Twelve months to fill a stocking

How to fill a stocking for less...Put saving money on Christmas gifts on your New Year's Resolutions this year! I'm broke this year, but had planned to fill two stockings for friends. I would have liked to have done more if I could, but I simply didn't have the spare money for postage or travel. So, what is a broke girl to do when she strongly desires to fill stockings and has made an agreement with a friend to exchange them each year? Sometime around Valentine's day last year, I had a brilliant thought. If I buy one small gift each month, I'll have twelve gifts to fill that stocking. I bought Andrea's favorite tic-tacs in February, and began searching a snowman related gift for January. In March, I found a green boxing Leprechaun that brought me much sillines. In April, I ficked up some sliquid in honor of April Fool's day. I continued like this much of the year, finding small gifts that suited the stocking filling I needed to accomplish. By the time December came, I had much of the stocking filled and ready. I added some incense and candles laying around, wrapped the gifts up (which is optional—though the sliquid formed a really cool looking tree), and filled the stocking. By now it is overfilling, and I hardly had to buy a thing for it in December, when we're all broke from making Christmas gifts happen. This is simply one little way to keep Christmas going all year round if you like. The second idea for filling a stocking wasn't cheaper by any means, but worked well for me. I trade stockings with my boyfriend each year, and since he likes certain stocking stuffer size foods, I've started getting them as they go on sale. Most of them are either non-perishable, or only semi-perishable. So I buy them in November and December as sales and cash flow allow. I bought Chocolate Covered Cherries, Pistachios, and Peanut M&Ms for this stocking. For the toe, and the one non-food item, I found an old Jade candle(still in wrapping), that I had yet to use. Since it looked good and smelled good, I added the candle to the toe, instead of the orange. I have started making this stocking rather a traditional mix, but plan to mix it up more next year. I almost forgot the bacon covered chocolate. In a weak moment at the mall, while waiting for him to purchase my gifts the Sunday before Christmas, I saw a stand called “Chocolate Freaking Bacon.” When I saw the Chocolate Smoked Habanero Bacon, I knew I had to get it for him. I was already technically over-budget on this guy, but I snuck the purchase in and dropped it in my coat pocket and watched his surprise as he opened this gift on Christmas Eve. He enjoyed it. If you can't afford to buy the chocolate covered bacon, perhaps you can make your own with a recipe online. I have not looked up any recipes yet, but may in the near future. Best of luck on next year's stocking filling. And now is a great time to buy! Happy New Year! And may you stick to your resolution for another day.

Secret Santa Stockings

What are secret santa stockings? Just that...And they're simple too. My favorite stories are those of St. Nicholas leaving gifts in people's stockings out of kindness. Can one man in a sleigh make it around the world with a gift (or many) for every child? The child in me says 'of course' and 'well, duh'. The reasonable woman in me who looks at where these stories began know the lore is much more rich than the bribe that Santa has become today. I much prefer St. Nicholas, or Kris Kringle who dropped coins in girl's stockings so they could have a dowry(not that they should need one, but its a good safeguard), and who made toys for the children of the village. What really inspires me is not the gain from these people, but the kindness that drove their actions. There are still people in the world who believe in giving for the sake of giving. There are people who give of themselves everyday, while asking for nothing in return. To me, that is the true spirit of the Holiday Season-to keep it holy, not to keep it ego-centric around the 'right' religion of the day. So, what do I do about it? Since I have brow-beaten my friends into filling my stockings for years to come, and I fill theirs for them as well. I have moved to a new level. This year, I am combining two said gifts of love, the stocking and a stress relief kit that I learned of in a class. If you search 'stress relief kit' on the internet, you'll find dozens to hundreds of variations for this. I'll go over some of the basics here that make my stockings Christmas-y. However, these stress relief kits can be made and put into small pouches anytime of year. Yuletide Stress Relief Kit 1) Hot Tea- a person never knows how strong they are until they get into hot water. 2) Hot Cocoa- a person never knows how strong they are until they get into hot milk-it's stickier. 3) Hugs & Kisses- it takes many to get through the tough times. 4) An eraser-for life's mistakes 5) A band-aid-for life's boo-boos 6) Lifesavers-for when you need to be rescued 7) A sucker-for when you feel the life is being sucked out of you. 8) A Candy Cane- for when you need to get a handle on things. 9) A bell(or two)-for when you need to be reminded to believe. 10) A string-for when you are at the end of your rope-tie a knot and hang on (optional). Variations: A penny-for positive thoughts Marbles-for when you feel you have lost yours Anything else that fits in the stocking and holds meaning to the gifter/giftee. The simplicity, put each item into an 8" felt stocking, a 4"x6" pouch/baggie(or whatever size you have on hand), and write or print the list of items in it with their meanings. The key is to give this gift in total secret, to someone who has known hard times, often in the recent past. If it cannot remain secret, its best to keep it as secret as possible for as long as possible until the recipient guesses that you did it. Then just say "Yes, I did." If they ask why, the answer is simple: "I thought you could use it," or "I was just thinking of you." I find the gift of caring is one of the best gifts one can give, and it should not be done with ulterior motives.

