That’s also a great way to incorporate family recipes! We’ll be alone in our own homes this Christmas but we’ll be together in spirit. And we can cook old school family recipes. My sister isn’t much of a cook but apparantly she has started cooking during the pandemic. Maybe I’ll make a small family cookbook for her.
My mum visited today and she’s also in doubt about Christmas now. My mum is shocked about my aunt’s behaviour - she is sick right now, has been in contact with an infected person and refuses to test or stay at home. Oh, and she works in the food industry.
I meet up one on one with my mum for tea, but unlike my siblings I feel uncomfortable with overnight visits. We all live in small homes with a small staircase, one bathroom etc. So we don’t agree about that aspect, but my mum is using her common sense and would never meet people if she was ill. But apparantly my aunt doesn’t have any common sense at all.
This is the very thread that I NEED! I’ve always enjoyed following what everyone is making over on the Other Site. I’m happy to jump in again and get inspired by you all.
Like some of you, we most likely won’t be traveling to the large family get togethers this holiday season. I’m putting extra thought into my mother’s gifts and those for my In Laws. If anyone has good In Law gift ideas, please share!
Here’s my list so far:
For my family:
Ornaments for my kids - The Child for DS who’s a SW fanatic, and something baking inspired for DD…maybe a chef’s hat with her name on it?
T-shirts for both kids - Mandalorian or Cthulu for DS and…gotta work on the idea for DD.
Lap blanket for my mom - I thought about sewing one, but I’m opting for a no sew fleece so that she can fidget with the fringes. Probably going to have my daughter help with this.
Either canned or frozen soups for mom as well. She enjoyed the ones that I made for her last year.
Maybe a photo album of the kids with more candid photos for mom if I can find an album I like
A sewn fleece hat for my Husband’s noggin - He’s been working in the man cave downstairs since March and he gets cold easily.
Assorted pet toys using old t-shirts and some home made pet treats for the Fur Children
For my coworkers (there’s 9 of them!), I’ve something already in the works. (I’m retiring in May so this is my last chance to make them some goodies. :D) I’m making reusable holiday gift bags filled with hand made ornaments. I have a truck load of felt to work with, so…I’m just making whatever makes me happy!
For my close friends, I purchased some naturally scented lotions from Etsy and I’ll make them a make up pouch.
Welcome @Bajita! And congrats on your upcoming retirement.
In-law gifts are always hard (for me at least!). Last year I sent some quilted potholders and didn’t hear back. Hope they like them. None of them seem to have any kind of very special interests, except for FIL’s wife who is a great cook and loves to garden. It’s much easier to craft for people who are into one thing or another!
I think canned / frozen soups or other items of food are a brilliant idea for people who are in that stage of their lives where they no longer wish for more material stuff. When my grandmother was still alive I used to bring her things like pies, cakes and meat stews. Food that freezes well, and frozen in small portions.
Thank you, Immaculata! Once upon a year ago, I might have considered another year in my classroom, but this school year has been awful, and I’m almost a quarter of the way through.
I came up with an idea for my MiL! She loves to decorate for Christmas, I think I have enough holiday fabric to make a table runner or some placemats.
I don’t even understand people without hobbies or special interests. I get that people are busy and may not have a lot of time to spend on them, but not actually having anything at all that excites you?! I could name like three dozen things I would want to get into on top of what I already do!
I think for some people their interest is something that requires no accessories, like watching TV. And for others they have an interest, but it is one that is so specialized that it’s not really craftable and even buying things for it are difficult because they have very specific needs and wants; this is the case with TheMisterT’s BIL who is very into cycling. So what he could use for that is very specific to his tastes and outside our knowledge base. And just because a fabric has bicycles on it, doesn’t mean I could sew him something he’d like out of it. Sigh.
I am handmaking several things this year. I planned on a sweater for DS because I made his sister one and naturally he has to have one too. My parents and grandmother are getting handmade as well. I plan on maybe some cute decorations. I am doing a LOT of chirstmas table runners.
They seem like an invention that’s neat on paper but impractical for actual use. I feel like if I had something like that I’d end up getting it in food, shut in the oven, dragged in the dishwater, etc.
I hadn’t heard of them before. I’m not sure I’d like them hanging around my neck but I would love to find a way to attach them to my apron. I usually just hang a kitchen towel over my shoulder and honestly that doesn’t really work.
Found a UFO today! A card kit that came with a magazine in 2017. Probably ran out of thread or something. I start card kits every year but I rarely finish them, I’m trying to find & finish all of them this year.
Thanks for all the feedback! I have made the hanging kitchen towels, as well as embroidered tea towels, crocheted dishcloths, and crocheted scrubbies in the past. The boas sounded new and different, but I have been questioning the practicality, myself.
Maybe I should do an apron instead. I could try to attach potholders or mitts in some clever way (would a badge reel work…?)
I like the idea of the badge reel, but it could be a simple as a large button or snap, too. Not velcro though. I despise working with that stuff.
I made my husband a knife roll several years back that he likes. It was like a painter’s brush roll, only larger. He uses it when we would travel to family gatherings, where he is always manning the grill.
Great Ideas! I’ll see what buttons and snaps I have in stash. Do you think a magnet might work too? Or a loop sewn onto one and some kind of hook on the other?
I’d be wary of magnets. I don’t think they would wash well. A loop with one of those “rod” shaped button would work. My husband suggested a carabiner, but I think it would be too heavy.
I forgot something on my list! I can’t believe I left these out as they’re one of my favorite things** to do in the Holidays. Every year since my kids were little, I make them each a themed “book box” gift. It has a book (or four…) on their favorite topic or by a current favorite author, along with other goodies following the theme.
My DS’s box is Mandalorian themed. I’ve a book on the Art and Imagery of the Mandalorian, bookmarks, a couple of t-shirts and a couple of Funko Pop characters.
My DD’s box is baking themed. It will include a book on pastries and bread making, a personalized apron, and a set of her own measuring cups/spoons with a storage container.
**For those who don’t know me, I’m a teacher Mom, so I’ve been more than slightly focused on turning my kids into Bibliophiles. The tradition of the book box has become one of their fav. gifts and even though my DS is almost 20, I plan to continue.
