A Gift Guide with Heart.

The holidays are rapidly approaching (hurrah!) and I put together a few ideas for those who haven’t finished their gift shopping. This time of year can be a lot of fun, but can get out of hand when we think about how much stuff is consumed. From the gifts no one really needs to the insane amount of wrapping and cards to the numerous big family dinners, there is a mass consumption of stuff.

I think a bit of indulgence is allowed, and I certainly don’t want to be Scrooge. But instead of feeling like we need to get bigger and better presents to express our love, we can still buy gifts, but ones that are more thoughtful and in line with our values. Sprinkle this season with a few gifts and lots of family time.

And copious amounts of hot chocolate and cookies, of course.

Fair Trade

Last year, along with making most of my presents, I got lots of Fair Trade goodies to give to my family – chocolates, teas, and coffees. It was my little way of supporting Fair Trade with my money and introducing family members to Fair Trade goodies. If you’ve been trying to convince your dad for-ev-er to drink Fair Trade coffee, this might be your chance to introduce him to it! Equal Exchange has put together some baskets – some fabulous, last minute deals! (Although, they expire TOMORROW, December 15th, so you’d better order fast!)

Eco-Friendly

Think reusable. Reusable shopping bags, reusable water bottles, reusable travel coffee mugs (or, if they shun drinking from reusable coffee mugs, get them one of these), and reusable towels (boo to paper towels!). Break your brother's disposable habit by filling a (reusable!) bag with lots of these goodies.

Local

Got a friend who's addicted to big box stores, chain restaurants, and corporate coffee shops? Introduce her to what your town or city has to offer with some gift cards to a local business or two. Soon she’ll see how much more fun shopping local can be!

Healthy

Maybe your mom keeps talking about going on some crazy fad diet (as she does every year) – encourage her to eat healthy (and eat, period! Crazy diets…bleh) by purchasing a share of a CSA. Depending on the CSA, she’ll get some form of delicious, local fruits and vegetables every week or month. Check out Local Harvest for more information or to find a CSA near you.

Clean & Green

Is your sister a tad OCD? As in, you’d rather eat off her bathroom floor than your kitchen table? If she’s using lots of bleach and other nasty chemicals, help her break the habit and keep a healthier home by giving her a basket full of fabulous cleaning supplies without all the nasties. Some of my favorite are this, this, this, and this. She will appreciate it, I promise.

Et Cetera

A few more ideas that may be a bit more sustainable than the average gift :

• A donation to charity
• Soy candles
• An experience – a concert, dinner at a nice restaurant, or a play.
• A microloan on Kiva.org.
  
• Essential oils
• An iTunes gift card – digital music is less waste than a hard copy.
• Shop around on Etsy and support handmade!
• Paraben-free make up or nail polish without formaldehyde (um, ew)
• Anything from Heifer International.
  
• Homemade anything – from food to pampering kits.
• Wood toys are much better than plastic ones for the kiddos in your life – they last longer and are more durable. (Bonus points if it’s sustainably forested!)

A note on waste

During the weeks from Thanksgiving to New Years, about 1 million additional tons of garbage to our landfills each week in the US. EACH week. As in, in ADDITION to the waste we already create. That is just crazy ridiculous. To help reduce this waste, give your gifts in reusable gift sacks or wrap your gifts in newspaper or other reused material. I promise, with a little creativity, they will look even nicer than those glossy wrapping papers!

Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With Love.

I've decided to almost not shop at all for presents this year.

Which means, I had to take today and tomorrow off work to actually MAKE all these presents, since I was busy starting an Etsy shop this past month.

{If you are a sister of mine, and want to be surprised when we do our gift exchange, stop reading this now....}


...


{Really! I mean it!}


....


Okay, so as I was going to say - I am busy pretending to be a stay-at-home wife and making lots and lots of gifts.

Want to see?

I made several sets for my gift bags which will include the rice heat therapy bag, cold therapy headache pillow, candy cane sugar scrub (made by me), a box of Trader Joe's Candy Cane Joe Joes (better than Thin Mints, if I may say so.), and some fair trade hot cocoa, coffee, and tea. Relaxation gift bags. Woohoo.

