Holiday Shopping - Handmade Style

by Sherri Stokey

We usually focus on handmade jewelry here at Love my Art Jewelry, but holiday shopping is well underway at my house and not everyone on my list is into jewelry.   I'm on a mission to buy as many handmade gifts as possible and having a great time shopping!  Want some clever ideas?  How about a book purse?

How awesome is that!?  Karen at Novel Creations repurposes used books into purses that might just be the perfect gift for the avid reader on your list, and she has a a great selection from classic literature to vampire romances from which to choose!  

Do you have a music fan on your list?  Dave at LP Vinyl Art takes iconic records and cuts them into intricate designs that are seriously cool.  If you're not into Fleetwood Mac (shame on you!), he's got lots and lots of other options and will even work with you on a custom order if you can't find the perfect one.

Rasure Prints has these maps printed on cork so the recipient can keep track of all the places they have visited (or dream of visiting).  Adena has several variations available including world maps, USA and individual states and you can even have her include the thumbtacks if you like.

Got someone on your list who is far from home?  Diane at iiwii emporium makes jewelry you can have customized with the coordinates of home.  Is there any sweeter message on the inside of a cuff bracelet or a little pendant to be worn close to their hearts?

The little critters on your list can be warm and cozy no matter how cold the weather gets in a crocheted hat from Christine at RhinoSaurusRexKnits.  She makes each one from her own designs and offers all kinds of critters for people small and large (yes, she has adult sizes).  

Don't you love this little box?  Mary at ColorCantHurtYou paints her original paisley designs everything from boxes and vases to shoes and picture frames!  Once you get a taste of color, you can't help but fall in love with these Mason Jar Lanterns from MK Connection:

Gosh, I'm in love with those!!  Monique has other sizes and colors and patterns available, but they all have the gorgeous, vibrant hues and the henna inspired patterns. 

Aren't these great ideas?  And I'm not even finished yet!  We all have those people on our lists who are impossible to buy for.  My go-to is usually a food gift from one of the big companies, but this year, I'm going off the beaten path.

How good does this cranberry dark chocolate shortbread from Butter Blossoms look?  Fresh baked to order from their signature shortbread recipe and then tucked snugly into your choice of packaging and sent off to the lucky gift recipient.  What a great solution if you don't have the time (or the talent) for holiday baking!  And speaking of edible gifts:

I'm positively atwitter at these edible game tiles!  Jason and Andie from Andie's Specialty Sweets offer a set with 16 letter tiles (you get to pick the letters!) and two racks made from their own candy recipe (you really can eat your words!).  They also have edible sand and seashells, chocolate vintage buttons (be still my heart) and the cutest little acorns ever.

Last, but not least, if you're a traditionalist and like to give a little box of chocolates, these organic dark chocolate paisley swirls are the sweetest thing I've seen in a long time.  Mackenzie at map chocolate creates her chocolate herself, starting with the beans.and offers products from hot chocolate mix, cacao for brewing and even an artisan chocolate baking kit.  I want one of everything!

So what do you think?  Have I convinced you that there's a perfect handmade gift for everyone on your list?  I'm just worried I'm going to run out of names before I run out of ideas!!

Last Minute Gifts That Will ROCK Your Christmas! By Karen McGovern

Christmas is, like, a month away....right?

  

Ah, the joy of realizing the week before Christmas that you still have 25 gifts to magically make appear.  If you are like me, you wait until that golden moment of panic/procrastination hits and you rush to your laptop and order everyone you forgot about something "thoughtful" from Wallgreens like socks with toes in them, or whatever else is left for sale on Amazon in the hours before Christmas.  DON'T BE THIS PERSON!

Even if you find yourself scrambling for last-minute gifts, there is no need to panic or end up buying crap you then have to GIFT WRAP like it's something actually NICE.  No one wants to open a nicely wrapped gift to find A JAR OF PICKLES.  Unless that's your thing...then, YEAH?

So, I am here to give you some super-cool, EASY, and INEXPENSIVE ideas for gifts that will make you KING/QUEEN OF THE HOLIDAY PARTY.  Your welcome....

1.  The hilarious gag gift.  Anything from Archie McPhee.  How can you resist a website who's tag line is: "Archie McPhee has the best toys, gifts, candy and novelties on the internet. We love the same things you do: unicorns, bacon, mustaches and underpants." My favorite item this year is the Centaur Santa Claus. Cause...SANTA HAS AN AMAZING SIX-PACK!  So, for those on your list with a slightly twisted sense of humor, get them HANDERPANTS and move on.

