good gift for a man as well. Did you know you can make a ring from a spoon? This printable step by step from Kirsten Danielle will show you how.
Winter Accessories
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| PHOTO CREDIT Top Left Kirsten Danielle Top Right Sarah Najafi Bottom Left Honestly WTF Bottom Right Love Maegan |
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| PHOTO CREDIT Top Left Heart Hook Home Top Right; P.S. Heart Bottom Left; Love Maegan Bottom Right Knitted patterns |
Bags and Cases
I think this denim makeup bag can also double up as man's wash bag, see how to make it at A Pair and a Spare. This d.i.y tablet case is very smart, practical and unisex and it can be made from leather or vinyl. The tutorial is here at Brit + Co. For the sewing phobic there's a no sew blue clutch wallet from Hot D.I.Y Tutorial and a no sew black large clutch bag from Brit + Co.
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| PHOTO CREDIT Top Left : A Pair and a Spare Top Right: Brit + Co Top Right Bottom Left Hot D.I.Y Tutorial Bottom Right: Brit + Co |
Hair Accessories
These faux pearl hair pins are really simple to make but add glamour to any up do. You can find the tutorial at Yes Missy. Love Maegan has quite a few d.i.y. hair accessory tutorials but I love these gold and black hair combs the best. You can find the tutorial here. I saw this beautiful ribbon on pintrest and realised it would be a easy d.i.y, just sew or glue beads, sequins and rhinestones on to a ribbon. It can be worn as a choker as well as a head band. Another quick and easy d.i.y are these rhinestone hair clips the tutorial can be found on the Consumer Crafts Blog.
PHOTO CREDIT Top Left: Yes Missy Top Right: Love Maegan Bottom Left Pintrest Bottom Right: Consumer Crafts Blog
Photo Gifts
Photos are probably the most treasured possessions and are cited as the one thing you'd rescue in a fire. Going digital means that you can do more with your photos and create lots of thoughtful gifts. You can turn your Instagram photos into fridge magnets (tutorial by Photojojo here) coasters (see The Frugal Girls here) and even on marshmallows courtesy of Boomf. You can individually frame an Instagram image or gather all your family photos and create a collage. Photos can be turned into candle luminaries (by Our Best Bites) and personalised calendars where you can choose photos for each month or for specific days like nan's birthday. You can check for cheap photo printing deals on Money Saving Expert here. If there's film footage of family birthdays and holidays you can download them on to DVDs to give as gifts to grandparents.
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| PHOTO CREDITS Row 1: Top left Our Best Bites Top Right Photojojo Row 2: Left The Frugal Girls Row 4: Bottom Right Boomf |
Body and Bath products
These fun Starbucks style body scrubs and body butters were created by Elle Sees. Choose from Peppermint Mocha Sugar Scrub, Peppermint Body Butter, Peppermint Solid Lotion, Caramel Brulee Latte Sugar Scrub and Body Butter, Snickerdoodle Hot Cocoa Body Sugar Scrub and Body Butter. You can find all these tutorials here. This cute snowman bath bomb is just like Lush (but cheaper) and can be found under Last Minute Christmas D.I.Y.s over at Elle Sees. The Christmas inspired Peppermint Candy Cane Body Scrub is ideal for winter and the ingredients are very cheap as well (except the essential oil.) Find the tutorial at The Idea Room. Baths are a way to relax after a hard day and gifting an Oatmeal and Lavender Bath Soak salts will make it even more luxurious. Oatmeal will make skin soft and lavender is known for its calming qualities but the best thing is these are cheap ingredients and very easy to put together just follow the tutorial from Carolyn's Homework.
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| PHOTO CREDIT Top Left: Elle Sees & Top Left: Elle Sees Bottom Left Carolyn Homework Bottom Right The Idea Room |
Candles
Candles are popular gifts especially in winter when you just want to stay indoors and be all cozy or as the Danish say- hygge. This very simple bark candle tutorial can be found at Just a Smidgen and you can make it for very little money. Teacup candles are easy to do and can be fairly cheap. You can pick up a nice cup and saucer from a charity shop or elsewhere and follow the tutorial by Yes Missy. If you really want to impress then try marbling plain white candles they look amazing! You can find out how to do on Ela's Box Youtube video here. These sea shell candles can be made from scratch and even if you don't live near a beach you can pick them up from Baker Ross. Just follow the tutorial from She Knows.
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| PHOTO CREDIT: Top Left Just a Smidgen Top Right Ela's Box Bottom Left Yes Missy Bottom Right She Knows |
D.I.Y Marker Mugs and Etched Glasses
There are a lot of sharpie mug tutorials on the net but the best ones show you how to make your design waterproof. For this you need buy oil based sharpie pens as seen in Four Thirty Four's Sharpie Pen Tutorial. Alternatively try using Deco Art glass paint pens like those used in My Crafty Spot to ensure that the design stays on permanently. You can also buy porcelain paint pens which will make your design dishwasher proof. Sharpies can also be used on glass like these wine glasses in gold and silver from A Belle Vie which look absolutely stunning!
Another option is to etch a design onto glassware. Love Maegan made these cute heart glasses while Be Spangled Jewelry used the technique to personalise these mason jars with an initial.
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| PHOTO CREDIT Top Right; Love Magean Top Right Bottom Left: Bottom Right: |
Wall Art
Wall art is something that can be very quick and inexpensive to make and yet seem very thoughtful at the same time.You can create word cloud art using lyrics from someone's favourite song, poem or quote or even words describing the qualities your special someone has using free websites in minutes. Then all your need to do is print them out and frame them. You can find nice but cheap frames from Poundland, Wilkinson's, Ikea and Matalan. I used word it out for my word cloud below (using lyrics from Santana's 'love of my life'). Worldle is very popular as well. You can also create pictures and quotes on free websites like Canva and Be Funky and print them off and frame. Another option is to search 'free printable quotes' into Google, print and frame them. The free printable quote below 'Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselevs' can be found on the blog Collected and is in a free printable round up on It's Always Autumn. You can also channel your inner artist by creating scrabble tile art with photos alongside or arrange letters like a crossword or as an acrostic. For inspiration take a look at this hobbycraft post or hit up Pintrest.
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| Top Left HobbyCraft Top Right lipstick drawer Bottom Left lipstick Drawer Bottom Right Collection |
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