Happier Holidays

Besieged by the holiday buying madness, when you know the money just isn’t there? Discounts here and coupons there still compete with the messages that we need to buy buy buy, whats hot, whats cool or whats the most fun. But the reality is some creativity and a little time can make you anything but scrooge.

Games
Make a tic tac toe board out of a scrap of wood that has been sanded and stained. Paint or wood burn the lines and then provide the pieces. Game pieces can be anything from flat marbles, painted stones, golf tees with the bottoms cut off. Do a little research to find other games you can recreate.

 Memory is also a fun game to make. Just draw a series of doodles that are about 2 inches in size, you will want about 24 of them. Make sure each one is different. Make a copy of your work. Then cut out the pieces and glue them to pieces of poster board and coat them with a clear finish. Lotto is  version where the second set of doodles get glued onto cards in sets of six. The objective is for players to draw the six pictures that match their card.

Knitting a scarf. Hand knitted scarves are very popular and you can create a very nice one for the cost of the cheapest skein of yarn you can find and a set of knitting needles. This a great beginner project with practical use.

Candle making, there are tons of fun and interesting techniques for making one of a kind candles for the small price of some wax and some crayons for color.

Roll up tool kits and make-up kits are an easy project for beginning sewers as are fleece hats. Monster dolls are popular and take very little sewing skill to make.

Artistic wind chimes can be created from odd bits of hardware and some monofilament.

Beaded jewelry can be simple, elegant, and cheap. Use monofilament and string a random assortment of beads in a strand long enough to go over your head, tie the ends together and tuck them back through a few beads then clip.
You can create beads from paper or wire to uses in your work.

Bird feeders and bird houses are easy projects working with wood. Books and on-line directions are readily available.

Old, torn clothing can be recycled into handbags and grocery bags and even quilts if you want a big project.

Looking for more ideas, check out the items being sold on Etsy or eBay. Some great sources for project directions can be found with a little research on-line or at your nearest library. Most of these projects can be made in less than an hour.

These are all things you can find for sale at craft shows and even on-line stores, but you can make them yourself and no-one need ever know you spent so very little money, because you gave them something from your heart.