Nothing means more than a gift from the heart. Here are gift ideas you can make, even if you’re all thumbs!
· Even if baking is not “your thing,” you can still whip up a batch of holiday cookies suitable for gift giving. Just visit the refrigerator section of your supermarket and purchase several different varieties of pre-made cookie dough. Slice, sprinkle with colored sugar or crushed peppermint sticks, bake and set on a decorative holiday dish. Cover in colored plastic wrap, attach a bow, and you’ll look as if you slaved for hours.
· Comb flea markets, thrift shops, garage sales and dollar stores for decorative bottles with stoppers. (A cork will work if you can’t find a bottle with a top you like.) Fill with a quality vinegar and a combination of your favorite herbs and spices. (You can use a knitting needle to help place large pieces of herbs through the bottle’s opening.) Let sit for at least two weeks to marinate. Attach a tag and your friends will enjoy a tasty treat for dips or on salads.
· Buy an oversized mug, fill with flavored coffee packets, exotic teas, hot chocolate, and small packets of crackers or cookies for a tasty gift for a co-worker.
· Make a photo album of pictures from previous holiday celebrations and give to a distant relative.
· Layer an apothecary jar with a colorful variety of dried beans. Attach a ribbon and a recipe card for making a bean soup.
· If everyone loves your cooking, put together a booklet of your favorite recipes printed on decorative paper. You can have it spiral bound at your local printer, put into a small notebook, or use a hole punch and tie with ribbons to give to friends and family.
· Put together a coupon book of services you’ll provide upon request from the recipient including: babysitting, snow shoveling, cooking, car washing, lawn mowing, et cetera.
· Using a tape recorder or video camera, make up an oral/video history of your family by interviewing older relatives about their remembrances.
· Gather up dried wood good for kindling, set in a decorative basket, and give to folks who own a fireplace.
· Cut scrap wood into small pieces, sand smooth, and gather in a bag or basket for a child to use as building blocks.