You can also see some personalized makeup pouches that I'm creating for mes soeurs.
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I bought Mike's presents, but added my own touch to them:

The sewing is a little embarrassing, but the important part is: Look! I got him an iPod! I rock!

It's a Simpsons reference - this episode about M[apple], with myPhones and myPods. Anyway. Carry on.

I also got him this cup he's been bugging me about FOREVER. It's called, "I'm not a paper cup" and it made of ceramic with a silicone lid. I made him a little argyle cuff to keep his hands from get burnt.

By the way, since I'm throwing pictures around like a madwoman, I've added a few things to my shoppe over the last few weeks -

1. flowery delight tote 2. black and green flowers boxy zipper pouch. 3. purple love felt pouch 4. pretty zipper pouch

Whew! My sewing machine and I are like BFF now, you guys. Oh, and can't forget Seinfeld DVDs, where would I be without them?

Hope your Christmas/Hanukkah/last-full-week-of-December week is going well!

{FAQ 3} On food, homemade gifts, and black sheepdom.

Stephanie wonders:
(1) What's your favorite Thanksgiving food? (I'm also a vegetarian and everyone always asks me what I eat on Thanksgiving... hello?! Have they not seen all the side dishes?)

I love to eat. I mean, I know people say that - but I ate more at Thanksgiving this year than my husband did. I'm serious about eating. But I get fully really quickly, so I annoy my family and friends by complaining every five seconds about being full. My sister and I contemplated the benefits of having four stomachs like cows do. It could be great for me. (Not the vomiting part. That would be awful.)

Also, I completely agree with you - being a vegetarian is no punishment on Thanksgiving! Fifty bajillion wonderful side dishes means I don't have to eat any of that gross bird. {I don't even eat Tofurkey, because I don't like the taste. But that's another story.}

Back to your question, I'd say my favorite side dish is sweet potatoes if they're done right. Mashed potatoes (I eat them with homemade cranberry-citrus sauce) are delicious, too!

(2) Are you planning on making Christmas gifts again and, if so, what do you plan on making?

Yes! I'm all about handmade - less packaging, less expensive, less commercial Christmas stress, and more personalized! Since my sisters usually read this blog (hi guys!), all I'll say is I'll be making things similar to what is in my Etsy store, food and bath salts in jars like last year, and even trying to make soap! (The internet has so many resources. It makes me happy.)

Steph (Corwin) asks: When was your first break-away-from-the-pack moment? You know since you're such a crazy compared to your family ;) Is there some defining moment in your life when you realized you were different from your family, or were you always that way?

My parents always really supported me when I was growing up. I was very much their "golden child," {I'm not just saying this, it's true. Very silly, but true.} because I was into my faith and did well in school. They'd tell my siblings to be more like me. {Weird, right?}

A few distinct moments stand out when I thought, "I...don't...agree...with my parents?!" Slightly panicked, to be honest. As a people-pleasing, teacher's pet kind of girl, not agreeing with your parents is really, insanely difficult.

Once when I was in middle school, my dad and I were discussing the Nike brand. I expressed concern over sweatshops, to which my dad explained that their wages weren't that bad for that area of the world, and that "at least Nike is creating work there".

"But...just because it's somewhere else doesn't mean they deserve to live like that," I said, surprising even myself for disagreeing with Dad. Intelligent, knows-everything, always-right Dad. We talked about it for a while longer. It was an odd feeling, coming away realizing that, for once, my dad didn't convince me.

My senior year of high school, The War started, and I was honestly confused as to why we were fighting. I asked my dad to explain it to me.

And, again, I came away from the conversation genuinely surprised to find that I still thought it was...not right. I wasn't convinced.

Then I went off to college, where I learned a lot. A lot. I was pushed, challenged, and confronted. I questioned my beliefs and values. I came to conclusions. I grew so much. I did what you're supposed to do in college.

I got to meet crazy, liberal hippies who were religious and so cool and not at all as evil as I had heard. I did a ton of service and then learned about the root causes behind injustices. I tutored immigrants for their citizenship test and wrote letters to my legislators about immigration reform. I went to an immigration rally and was confronted by neo-Nazis. A crazy, radical Christian came on campus and I read his book about Jesus' message of justice, not judgment. I wrote a letter to the Pope about fostering a consistent ethic of life (for a class, I'm not that much of a weirdo!), I led a small group about faith and justice - I was fiercely and wholly passionate.

