The Festive Fivers competition is back!

Tractor

Name of present: Personalised Guess Who
Whether it's bought or homemade: Bought, then Homemade
Total cost: £5 Max
Details (where it's from, how to make it etc): You need Card and a copy of the game.
You can get an old copy of guess who from car boot sales, charity shops or Ebay. I think a second hand version of the game makes it more vintage and personal.
You can go as far as you like with this one. You need to replace all the card characters with photos or drawings of people. They can be people you know/famous people, basically anyone who you know the person you're gifting this to will know.
You can then either leave the box cover untouched so it's a surprise when it is opened / cover the box with your own design, or replace the faces of the people on the box with pictures of you and the gift receiver (very funny!).
A link to the offer if it's online (where possible): There are lots of Ebay listings for Guess who at the moment, some of which have missing cards so go for less. This doesn't matter because you will be replacing the cards anyway.

fourbunnies

I made these a few years ago and they went down so well I get requests for them each year

Name of present: cookies in a jar
Whether it's bought or homemade: handmade
Total cost: £1-2
Details (where it's from, how to make it etc): Save up jars - coffee jars, sauce jars, whatever. Clean them out and then fill them with the dry ingredients to make biscuits/cookies/shortbread. There are tons of recipes on line, it's usually a certain amount of flour, sugar then something like chocolate drops. print off a nice label and the cooking instructions, tie with ribbon and you're done! I make batches of about 30 each Christmas!

vikki_louise

Family wishes
£3
Brought

Buy a sky lantern, they can cost anything from £1-£3 but make sure you get one without wires for wildlife. Give it as a family gift and all write down your wishes on it and then realise it into the sky on Christmas night. It was a family activity that the older disabled members could enjoy just as much as younger.
Don't forget to take a photo of the written wishes to look back in future years

Pensandneedles

This gift is for the person who can afford everything but is too busy to who ordinary stuff.
Present - a time voucher
It's homemade - just a card with your message inside. For example...this card entitles you to two hours of gardening or an hour of housework or a gift of babysitting...whatever the recipient needs most.
Cost - whatever you pay for the card and a donation of time. Specify some time slots that you can give freely.
Where from. The heart. Or your desk. Post on line or via snail mail.


This gift is for everyone. Make a few so that they are time and cost effective.

Name of gift...lavender or whatever you have growing like mad in your garden.
It's homemade. One plant pot, some soil and a cutting. Maybe a big bow. It can be for a windowsill or a garden.
Total cost ...around £3
Where from. Some bits from garden centre, others from your garden.

My last suggestion is a garland made from favourite things of the recipient.

Name of gift - garland
It's homemade
It costs about £4.99

To make.
Buy a florist wire from garden centre. That's a 10 inch wire ring.
Thread a needle with doubled cotton. Make it a bit longer than the distance between your hand and your elbow. Make a decent knot and leave strands of thread to tie. Thread ruffled tissue paper (about the size of a credit card) along the thread. Every now and again thread something the recipient likes such as wrapped sweets, embroidery threads, sachets of soap, beads, packets of football cards, packets of haribo etc. make about eight of these threaded strips. Tie them together. Wrap them around the ring of wire. It will be decorative to begin with and then they can use it. They can either keep it, use it, make one for themselves or give the ring back to you to make them or someone else another garland.

arethusa82

Name of present: I love you because
Whether it's bought or homemade: A bit of Both
Total cost:£4.97
Details (where it's from, how to make it etc):I bought three packs of 20 Blank "Thank you" cards from a 99p store so 60 cards in all. 52 of the cards, I dated the envelopes the first Monday of each week for 2011. The other cards I dated for memorable dates, such as the date my wife and I met, Her birthday, Wedding Anniversary etc. I also bought a fancy decorated box from a craft stall for £2.


Then using a fountain pen and my best handwriting, I composed a different message beginning with "I love you because"..... for each of the cards.

My wife cried when I gave it to her on Christmas day, and it's a present that will last forever.

HappyTorty

Name of present: wine glass charms
Whether it's bought or homemade: homemade, but items are bought
Total cost:2p-£5
Details (where it's from, how to make it etc):You need wire hoops for jewellery making, multi-coloured beads (or to be more personal use alphabet beads)
Just put the beads on to the wires and close them around the base of a wine glass. Perfect at christmas and new year so your glasses don't get mixed up!
The combinations are endless! If you add an earwire to them you can make earrings!

I just typed these in to ebay and brought up an example of each (have a proper look for cheaper items, or something you prefer.)



A link to the offer if it's online (where possible):
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/200-x-7mm-Acrylic-Pastel-Colour-Alphabet-Letter-Beads-Round-/200839790221?pt=UK_Crafts_JewelleryMaking_GL&hash=item2ec2fbfe8d


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12-Silver-tone-Wine-Glass-Charms-Ear-Hoops-J004-/261121877946?pt=UK_Crafts_JewelleryMaking_GL&hash=item3ccc13a7ba

xfive71

Name: Hidden compartment book
Bought/Homemade: Charity buy and homemade
Total cost: From £2

Details:
Do you remember those hidden compartment books with a gun in it? Get a sturdy hardback book from the charity shops - the cheesier or the more 'charity shop look' the better, or something you would know the recipient won't like. Hollow out the middle and pop a treat (chocolate bar, jewellery, lottery tickets) in the middle and wrap up with a bit of brown paper and twine.

Just watch their face as they unwrap the gift. They may struggle to keep their expressions suitably nice and thankful especially if the book looks clearly charity shop. And of course, this would change when they find the treat in the middle.

To hollow out the book can take some time - you can do it quite simply like this web tutorial or if you finish it quite nicely like on this site, the book can be used for their secret stash.

morac

Name of present:Start Your Day With Katie: 365 Affirmations for a Year of Positive Thinking by Katie Piper
Whether it's bought or homemade: Bought
Total cost: £4
Details (where it's from, how to make it etc):Amazon

as a new user I am not allowed to include a link


This is totaly inspirational as is Katie Piper

Leosmummy

My friend did this with her other half a few years ago when money was tight.

Name of present: Book of IOU's
Bought or homemade: Homemade
Total cost: 50p for cards to write on
Details (where it's from, how to make it etc):

Buy some coloured card cut out shapes and get creative with IOU's which the recipient can cash in at any time.

Some ideas: Foot Massage, Back Massage, Washing Up for a Week, Cook a Meal, 1 hr ironing...... depending who it is you could get very creative with this

gremlin_jt

Name of present: Keepsake
(homemade)
Total cost: free
Details:
This can be made from scraps of wrapping & ribbons you have around the home. All you need is a small empty box (have a dig in your recycling!).
Wrap up your box as festively as you can & hand write this note and attach it:
This is a very special gift

That you can never see
The reason it’s so special is
It’s just for you from ME!

Whenever you are lonely
Or even feeling blue
You only have to hold this gift
And know that I think of you.

You never need to unwrap it.
Please leave the ribbon tied.
Just hold the box next to your
heart,

It’s filled with love inside.

This is something I made for my mother as a child which she has kept for years and has now passed back to me at the age of 30. This little box of nothing means the world to me!