Excuse Me While I Stand on My Gift Box

     One of the biggest challenges of not buying new has been trying to come up with gifts for people.  I wouldn't want someone to be disappointed or annoyed by a gift, which made me almost want to quit gift giving all together for this year.  I mean, not everyone loves homemade things, or previously loved items, like myself.
     One night, while fretting about a birthday gift I was working on, I had a realization.  Why isn't gift giving more about love or friendship or goodwill and not at all about the present? No matter what funky gift I give my Grandma, she always LOVES it!  Why?  Because she knows that it means I was thinking about her when I made or found it.
     Why do so many of us beat ourselves up trying to find the perfect gift?  Or trying to make sure that we are spending the exact same amount per gift per person?  Then we get overwhelmed and just buy gift cards. Bleh!  That just plain takes all the fun out of giving a gift.  Why not give what we want when that "thing" makes us think of a person we love?  If we can't find a gift to wrap, why not give someone our time with lunch or coffee.  Or give our energy and clean their bathroom for them?  Now, that's a gift everyone wants!
     It almost feels revolutionary.  I have started enjoying gift making and giving and shopping again, because I really don't mind if the person regifts or recycles what I give.  The point is that they know I am giving the gift, not because I have to, but because I want to show I care.


Just to share, here are some of the gifts I've made or upcycled in the last weeks.

This a mobile I made for a new baby.  Made from hand felted wool.  The kids and I had a great time hunting for the perfect stick to hang the birds on.

This upcycled message center use to be an old headboard!  I was so nervous to give something so large as a birthday gift!  But she loved it.   With one of the left over pieces of wood, I made a chalkboard for my house, too!