2. For the person who loves technology.  BOOMFS.  What are Boomfs, you ask?  Only MARSHMALLOWS PRINTED WITH IMAGES YOU UPLOAD TO THE SITE! Serioulsy!  How cool is this?  I bought everyone Boommfs last year and got rave reviews.  This is especially wonderful for Grandparents--imagine how they will love getting a box of marshmallows all with the Grandkids faces on them!!!  Then plopping those adorable faces into a piping hot cup of cocoa and watching them melt....wait, that escalated rather quickly...Anyway, it's a fun, inexpensive gift to give that is easily personalized.  But hurry, they stop shipping SOON.

3. The gift that will make you look far more interesting than you probably are.....AN EXPERIENCE.  What do I mean?  Well, how about giving a gift that actually requires the recipient to DO SOMETHING?  Tickets or passes to a local museum/nature center/science museum/art show/concert/performance.  NOT MOVIE TICKETS, but tickets to an actual event or activity.  AND, throw in a disposable camera so they can share the experience after.  My local nature center offers open ended day passes, and I buy these all the time. I am lucky to live in Florida and can give things like passes that allow folks to go on sea turtle nest walks along the beach or visits to wildlife rehab centers. This type thing is a great stocking stuffer and you will be surprised...people sometimes actually LIKE being forced to leave the home....

Just imagine, this could be YOUR FAMILY...OUTSIDE!

4.  For the DIY-ers.  Put ANYTHING into a clear craft glass Christmas ornament from Michael's.  Seriously. ANYTHING placed inside a clear ornament is instantly ADORABLE. Got a friend with dogs?  Tuck a few dog treats into an ornament.  Cats?  CATNIP, DUH. You can put CHEX-MIX in a clear ornament and have a spectacular hostess gift.  Tea lover?  Cram a few Earl Gray bags inside.  Dried flowers, mini candy canes, lottery tickets, CASH, JEWELRY, it can all be stuffed into these ornaments and you are a HOLIDAY SUPERHERO.  How about wildflower seeds?  Heck, any seed at all!  Perfect for a gardener....A LOVE LETTER!  Photographs!  If I wasn't late and trying to get this post up, I bet I could sit here and think of 12 BILLION things you could tuck into one of these ornaments to create a really thoughtful, cool gift. I am personally making many of these this year.  I would love to tell you what I am putting inside, but I can't because a few of the folks getting this read this blog and well....I want it to be a surprise!

5.  Finally, if you want to totally ROCK Christmas, buy some hand-made, amazing artisan jewelry and more from any of the spectacularly talented artists right here on LMAJ.  Most of us also offer gift certificates, so you don't even have to suffer through looking at all the amazing jewelry and art and trying to decide what to buy.  No one, I mean NO ONE will be less than THRILLED with this gift.  And, I don't have to tell you that you are also giving a gift to the artists you support...your purchase allows us to continue doing what we love, and helps us with other stuff--like supporting our families and such....

So, take a deep breath, all you Secret Santas, you can do this!  I hope your holidays are bright and full of love and peace.  From all of us here at LMAJ....HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!

oh, boys -

mary jane dodd

i consider myself fortunate that 3 souls chose me to mother them -

but when the holidays approach and i have 2 teen aged boys, dread settles in... 

my 20 yr. old daughter is easier to gift... i can make her handmade things & find all kinds of wonderful items on etsy (thanks to heather powers for a great post the other day)...

and then there are the boys - (who i love with all my heart, but struggle to get things for... of course, i could buy all kinds of stuff for stuff's sake... but i prefer not to do that - though one can get desperate)

one will wear a necklace and has a favorite charm from beth hemmila on leather that he wears almost daily...

the other doesn't wear jewelry at all... 

the younger one likes to skateboard - and i knew that at the skate shops, people will leave their broken decks when they get new ones... 

what if?

so i called a local shop, and yes, he had some decks -

here are a few of my first beads cut from them...

they obviously need sanding and i learned to try to peel the grip tape off first... but they have potential and i quite like the layered look of them...

my other son loves vinyl records - our own barbara did a post on using those... hey, barbara, think you can help me out? 

how are you doing shopping for your kids? with money tight for so many families how do you balance their excitement with your reality? 

and if you have any great ideas for teen aged boys (or girls or kids of any age), please send them along!