Stress Relief Gift Bags

I'm in the middle of sewing fleece/flannel blankets for children to sell for extra money since I've become unemployed, so this year's ideas will have to be creative. In addition to creative, I have to mail many gifts as my little brother and his delightful family moved to Florida. If I didn't have a job when they moved, I might have followed. Alas, its too late for that. Since I have a big thing for the stocking tradition of Christmas, its my favorite, I have decided that stuffing stockings for friends is a great Christmas idea. I can't say all that's going into them, but there are small inexpensive things that fill stockings pretty well. One thing I'm putting in is a stress-relief kit, or a small 'care package.' One was created for me as part of a group I participated in and it still touches me. I wish to touch others this way. So, I'm taking the scraps from the blankets I'm making, and I'm sewing flannel pouches with drawstrings and filling them. What do you put into a 3"x5" bag? All sorts of things: lip balms, cuticle cream, foot cream(tubes under 4"), small hand lotions, etc...or you turn them into an "I care/stress relief" kit and you put in the following: 1) A Band-Aid for life's boo-boos. (This is where you splurge on the peanuts band-aids, and your kids, if you have them, will thank you.) 2) An eraser-To erase your mistakes. 3) A penny-Heads up--For some positive thoughts/thinking 4) A string--for when you are at the end of your rope-you know the saying, tie a knot and hang-on. 5) A lifesaver candy-For when you need to be rescued. 6) A Hershey's hug-for when you need a hug 7) A Hershey's kiss-to kiss it and make it feel better 8) A Marble-For when you feel like you've lost yours. 9) A Bell-To help you hear the Christmas angels messages 10) A sucker--For when you feel life is being sucked out of you. These are only a small sampling of what you can put into this bag, but they do stay small. I'm including tea bags, for when we get into hot water, that's when we really learn how strong we are. So, if you get one of these from me, know that I've been thinking of you. If you don't it means I've been thinking of you in other ways. If you didn't get one, and you really want one, go make one and make one for someone else while you're at it.

For the seamstress/frugal shopper

This Christmas gift wrap idea has come almost as much out of necessity in these tough economic times as it has out of creativity. This originated for my oldest niece's birthday gift last year. I decided to get her Barbie's that came with clothing and smaller chest for the movies they've put out to bolster Barbie's reputation. There are between two and four dogs residing in my niece's house, and I was quite disappointed to learn that the dogs had chewed up some of her favorite dolls. There were some semi-pricey ones I'd gotten her as well. I usually aim to spend about $20.00 on this child's gift each year.

Having heard about the dogs mishaps with the Barbie's and deciding that the best offense is often not defense(though that helps too), but prevention; I went to Target and proceeded to search out a tote that would hold the Barbie dolls. This way, if the dog attempted to chew, he would have to chew through the plastic tote to get to the semi-pricey dolls. I found a clear tote with a purple lid that suited my niece and fit the Barbie. I paid $5.00 for the tote. I bought the Barbie on-line for about $15.00, only it did not arrive in time for her birthday. So, I went to the store on payday, and bought her a six dollar Barbie to present in the gift at her birthday party.

This tote left me at a loss as to how to wrap the contraption. It did not suit gift wrap well, as it had odd dimensions. And paper gift wrap is expensive and disposable. I checked gift bags, but the biggest ones are over $5.00, for printed paper. I entertained the idea of making my own gift wrap out of old magazine pages, but that just wouldn't work for it. Finally, I decided to check Jo-Ann's Fabric and crafts and found flannel fabric on sale for $2.50 a yard. I bought a yard of fabric, took it home, placed the tote on it, and proceeded to knot the fabric on top. I wrapped ribbon either through the knot or around some of the fabric and presented it to my niece. Since my niece enjoyed sewing and had sewn her own pair of shorts as her first sewing project, the fabric proved to be a better gift wrap and craft idea than paper you simply throw away.

