My elderly grandmother is so funny to listen to. Not just because she lives in Alabama. She's fun to listen to because EVERYTHING is a lesson just waiting to happen. She is the queen of coupons and smart penny pinching ideas. VERY generous though. She buys me a plane ticket every year to come see her for instance, and is very thoughtful with us at birthdays and Xmas. Very generous with her letters, too. I get them a couple times a month and they are always like 8 pages long. Anyway, I went to visit her over the Thanksgiving break and we got to talking about family things. She mentioned she still has some items that belonged to her mother, who died in 1988. She mentioned that she'd like to make a quilt out of my great grandmother's old dresses.
I can't decide if the idea I had resulting from this conversation is brilliant or strange, but it did set off all my little crafty frugal bells. I am not half the seamstress my grandmother is. I don't know if I could actually work a sewing machine. But I DO know I could make pillows!
My mom's mother passed away a few years ago, and when I was struck with this idea last week I pictured myself looking through closets for clothing of my late grandmother's that my mom might not have gotten rid of yet, and I thought "I bet I could stitch a couple pillows by hand easily enough!" However, it very quickly occurred to me that maybe that would make for a nasty surprise for my mom rather then a thoughtful gift, I don't know. Maybe she doesn't want to come home and find her dead mother's special clothing she might have been saving severed into tatters and poorly stitched pillows, her only child standing there like a proud kindergardener who has used markers on the walls at the age of 33. So I'm not going to do it. But maybe the idea works out better for you. I havn't made these things so I don't have a picture, it was just an idea. & Even if I did said picture would probably end up on Regretsy in record time. This is regretsy, where similar well meaning but hideous ideas are showcased and critiqued for the humor of others : http://www.regretsy.com/
Here are some other things I have done.
* "family" magnets. Several years ago I photocopied a number of old family photographs at Kinkos, bought some magnet sheets at the local art supply store, and went to work cutting and adhesiving my silly butt off. This works well for a gift for anyone (anyone who has a fridge, that is). Just think of the possabilities, if not family pictures, you can use logos, mini-prints of album covers, anything you can cut out of a magazine, or pictures of the person your friend/family member is stalking. I don't remember what the magnet paper cost me, but it was adhesive on one side and you can always call and ask the Artist & Craftman supply store: (207) 772-7272 540 Deering Ave, Portland, ME I'm going to guess it was in the $10 range or less for a huge sheet.
*Build a family tree. I like this site: http://www.myheritage.com/genealogy
Alot of people use ancestry.com though. I'm not sure why. Anyway, on the myheritage site you can type in every family member as far back as you can think of, and if you have a common family member/ancestor, you get a little green dot on that person, or the occasional notification that you have "smart matches". This allows you to see other people's info and add to it. It's totally free until you have like, 600 people or something. & Even then you can still use it to print charts, etc, you just can't add to it beyond that unless you want to pay the $6.95 a month or whatever to use your own information. You can choose a specific person in your family (like Gramma, dad, 1/2 sister, great aunt, whomever) and print their family tree, including their ancestors, children, siblings, etc. It's $1.00 to download. Mine had hundreds of people on it (my Dad became interested in geneology after "Roots" came out and began compiling research on his family, so I used this info and much of it was added to from info on myheritage) so I had to have a rather large chart printed out at Staples. It still was only about $4.00. You may want to give it to someone as a chart. Ours was large, so I cut it into sections, pasted it onto pretty paper in an album I bought at Michael's crafts (with room to add photo's stories, etc), and am giving it to my Grandmother for Xmas. By the way, if you google your ancestors's names you might be suprised at what you find, including pictures or info other descendents have compiled and published on the web.
*basic beautiful photo. Maybe of your kid(s), maybe a nice professional quality photo one of them has taken. Granparents love that kinda thing. Print shops usually offer pretty generous prices. Frame them, wrap them...you have another gift to give. Also, look into options to make a calender going the same route. You can also do this with pictures your children have drawn. It also is easy to mail for those relatives who live far away. If you are going to go further with mugs, mouse pads, etc...well, just know when to say when. Several years ago I lived with a guy who's well meaning and sweet mother gifted us one Xmas with matching sweatshirts. These sweatshirts had a professional picture of the 2 of us together that we had given her. We were horrified (but did wear them around the house). I still have mine and show it to people for a laugh when I have been drinking. I can't really give it to goodwill...someone I know might see it. Or I might see it on a homeless person strolling down Congress st and I would have to live with that. Presumably sober.
*see previous blogs for info about making jewelry. Seriously, you can make a pair of earrings for less then $5.00. go to Caravan beads. You can use their tools and they will show how to make stuff if you ask them.
*anything you can bake and put in a tin makes a nice hostess gift in a pinch. My boyfriend is from Sweden and makes glogg. I really hope some year we can put some in pretty bottles and give it as gifts. Some year when we don't drink the whole damn vat in one sitting that is (it has red wine and rum as the main ingredients, see).
