It’s the thought that counts

Laura Dean Bennett
Staff Writer

It’s the season of giving, when we express our love for family and friends through gift-giving.

You know what they say- “it’s the thought that counts.” 

And to my way of thinking, what’s more thoughtful than a homemade gift? It doesn’t need to be complicated or take forever to make. It just needs to say, “I made this myself – because you’re important to me.”  

Let’s get you inspired with a few ideas. 

Give the gift of Christmas in a jar with homemade potpourri mix.
 
Fill a pint jar with:

A few sprigs of fresh rosemary, 1/4 to 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, a Tbsp. of whole cloves, a few cinnamon sticks, 2 or 3 dried orange slices and, if you have them, 1/4 tsp. allspice berries and a few pieces of star anise. Tie with a ribbon and a tag which includes these directions:

Pour potpourri mix into about two cups of water. Add a few slices of fresh apple, if you wish. Bring the water to a simmer. Continue simmering, uncovered, on the lowest setting, as the scent fills the air. Do not allow water to boil. Check water level often – the pan mustn’t run dry. Add more water as needed. Enjoy the aroma as it scents your home. Discard the water and ingredients when the scent is gone. 

Personalized Calendar

How about a gift that says, “I love you, every day of the year?” 

Start with a monthly wall calendar for next year – one you’ve bought or make one yourself.

If you’re buying one – and if you’re not going to recover the front of the calendar and/or each month’s picture – find one with illustrations meaningful to the recipient. 

You can, instead, print out a calendar template or design one of your own.

Whichever way you decide to go – your calendar needs a page for each month. Be sure that the spaces it has for each day are as large as possible. You’ll need the space for your personal reminders, notes, pictures, etc.

If replacing the calendar’s cover and each month’s picture, choose personal photos, your own or a child’s hand-made artwork and glue them onto each page. 

Take care when gluing the picture to the calendar. Too much glue, or the wrong glue will leave a bumpy surface and ruin your picture. Use a glue stick along the edges or lightly coat with spray adhesive. 

Tip: Keep the calendar from becoming too bulky to hang by arranging photos or laying out the artwork and photographing it. Then print out the photo on regular paper – in the right size for the page you’re covering. 

Go through each month and add hand-written notations about special occasions – using a colorful, fine point pen or marker.

Include special memories, birthday and anniversary reminders, family recipes, jokes, suggestions for vacation plans or get-togethers. Reminders which include people’s special interests and details (hobbies, favorite foods, clothing sizes, etc.), pet names, phone numbers, addresses, email addresses can be especially helpful.

Don’t forget those days which may be difficult. Add a brief, encouraging message – maybe a few lines from a poem or a bible verse. 

Liven up each page with sketches, photos, pictures clipped from a magazine, or shapes cut from fabric (i.e. red hearts in February, green tree shapes in December). Be sure everything is securely attached or glued and allow each page to dry thoroughly before going on to the next page. 
 
Bath Salt

Homemade bath salts are so easy to make. They are the perfect gift for teachers, female relatives and pre-teen and teenage girls. 

Mix Epsom salt with a bit of baking soda, dried herbs (like lavender or chamo-mile), and a few drops of essential oil. 

Pack the mixture in a lidded, glass jar (a vintage or decorative jar would be ideal), tie on a pretty ribbon, add a handmade tag for your handwritten note and you’ve got a spa moment just ready to be opened. If you have a small scoop, complete the gift by either placing it inside the jar or tying it to the neck of the jar, next to your tag, under the bow.   

Fox Ornaments
These charming fox ornaments made from dried orange slices (yep, yet another way to use oranges) are guaranteed to make anyone smile and they’re so easy to make. Paint a foxy face on the dried orange slice with off-white acrylic paint. Let dry, then carefully place dots of black acrylic paint to make eyes and a nose. Use snippets of faux pine branches for whisker – hot glue on either side of the nose. Trim triangle shapes from another dried orange slice – glue onto the back of the ornament. Finish with a loop of twine or narrow ribbon between the ears and your fox is done. 
 
Mini Herbal Garland 

Tie little bunches of fresh or dried herbs onto a length of twine for a garland can be a useful and decorative gift for either the kitchen or bathroom. 

Fresh savory herbs like rosemary, sage, basil oregano, dill, marjoram are handy helpers for any cook. A kitchen garland made from any one – or a combination- of them, will waft their fragrance while waiting to be used.

A dried herb garland can impart a relaxing scent in a bathroom. Make a garland of dried lavender, mint, lemon balm or eucalyptus and include a bottle of essential oil in the matching fragrance. Include a note about adding a few drops of essential oil to refresh the garland.  
 
Lavender Sachet

Speaking of herbs, if you grow lavender and harvest it, you have the makings of a lavender sachet.
 
