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Awesome, Cheapaholic Approved Homemade Gifts

With busy malls, crazy shoppers, and irritable sales people, why torture yourself this holiday season? Why not make (yes, make –bust out the hot glue gun, metal tins, and ribbon!) great gifts this year for your friends and family? After all, they probably have more useless objects lying around from last Christmas than they need.

Here are just a few really great gifts for everyone on your list.

1. Etched Glass Gifts

Just about every craft store sells glass etching cream. It is a small investment at first but it can turn many everyday items into gorgeous and most importantly, useful homemade gifts.

Ornaments
Drinking glasses
Pitchers
Votive holders
Or any glass object you want to have fun with

2. Knitted Gifts

If you know how to knit this is right up your alley! Time to pull out the needles and the yarn, or go buy a few skeins of soft yarn.

Scarves
Gloves
Hats
Sweaters
Blankets – great for those with new babies!

3. Concrete Gifts

Believe it or not you can make great gifts for the gardener in your life or really just about anyone. You could buy the expensive one time use kits from the craft stores or you could hit up your local home and garden center and grocery store for a Cheapaholic Approved gift. For inside use, buy a plate holder or wooden picture frame stand for the recipient to display their handmade gift

Garden Stepping Stones
Hand, Foot, or even Paw print keepsake


4. No-Sew Monogrammed Hand Towels

Monogrammed towels are always a great hostess gift. Plus, you can use any color you want to!


Here are a few How-to's -

Etched Glass Gifts

Materials:

Glass cleaner
Glass etching cream
Contact paper, painter’s tape or masking tape
Ruler or other straight edge
Stencils
Gloves
Paint brush
Anything glass that you want to personalize

Directions:

TIP: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!!!

Clean and dry glass

Decide on the design you want and create a template from the contact paper or tape.

Cover your work area very well as the cream will ruin anything it touches (now would be a good time to use the left over newspaper you do not need after clipping all of your coupons).

Apply sticky medium of your choice (tape or paper) to the glass. Make sure there is not a chance for the cream to run under the template!!

Apply a heavy layer the cream with the paint brush and wait about 5 or so minutes

Rinse with warm water



Concrete Gifts

Materials:

Drop cloth
Wood paint stir stick
Mold(s) – disposable aluminum pie tins work great
Bag of concrete – decide how many gifts you are making before buying a bag
Old bucket that you will never use again or a buy a bucket that you strictly use for concrete
Rocks or broken glass – you can buy bags of broken glass from craft stores
Dowel rods for writing in the concrete
Gloves
Sandwich bags - if you want to make an imprint of your child’s hands

Directions:

Find a work area that can handle spilled concrete and cover with drop cloth

Mix according to bag directions

Pour concrete into mold(s)

Pick up the mold and drop to get rid of any possible air bubbles

Create your design: Press rocks, glass, handprints, etc into the concrete

Allow to dry and remove from mold(s).


Monogrammed Hand Towels

Materials:

Hand Towels
Washable Fabric Paint
Stencils
Paint Brushes

Directions:

Lay hand towel on a piece of cardboard or paper

Place stencil on the towel

Holding the stencil firmly, apply two to three coats of paint

Remove stencil and allow paint to dry