*on a side note, I really wish I had a reason to do this:
http://www.subversivecrossstitch.com/kits/whore.html
I know how to cross stitch, my step mother taught me when I was 9. We never had this pattern in our house though.
I can't decide if the idea I had resulting from this conversation is brilliant or strange, but it did set off all my little crafty frugal bells. I am not half the seamstress my grandmother is. I don't know if I could actually work a sewing machine. But I DO know I could make pillows!
My mom's mother passed away a few years ago, and when I was struck with this idea last week I pictured myself looking through closets for clothing of my late grandmother's that my mom might not have gotten rid of yet, and I thought "I bet I could stitch a couple pillows by hand easily enough!" However, it very quickly occurred to me that maybe that would make for a nasty surprise for my mom rather then a thoughtful gift, I don't know. Maybe she doesn't want to come home and find her dead mother's special clothing she might have been saving severed into tatters and poorly stitched pillows, her only child standing there like a proud kindergardener who has used markers on the walls at the age of 33. So I'm not going to do it. But maybe the idea works out better for you. I havn't made these things so I don't have a picture, it was just an idea. & Even if I did said picture would probably end up on Regretsy in record time. This is regretsy, where similar well meaning but hideous ideas are showcased and critiqued for the humor of others : http://www.regretsy.com/
Here are some other things I have done.
* "family" magnets. Several years ago I photocopied a number of old family photographs at Kinkos, bought some magnet sheets at the local art supply store, and went to work cutting and adhesiving my silly butt off. This works well for a gift for anyone (anyone who has a fridge, that is). Just think of the possabilities, if not family pictures, you can use logos, mini-prints of album covers, anything you can cut out of a magazine, or pictures of the person your friend/family member is stalking. I don't remember what the magnet paper cost me, but it was adhesive on one side and you can always call and ask the Artist & Craftman supply store: (207) 772-7272 540 Deering Ave, Portland, ME I'm going to guess it was in the $10 range or less for a huge sheet.
*Build a family tree. I like this site: http://www.myheritage.com/genealogy
Alot of people use ancestry.com though. I'm not sure why. Anyway, on the myheritage site you can type in every family member as far back as you can think of, and if you have a common family member/ancestor, you get a little green dot on that person, or the occasional notification that you have "smart matches". This allows you to see other people's info and add to it. It's totally free until you have like, 600 people or something. & Even then you can still use it to print charts, etc, you just can't add to it beyond that unless you want to pay the $6.95 a month or whatever to use your own information. You can choose a specific person in your family (like Gramma, dad, 1/2 sister, great aunt, whomever) and print their family tree, including their ancestors, children, siblings, etc. It's $1.00 to download. Mine had hundreds of people on it (my Dad became interested in geneology after "Roots" came out and began compiling research on his family, so I used this info and much of it was added to from info on myheritage) so I had to have a rather large chart printed out at Staples. It still was only about $4.00. You may want to give it to someone as a chart. Ours was large, so I cut it into sections, pasted it onto pretty paper in an album I bought at Michael's crafts (with room to add photo's stories, etc), and am giving it to my Grandmother for Xmas. By the way, if you google your ancestors's names you might be suprised at what you find, including pictures or info other descendents have compiled and published on the web.
*basic beautiful photo. Maybe of your kid(s), maybe a nice professional quality photo one of them has taken. Granparents love that kinda thing. Print shops usually offer pretty generous prices. Frame them, wrap them...you have another gift to give. Also, look into options to make a calender going the same route. You can also do this with pictures your children have drawn. It also is easy to mail for those relatives who live far away. If you are going to go further with mugs, mouse pads, etc...well, just know when to say when. Several years ago I lived with a guy who's well meaning and sweet mother gifted us one Xmas with matching sweatshirts. These sweatshirts had a professional picture of the 2 of us together that we had given her. We were horrified (but did wear them around the house). I still have mine and show it to people for a laugh when I have been drinking. I can't really give it to goodwill...someone I know might see it. Or I might see it on a homeless person strolling down Congress st and I would have to live with that. Presumably sober.
*see previous blogs for info about making jewelry. Seriously, you can make a pair of earrings for less then $5.00. go to Caravan beads. You can use their tools and they will show how to make stuff if you ask them.
*anything you can bake and put in a tin makes a nice hostess gift in a pinch. My boyfriend is from Sweden and makes glogg. I really hope some year we can put some in pretty bottles and give it as gifts. Some year when we don't drink the whole damn vat in one sitting that is (it has red wine and rum as the main ingredients, see).
*on a side note, I really wish I had a reason to do this:
http://www.subversivecrossstitch.com/kits/whore.html
I know how to cross stitch, my step mother taught me when I was 9. We never had this pattern in our house though.
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