Gift Wrapping 2012

Check out my Christmas gift wrap!

This year I used kraft paper to wrap my gifts, made bows out of felt, and stamped names directly on the paper instead of using gift tags.

Cute, cheap, and fun!

Click here to see my gift wrapping from last year!

gift wrappings

Finally finished wrapping Christmas gifts!  

I usually stick with a gift wrapping theme, so this year I decided to go with the tradish green, red, and white.

I used white wrapping paper and made my own bows and tags!

For the felt bows I followed this tutorial from How About Orange.

It was really easy and they turned out super cute!

 

For the larger gifts I made three bows in different sizes. 

I saw this idea floating around Pinterest and decided it was too cute not to try!

I used festive scrapbook paper and cut out letters to use as the tags for a few gifts!

joy

As I mentioned before, I made most of the Christmas gifts I gave this year.  I wasn't expecting it to take as long as it did, but it was totally worth it when I saw joy on the faces of those who received my handmade gifts!

I've already shown some of the gifts I made, but I thought I would show a few more just in case you need some ideas for next year or throughout the year.

This is the burlap wreath I made for my grandparents, Monnie and Papa.

They were so excited and loved it!

Here are two good burlap wreath tutorials at Where the Heart Is and Life on the Ridge Side.

My cousin Mackenzie loved her bag full of headbands, bow clips, and scarf. Doesn't she look so cute in her matching scarf and headband!

 This super easy and cute scarf tutorial can be found at P.S. I Made This.

Remember the burlap Christmas signs I made. Well, good news, my cousin Justin and his wife Heather loved theirs!

The other 4 sign recipients also loved theirs too! Hard work paid off!

 Baby Lily looked so cute in her big flower headband! This was the first baby headband I have ever made, and I can't wait to make more for other friends and family.

 All you have to do is make the flower and get a stretchy baby headband from Hobby Lobby for only $.75!

I made several coffee cozies for friends and fam (and myself).  This is me and Anna testing them out.

I used the tutorial at House on Hill Road.  It was easy to follow and they don't take very long to make.

Final verdict of handmade Christmas 2010: Success!

burlap christmas signs

Sorry I haven't been posting much lately! I've been making Christmas presents like crazy!  So I thought I would share some of the gifts I've been working on.

Remember my Halloween burlap sign?  I decided Christmas signs would be so much cuter!  I made several signs for different family members in three different styles...

I can't decide which is my fav.

If you still need a gift idea this is a low cost DIY. I used different colors of burlap, paint, hot glue, batting, and of course a little glitter to create these cute Christmas signs.  Just follow the simple instructions from my Halloween tutorial. 

For the lettering I downloaded a free font found here, experimented with different sizes, printed the letters I needed, cut them out, then traced them onto the burlap.

These are really simple to make, but mass producing is not for the faint of heart!

If you are short on time try making these at a much smaller scale.  They would be adorable as ornaments. 

mason bee house

Father’s day is coming up and I have a great gift suggestion that won’t break the bank!

A Mason Bee House! I gave my grandparents one for Christmas and they love it! The bees are already starting to fill it in.

They emailed me a pic


Mason bees are nature’s best pollinators! Way better than honeybees. And they are non-stinging! Yay!

You just hang the bee house against a tree or wall where it can get morning sun, and the female bees will come and fill in the tubes with eggs!

So if the dad in your life wants to increase his garden’s productivity then this is the perfect gift! You can find them at gardeners.com

vday gifts

Jake gave me a single red rose to represent our first Valentines Day together as a married couple. He said the more years we are married the more roses I get! I thought this was very romantic! He also gave me a Valentine card that was for a wife! That was exciting, I love it!


This year I decided to make Jake's card and gift, and I found this great idea on a craft blog.


I used an old deck of cards and made a book filled with things I love about him. it was really easy thinking of 52 things, I could have thought of a lot more.


It was really easy to make, and I was able to use stuff that I already had around the house.



The best part was that Jake absolutely loved it!