Music on a CD

*Download some of the receiver’s favorite songs and perhaps a few favorites of your own.
*Create a personalized cover by scanning a photo of the receiver and creating your own title.
*List song selections on the inside of the cover.

2 Ornaments -made from dough.

Ingredients
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups salt
1 1/2 cups water
1 star cookie cutter
1 tree cookie cutter

*Mix ingredients with hands. Divide into 2 piles. Add yellow food coloring to one pile and green to the other kneading colors into the dough. Refrigerate till chilled or up to two weeks if made in advance, uncover and roll dough 1/8 inch thick. Cut with cookie cutters (green dough with tree & yellow dough with star) and poke a hole in the top of each with a straw. Let dough air dry and string ribbon through the holes.

3 Fabric Albums-Christmas fabric, child fabric or personal print fabric.

Materials
Select fabric that suites receiver ¼ yard
¼ yard of soft fabric for inside covers
Spool of red or green ribbon
Spool of lace
Cardboard
Stuffing or snow
1 small photo album
Hot glue gun & glue

*Using hot glue gun, cover the front, back and side of album with a thin layer stuffing or snow.
*Lay photo album on fabric. Trim the fabric leaving a ½ inch trim on all sides of album.
*Glue inside edges of album pulling trim of fabric over the edges.
*Cut two 5 inch pieces of ribbon and glue them at the inside center edge on front and back covers of album leaving 3-4 inches of ribbon hanging as a tie.
*Using the spool of lace, once again glue the inside edges (this time over the fabric trim) and follow around with lace. You will have to fold lace @ corners.
*Cut two pieces of cardboard to fit the two inside coves of the album.
*Lay cardboard piece on soft fabric and trim leaving ½ inch trim and repeat for 2nd piece.
*Glue around the back edges of cardboard and fold the trim of fabric over the edges so that one side of the cardboard is completely covered in fabric. Repeat with 2nd piece.
*Glue inside covers and place cardboard (fabric side up) onto inside covers this will hide all of the boarder imperfections and a nice touch to the inside cover.

4 Holiday candles

Wax paint candles
*Buy wax paint @ your local craft store and paint your own festive design.
Glass candleholder
*Using glass paint, paint the outside of clear glass candleholder.
Glitter candle
*Lay out three rows of glitter gold, silver, red or green on a piece of paper. Cover a pillar candle with craft glue and roll the candle in the glitter. Tie with a bow for final festive touch.
Grouted gemstone candle
*Glue your favorite color glass gems onto a glass candle holder. Apply a light or dark color grout around the stones.

5 Photo Gifts

Collage
*Dig out your favorite family/friend photos.
*Cut and paste photos onto paper (don’t be afraid to overlap).
*Place in a frame

Decorative frame
*Glue anything you can think of to your frame, beads, jewels or seashells are just a few ideas. Use paints, stencils or stamps to decorate the trim of a plain frame and create a gift that suites the receiver.

Photos on ornaments
*Make above dough ornaments
*Glue a wallet size family photo to front of ornaments and place family name and the year on backside.

Profession portrait
*Have a profession portrait taken and framed.

Scrapbook
*Purchase a scrapbook or photo album.
*Choose and place photographs on the pages.
*Decorate each page with stencils, drawings, stickers and scrap paper cutouts (they also sell entire themed scrapbook kits, but digging together your own material can be more fun & make the project even more personal).

6 Dry Ingredients in a Cookie Jar

Cookie Jar
*Layer the following 6 ingredients in a medium sized canning jar:

• 2 1/4 cups of flour
• ¾ brown cups of brown sugar
• ¾ cups of sugar
• 1 tsp. Baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 bag of chocolate chips
• (Nuts are optional)

*Cover the top of the jar with a Christmas fabric and tie with a piece of ribbon.
*Place a Christmas tag on the jar with the remaining ingredients (2 eggs, 2 sticks of softened butter, & 1tsp. of vanilla extract) and the cooking instructions: Bake for ten to twelve minutes @ 375 degrees.

7 Alternatives-rather than giving a gift, plan a date with your loved ones, here are 7 suggestions:
*Go to dinner.
*Catch a flick.
*Take a trip to the theatre.
*See an ice show.
*Buy tickets to a concert or musical.
*Plan a picnic on the beach.
*Take your sports fan to a game.

8 Christmas balls

Glass Ornaments
*Buy plain glass ornaments and apple barrel or folk art paint @ the craft store.
*Take the top off the ornaments and swirl the paint in the ornaments by twisting ornament in your hands.
*Paint snowflakes or snowmen on the outside of random balls and place family or friends names with the current year on other balls, give a gift set of 8.

9 Kids’ Crafts

Snow globe
*Glue a small plastic Christmas statue onto the inside of the jar top.
*Place water in the jar and sprinkle in some glitter.
*Screw on top and tape seam with masking tape to prevent leaking.
*Shake and enjoy.

Reindeer
*Use 3 cloths pin with rounded tops.
* Place 2 with legs facing downward and glue round tops together
*Glue third ball to the end with legs facing upwards for antlers.
*Complete with googly eyes and tail.

Snowman
*Using toothpicks, Stick 3 Styrofoam balls one on top of the other.
*Using fabric, paper, markers, glitter and googly eyes, decorate the snowman.

Homemade Cards
*Use construction paper, makers, paints, glue, scissors and your imagination.

Ring garland
*Cut 2 colors of construction paper into strips.
*Wrap the strips one around the next creating a colorful chain.

Popcorn Garland
*Pop a large bowl of popcorn. You can color the corn with food coloring or leave it white.
*Use a needle and thread and string the corn.

Christmas Placemats
*Using art supplies, color festive pictures on pieces of paper.
*Laminate the paper and place mats on table.

Cone Trees
*Using the cardboard cones from you local craft store, color or paint your tree.
*Glue on small beads and sprinkle with glitter.

10 Christmas Cookies

Sugar Cookies
*Use you favorite sugar cookie recipe and begin cutting, frosting & sprinkling.
*Star, angel, tree, gingerbread man, Santa, reindeer, wreath, bell, stocking and bear.
*Bag and deliver.

11 Relaxation Gifts-create your own relaxation kit that is sure to please during the busy holiday season. Here are 11 things you may want to include:
*One of your crafted candleholders with a scented candle
*A CD with relaxing music (classical or light jazz).
*Tea infuser.
*A bag of tea
*Your favorite bath bubbles or bath beads.
*Inflatable bath pillow or bath jets.
*Wooden massage roller.
*Scented body oil such as lavender oil.
*A copy of your favorite novel, a book of poetry, or a favorite magazine.
*A bag of your homemade cookies.
*Give a gift certificate to a masseuse or offer a personal massage.

12 Christmas Baskets
*Line a regular basket with a Christmas hand towel.
*Stencil or stamp around the outside of the basket or simply add some ribbon.
*Use your imagination. There are at least 12-basket combinations from all of the crafts listed above and if none of these ideas inspire you, the gardener’s basket is one of my favorites. Fill basket with a variety of seed packets, a small plant, small garden shovel and hoe and gardening gloves. Happy creating!

© Melt Magazine 2002