Homespun Holidays

While it may seem early, now is the time to plan so you can ease the costs of your holiday giving. For me, there have been many times when I didn’t have enough money to purchase gifts, yet I still wanted to give something meaningful. Over the years, I’ve found many clever yet simple gift ideas that I wouldn’t mind receiving myself. Here are a few:

 

• Homemade Goodies: Everybody loves homemade cookies, candies, nuts and other treats for the holidays. Besides the ingredients, all you need are the packaging and wrapping materials-much of which you can reuse from last year (and if you didn't save that stuff last year, do so this year). • Recipe Booklets: You can create your own, or there are affordable online services that make it easy. Share family or holiday favorites and include short family stories. • Themed Gift Baskets: Some ideas include "A Taste of France" (or other country), a movie basket or a gardening basket. The sky is the limit! • The Gift Of Experience: Personally, I would love to receive tickets to the symphony, sky diving lessons, a one-time flight lesson, or tickets to a sporting event. Your loved ones undoubtedly have activities they enjoy or would like to try. Plus, the recipient doesn't have to find a place to store these kinds of gifts! • Time And Talent: Think about the talents and skills you posses and give them away as gifts. • Personal Scrapbooks: Look through this year's photos and make a scrapbook. All that's needed is fun paper, embellishments and a little creativity. Or you could use photos to make a 2011 calendar.

Hopefully these suggestions have gotten your creative juices flowing. Many of them are quite inexpensive and would be cherished for years to come. Good luck in finding the perfect gift for your family and friends. Just be sure to get an early start!