Homemade Christmas- Idea Sharing

[ImmortalNowBabyDoll]

In the interests of being a bit more intentional about gifting this year, we've decided for our adult friends and family we're going to do homemade gift baskets as a family for Christmas. We've pre-warned them and said there is no pressure to reciprocate (everyone is busy) but if they do want to make instead of buy a gift that's lovely. So far, we are planning:

Me:
Needlefelt Christmas decorations (a nativity set for our religious friend, baubles for everyone else)
Felted soaps
Lavender sugar scrub
Summer berry jam (frozen berries)
Winter spice coffee syrup

Husband:
Caramelised onion chutney
"Abbey crunch" dupe cookies
Beeswax wraps
(He's currently trying to come up with some more ideas)

6 yo daughter (with help ofc!):
Salt dough ornaments
Gingerbread people

Who else is doing homemade Christmas gifts this year? Or has done it previously and has ideas for things that were well-received? Disaster stories also welcome, I'm sure we will encounter some on the way!

I make the gin and clementine marmalade and get repeat orders. I just gift it.
same with Nigella’s chilli jam.

Thank you very much. I was really pleased to sell one on Etsy the day I uploaded them 😃

I love chocolate making. I've got some moulds to make filled chocs, always well received 😉

God what a lot of miseries. But I can imagine the type of Christmas trees they prefer...the ones with matching baubles, probably to tone in with their grey velvet sofas (or whatever is in fashion these days). Your needle felt baubles would go perfectly with my other tree decorations, some of which are 50 years old!

When my lovely neighbour got married, I cross stitched her a small picture of the Nordic Fjords and a caravan, where they were going for their honeymoon. They loved it and it's on their wall and they look at it every day.
I made a disco ball one for my sister, she loves it and a birth flowers one for a friend, also loved it.
I have made little clay animals, plant holders and christmas decorations for various family and friends. Wobbly, wonky and definitely not perfect, but they love them because they are personal.
I have been the recipient of various different arty crafty and edible homemade items, and I love them all. I make all my own birthday cards and they are looked forward to every year, my friend keeps them all!!
Of course some people don't like homemade gifts, but me and mine love it!!

I love all of these and especially the disco ball snails!

I made these for my daughter (and the tiger) she loves them!! My grandson has a disco ball alien which he also loves!!

I love the snails so much! I might try making some with salt dough. Unlike real snails, they won't like the rain though. 😂The cross stitch is beautiful too. My husband cross stitches, sometimes for gifts, and it takes him hours and hours of work to make something. Sometimes it's when it's less perfect that makes it all the more special, knowing someone has stepped out of their comfort zone to do something for you.

The insistence throughout the thread that anyone who might not want undrinkable vodka flavoured at home with sweets, can only possibly not want it because they have a greige "live love laugh" house with "corporate wrap" is so funny.

We don't want it because it's not good! And yes, we tell you it's lovely, regardless. If it's from your mum or your kids, then you tend to just accept it because of the gifter. It's got sentimental value, if nothing else.

I always assumed that families just make things for each other as a given. That's just being a family. I make DNan's Christmas cake now her wrists aren't so strong. Would never dream of calling that her present. Seems other people would call that their gift.

It's all about knowing the recipient isn't it? There are homemade gift I would love and ones that would go straight in the bin. I would love something knitted or crocheted, a watercolour illustration, lemon curd or jam, fudge, honeycomb, truffles or shortbread. I would not want chutney, red cabbage or flavoured vodka. In fact I have some strawberry jam given to me this autumn that I am saving to go with scones at Christmas and feel very grateful to the giver who makes it from the fruit she grows.

Sorry, I'm slightly obsessed with the snails now 😄. @Dolallytats can I ask, are they air dry clay? How do you do the disco ball shells? (I love your other things too!)