Just fill a fabric bag with the fragrant buds and tie it with a bow. It’s ready to find a home in a clothing drawer where it will impart its lovely scent for months. Include a tiny bottle lavender essential oil and the gift will keep on giving for years. 

This makes a perfect stocking stuffer or an extra bit of elegance tied to the ribbon and bow on another present.
 
Picture This

For a sentimental gift for a lady of any age, create an artful picture in an unused frame. Choose a suitable, glassed wall frame. Place a floral arrangement of dried flowers between the glass and cardboard backing of the frame. Petals from a wedding bouquet, her favorite flower or a special corsage will preserve the sweet memory that’s made to last. 

As a gift idea, not necessarily for a lady – this same technique can be used to frame any picture that would complement someone’s décor or that would have special meaning. For a gift with a holiday theme, recycle an old Christmas card. 

Further personalize the gift by adding a handwritten – dated and signed of course – note to the cardboard backing of the frame. Use spray adhesive to secure it to the back of the frame.

Farm Fresh Eggs 

If you keep chickens, or ducks, your feathered friends are sitting on wonderful gifts. A carton of fresh eggs makes a great gift. You can spruce up the presentation by placing them in a towel lined basket or gathering a tea towel around the carton and tying it with a simple piece of twine. Include your favorite egg recipes (i.e. deviled eggs, French toast, quiche Lorraine) up in a wooden box or wrap a plain egg carton with ribbon and a tag. And there it is- a simple but oh, so useful gift.
 
Gifts from the Kitchen

Homemade Syrups, Extracts and Infused Vinegars

If your pantry is stocked with your own homemade syrups, extracts or infused vinegars, you have wonderful Christmas gifts at your fingertips. 

Elderberry syrup, hickory or maple syrup always make welcome gifts. Many people make their own vanilla extract, which is also a great gift. Homemade apple cider vinegar infused vinegars are indispensable for special salad dressings and marinades. 

They may already be bottled in decorative glass containers, but if not, find a pretty, sealable bottle, re-bottle them, tie with a ribbon and a note about the contents and you’re good to go.
 
Sourdough Starter

If you’re a sourdough bread baker, and you know someone who’d like to become one, too, sharing your sourdough starter would make a gift that keeps on giving.

Package your sourdough starter in a mason jar tied with a pretty bow. Add a handwritten note on how to care for the starter and your sourdough favorite recipe.  And don’t forget to tell the recipient about the sourdough tradition of naming that their starter. 

As the piece de resistance, include a loaf of your own sourdough bread, wrapped in a decorative kitchen towel and you have a homemade gift that will never be forgotten.  

Reindeer Chow 

Santa’s not the only one who could use a treat on Christmas Eve. How about something for his reindeer, too? But guess what – this treat’s not just for reindeer. Human herds love it, too. Mix up a double batch and while your herd’s chowing down, use the rest to make stocking stuffers or party favors. Pack it in cellophane or paper bags and tie with festive ribbon. Oh, and don’t forget to save some for Santa’s reindeer. 

Ingredients
1 cup semisweet choc chips
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3 cups Chex cereal
3 cups Cheerios cereal
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
One 12-oz. bag holiday M&Ms
3 cups mini pretzel twists

Directions

Place chocolate chips in a bowl and melt according to package directions. Stir in peanut butter. 

Place Chex and Cheerios in a large bowl. Pour melted chocolate over cereal, and stir until cereal is evenly coated. Transfer cereal mixture to a large zip-top plastic bag. Add confectioners’ sugar, seal the bag, and shake until cereal is evenly coated. Transfer mixture to a large serving bowl. Stir in M&Ms, and pretzels. 
 
Wrapping It Up

Whatever gifts you’re making, dressing them up in a festive, specially covered box will give them added allure. Bakers, remember this for gifting homemade cookies or fudge.

Those cardboard boxes you’ve been saving will be perfect for this. Use festive wrapping paper or fabric to wrap the box inside and out. For a rustic presentation, use plain brown paper and tie with twine.
 
Trim and hot glue the folds. Cover the lid and be sure that, once covered, it still easily slides open and closed. 

Tag, You’re It

A homemade gift tag is the piece de resistance for any gift. I make mine from saved Christmas cards. 

To make your tag even fancier, use pinking shears to cut out a pretty scene from the card to make the cover of the tag, usually in an appropriately sized rectangle. I back it with a piece of plain, white copy paper, cut slightly larger than the cover (also cut with pinking shears). A hole punch creates the place for a ribbon to tie the front and back together. 

Don’t forget to leave long enough “tails” on your ribbon to tie it to the ribbon or bow on your package. Before you tie your tag to the package, write the name of the gift’s recipient on the white paper.

And just like that, your gift says “you’re special to me” before they’ve even opened it.