Since then, I have used fabric to wrap many gifts...and if someone has a good sense of humor, you can consider sewing their gift shut. Recently, I bought a cake pedestal for a friend's bridal shower and found the best gift wrap was a yard of fabric that I had at home and didn't have many plans for. My aunt's Christmas gifts were also wrapped in fabric this year to the tune of "What a great idea."

The best part is, the fabric does not need to finished, or even cut to size, unless you wish to. If you know of someone who enjoys sewing, they consider the fabric-wrap as much a part of the gift as the gift itself. And to think, how many times can you re-use this gift wrap? Or you can make something useful out of it. You can also personalize the gift wrap. If someone is into dogs, they have dogs. If someone is into music, they have treble clefs or guitars. Some fabrics are masculine and plaid, some are feminine and frilly. I wouldn't go too feminine, unless you just want a pretty wrap and not a concealing one.

Also, to keep this affordable, buy quality fabric on sale. A good cotton or flannel or even a $10 a yard brocade (on sale for $6 a yard), is a better deal for concealing and wrapping a special gift than the $2.00 a yard cotton that won't completely cover the gift and will fray on the first washing.

Best of luck, and I hope you enjoy this idea.

Wanted: Old metal trash can with character...character...hmm....

I decided this year to give my brother a nice photo frame that held three 5x7 photos. I picked out favorite photos of each of the three kids and placed each child's photo in an opening. I then added second options for some of the kids behind the first. I assembled the 10"x20" photo frame and wrapped it, carefully. Then I took some neckties I had picked up at goodwill and bobby pinned them end to end, using the tag loop to hook the connectors. I proceeded to wrap the photo frame with the ties.

I decided his gift was going into a trash can this year, and decided on the old metal kind. I was hoping to find a decent used one. I wanted the kind with dents and scratches that give it character. I was driving to work as I was thinking about this...and I said, hmmm....old metal trash can, with character...Hmmmm....sounds kinda like oscar the grouch. I went to Jo-Ann's that night and was grateful to find fleece on sale and got the closest match to Oscar I could muster up. I checked the furry stuff, but no ugly greens, I even checked the reduced rack and the remnants. I was stuck buying just fleece, but it would work. It was for a concept, not an art contest. Then I went to the felt, and found the appropriate color of orangy-goldenrod for the eyebrows. Later I went back for black for a mouth and a styrofoam ball for a head. I also purchased stick on velcro.

When I saw the price of the styrofoam ball, I considered buying a ball for the kids. I just bought the styrofoam and went on. I tied the fleece around the ball with a red ribbon that said Merry Christmas, which I tied into a bow to resemble the bow tie I remember Oscar wearing. I then held Oscar's head near the lid and arranged placement of the fleece and velcro. Once I got the velcro in, I inserted the picture frame, arranged Oscar, attached him, and added peanuts.

I sewed the eyebrow onto Oscar and cut it to size, then I sewed on the black felt mouth opening and two cotton ball eyes which would have to be enough detail for his face. I really would have liked more time to plan better details for all of Oscar.

Having remembered many scenes of Oscar tossing various debris out of his garbage can, I didn't take long, to add styrofoam peanuts on top of the Oscar fleece as well as used water bottles and probably an empty can or two that I normally would have placed in recycling. Anything else that suited my fancy in the two days I had to create oscar went into the trashcan. I did include a snake in a can gag gift I had found at Spencer's during my trek through the mall to Target to get the rest of my Christmas gifts.

I also attached Oscar's head to the lid, so that when he was opened, he popped out and tossed debris with him. This proved a bit of a challenge at first. I was lucky in that the lid handle provided metal cylinders to push something though to hold it on, but what would hold well and fit? I tried wire, but mine was too thin. I tried thread, but it broke immediately. I considered yarn, but knew it would wear thin. Finally, in a last ditch effort, after locating a darning needle(larger eye with blunter tip for fixing socks), I threaded a ribbon through it and then through the fleece, and then pushed it through the cylinders that held on the lid handle. Hot damn! It worked. I knotted it off and proceeded to finish packing Oscar. Once he was full, I made sure the lid was on tight and loaded him into my truck.

