Handmade gifts are my favorite kinds of gifts to give. Unfortunately, since the recepients read my blog, I had to hold off and show off my holiday crafts until now. I hope that you can bookmark these for future gift-giving though since all of these gifts were so well received and fun to create!
I ended up making two yarn wreaths this year for holiday gifts- one for my best friend and one for my mother-in-law. I did five fabric flowers on each, three rosettes, and one spray of berries/flowers. The most time intensive part of this is definitely covering the wreath with yarn, but it is a great craft to do while catching up on your favorite shows. To find out how to make a wreath of your own, visit this tutorial on creating a yarn wreath!
Our teachers loved our, “Raise Your Hand if You Mustache a question mugs and printables we created for them. I filled the mugs with my homemade cocoa mix and paired it with marshmallows for a fun gift this year. I spray painted the frames red to give them a little pop of color. According to my son the teachers really got a chuckle out of these and we had fun making them.
The Peppermint Marshmallows were bagged up for gift giving for all of the special people who make our lives so much better. After making them as party favors to take home for my daughter’s birthday party, making them for all of the teachers, making a batch for the helpers in our lives, and giving out some to our family members, I ended up giving 27 dozen of these away! They were so easy to make and so yummy to eat that it was one of my favorite gifts that I got to give this year. These would be so cute cut into hearts for Valentine’s Day too for February cocoa topping. I am now a believer that homemade marshmallows are the best kind of marshmallows to eat and to share.
Fabric flowers adorned everything I gave this year. I made about fifteen of these pins to top gifts and packaged them up sweetly with our teacher gifts. I bought two bracelets on clearance before the holidays and realized why they were on clearance when the elastic on both of them snapped after I slipped them on. The beads scattered everywhere and I gathered them up and threw them in my craft box for a future use. I ended up using those little pearls and broken bits to adorn the centers of the flowers. I still haven’t made a pin for myself yet… hopefully one of these days I will make a few of these for myself!
To match these pins, I found this tutorial for creating fabric covered button bracelets on The Mother Huddle. I discovered one thing through this process… making buttons is not easy. My fingers were breaking and each button seemed to take forever. I had planned to make four of these and ended up only making two. They are so pretty and worth every minute of effort, but it is hard to find a way to share just how special these are. I wanted to write a note with each of them that said, “Handmade. Like Really Handmade. Like I Made Buttons. Like Broke My Fingers For You. Because I Love You That Much Hard.” I think I might try and do some fun stuff with my extra materials though after my fingers heal from this last round of button making. Who knew a girl could make buttons herself?
I kept visiting boutiques and shops and seeing these cute knitted ear warmers with flowers on them. I just knew these would make fantastic gifts for my sister and best friend for the holidays. These knitted up so quickly and easily and I had fun personalizing them with unique buttons to finish them off.
Cozy Ear Warmers
Pattern: Strictly Knit Flower Headband Ear Warmer (available for purchase for $5 on Ravelry)
Needle Size: US 9
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft (in Ivory) & Red Heart Soft Yarn (in Plum)
Notes: The trick with making this ear warmer super soft and warm is that you knit with two balls of yarn to create a thicker ear warmer than you would with a single ball of yarn. This pattern is easy and straightforward. I had a blast making these two headbands and can’t wait to make one for myself soon!
My nephew is a nut for anything Angry Birds so I was dying to make something for him that incorporated his favorite game! I decided to knit him an Angry Birds hat and I will admit, I never thought I could do it. TWO eyes, TWO eyebrows, TWO eyeballs, and a nose? I can’t do that. I was really worried about this hat, but mostly about appliqueing all of the details to the front. I was shocked this turned out and I am pretty proud of my handiwork on this one.
Angry Birds Hat
Pattern: Red Bird With an Attitude (available for purchase for$3.99)
Needle Size: US 8 (16″ circulars)
Yarn: Hobby Lobby I Love This Cotton! (in Red, White, Black) & scraps of orange from my yarn stash
Notes: This pattern is fairly straightforward. I would recommend sizing down (at least) one needle size because the 1×1 ribbing on the edge is very loose and will not fit on the head snugly.
I love how this bird turned out. You could definitely make the tail a little longer to make it wave and stitch in the back or you can tie it in a loop if it doesn’t set comfortably on your child’s head.
I opted to knit my eyeballs on this one because I didn’t want to have to mess with felt or buttons.
Knitted eyeballs:
CO 1 stitch Loosely (leaving a 4” tail)
Row 1: Knit in front and back of this stitch five times (5 stitches should be on your needle)
Row 2: Knit all stitches
Row 3: Purl all stitches
Row 4: Knit all stitches but do not turn. Pass 2nd, 3rd, 4th, & 5th stitch over the 1st stitch. One stitch will be left on the needle. Cut the yarn (leaving a 3” tail.
Ball up the yarn from the cast on tail and stuff it inside the eyeball. Stitch the eyeball closed and then secure it to the white part of the eye. Repeat for the other side.
Here is the adorable recipient in his little hat. He kept pulling people aside and saying, “See this hat? It’s special. My Aunt Amy made it just for me. Just for me.”
Yup, you are special and you are loved.
Handmade gifts say you are loved in BIG ways.
Did you tackle any holiday crafts? What is your proudest craft you created or received for the holidays? Please share here!