anyone have any nicelooking, rememborable christmas presents that are also fairly easy to make (if it's DIY)
i would like to give my pals unusual presents but ones they will love not loathe!
HELP!
cass
xoxo

memory boxes, photo collages of times we've spent together in big frames, homemade alcohol, bags,
one of my friends lived away for a while and she wrote in a diary everyday when she was away because she knew she wouldn't remember everything to tell me, she gave me it for christmas, one of the nicest presents i ever got really, very thoughtful,
heres some prev. threads that might help,
>http://discuss.gromco.com/mwforum/topic_show.pl?id=651#4600
>http://discuss.gromco.com/mwforum/topic_show.pl?id=499#3390

your starting early, very impressive. I'll probably start on the 20th December or something stupid like that.

If they wear bobby pins or hair clips, then just use beads and wire and buy a cheap-o pack of bobby pins. I made a bunch for my friend Tanya and it wasn't really hard. You just start stringing beads and looping and wrapping around the end of the bobby pin and you're done in no time!

Another thing I'm doing for my friends for Christmas/birthdays coming up. I'm making little "kits" so they can do something themselves. Like the babyfood jar snowglobes? Well, I'm putting together a little gift basket with all the stuff you need to make one plus maybe some other little bracelets or whatnots. That way they have something to do when they have opened everything else.

Um just a word about doing the kits as gifts!People seem to love them!It's like they would never go out and buy and try to make this or that but if you give them the 'kit' they feel Like you took the time and they really enjoy it.My favorit 'kit' is a pack of seeds,the terraccotta pot I got for like $1.50 and hand painted,a baggie of potting soil with a hand made tag "love soil for going friendship flowers" and an instruction tag,also a plant poke I made by painting balsa wood and a dowel!
I made another one with a tiny beach pail and shovel I got at the end of the season for like 0.35cents!

There's a new interweave book out -- Hip to Knit... It has some terrific scarf patterns (two of em) and three hat patterns (one rolled brim, one ribbed and one cabled) and they are simple...

In fact, I'm making the ribbed hat for a guy friend this year (he got a scarf last year) and my friend Jenny swears that if I ever get around to making him a sweater he'll just have to make an honest woman of me (we've known each other since I was 13 and he was 10)

I have lots of ideas, but one I love right now: 80's cartoon coloring books! if you just get a couple of packs of crayons, tie up three or four crayons together with ribbon, and print out a little book of pictures to color. (you can find tons on the internet. rainbow brite, my little ponies, care bears, etc.) it turns out really cute!

make little relaxing eye bag things. I can't find a link for them, but they're the rectangular bags (made of cloth) with rice inside with a little scent. very easy.

paint bobby pins w/ old nail polish. you can get black bobby pins at Dollar Tree stores, 24 small pairs and 24 large pairs all on a card for $1. plus, small toys from the dollar store (silly putty, glow in the dark stars, touchable bubbles, etc.) and fun candy (ring pops, those dip things, pop rocks) all go over really well. Marble mags turn out really cute and cheap if you want to do a bunch. fill clear bic pens w/ glitter and add to a decorated marble composition book.

think about making mini (or matchbook) shrine for good friends. they turn out really cool. this site also has cool stuff that could be adapted to be less labor intensive ( http://www.uniqueprojects.com/ ). for example, I'm making a mini zen garden out of the bottom of a matchbox pattern, just blown up bigger.

make fun bags and container to put stuff in. make magazine bags ( http://melimade.fuzzyspaceoutpost.com/papermagbag.html ), plus meli has a bunch of other cool stuff that could make great gifts. make a container ( http://www.mirkwooddesigns.com/templates.htm ).

My friend's birthday is soon, and I'm making him fortune cookies. Find a fortune cookie recipe online. Then type or write up your own personalized fortunes (inside jokes, most memorable moments with that person, quotes, or song lyrics). As a finishing touch, go to your local chinese resteraunt and ask for a take out box to put your cookies in. Then all you need is a tag. You could decorate the box or wrap it in cellophane.

Oh I hope my friend likes it