Dream of Unique Gifts Ideas

During these trying times - economically speaking, that is - it's sometimes difficult to come up with gift ideas for - say - birthdays, baby showers, bridal showers, and holidays.

I like the word cheap but the apparent politically correct thing to say is inexpensive. Inexpensive gifts aren't necessarily lower quality these days. Stores where you find inexpensive items are pushing to get the more elite crowd into their buildings and to do so the items can not be substandard.

Still, to find a unique gift is not always easily achieved especially if the someone you're purchase for all ready has just about everything they'd ever want or need. This - of course - means dreaming up or using your imagination to either make or buy that unique gift you want to give.

Personalizing a gift is always a winner. You will never go wrong in buying or making something specific for the gift recipient with their name, nickname, a special date or a picture of some sort of something they are just ga-ga over. Here's a for instance: Three years ago, my mother wanted me to wood burn a picture she had of my dad sitting a horse with a deer in his lap. I scanned, traced then wood burned the image onto a plaque of soft wood from a local hobby store. For some it would be easy; for others not so much.

A walking stick made from a 1-inch-in-diameter sapling and allowing the kids to paint it with names, dates, pictures or whatever is a fun idea. So what if the receiver of the gift isn't into hiking? So what if the gift-receiver isn't into primitive or rustic decor? The point is to have fun and to give something personal.

Then there are gag gifts. Two years ago for my mother's birthday I gave her a partially used roll of toilet paper wrapped with a single sheet of paper around the middle. I had found and printed a really cute vintage image then added the words, "For the mom who has everything EXCEPT a partially used roll of toilet paper wrapped with a cute image." She got a kick out of it and still has it displayed in her spare bathroom for all to see.

During another event for Mother, I created cute snack sized candy wrappers, printed them and wrapped several snack sized chocolate bars; found a small vase, some Styrofoam, lollipop sticks and made her a candy bar bouquet. She absolutely went nuts over it; oooed and ahhhed like a small child.

Take a picture of something they love like tulips, have a 5x7 or 8x10 printed then frame it, or put it on a T shirt, mug, magnet, or a keepsake plate. You can even add family photos of grandchildren, bride and groom, or an early picture of the gift recipient. These days it isn't hard to add photos to T shirts, mugs, key chains or other items. All you have to do is head to Zazzle where you'll find loads of gifts to personalize with photographs and your own wording.

Red & Pink Tulips Pictures by Visages

More Tulips Keychains

Featured here is a key chain with a picture of tulips I took not far from where I live.

Or, if you have kids have them draw a picture then apply it to a magnet. Of course, if you'll need a scanner or a friend who has a scanner to turn the works of art into digital files.

Paint a T shirt... Here's a tutorial on how to paint a t shirt with acrylic craft paints. The paint DOES NOT wash out or stain other clothing in the washer. This is a perfect project for kids. And for the little kids who aren't quite ready to paint on their own, simply apply paint to their hands then press them on to the shirt to make hand prints for relatives or god parents.

Need other ideas? Just contact me and between the two of us we'll come up with something ideal for your gift recipient.

Have fun!

Homemade Thanksgiving/Autumn Candle Bouquet

I was on a mission to make our Thanksgiving table more decorative this year. True to form, I began searching the house for materials and ideas when I spied the orange candles I made sitting in glass holders. It didn't take long for me to decide I wanted to make something a bit more attractive for them to set in.

My husband had set aside vegetable cans he had emptied the contents from and rinsed. Grabbing them, I set to work.

First, I washed and dried them. Next, I wiped the exterior with alcohol to remove any sort of film then I set about painting them with acrylic paint. After choosing the colors, I painted the background. Because there isn't one spot in our house that is formal, I didn't mind if the silver of the can showed through a littler here and there. And to tell the truth, you'd have to use several layers of paint to entirely cover the metal.

After the paint dried, I sprayed them with flat finish lacquer.

I didn't have any artificial flowers on hand and I knew the hobby stores were having great sales on their autumn flora so off I went to find a great deal on flowers. I found a small bouquet of orange and red flowers for 60% off which was perfect and matched the cans I painted.

Next, at a dollar store, I found a roll of moss for - you guessed it - a buck. When I got home, I rummaged through the garage and found the Styrofoam I had removed and saved from some teddy bear candy bouquets my husband was unable to sell.

The blocks were not so large that I couldn't simply shove them into the cans but I knew if they were too large I could take a serrated knife and saw off the edges.

After the Styrofoam blocks were in place, I glued the moss on using hot glue; removed some fabric flower heads and sprays from their plastic stems then hot glued them into place.

The candles sticks wouldn't set on top of the Styrofoam so with a small knife I cut out a shallow holes, put some plumbers putty on the bottom of the candle sticks then pushed them into place.

Now all I have to do is make napkins and place mats for our Thanksgiving table.