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?

Can you bake OP?

I make jars of traybakes for colleagues each Christmas.
They go down well.

I buy the jars out of IKEA and just fill them with a few of each traybake. I love baking with my children and it is a hobby but I would say go for it.

I'd rather have a gift made with love and some effort than something easily bought or regifted. Go for it, OP, make your own gifts. And if people don't appreciate them, that's their loss, not yours. Enjoy crafting. I'm a knitter and having a craft/hobby is good. I knit anywhere and everywhere.

Enjoy yourself and ignore the nay-sayers.

shantner.

I am happy to answer any polite questions.

“Good lady, what wonderful accoutrements do you make prithee that bringeth so much lucre”?

speakout (flowers from a fellow crafter)

Our work Secret Santa has to be either handmade or baked (make it or bake it) so it would be perfect in my work place! We are a very close team of ten or so though, who regularly cook for each other so no worries there.

I made a beautiful hm crocheted crowl with expensive yarn for my friend last year and didn't even get 'thanks for the effort'. I'm pretty good at crocheting, know what I'm doing.

This year she is getting a €20 gift voucher - fuck that for a pile of crap

I did home made chutneys for someone one year, they loved them. They were also passed around the staff room.

I’d also agree with him, do it as a hobby but not for Xmas.

Generally, in answer to your question why is factory made better than home made, the answer is usually because the home made is fairly shit. It’s nearly always more about the giver than the recipient and the recipient has to be all effusive and say how fabulous it is and how clever the gifter is, when in reality it’s crap.

Sure, some people have a talent, but they are few and far between, sadly however, most think they do really have a talent when they really don’t. So just do it for you.

Hmm, I am taking slight exception to the 'handmade is crap' brigade. I do leatherwork, and I think my items make great presents!

bigcomfy- I agree. I sell a massive amount of homemade craft, and I get a lot of repeat business, including regular supplies to shops and outlets worldwide.

I LOVE home made gifts. my favourite are poems!

My Mum made a quilt for me, which I love, and some cushions. She has also made me some lovely wall hangings. I love home made, especially cake!

I do home made foodie hampers, everyone loves them and I have had a few people at work pay me to make them up for their families too.

Your DH sounds like a kill joy, if you want to make gifts then go for it, I have never seen this mad attitude of "I hate home made give me a boots 3for2" anywhere but mums net!

One year I made loads of jams, chutneys and marmalade for FIL and put it in a basket, with a blue gingham covering I had made. It looked stunning, he really liked it, but it was one hell of a faff and I have not repeated it.

That ginger syrup looked good, I saved the link. I love ginger, bet it would be good in a vanilla milkshake!

The thing is those of you who get requests every year from family, friends or colleagues who rave about your cakes or jams or beautiful crafts are clearly very good at what you do. Likewise those who have people willing to pay for what you produce. You've probably spent time (and money) getting that good.

That's completely different to taking a notion 6 weeks before Christmas that you are going to learn a craft from YouTube and be good enough at it to then gift the items to other people come 25th December. The chances of that happening are between slim and none no matter how thoughtful and personal the giver tells themselves their gift is. Unfortunately, those people think what you talented types do is easy when often that's just not the case. The Facebook shite threads on MN have many examples of people who think they have a talent when they don't.

I do a combination gift for my kids teachers. A bottle of wine and some homemade nibbles, like spicy salted nuts or chocolate caramel popcorn, or mince pies. It always goes down very well and I have often been asked what I am making this year/can you make such and such again. I think it helps that I do mention that no children’s hands have touched the food gifts and that if they want to bin the home made bits, there is still a bottle of wine.

For family and friends, I often make a cranberry relish. It saves them making their own for Christmas day.

I got some homemade stuff from my Mum last year, which was lovely. It was: blackberry brandy, homemade chutney, lavender bag. That sort of thing is good.

The thing is those of you who get requests every year from family, friends or colleagues who rave about your cakes or jams or beautiful crafts are clearly very good at what you do. Likewise those who have people willing to pay for what you produce. You've probably spent time (and money) getting that good.

Yes but everyone has to start somewhere, and making one batch of coffee syrups is a great place to start IMO. bundle them up with some cheap but pretty mugs and some niace coffee/biccies or hot chocolate/marshmellows (depending on the person) and that is a great gift for not a great deal of cost!

For you people throwing away Homemade gifts, send them my way! I love them! Especially mince pies and alcohol

I make bath bombs a year OP because i refuse to pay Lush prices, the simpler the better and Just chose one scent and maybe a bit of cosmetic glitter, the more complicated the more there is to go wrong!

I think you should go for it Wonderlime. I'm also on maternity leave and I will be doing the same. I know lots of people who would appreciate a handcrafted gift. Its nice to know somebody is actually thinking of you and taken their time to craft something unique, who doesnt love a good pamper? Bath bombs are inexpensive to make...mostly things you have in the cupboard already. I have a great recipe so please let me know if you would like any tips...there's a lot of room for error but I've finally found the correct ratios and got a good fizz going! Ooh and good packaging is a must...individual cupcake box and some fancy ribbon..job done

BigComfy what kind of leatherwork? Bags and things? Or smaller thing? Can I see some?

I do a bit of crafting but never have the nerve to give any away...I might though.

I just don't like foodstuffs as gifts.

" that is a great gift for not a great deal of cost!"

Game of Thrones S7 on blu-ray is a great gift.

A cheap mug that someone's bundled up with a sachet of hot chocolate? Meh, with a sprinkle of whatevs on the top.

Homemade tat isn't particularly any worse than Boots 3 for 2 crap.

It's just all crap full stop.

Just buy people stuff that they'll actually like. Revolutionary, I know.

Wow there's a lot of great tips on here! I'm glad to know theres more than a few in the handmade brigade. I just can't justify spending all of my (hubby's) hards earned money on tat that will either get chucked in a cupboard or straight to the nearest charity shop/buy and sell site. Personally I would rather gift something that has it's use then it's out the way or something that can be kept like a lovely scarf or blanket... these are my favourite kind of gifts as I appreciate the work that's been put in. HairsprayBabe You're on to some good ones there...we do the hot choc and biscuit mugs too for Xmas or teachers, sometimes pop a miniature in for Irish coffee

Game of Thrones S7 on blu-ray is a great gift.

That is great if your budget can stretch that far.... or if your recipient likes GoT...

I know lots of people who would like hot chocolate, or coffee with some added extras.

Not sure why you are so determined to shit on someone who is trying to put some effort in for people she cares about.