Absolutely- I'd be unlikely to give homemade gifts to people I didn't know well. Aside from anything else, I have to really like someone to put so many hours in (and money, supplies aren't cheap) when I could just spend £10 on Amazon on something. We get through a lot of chutney here, I don't much care for spiced cabbage. I made it for Christmas dinner once and my brother had third helpings so I don't think I did it wrong, it just wasn't my thing.

Our two best friends and my parents have already said they love the idea and are going to make homemade for us too, so I'm really excited to see what they come up with!

I've not spoken to my brother and SIL yet but they have a baby, a puppy, two cats and a tortoise in addition to a very committed hobby (non-crafty!) so I think they will probably buy- although they usually buy us handcrafted items.

We made limoncello one year and aloe gin another year. If you get that done now it has plenty of time to mature and you decant into smaller bottles so the 1l of gin/vodka goes a long way!!

Likewise chutney and chilli jam, they need a bit of time to mellow out so making it in the next couple of weeks will be perfect and also spreads the making out rather than being a massiv ly stressful weekend.

Id love beeswax wraps, handmade soap and handmade biscuits! Some people just don't like homemade presents (and that's fine). I give my homemade stuff selectively and don't give it to anyone I don't think would appreciate it.

I'm giving up on this thread because it seems I'm not even allowed the right of reply. My previous post, in summary, said the PP had made her point and we didn't need to hear her endlessly repeating herself, but clearly that must have been potentially damaging to her delicate feelings (whereas her repeatedly telling us that our relatives secretly hate our gifts isn't offensive at all, even when she's said it 90x) so whatever. Mumsnet HQ must also have been traumatised by bad homemade gifts.

I can't edit my post but it's sloe gin, not aloe gin 🤢

I was thinking, 'hmm, well aloe gin is a new one I've never tried'! 😆

Yes, just air dry clay. The disco balls are just cheap Christmas decorations I bought last year. My daughter didn't want to hang them up so I just took off the hanging string and but the hanging hoop clay side down to hide it!! Hope you make some!!

Hi, all. We've had no more share of homemade presents than the next man, but we do object to posts which break our Talk Guidelines, so this is just a reminder that, whichever side of the homemade-pressie-debate you fall on, please do employ a bit of goodwill to all men and avoid personal attacks.

I've just bottled my damson gin. It's gorgeous. And we've got a box of tiles left over from the bathroom which I'm now inspired to paint for people I don't like much.
You might post your oat biscuit recipe, OP. Mine always spread out too much. Happy Christmas to you.

Brilliant! Thank you x

He uses this one. Fingers crossed this isn't deleted.

https://geoffsbakingblog.com/2015/02/abbey-crunch-biscuits/

He says it's important you give them growing room and then halfway through baking, tap them with a spatula to stop them rising.

Don't give up on the thread, some of us are enjoying it!!

@NeededANameChangeAnyway

We made limoncello one year

Can we have a moment of respect for Limoncello man please?

https://youtube.com/shorts/lbCd-eFQllM?si=2zfElOig_hW3rd9c

I'm glad to hear that as the whole thread has left me feeling a bit down truth be told. I didn't think there would be capacity for people to be so rude and snippy about someone else making homemade gifts for their family members. I've been called nasty, selfish, vile, nobbish, show offy, egotistical and controlling. My crafts have been called cruddy and I've been told I'm wrong to think I have any talent or my family members like them. And most of those insults are still on the thread, whereas nearly all my responses to being insulted have been removed. It definitely doesn't feel even handed at all. I actually started the thread because I've had a really hard week and I thought sharing crafting tips would cheer me up.

Not only the insults but the transactional and greedy attitude towards gifts (people do not owe anyone else a "gift budget" and anything given is a choice, not an obligation) have left me feeling a little flat.

The suggestions that people have given, those that actually followed the point of the post, have been lovely. I went into town today and bought some beautiful cotton in a honeybee and hexagon print for the wraps.

Omg I can't breathe. 😂😂😂