I took one class called History of Catholicism in the US, and learned that liberalism has always been a plague on the church. It has always been feared. It has always been loathed. And...it lead great things. (The priest faces us and we can understand what he's saying!) I stopped thinking of "liberal" as a bad word because of that class.

I still feel a twinge of guilt when I come to conclusions that are different than my parents, but honestly - I am also very thankful to have such a different view in my own family. It makes me less likely to make sweeping generalizations about people I disagree with, it makes me more willing to find common ground, and it makes me appreciate agreeing with my husband. :)

I'm also proud of myself for staying true to who I am and not burying my real thoughts and feelings in order to stay the golden child. It's hard stuff. And most people will never experience what it's like to firmly disagree with their parents. I don't recommend it, but I do recommend being who you are!

We all want a better world, we just have different ideas of how to get there.

DIY Gift on a Rainy Saturday.

Creating is so much fun for me. When I came across a felt how-to book on sale at the bookstore, I snatched it up. Who can resist adorable crafts!? Plus, felt comes in such fun colors, it makes me happy.

Last year, I gave homemade candles, brownie mixes, white hot cocoa and cappuccino mixes, soup mixes, and homemade bath salts as gifts. (I recycled old jars and saved tons of money. And my family LOVED the gifts!) Plus, I got to decorate them all cute-like and that makes me happy. See?

This year, I planning to do mostly homemade gifts again, as well sew some cloth tote/shopping bags with adorable material (maybe even made from thrifted sheets? who knows how resourceful I'll get!), make some note card sets, and some felted goodness.

I'm going to show how I made an adorable bird makeup pouch! (from Felt Underground.)

Note: You can make it big or small, wide or narrow. A pencil case, makeup pouch, toiletry bag, whatever! Also, you can put whatever shape you'd like on it - maybe not birds, but flowers for a little girl, or stars. I love star shapes.

Materials:
Enough felt to make pouch
Scraps/small pieces for birds
Embroidery thread
Sewing thread
Needle
Pins
Zipper
(Sewing machine optional.)

Steps*:
1. Cut felt to size you desire - mine was about 6x3 inches. Small enough to fit a bit of makeup for the weekend. You should have two pieces the same size and shape.

2. Trace bird shapes (look for patterns online) on top paper, cut out paper and pin to extra, different colored felt. Cut a few bird shapes out from extra felt.

3. Pin birds onto one piece of the felt for the pouch and sew on with embroidery thread:

4. Lay the pieces out so the long edges line up - pin the zipper in between the pieces. Hand or machine sew each side of the zipper to the felt. Try to keep the felt as close to the zipper as possible:

My sewing was rough at first. I was a bit rusty. :)

5. Cut the any overhanging the zipper off and fold the pouch so the birds are on the inside. Make sure the zipper is open. Pin the felt together along the three edges.

6. Sew the felt sides together, staying about 1/8 inch away from edges:

Sew extra over the zipper to reinforce it:

7. Remove pins and turn right-side-out. Fill with things that make you happy and zip closed. Ta-da!

Now, please excuse me while I go buy more felt, thread, and cloth to start my Christmas gifts. Budget-style.

*I apologize for the embarrassingly shoddy photo quality. My camera isn't so great in dim light.

Holiday Weekends and Stimulus Checks

This long holiday weekend, we had planned on going to Mike's twin niece and nephew's first birthday party and to my sister's college graduation party. With gas at four dollars a gallon, we opted out of driving over 500 miles round trip and stayed here instead. Good for gas, good for the environment, and good for us supporting local businesses!

Yesterday, we took a day trip to Yellow Springs - the most fantastic place I've been in Ohio. It's slightly okay, really, "hippie" - with TONS of local stores and restaurants. It's a small little town, home of the recently closed Antioch College and Dave Chapelle. But it's tons of fun and full of energy.

We blew through some of our stimulus check at the local shops in town (what we didn't, we made up for later in the day at Gabriel Brothers, Target, Delia's, and Sephora...we I splurged, okay?).

It was so much fun. SO much. I really needed a perfect day like yesterday.

On the road - I like the passenger's side.

