Happy Blogmas, everybody! To start this year’s Blogmas, I want to share with you some DIY gift ideas for friends and family.
This holiday season, I am on a TIGHT budget. Being in grad school full-time, not working, and having more time than usual to devote towards DIY projects, I thought this year would be the perfect year for DIY gifts. I am grateful to have friends and family who believe gifts are more than the amount of money spent. I mean, I am sure they wouldn’t turn down an iPad… but there is something to be said about a person who takes the time to make something specific for another person.
Because I have not yet exchanged gifts with any of my friends this season, I will refrain from posting the designs I came up with for particular gifts (with an exception to one I already shared through IG). However, I will share the project idea, where I learned to create them, and my thoughts on how they turned out!
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Image Source: shopsweetthings.com
First up is DIY Canvas Art. This is nothing new to you hardcore crafters out there. For me (the DIY noob), it was a lot of fun and it gave me a chance to find my artistic side. I am what you call the idea person. I rarely can execute the ideas floating around my head. I often recruit my mom to do that for me. I was determined this year to do it myself… and that I did! I learned about simple canvas art through What’s Up Moms, a YouTube Channel I recently began following when I found out I was going to be an auntie. After seeing the canvas art they share with their viewers, I found more that peaked my interest. Click here for a step-by-step guide to easy DIY Canvas Art! Get creative and go your own way with it. I have created some seriously unique and fun gifts tailored to each friend/family member.
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Image Source: What’s Up Moms
For the Lush lovers in your group, you HAVE to try making DIY Bath Bombs! Believe it or not, it is easy, relaxing, and fun. Let’s face it, Lush isn’t cheap. I love that place, but I have a hard time justifying $8-30 worth of pamper products that I could easily make at home for less. My cousin, Tara, got me onto DIY Bath Bombs (along with other spa day favorites) and I haven’t turned back since. What makes these so special is you make them yourself to fit each friend’s needs. For example, if I have a friend who works crazy hours or lacks sleep, I would make them a lavender bath bomb that they are sure to love. I learned how to make them through What’s Up Moms again. They are pretty amazing, y’all. Check them out by clicking here. *If you cannot find citric acid for your bath bomb, use cream of tarter!!!*
- This next option is one that I haven’t quite conquered: DIY Holiday Ornaments. I had many visions for these babies, but I cannot seem to execute them. So, I would love to see what you all can come up with when making DIY holiday ornaments. I bought a 25 pack of plastic, no shatter, ornaments from Michael’s Craft Store, a few filler options such as glitter, and got creative. My patience for this DIY was pretty thin, to be honest. I am going to try again this week and really focus. Click here for a DIY ornament idea to try!
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Image Source: pinkpistachio.com
Another favorite among the Lush loving crew is lip scrub! I am obsessed with DIY lip scrubs for many reasons. The top reason being it tastes delicious haha. Aside from that, they make your lips feel soft and luxurious. The amount of money spent on a lip scrub is silly to me. The ingredients for it are likely right in your kitchen cabinets! To make a simple lip scrub with at-home ingredients, you need: lemon, coconut oil, honey, and sugar. Yup… that’s it! I used a tablespoon of each ingredient (a little more of the sugar and a light squeeze of the lemon, though). Voila! You have a lip scrub. Also a face mask if you have leftovers
Click here for more DIY Lip Scrub recipes!
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Image Source: Faithfulelephant.com (me)
My favorite of the DIY gifts this season is DIY Marbled Mugs! Seriously, I am obsessed with these. I posted the photo you see here on my Instagram and received a lot of positive feedback. Believe it or not, they are SO simple to make. Grab a bowl or piece of tupperware of WARM water that can fit a mug for dipping! Pick a few of your nail polishes (I recommend some that you don’t mind getting rid of) and pour a few drops into the warm water. Grab your mug and gently dip the mug into the bowl. Work quickly, people. Dip it in. Pull it out. No funny business in between! My first mug looked terrible, I admit it. Once you get the hang of it, though, boy is it adorable! Go to your local dollar store and buy $1 ceramic mugs and nail polish. Once it dries for a day or so, coat it with mod podge and you are ready to roll. This is super affordable and adorable. I want to add that I left a space without nail polish for where the lips will go. I kept the designs on the bottom of the mug or on the handle. Just my preference. Also, I chose to fill each mug with something special depending on the friend. One was filled with tea. Another with hot chocolate. My favorite is filled with the ingredients to make a microwave mug brownie. Add a little tag that says hand wash only and you are done! Get creative, y’all! <3 Click here for more in depth directions that I used when making these DIY Marbled Mugs.
There you have it! Those are five DIY gift ideas for this holiday season. Don’t feel limited to these options. These are the options I felt most comfortable tackling for my first DIY Christmas. Check out YouTube or Pinterest for more DIY projects. I am so pleased with my DIY experience this season. I spent a lot of time making special gifts for friends and family. My hope is they are well received and appreciated (I am sure they will be). Let me know what DIY Gifts you create this season.
xoxo,
Kristin