When I carried in the decoy trash can(I had hoped to borrow a friend's but it proved to be too small), and Oscar right behind it, my brother said to me: "You put my gift in a trash can." I couldn't lie though I thought about it before I saw the shrimp, and I said, "Yes, I did." When it came time to open it, I told him he had to open it fast. I did this for effect. I also told him he had to open everything. He did, was slightly surprised by the snake in a can, and promptly put it back together to hand it to my 11 year old nephew (who was working through his own box in a box in a box) to open.

The best part, was hearing him exclaim, "Awesome." when he opened the photo frame to find candid photos of each his children in the matte.

Now to start planning for next year...

Is that a wooden shoe? No, its a wood box, stapled shut.

He finally did it. My dear brother went and used wood, and created a good wooden box to house my gift in. You need a couple of things to pull this off...wood, staples, a durable gift, or one that won't be damaged when hand tools go through it, and gumption. You need gumption to open it too.

Knowing my brother isn't stupid, once I got the tools, I was able to beat the box up a little. However, we need background, its not meant as whining, though it was a quite stressful day, but when you drive to a town three hours away for a funeral the night before the family gathering(for those not affected by the funeral), and you drive three hours back and don't finish the stuffed animals you'd planned to give to two of the kids, you get a little stressed.

After a potentially quick trip to target to buy two gifts and stopping at home to unload the boyfriend's car and load up my truck-my brother's gift would have left no mirror in boyfriend's car. I was a little stressed and I had brought in the bag where my handy-dandy multi-purpose tool was waiting for Christmas reverie. The tool I needed for Christmas gift wrap was sitting warm and snug and useless on my couch. No one wanted to bring me a screwdriver.

Let me explain the box before I get too far ahead of myself...The sides were nearly one inch thick, and about 8 inches long. The box was about six inches across. The ends were thin pieces of veneer or laminate type wood at a mere 3/16 of an inch. The ends were stapled on. He did leave little lips at the edges of the box. This could have easily been removed with some prying from my multi-purpose tool flat head screwdriver part. No one found me a screwdriver though, since said gerber/multi-purposee tool was sitting comfortably at home on my couch.

My brother did acquiesce after a few moments and brought me a hammer. I attempted to pry it off with the claw-head, as I didn't know the lip trick. The things they don't teach you in wood-shop in seventh grade, and if they did(which I'm sure they didn't), you have long since forgot. Finally, after pulling and clawing with the hammer claw, I decided my brother was smart enough not to put anything breakable in the box, and would leave room for destruction.

I smacked the head of the hammer into the thin wood type board on the ends and then clawed the rest of the veneer type stuff off the end to find a nice bag of Starbuck's coffee. Next year, I think I'm bringing a drill complete with attachments...now off to Home Depot to buy a good drill and pea grinder.

Fruitcake in a Dozen Mason Jars

Sounds easy, right? Take a dozen pieces or sets of pieces of fruitcake and drop it in the jars and seal tight and wrap. We never do things the easy way. I bought red saran wrap specifically for this gift, and yes, I wrapped the fruitcake, two pieces at a time and dropped it into cute little pint sized mason jars. I ran out of fruitcake around jar 7. I stretched the last pieces by placing single pieces in the saran wrap and jars. But I couldn't give empty jars, and not much stuff was inexpensive that fit in the jars.

I considered candy and may have put some in 1 or 2, but my brother is not a big candy fan. I searched the house and came up with nothing that would fit and/or work. I shopped while he was at work and found nothing. Finally, in desperation for something to put in these darned jars, I took the money in my purse, sorted it out. I placed a dollar bill in one, wrapped in saran wrap. Then I pulled out the coins, and since I was being silly, placed two cents in another saran wrap and jar. After those two, I did a couple more with some silver coinage, each in saran wrap and twist tied closed.

Then I sealed these jars up tight, put them back in their case and proceeded to wrap them multiple times, including a great deal of newspaper. This was one of the gifts I had the most fun wrapping, but the point of doing this is not just to make it difficult for the other person to open, but to have fun wrapping the gift and even more fun when you sit back to watch them open a dozen cute little mason jars to figure out what their gift is.