Starting this Saturday, November 14th, I will be starting a 30 day Christmas Challenge.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, to take the pledge to have a handmade Christmas this year by giving those on our Christmas list a handmade gift.
Here are the rules:
1. Gifts must be handmade by you, or,
2. Purchased from someone else who handmade it, check out Etsy or Artfire, go to a craft fair, or,
3. Upcycled items such as thrift store, antique store or garage sale treasures. If this one is alarming to you maybe you should think about what it really costs to make something new, the energy to make it, ship it, house it and how buying something pre-loved is using a resource which has already made its impact. My brother asked me if buying someone a, basket counts, I said yes but buy a pre-owned basket, really could you really tell if you received a new basket or not and if it was new would that make it a better basket? Think green.
To take a political stance against mass consumerism of Christmas
To give gifts that are unique, meaningful and full of love
To promote, encourage and celebrate hand-made You may not have the time to make all your gifts but I know you will be out purchasing them. Why not purchase a handmade gift from someone instead of somewhere.
The point is to use your imagination instead of buying all the mass produced stuff at the mall which every store is going to convince us we need and will make our Christmas this year perfect. Shop at home first. If you are a crafter, you have a stash. Most of us crafters don’t even know all the stuff that is in our stash so instead of heading over to the craft store, shop from your stash first.
If you have a blog and you leave me a comment with a link to a gift idea or better yet a tutorial on how to make the gift, I will post a link to your blog. Please post your ideas or what you will be giving to your loved ones. I will be having a giveaway for this one (a really cute Christmas softie, will be posting a pic soon) so please send in your ideas and I will have my 3 year old pick a winner from a hat. (Don’t worry he is only a cheater if it benefits him)
I will of course be posting some of my ideas and projects to inspire all of you too. (hey most of my viewers are probably on my list so gotta keep it hush hush)
Here is the pledge:
I, state your name, pledge to:
To take a political stance against mass consumerism of Christmas
To give gifts that are unique, meaningful and full of love
To promote, encourage and celebrate hand-made You may not have the time to make all your gifts but I know you will be out purchasing them. Why not purchase a handmade gift from someone instead of somewhere.
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The majority of our gift giving is handmade except for a few rare exceptions to our children (Itunes gift cards) and occassional to each other (tools that can't be made). This year besides jams & jellies, hand made knitted items, I'm bottling up homemade apple cider vinegar and if we brewed it correctly hard cider. For my husband & daughter who hunt I'm making them mats to keep their bums warm while they sit in the woods.
What a great lot of posts you have on this idea. When my children were little I encouraged them to think of what they were going to give for christmas rather than obsessing with what they were going to get. In the early years we made almost everything but now the older two are 13 and 16 and less likey to sit and craft.However, you've put up some great ideas which I will point them to. Thanks for that.Also you might want to look at my blog for some tutorials. There is a very simple book, a padded pinboard and even waldorf doll. I certainly know that I've had great feedback from all of these.http://www.simmy.typepad.com/echoesofadream/PS I've made lemoncillo this year for pressies and vanilla essence so far. Thinking of candied orange peel too.
Several years ago my oldest daughter (I have two grown girls) said she was tired of the commercialism and was curtailing lots of spending on gifts. I thought it was a great idea. So we have for the past few years. This year due to the economy and my not working right now, I had already decided that the majority of my Christmas was going to be items I crocheted. I'm almost through. I accept your pledge too although I have already purchased a few items. I think 3 of them qualify as I found them online and they were deeply discounted. I got my girls bracelets with citrine roses for a couple of dollars and got my grandson an eagle knife to go in his collection for $5. I've only spent an amount to matter on one thing and it was something my daughter said (while we were shopping for a birthday gift she needed to get) she had been wanting for a long time and just had not justified buying it for herself. So Mama went back later and got it for her. This daughter also asks for crocheted items each year to give as gifts.
We are having a handmade, simple Christmas… much more meaningful and better for our earth.On my blog I have knitting patterns for a gnome toys, gnome baby hat, and simple two-needle mittens.Warm wishes.
Tiffany, that is awesome. I am so proud of you!!! I was thinking of that trade we made last year for the little people family I painted for you. I still use my wrap you made me all the time.
I'm already half way done with my hand-made Christmas gift list! (-; All of it is made by me, or purchased from etsy. I've got some great stuff! A broom for my parent's hearth, some wooden catapults and tops and trucks and trains, a recycled wine bottle cheese board, bath poufs, tea wallets, the list goes on! It is so much more fun than the mall too!
I was getting ready to do a search for "homemade Christmas challenge" when I happened across your post in the Yahoo Waldorf Craft group. Our family has made the pledge, and I've challenged others to do the same. Thank you!
Tricia – HI, my name is also TRISHA – lol what a quinky dink. I have to tell you that I absolutely love your idea! This is how I live and have for awhile now with my children. We do alot of things from scratch – cooking included. A few years ago, we financialy were strugling and long story short I really wanted to share my great memories of my childhood with my kids so we made it a strickly all out homemade christmas! Using basically the same rules you've laid out here. Ever since then it's kind of stuck! I have some great ideas that I would love to share with your readers, but I don't have them posted to a blog. How would I go about posting them? Please feel free to email me at tcs959798@hotmail.com. I'd love to help make yours and everyone's Christmas a little brighter this year!Take Care,TrishaDelaware
Hi there! (Found you via waldorf craft) We already planned on doing this so I accept your challenge :)I started working on gifts a couple months ago and I have my oldest daughters St. Nicholas present mostly done (hand knit doll outfit), I am knitting the kitties some mice toys, we are making all handmade ornaments for our tree, and I have a lot of other things I am workingon for the Holidays. All handmade, of course! I don't have a sepcific post on my blog b/c I have been working on this since August or so but here's a link:http://www.frontierdreams.blogspot.comThanks for doing this!
Hi, I think handmade gifts is a good idea for Christmas and we are low on funds this year, so I think that is what our family plans to do. I also have an ETSY shop where I am trying to sell some handmade dolls just in case anyone is interested in them. I'll post the link to my blog below which will take you to my Dancing Fairy Dolls Etsy shop. OK, thanks for posting this idea.Julie
We are having a mostly homemade Christmas this year. I have already made a bunch of things on my blog http://daphne-creativemom.blogspot.com/ The handmade gifts are usually the best remembered anyway. My kids will be making picture frames to put pictures of themselves into give to all of the relatives.
We're not having a totally handmade Christmas, but a mostly handmade Christmas. I posted a few ideas today on my blog at http://cheeriosunderfoot.blogspot.com/2009/11/wfm….
This is such a sweet and meaningful idea. I wonder if I could get my family to do it?