When I was young, my sister and I loved to use tin foil, old florist or wrapping paper, popsicle sticks, cardboard, and other saved items to recycle into Christmas cards and decorations. We made up our own designs and worked hard to make something special. My father always said we got glitter everywhere, but my mother encouraged our creative imaginations as we made sparkly angels, stars, snowflakes, and Santas to hang on our Christmas tree and mailed many homemade glittery Christmas cards to our friends and relatives.
Sometimes we designed colorful paper chains and made strings of popcorn for our Christmas tree. We popped the corn in an old- fashioned wire basket held over the fire in our living room fireplace, taking turns shaking the basket until all the corn popped. We would eat half the popcorn, so making popcorn chains took a lot of time.
Today you can go to Walmart, Dollar Tree, Michael’s, and Hobby Lobby and purchase inexpensive kits to make your own holiday items. I recently checked out Hobby Lobby and found a large supply of easy, do-it-yourself kits to make tree ornaments, Christmas cards, gift tags, jewelry, decorator stockings, doorknob hangers, magnets, picture frames and more crafts with holiday motifs. Many of the kits to paint and decorate are half price to get you in the holiday spirit to create.
Some of the kid’s craft sets I thought were creative for gift-giving included the Fashion Magic Jewelry Set ($19.99), Special Occasion Fashion Making Kit ($39.99), Scooby Doo Temporary Tattoo Kit ($7.99), 4 in I Wood Workshop-Build and Design — including a train, plane, race car and fire truck ($26.99), Silk Screen Set ($29.99), Sew-Easy Plush Pals Set ($14.99) and Royal Sketching and Drawing Set ($14.99).
This holiday season, use your imagination plus some of the available kits and make your own Christmas cards, small gifts and decorations. If you wrap and deliver some of your gifts to others like a neighbor down the street, a grandparent you love, friends from school, a needy family, or share your handmade items with nursing home patients, you will really feel the Christmas spirit and enjoy this special season more by giving to others. Merry Christmas to all and happy crafting!
Alice G. Duckett is the author of 2 children’s books, a writer for several publications, and a speaker for adult and children’s programs. During December Alice will have her new CD album “Slices of Life”, a series of recorded original stories, available just in time for Christmas gifts. Call her at 256-237-7123 or e-mail aliceduckett@cbleone.net for more information.
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