Win £200. Festive Fivers Competition 2008: The best Xmas pressies for under £5

kiyonebabe

• Name of present?

Crafty Coasters

• Do you make it or buy it?

Make it

• Total Cost?

Under £5

• Details (the more the better)

Make your own coaster for your loved one, a lovely gift to save them hours polishing that priceless coffee table.

The possibilities here are endless. I came across this idea as we've just finished installing our new kitchen and were about to throw away two left over kitchen tiles. They're really nice natural stone ones (a bit like this http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=120146&Trail=searchtext>TRAVERTINE) and it seemed a shame to waste them, so I thought if we just put some felt on the bottom they would make great coasters. You can either buy some felt from the craft shop and glue it on or I had some felt lying around which was sticky on one side, designed to put under furniture legs to protect your floor, which worked fantastically (http://www.lawson-his.co.uk/scripts/details.php?cat=Miscellaneous%20Adhesives&product=31098). Really easy to do as tiles are exactly the right size, but really effective and much cheaper than buying packs of coasters. You can pick up ceramic tiles or glass or stone ones from your local diy store or if you're really crafty, lots of websites which sell tiles will send you samples for free although sometimes you have to pay p&p. That means you can get a nice eclectic mix of coasters though which you can box up as a present, very trendy. There are some really beautiful tiles around as well if you look (http://www.rupertscott.com/glass_tiles.html for example) whereas most of the coasters I've seen are really boring. Tiles are also guaranteed to be waterproof/spill resistant and hard wearing which is exactly what you need if you're putting hot drinks on them.

Although the coasters I made were very simple as I'm not that arty, if you're feeling more adventurous you could get some plain ceramic tiles and paint your own designs on them with tile paint to add a more personal touch. Again, tile paint will be available from your local craft or diy store.

And last but not least, you can get clear glass tiles or blocks, usually for use in bathrooms. If you want to personalise your coasters without getting too arty, I put a photo underneath the tile facing up, and then used a square of sticky felt about the same size as the coaster to secure it in place between the felt and glass. So now you have a lovely, heat resistant, spill resistant coaster with a picture of your loved one inside. Better quality and a fraction of the price you would pay to have a company peronalise them for you.

So go coaster crazy and make a set of beautiful, unique coasters for someone you love.

vix92

• Name of present? Personal History
  
• Do you make it or buy it? Make it
  
• Total Cost? Free!
  
• Details (the more the better) I did this a while ago for my parents - I researched my family tree, just used the internet and local library, and wrote up a short family history for each side of the family. Started as far back as possible, and finished with the day they were born and a photo of them as a baby. Included as many old pictures as I could find - picture of people, places they lived etc etc. Padded it out a bit with a bit of informtation about the area the families lived in, and the jobs they did. Printed it all out, and got some nice thick paper for the front and back - wrote a title on in caligraphy style pen and bound it all together.
  
• Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer

TruCovGirl

Name of present? Festive Muffin
Do you make it or buy it? Buy It
Total Cost? £4.99
Details (the more the better)
This is online. It is a little gift which consists of a festive muffin, a greeting card and it comes in a lovely box. Saw it on the interent and thought it was perfect.
Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer
http://www.doughdough.com/product9.asp

TruCovGirl

Name of present? Snowman Soup
Do you make it or buy it? Make it
Total Cost? £2/3ish
Details (the more the better)
Get a cellophane bag, place around a mugful of cocoa in the bottom then add choc chips then marshmallows. Make sure it's like a cone shape, tie with ribbon at top and add a festive stirrer.
Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer

TruCovGirl

Name of present? Credit Crunch Busting Piggy
Do you make it or buy it? Buy It
Total Cost? As much as you want but under a fiver
Details (the more the better)
Buy a piggy bank or pick up a free one it doesn't matter. Then add as many pennies as you want in. They've then got a bit of extra hange.
Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer

TruCovGirl

Name of present? Bath Set
Do you make it or buy it? Both
Total Cost? £under a fiver
Details (the more the better)
Buy a few bits and bobs to make your own bath set. Things like soaps and mini shampoos are good. Then put in a box and label
Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer

TruCovGirl

Name of present? Bo Of Unedible Cupcakes
Do you make it or buy it? Both
Total Cost? £under a fiver
Details (the more the better)
Make some flannel cupcakes and place them in an empty box. make the box look like its been bought from a bakers. Then label.
Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer

TruCovGirl

Name of present? Choclate Hamper
Do you make it or buy it? Both
Total Cost? £up to a fiver
Details (the more the better)
Nut a little basket or giftbag/box and fill it up with chocolate. just litttle gooodies. Thinks like choc lollies, and tree decorations from thorntons or just normal supermarkets. You could also add a melted choc dip. or you could make your own treats to put in their
Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer

TruCovGirl

Name of present? Year Of Words
Do you make it or buy it? Make It
Total Cost? FREE
Details (the more the better)
Get a box or container. Decorate it if you wish. Then cut up 365 pieces of paper. Put a random word on each piece of paper. Fold them up and put them in the container.Then put a label on the box saying somewhere along the lines of "A Word For Every Day Of They Year. EvEryone has a word. Well now you have 365. Wow!"
Where possible please add a link if it's an online offer

mbaz

Name of present Pontipines (from In the Night Garden)

Do you make it or buy it ... You make it

Total cost Under £1, Dolly pegs 79p (wilkinsons), red paint/leftover red material and felt tips + varnish if you've used paints

Details I made these for my little boy last year and he absolutely loved them. The In the Night garden toys are so expensive but you can make these for less than £1. I kept it really simple and painted the stick red, dipped the top in the paint for the hat and then drew a little face. If you're more creative you could make them using material and even have a go at making some of the other characters too. Mine were very very basic but he recognised what they were straight away and was thrilled! I varnished them too so the paint didnt rub off on his hands when he was playing with them.