The Power of a Handmade Gift

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Greetings!

The holiday season is quickly upon us. Every year at this time I am always reminded of the power of a handmade gift and it all began with my Aunt Harriett, we called her Auntie. She loved to knit and made many many beautiful sets of baby outfits. They were always given away. She was an expert knitter and people could not tell they were handmade! It was so mesmerizing to watch her hands fly with out looking at her work as her fingers just knew what to do. My love of crafting and giving handmade gifts started with her.

Christmas gifts

No time was more important to me then Christmas to make and give handmade gifts. Of course I never started soon enough and was always finishing items on Christmas Eve. I remember in grade school I decided to knit a sweater for my Uncle Merritt. He was a large man and probably seemed larger because I was little; the sweater had to be BIG. On Christmas eve the project was not done. We were going to my Grandparents for gift exchange and I took that sweater with me. It had to get it done. I loved him so much and wanted so to give him something I made. The sweater did in fact get done and given on Christmas day.

The story doesn’t end there! When he opened it his eyes grew so big and he gave a slight chuckle. You see…the sweater was enormous!!! HAHAHA! I offered to tear it out and remake it but he would have none of it. Years later when we moved him out of his house to a nursing home guess what I found? Yep! That royal blue sweater. He had kept it all those years and never wore it. I still have it somewhere.

Gifts we receive.

There is nothing more special then the power of a handmade gift from a young person! I didn’t have children so when my two nieces were growing up it was natural to teach them the crafts that Auntie had taught me. They learned to knit and crochet. Funny Jessica likes to knit better and Heather likes to crochet better. I taught them to also use a sewing machine, needle felting and to sew by hand. But both of them also liked to draw. These beauties have been on my filing cabinet for many years. I just can’t throw them away.

Gifts we Get Back.

After my grandparents had been deceased for many years my mother gave me a box. She said they were some things of my grandparents she wanted me to have. To my surprise staring up at me was artwork I had given to them! As a young child living at home we didn’t have much money and many times handmade gifts were always given. I had a natural talent for drawing. For birthdays, especially, I would made birthday cards. My grandmother had SAVED them and mother thought it important to give them back to me. I get them out now and then to gaze and go down memory lane.

Even the bigger gifts can return

When I was going to college I took an art class. These are two pencil drawings I made in class. My husband and I did not have much money for gifts at that time so I had his brother make frames and gave these drawings to my mother and father-in-law as Christmas gifts that year. After they passed away their children cleaned out their house and the pictures were returned. It seemed odd that they were given back but my husband’s sisters thought I should have them. They have just been sitting since their return and only now am I thinking I will put them on the wall. She would like that!

Memory Doll Comes Home

There was a time in my crafting life when I made memory dolls. The gift giver would provide me artifacts for the person I was making the doll for and tell me a little bit about them; maybe even give me a picture to look at as I made it. This was the ultimate power of giving a handmade gift. I would make the doll in the image of the person receiving it and use the artifacts and the doll to tell a story of their life. The most gratifying doll was one made for my mother-in-law. I asked for items from her life and gave her examples; jewelry, hankies, any small memorabilia, and she would get them back but in a different way. I assured her I would not harm the items.

She was so touched by this gift. If you look close you can see my husband’s picture pin from the Marine Corp, his baby bracelet from the hospital (they did that back in the day), a broach of her as a baby. Even the under garment was a slip from when she was a baby. The whole doll told a story of her life and each item on the doll meant something to her. I also have her back in my collection.

Benefits of Giving Handmade Gifts

The power of giving a handmade gift can not be underestimated! I always gave homemade gifts for most ocassions but when I got a “real” job I didn’t have as much time to make them. I was reminded at a baby shower how much getting one of my handmade gifts was. Upon opening my gift (it was handmade but not by me) everyone said…”OOOH Anita must have made this!” Sheepishly I had to say that I hadn’t and you could see the disappointment in their faces. Here are a few reasons why I enjoy giving handmade gifts:

1. They are less money. Lets face it. For the most part making a gift is less expensive then buying one. Everyone has paper and crayons/colored pencils laying around. and making something as simple as a card can have a great impact.

2. They are unique & personal. A handmade gift is a one of a kind. It takes thought to put together a gift special to just the person you are giving it to. When the person receives it they know on one else has one like it!

3. It expresses Love. A personal gift is from the heart. No matter what it is or how good or bad it is, the person who gets it knows you cared. You took the time to make something just for them.

4. It is Fun! Making gifts is joyful and a happy experience. It is a great opportunity to involve others in the projects. My mom did not have a lot of money to buy gifts so my sister and I would get together with her and have a cookie making day. We not only had the great memories and time shared together but in the end there was a tin of cookies for her to give the family members. Of course it was required to give the tin back so I could get another batch the next year…LOL.

5. Do what you love! It is a great time to step back from our busy schedules and do something we really love. In this time of Covid-19 it is an awesome time to gather the kids around and make the holiday gifts. Money right now may be tight and travel is limited. Even supplies at the stores can be limited and using what you have at home is a great way to make some holiday cheer.

Read here For more benefits of giving handmade gifts!

Easy Project for you to do.

I wanted to share a very simple project that my nieces did when they were little. They always wanted to give gifts to grandparents, aunts & uncles. We would dig out the felt, cookie cutters & beads, etc. It was a great time to go into Aunt Nee Nee’s stash of craft goodies. Little did I know that I would receive these as gifts from our crafting session!

Tree Ornament:

Supplies: felt, cookie cutter (trees are great), embroidery/sewing threads, beads-buttons & other small trims, paint

1: Trace your cookie cutter onto the felt with a felt tip pen (fine tip works great).

2: Cut out 2 of the same shape.

3; Decorate one by sewing or gluing beads or buttons or paint on faces etc.

4: Pin together and sew the two pieces together. You can use a whip stitch around as my nieces did or you can use a button hole stitch. Here is a tutorial Tie a piece of thread to the top and you have a Christmas Ornament.

Additional types of gifts to make or give.

Not everyone is crafty but that doesn’t mean you can’t give something homemade. Here are some other ideas; baking something, mailing packages, fixing dinner, baby sitting, walking the dog, just doing something for someone during busy time can be the ultimate gift. Think creatively!