Homemade Gifts. AIBU or is he?

[WonderLime]

This evening, whilst stuck under a sleeping baby, I’ve spend the evening browsing Pinterest. I’ve seen some great home made gift ideas and I was feeling really inspired.

DP comes home and I tell him about my idea to make a homemade gift for my Secret Santa present this year, as I think I can do something really cool with a limited budget (I’d been thinking bath bombs and sugar scrubs as they look easy).

DP says that ‘no one appreciates home made gifts unless they are really, really good - and anyway, it will end up costing you more’.

I’d told him just today how I’d been feeling quite low and fed up being on maternity leave, so it was nice to feel excited about something. However now I feel disheartened and don’t see the point anymore.

AIBU thinking about making home made gifts, or was his response unreasonable?

Sorry but I think he has a point! It's hard to make them look good and they can be expensive!
However as long as you are prepared to accept defeat and buy something if they go wrong then have a go

Bit miserable of him to shoot you down so fast, but he’s definitely right about the cost.

I think it depends on what it is. If it is some Facebook tat then. 'nah'. Give us an idea OP. We need a photograph or a diagram

I'm with him sorry. Food is always a winner but

I don't really disagree with him. Making them is 8/9ths of the pleasure.

Those scrubs are basically just oil and sugar at the end of the day. It's not a fantastic thing to receive.

I think that it depends who the secret Santa is for.

Home made gifts are great for kids to give to relatives and teachers.

If an adult gives a home made gift then they need to be sure that they're really good at crafting and that it is going to somebody who would really appreciate it - Secret Santa work colleagues don't always fit the criteria.

And your DP is right that home made gifts are often more expensive than comparable shop-bought ones.

Well for example, I liked the look of coffee syrups like these:

www.nourishandnestle.com/gingerbread-syrup/

I have most of the ingredients so I’d only need to buy glass bottles.

Home made gifts have to be amazing to be honest op. Kirsty’s are crap to be fair and she tries hard.

You don’t need to be doing that to feel good. You
Pushed a human out of you and that’s better then any home made gift.

Your dh is right here sorry

And then I started thinking along the home made cordial routes.

I had thought about vanilla extract but that will be too expensive.

Bath bombs I thought I could have some fun with colourings - and if successful make more with the excess acids and salts for relatives and myself

I think your DH is right, sorry.

Homemade gifts cost a fortune and 95% of the time they're not very good!

Sorry, just seen it was bath bombs or scrubs. Yes, that would work for me in a nice kilner jar that I could re-use. It's the homemade ornaments or anything with googly eyes stuck on.

Listen op if it gives you a project that lifts your mood then go for it.
Sorry you’re feeling low

Oh God, no nothing crafty. I have no artistic skills

Although I think he has a point, his method of delivery left a lot to be desired!

Your dh could have put it to you a bit more gently but he’s right. Along with photos of kids( ok as an added extra but not someone’s main gift)

I know you meant well but

You don’t need to be doing that to feel good. You
Pushed a human out of you and that’s better then any home made gift

Pushing a human out and then the subsequent caring for said human can make a lot of women feel pretty low and comments like yours just make them feel guilty

The coffee syrup looks nice. I often give people raspberry gin that I've shoved a load of sugar and fruit into and forgotten about for three months made in a pretty bottle.

I also knit or crochet blankets, hats, scarves, toys and other small items but I'm quite good () and only if people have expressed an interest.

I think things that look homemade will be binned, sorry. I think comestibles that can be presented nicely (like syrup or booze) could work, but I know some on here will disagree and say they'd never consume something that had been made in another person's kitchen etc.

The cost is high though - it'd be cheaper for me to buy presents a lot of the time.

For my secret santa gift this year, budget £5 I’ve bought a £5 Greg’s gift card. That will go down a treat in my workplace

Okay, I concede it’s probably not such a great idea. I think I’m just excited about the idea of doing something, as I feel my days are just nappies, washing and box sets.

Maybe I’ll make DP lots of lovingly crafted, homemade tat gifts for Xmas to keep myself busy.

kay don’t be idiotic.

Op of course I wasn’t trying to make you feel bad love. By all means go for it as a hobby and see how it turns out. You may be more artistic then you think

Why are not taking the baby out? Baby groups and stuff

Why don't you take something up, and see how it goes? I adore knitting, recently started sewing. It's all v Pinterest-y these days.

Find a creative outlet!

There's no harm in doing it for yourself for something to do, but your DH does have a point. If you have friends or family who you know would love a poncey (meant in the nice way) coffee syrup/bath bomb/gin, then go for it! If they're not that bothered for that sort of thing, then I wouldn't.

Home made Marmelade is great! Maybe try that in a nice jar?

I'd love a home made gift!

I’m not very good at walking into a room with strangers and find it hard to interact, but I am going to a baby massage group this week, so I will see how that goes.

Thank you for the nice comments. I might still pursue some things as hobbies for myself and see how it goes.