My general routine is to work on the computer all day and craft at night while half-watching bad tv. I generally start crafting for Christmas around Thanksgiving, sometimes a little earlier, sometime a little later. Over the past several years, I have aspired to craft all my presents, though it doesn’t always work out that way. For instance, this year I found something for my sister that is so perfectly her, I had to buy it — from a local crafts fair, so, as the women I purchased it from said, “It’s still handmade, just by us.”
I also have trouble crafting for my brother, who tends towards electronica more than handicrafts. I told him I will need to learn some basic wiring and sautering if I am going to be able to make him something — which isn’t entirely true since I made him some insanely delicious peppermint and peanut butter bark for his birthday (two separate kinds of bark here, folks) which he was more than happy with. AC over at Design Sponge always does a great and funny gift guide for guys and you’ll notice there’s not a single handmade gift there. Lots of video games and electronics, but no handmade gifts. (Mars, Venus, you know…) I’m thinking edible gifts may be the way to go since electronica tends to be out of my price range.
Last year was easy though, because he and my sister-and-law had just had a baby a few months earlier and they requested that instead of making anything for them, I make things for my nephew. Done.
Crafting for babies is superfun because you don’t have to worry about something being too dorky…when you’re a baby, “dorky” equals “supercute.” (Somehow this doesn’t hold true at 41. Sigh.) So here are their gifts from last year. (I had taken these photos just for my own reference with my less-than-optimal camera, so they are not great.)
First was a little ditty bag to pack whatever toiletries a baby needs — I have no idea what those would be, but my sister-in-law specifically requested this and I was happy to oblige. I followed this tutorial by Dragon[knit]fly. I had some trouble with the iron-on interfacing, in that I washed everything after I made it and it caused the fabric to pucker, but it was nevertheless sweet and still functional (so for once in my life, I just let it go). It’s hard to make out but the fabric on the other side of the ditty bag is of little flying planes, which I thought was appropriate for a travel case. The oh-so-adorable shoes were made from this pattern by Stardust Shoes. I had to enlarge it a bit on a xerox machine (I had made one shoe and tried it on my nephew at Thanksgiving to test the size). You have to love all these free tutorials — godbless all these crafters for doing the hard work for the rest of us. Next up were bibs and burp cloths:
The bibs are very quick and easy and there are tons of tutorials out there if you need one. Here’s one from happythings that’s pretty much the same technique I used. I sometimes see these chenille bibs being sold for about 16 smackers EACH, which I personally think is nuts. Each one has probably $1-2 worth of fabric and takes less than 30 minutes to make — even with the applique. Finally, one of my favorite quick projects last year was this slinky little devil:
Merry Chrisssstmassss!
He’s a draftdodger, of course. But also a stuffed animal and an objet d’art, all in one!
Slinky the Draftdodger
I had just made this one for myself when they said they needed one too. I used one of those cheap sand-filled draftdodgers you can buy for 2 bucks at Christmas Tree Stores and made a quilted slipcover for it, using some fabric left over from my LR pillows. Add some decorative stitching and some button eyes and you’ve got yourself a new friend. I made his tongue out of a loop of bias tape so he can hang from the doorknob when not in use.
On that note, it’s time for me to get crafting. 15 days til Christmas, can you believe it?
P.S. The teenage clerk at Jo-anne’s gave me the 15% senior discount today. Seriously.
December 10, 2008 at 11:00 pm
Are you kidding me? About the senior discount? Did you take it? Maybe she thought it meant senior in school and since you are studying for your Phd you can’t get much more senior than that….
Or the poor kid is working in retail in the holiday season and has been tolerating holiday “cheer” from customers all day and has stopped paying much attention as a defensive move.
I do like your blog, if I am not careful I will not be able to resist the call of the craft blogs….losing so much time……
December 10, 2008 at 11:31 pm
I think she was just disgruntled and trying to stick it to the man (or Jo-Anne, whomever she may be) however she could. Though for a split second I had to wonder if she could possibly think I was that old.
OF COURSE I took it. I had asked if there were any coupons that day and she offered it up. I figure I’m keeping them in business during these troubled times, the least they can do is show me a little love.
December 11, 2008 at 1:25 am
senior discount? I WANT ONE. and no, you don’t look old enough for a senior disc., unless seniors are suddenly hot 40somethings.
i am completely blown away by your genius. the tree bark fabric is hilarious! how the hell do you have time to do all of this? your writing, by the way, is excellent.
December 11, 2008 at 8:29 am
Thanks for the kind words. The key to having time to craft is to be single & child-free, to live in a city where you don’t have much of a social life and to be working on your dissertation from home. And since i’m drawing on old work, these posts are deceptive. It’s not like I actually produce one thing a day. Even the little ditty bags take me a couple of days to get right. And over the summer or when I’m teaching, I don’t sew as much (sometimes at all). I’m always most productive in November/December, getting ready for Christmas.