The sign to the Asian Goods Market -- I love it, but am curious why it's "Welcome IN"?

We're here!


Like my new earrings? Product of the fair trade store. Sweeet.

All of their street sign posts are covered with knit cozies. The telephone poles even had knit peace signs on them.


Michael.


This made me laugh. Dirty Pop now considered...rap!?


Tiniest chocolate bar EVER. (Dark chocolate, too!)


Greatest pizza known to humankind. For real.


A store devoted to green living. Great stuff here - I got my godson an environmentally-harvested wood toy for his birthday, my kids at work organic, fruit-sweetened, chemical free lollipops, and some great buttons! It a great, new store.

There are more pictures on my Flickr page.

I Come Bearing Gifts

I LOVE Christmas!

I do, I really really do. My extended family gets together and is disgustingly happy - playing games, sledding, and doing things like exchanging sappy letters instead of useless gifts. We even have a caroling party. (It seems like no one carols anymore. People don't know what to do when we come to their front door. Not like I'd have any clue, either: "Crap! It's cold and I'm wearing pajamas and I can't leave or I'll look rude! Smile and endure the singing.")

I usually spend lots of time the month before Christmas trying to find exciting, personal, unique gifts for everyone. No cheap, plastic, battery operated toys for my godson (or new nieces and nephews)! Wooden personalized name puzzles or photo books or wooden sushi sets, like I'm giving this year. I love the personalized gifts for EVERYONE - Snapfish has been my best friend for the past few years. There aren't a TON of people we get gifts for - immediate family, grandparents, and my godson. Maybe some friends? That's over 20 people right there.

This year, newly married, trying to save money, and enjoying the added bonus of not doing too much of the commercial Christmas thing, (I did go Black Friday shopping. It's FUN! I like buying stuff. Retail therapy and all that, I believe in it. :) But I definitely keep it to a minimum. Because not being able to pay my bills would cause way more stress.) we decided to make our own gifts. We have been saving our glass jars from salsa, applesauce, and jelly. Plus, we have lots of mason jars lying around -- so we decided to do gifts in a jar! Sand Art Brownie Mix, Cappuccino Mix, Friendship Soup Mix, French Vanilla Hot Chocolate, Candy Cane Bath Salts, and the most endeavorous of them all - Homemade Candles.

I'm not sure how well received they will be, but they were so much fun to make together. I got to be crafty, have an excuse to watch more TV, and test the mixes, of course. :) Yum! I went the grocery store to buy all the food mix ingredients - it was less than $50. Add to that the craft store materials (wax crystals, wicks, salts, fabric, ribbon, etc) and we made 25 jars for less than $100. That's less than $4 a gift. Shhh, don't tell. We'll probably give one or two to everyone on our list (except the little kids - they get sushi), plus a small gift that is more personal. It's really hard for me to restrain from not spending more on everyone -- I just want them to know how much I love them. :)

Here's the finished product of the cappuccino, hot chocolate, and brownie mixes:

After I made the mixes and put them in jars I decorated some of the jars with green and red fabric cut into stars or trees, a la this salsa jar turned cappuccino mix:

I also cut squares out of the fabric and hot glued them to the lid, then used some hemp string to tie the fabric around the jar. For most of them, the lid can easily be unscrewed with the fabric and string still in place. I cut the labels out of card stock, decorated them and put instructions on the back. This project is pretty darn environmentally friendly PLUS it's super affordable. Score. You're reusing old jars, buying some simple food and craft items, and spending a little time to create some really special gifts.

As far as wrapping goes, it would be most eco-savvy to not wrap the gifts at all. However, seeing as how we have a bazillion bags left over from our wedding, we'll be using those some some reused tissue paper to give most of these gifts. They are sort of wrapped already, but I really love the prolonged suspense of giving and getting gifts. Kids don't love gift bags so much, since they just want to tear through the paper. So I wrapped those in classifieds and added some cloth ribbon:

it's da sushi!

The ribbon, hemp string, and fabric really made a few simple gifts look nice. I'm really excited to give these out!

Here are a few more pictures of our hard work::

First time making candles -- they smell like lilac!

Yum. Chocolate chips.

(Recipes are from allrecipes.com, razzledazzlerecipes, and organizedchristmas.com.)