Christmas on the Cheap

Here are some ideas from my present portfolio:

1. Personalized chef aprons. I bought plain white chef aprons from Sam's Club and appliqued fabric cutouts on them. Hot peppers from a bandanna sprinkled over an apron for a Mexican theme, teamed with red oven mitts (bought after Christmas for half-price) was a hit! Use iron-on fusible (like WonderUnder) to attach, then zigzag around each applique. Personalize by embroidering monograms or iron on letters. My daughter's apron said "Chez Natalie" for a French touch. You could put "Joe's Bar and Grill" or another pretend restaurant name. Add a wooden spoon or barbecue tool for a fancier gift.
   
   
2. In school supply sale this fall, I bought maps (a large world map and a US map in each pkg.) for 50 cents a package. Maps are a multi-use craft item, especially at that price! You might have old highway maps you could recycle. I am using the maps to create origami tree ornaments and as gift wrap. I am also cutting out selected states and gluing them to foam core board to create other tree ornaments. Make a wire mobile with different states hanging from nylon fishing line. With the leftover scraps, cover garage sale wooden picture frames to hold vacation photos.
   
   
3. Another fabric project using WonderUnder: I am making custom mouse pads for my computer literate friends with cotton fabric to match their decor. Iron the fusible material to the wrong side of the fabric. Trace the mouse pad shape on the paper backing side, cut out carefully. Peel the paper off and iron the fabric on the fabric covered side of the mouse pad. I am using the generic mouse pads that have a t-shirt type knit already on one side. Some of them were free because they have advertising on them. A dinosaur print would be great for children. One fourth yard of fabric will cover several mouse pads.
   
   
4. If you have a computer and a printer, make business cards as stocking stuffers. Kids love having their own cards with their phone numbers and email addresses to give to their friends. Cards designed to be printed on inkjet or laser printers are already perforated to divide into ten cards per 8 ½ by 11" sheet. Add clip art graphics and fancy fonts for pizzazz!
   
   
5. As a gag gift, add miniature marshmallows to small snack-size ziploc bags and attach this note: "You've been naughty and here's the scoop, all you get for Christmas is snowman poop!" I won't take credit for the poem, but I don't know who originated it. I used Christmas stationery (bought half-price after Christmas at Wal-Mart) to print my poem on, inserting in plain white envelopes. Decorate the envelopes with felt-tip pens, or use rubber stamps or stickers.
   
   
6. Get an unbreakable plastic container with a lid and fill with small plastic toys. Two packages of dinosaurs filled my container. My nephew loved this when he was six, as he thought it was great to have so many!
   
   
7. My Grandmother always made things for me like embroidered dishtowels or pillowcases. They take more time than money, and I always loved getting them. I think all of my cousins still have an identical pair of pillowcases made from sheets she bought on sale. Turn a pillowcase inside out and measure the dimensions, adding for a generous hem. Sew up three sides, hem the fourth side. Decorate with lace, ribbon, or embroidery. For dishtowels, using cotton muslin, sew a narrow hem on all four sides. Draw a design with a pencil and embroider it with cotton floss. You could also use "flour sack" cotton towels. If you don't think you are artistic, Wal-Mart still carries Aunt Lydia's iron on transfers with a variety of kitchen themes.
   
   
8. For teacher's gifts this year, I am making large sugar cookies in the shape of mittens. These cookies will be iced and decorated and packaged in pairs in brown paper lunch bags. Decorate the lunch bag with rubber stamps, fold over the top, and punch two holes. Thread curly ribbon through the holes and tie. They each get a pair of mittens they can eat!
   
   
9. Rather than buying rubber stamps, make your own with ArtGum erasers. Draw a holly leaf shape on one side of the eraser. Cut around the leaf shape with a razor blade or X-acto knife, trimming away the excess from the edges about 1/4" into the eraser. Leave the rest of the eraser to hold while stamping. Make a smaller round shape to use for the berries, or use the eraser on the top of a pencil. Red and green stamp pads are available from office supply or craft stores. My daughter and I used our homemade stamps to decorate plain white shelf paper and gift cards. A gingerbread man, star or Christmas tree shape would also be easy to cut. Get your inspiration from cookie cutter shapes!
   
   
10. Give frozen cookie dough to a busy mom and dad. They can still have the fun of rolling out and baking the cookies with the kids. You can start mixing cookie dough and freezing in containers when you have time. If you have a food processor, you can really speed up the assembly line! Make sure you deliver the dough when they are home to put it back in the freezer! (See the Sack Lunch Savvy article in the Dollar Stretcher archives for a gingerbread cookie recipe that is good for this gift.) To complete the gift, include the original recipe and instructions on a card. Wrap with a reindeer cookie cutter and a bag of red hots to make Rudolf cookies.
    
    

Happy Holidays!

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