All I Want for Christmas....

My last post gave the not so subtle suggestion to resist the urge to buy gifts for the holiday season, and instead, to try your hand at a self-created gift. It occurred to me that some people, while otherwise intelligent and brilliant in their own way, irons on the head not withstanding, may not have any idea where to start to even begin to have a glimmer of a suggestion for a handmade gift. So, I did the search work for you.

I found a couple of really nice, informative and quite groovy cool sites out in the ether that may be of benefit to those whos artsy-cratftiness may need some small assistance.

The first is Go Make Something. Not only is this site well designed and easy to follow, but the suggested crafts are fun, useful, artistic, beautiful and generally made with 'stuff' you may have on hand. If you already have a craft drawer (or several rubbermaid containers. Or a whole room), here's your chance to drag out all that stuff you bought but never used, and can now put it to good use, making thoughtful and smart gifts for your friends and family. My personal favorite from this site is the altered books. If you're not familiar with an altered book, take a gander at this:

Another site is Craftster.org. This site is able to be a little more personalized, and you can log in, go to the groups/forums/etc. But, if you putz around, you can really find some neat ideas.

However, if you're still afraid you'll burn your palms or somehow crush every toe you have, then I suggest you do the next best thing: Give to a charity. Buy local. Buy simple. Or Buy Handmade. You can do the last by checking out those of us who sell our handmade items on Etsy.

Happy Holidays.