Home made Xmas gifts (merged threads)

Lemon_Tree

I am knitting fluffy scarves for my friends, and managed to pick up loads of cheap wool from Aldi a while back and am knitting cardi's & jumpers for my sister and her family. Need to get those needles clicking!
Lem

wigglywoozle

If you have a pound shop near you, they have loads of lovely fashion eyelash wools for knitting funky scarves for only £1 a ball. You could easily knit a decent one with 2 or 3 balls of wool on big needles. Fast and thrifty! A lot of my list will be getting scarves/hats/mittens etc this year!

shell2001

Was in wilkinsons the other day and they had the eyelash wool for £1 a ball. I got my last lot cheap of ebay but by the time p&p was added this worked out costing a bit more. Wilkos for me from now on.

I am on scarf no 1 at moment, which my 3 year old tells me is for her (so thought I might do some pompoms for the end). Should you use big needles think mine are about a no 7??

QueenB.

Have made alot of different things in the past and the children have always made handmade cards for grandparents as well as other little things.

A nice idea was something my daughter made for one of her nans a few years ago, we brought a tiny chest(can buy a selection of these or other boxes from hobbycraft or find something from a charity shop) she painted it with a sample pot we had left over and then decoupaged flower images all over it. Then she filled the drawers with little gifts such as soaps and chocolates. Her nan still has it on her dressing table and uses it to store alsorts in.

As a cross-stitcher i also stitch alot of gifts, a nice change from pictures and cushions is to stitch a small design onto a piece of clothing, great for anyone who has a baby to buy for as you can do matching bib, vest and sleepsuit sets. For older children stitch a small design onto a top or jacket and so on.

thanks to this thread i have a few more ideas to try for this year.

moggins

shell2001 wrote:

Was in wilkinsons the other day and they had the eyelash wool for £1 a ball. I got my last lot cheap of ebay but by the time p&p was added this worked out costing a bit more. Wilkos for me from now on.

I am on scarf no 1 at moment, which my 3 year old tells me is for her (so thought I might do some pompoms for the end). Should you use big needles think mine are about a no 7??

I'm using No 7 needles.

Sallys_Savings

I've just received lots of corks from wine bottles off of my local freecycle

I have made cork boards for a couple of friends christmas pressies.

Really easy to do

....just glue all the corks together and use some garden twine or wire to hang from.

You can adapt the finishing touch depending on the person you are making it for.

I have made four different sorts...

1. Folk art/primitive style.....finishing twine off with a rusty metal star and tied with raffia and popped on a couple of dried oranges and rosehips.

2. Made a couple of strips from pretty floral fabrics and tied bows on the end of the twine.

3. Painted pale pink paint over the corks and made the hanger from pink ribbon and tied pink bows on the end.

4. Gardening...glued old seed packets around the edge and sealed with a clear varnish. This is for my father to put in his shed.

I'm sure you can think of lots of other ideas with things laying around the house.

OOPS ..don't forget to enclose a small pack of drawing pins (I brought a huge pack from an office suppliers and split them up into little bags)

greenpixey

Sallys_Savings wrote:

I've just received lots of corks from wine bottles off of my local freecycle
I have made cork boards for a couple of friends christmas pressies.
Really easy to do
....just glue all the corks together and use some garden twine or wire to hang from.
You can adapt the finishing touch depending on the person you are making it for.

I like the idea:). Any chance that you could take a picture and post it for us so we can see the finished resault????

CAFCGirl

Hi All,

I was hoping to make some ornamental pieces from salt dough and then paint as part of my gifts this year, but wanted to make a variety of objects, so I was wondering where would it be possible to buy magnets to put into the backs of them.

And will the magnets be safe to be cooked through in the oven? I thought they would because the heat is incredibly low to bake them, but thought Id ask before I tried!

moggins

Wouldn't you bake them first and then glue the magnets on the back?

CAFCGirl

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh I hadnt even thought of it like that!

Anything I've seen in the book has any attachments pushed in and then baked!

But now I do feel like a jolly good idiot