10 Easy Homemade Gifts

Christmas is coming, and so are the expenses. While it’s really fun to go shopping and pick out just the right gift for everyone on your list (or at least some people say it’s fun...I actually hate shopping), it’s definitely NOT fun to still be paying for those gifts when next Christmas rolls around. So what can you do?

Trust what you heard when you were a kid: homemade gifts are the best gifts. Homemade gifts show that you’ve put both thought and effort into the gift, and they allow for unlimited creativity. When someone you love unwraps a homemade gift made by you or your kids, they’ll never have to fake happiness.

Sure, sometimes homemade gifts go wrong. The jelly you made turns out to actually be fruit soup, or the body lotion has chunks in it, or your kids just won’t sit still long enough to get their appendages painted and stamped on a mural. But those little mishaps can be exactly what makes a homemade gift so special - even if the smile it brings to your face is one of laughter because of how badly it turned out.

But let’s pretend those things never happen and your homemade gifts will turn out perfectly (they probably will!) - what will you make? Here are ten ideas, mostly made with things you can find around your little homestead. And a lot of love.

Jelly

Of course I had to include jelly on this list. Or jam. Or preserves. Whatever you want to call it. If you grow berries or know where to go pick them, spend a day in the summer making jam. My favorite is blueberry-blackberry-raspberry, but really any kind will do. I recommend picking up a cookbook that you love and following the directions so you know your precious jars of deliciousness are safe. One of my very favorite homestead-based preserves cookbooks is The River Cottage Preserves Handbook, which has really great, easy to read and understand information on seasonality (when to pick and preserve what), why preserving food is important, and how to do it safely. The best part about this gift? When you’re making jam for your family anyway, you just have to make a bit extra and *bam* your Christmas shopping is done.

Birchbark candle

Okay, this one might require a tiny bit of shopping, unless you’re SUPER crafty and know how to make your own candles (actually not that hard, but let’s be honest, who has time for that?! Grab some large white or ivory candles and harvest some birchbark from the back yard (apparently you can even buy birchbark on Amazon…but that kind of ruins the “from the homestead” vibe…but shhhh, I promise I won’t tell!). Break out the hot glue gun, attach some foil to the back of the bark - y’know, for safety’s sake - and get wrapping.

Hot chocolate in a jar

The best homemade gifts are made by kids, because the cuteness factor more than makes up for any unmet expectations in the gift giving department. And hot chocolate in a jar is the perfect thing for kids to help with. Throw a serving of hot cocoa in a jar, add some mini marshmallows and meltable chocolates in there, and tie on a festive ribbon. Voila. You can make a family-size portion too, of course, just include a tag with simple directions for brewing up a whole pot of hot chocolate. Maybe include a DVD of your favorite Christmas movie for a little added fun.

Cookies

Edible homemade gifts are always a hit (except with that no-fun cousin who’s always on a health kick - but it’s fine with me if you just want to torture them with delicious sugary treats), and cookies are both traditional AND hard to screw up. Choose a recipe from my favorite Christmas cookie cookbook (the chocolate stenciled shortbread recipe is FANTASTIC) and get baking.

Artwork

If you’re an artist, this one is super easy. Okay, maybe not EASY, but a no-brainer. The artwork in our home that I treasure most was made by people I love, and I so appreciate their hard work being gifted to our family. But what if you’re not an artist, plus you have kids taking up all your time and energy? USE THE KIDS. Not like that. Or like that? I don’t know what you’re thinking. But, have the kids make some art for their grandparents or whatever relative would most appreciate it, and then put it in a funky frame. I promise it’ll be a hit.

Cutting board

Got some spare wood laying around the garage? Choose a nice piece of hardwood like maple or cherry, cut it to cutting board size, sand the absolute shit out of it, apply a bunch of coats of food-grade oil (mineral oil or otherwise), and gift it alongside some local cheese. Bonus points for an accompanying loaf of fresh homemade bread.

Salsa

Just like the jelly, make some extra salsa with that tomato harvest and hand it out to your family. With a little practice, you can make a few different colors of homemade salsa so you’ll have the makings of a gift pack. It’s fun to customize homemade salsa to fit people’s preferences - sneak in a few habaneros for the really hardcore. My favorite salsa recipe is the Charred Tomato and Chile Salsa from this cookbook - and one year I had an abundance of tomatillos and was able to make an awesome roasted tomatillo version as well.

Gift certificates for a day at the homestead

What about gifts for nieces and nephews? Getting gifts for all the cousins can really start to add up, so it’s nice to think outside the box. My nieces and nephews love spending time at our house because it’s so different than where they’re growing up. A fun thing to do is give them a gift certificate for a day or a weekend at the homestead, with the option to choose their favorite activities. You never know, you might get a little help stacking next year’s wood!

Winter adventure

And for your own family, how about setting up a fun winter adventure. Depending on the age of your children, it could be a scavenger hunt to find animal tracks or snow caves, or a family trip to a nearby frozen pond for some ice skating or a playful hockey game. The key is that it’s family time, together.

Scarf

I don’t know about you, but when I think about homemade gifts, I think about knitting. And I’m not a knitter, but I can make a scarf! Watch a couple youtube videos or go all in with a comprehensive (and beautiful!) guide book and I bet you can, too. And who can’t use a nice warm scarf this time of year?

And there you have it, ten pretty darn easy ideas for homemade gifts for pretty much everyone on your list.