Low Carb Archive - Crafty Women Out There?

I love to give homemade gifts for christmas. Which one of my kids would you like! LOL

This year I have made gift jars, the 2 I chose to make were Friendship Soup and Sand Art Brownies made 12 quarts of each. I also make crochet dishclothes, as well as wreaths and such. Was wondering if and what anyone else makes? I prefer to do quick projects as I have alot of family to make for.

I found a great site for interesting ideas on gift crafting it is at.

http://www.holidayorganizer.com

as well as

http://www.frugalhomemaker.com

Well Ladies any Crafters out there?

Leona;)

Oh Leona!

What great sites! I just placed both of them on my favorites lists.

thanks for sharing! :)

I am also gonna make the snowman poop for all those naughty kids of mine (poem with minimarshmallows) for their stockings that one is on the holiday organizer, you can also print out lables for some of the crafts there. They are great sites.

ENJOY

oh NOOOOOOO!!!!!!! don't do this to us!!!!! i have oodles of rubber stamps to make pins with, and too many counted cross stitch projects, and beaded things [ornaments and other things] and needlepoint and knitting..

and peachie is even worse!!!!!!

I dont think I'm crafty. I struggle to think of art projects to do with the boys.

The only thing that I could think of is something that maybe your kids could do if they are young. I had mine start this already. They have a loom and are making potholders. You can buy the looms are Ben Franklins, Michaels, and probably Wal-Mart. I even like doing them...but remember I'm not crafty!

Here's my list:

checker boards
garden stakes
gingerbread men wall hangings
candy flowers in pots
snowman kisses


-all gifts have an original Miree painting included

Love doing crafts--thanks for the sites!

I used to make shortbread cookies with chocolate drizzled on them, put them in fancy tins, and give those. However!!! This year Im going to pass on the temptation of having to test them, and make up a milk bath soak.

I've actually made it for the store, and is selling very well. So, Im going to make more, and put them in fancy jars with those puffy scrubby things. Very inexpensive. Total cost for the milk bath in the store, including the jar $1.32. and its very nice, scent stays on your skin and the water fizzes a bit when you first get in. :)
Its all in the packaging:flow2:

If anyone wants the recipe let me know and I'll post it

Robin

Me! Me! Me! I love my bubble baths, everyone knows this about me. Please?????

I want the recipe, Robin. That sounds like something I could do. I just don't have much interest in making Christmas gifts anymore. I used to sew and knit up a storm when my kids were younger and I made umpteen Barbie outfits. What I don't enjoy is making artsy-craftsy items with glue and popsicle sticks and cut out bits of paper. I don't like receiving them so why should I give them. I agree that it's nice to give a hand made gift, but if I can't do something well and it just looks tacky or thrown together, I'd rather not bother. If I'm feeling inspired and have the time, I will sometimes paint small boxes with flowers or berries, but I'm finding it harder and harder to get going on such things these days. I'm so committed to my club work and it takes up a lot of my time especially in the weeks before our Xmas craft fair which is on Nov 16. I don't have much energy left for other things.

Ok here it is

Use nonfat dry milk. If you use whole, it leaves a yucky ring around the tub.

3/4 cup epsom salts
1 cup nonfat dry milk
15-20 drops of essential oil

mix salt and milk....divide in half and add the oils. Then add the rest of the mixture and blend well. I found that the milk was still lumpy and looked like milk....so I whirred it around in then blender to make it look more "pleasing"

I picked up the salts at the Dollar Tree for a dollar (quart size) and the jars as well. The oils you can find at any health food place, and they have many to choose from. Just pick your fav.

I hope you like it
Robin

I do teacher gifts. The one that was requested for refils last year was body scrub.

fill a jar 3/4 full of Sea salt
covered the salt with saflower oil.
fill to the top with a massage oil or sweet almond oil
add whatever essential oil you like

you scrub it on your skin while you are dry. Do it on a towel it is a little messy. then get into a hot bath and soak

wour skin will be so soft.

PS this is like the one min. manicure the sell for $30 for the littleest of jars.
-L

jiff I too am a rubber stamper... see I knew I liked you!

Wow some great ideas out there.

Hey Pooky - Can you tell me how you do your garden stakes, I think they would make a great gift for a few ppl on my list (avid gardeners)

Thanks!

Very simple to do garden stakes really. My dh cut some 2 x 4's to make the faces of the stakes and split some 2 x 4's down the middle with a skill saw. Just angle off the ends and nail them together. Then sand all rough edges. Prime the face before starting. I use acrylics becasue they have such a nice colour variety and I put things on like Thyme, Peonies, Tulips, Weeds and such. Then I use an outdoor polyurethane to protect well and use it on the whole stake. 2-3 coats should do the trick. A little labour intensice but a really nice impact. FYI--spotted the same thing in a local crafty dodad shop downtown for $20 a stake, you can make yours for less than 5. Dh got his wood from skids left over when they deliver stuff at work. Happy stake making!

All righty L can you XPLAIN to me how you do your body scrub, did one up tonite and to say the least it looks funny, oil is floating on top, do you blend it or what?

Made the milk bath with ylang ylang drops, smells divine!!

Kudos to Robin for your milk bath recipes, these will be a hit, IF I can part with them, they smell so nice! How much do you use in the bath??

LOL that is what is supose to look like. The oil floats. Mix it up before grabbing a handful ad scrubbing the old bod. Great for feet, but be careful, it can be slippery. So no explaining Meowna, you did good.
-L

PS did you try it, or did it look too funny?

OK so I am a little silly somedays, lol. I made one up but was unsure if that was what is was supposed to be like. I will try it out today! What size jars do you use, and do you grind up the salt at all?? Or do you leave it pebble sized?

I use 4-5 tablespoons for my bath, if you use too much, the scent is too strong.......and I usually put it all in the blender before I put it in the jars.....makes it look like I bought it at the store :)

It really depends on how rough you like it. I find it fine the way it is and never thought of grinding...too much work in my oppinion.

Enjoy it!
-L

Well I bought the coarse salt, (rocks), I would HIGHLY recommend grinding it down, look like I been through a cat fight!! LOL But my skin is softer!

you ladies are sooo cool!!! i hope peachie is reading this.. maybe she'll take this hint????

naaaaahhhh.. she's just tell me to make this myself. but that body scrub sounds DIVINE!!!!!

Meowna all i can say is OUCH!!!!!...lol

I did a scrub tonight too.
-L

ROFLMAO! Meowna, I have this image in my head of you with your hair all mussed up and scratches all over your face! I'm thinking you should grind your salt for now on! :lol:

I love crafting gifts, mostly for the frugality of it! My problem is finding the time to do it nowadays. I have a huge stash of fabrics, and I often try to make things that will use up some of it. For instance, I cut up some old blue jeans recently and make bags for my two nieces for their birthdays.

One year, I made ornaments for everyone on my list, and made some extras to have on hand to give to those last minute people.

Thanks for the links! I'll check them out when I have a few minutes!

Pen
265/217/150ish

MEE OWWWWWWW yup gonna grind the salt down, the scrub did work, and the milk bath was very nice, they will go into my baskets this year!! Enjoy the links Pen, there is alot there.
There is another called
http://www.frugalmoms.com

Well my pamper packs are almost ready to wrap up, got friendship soup mix, sand art brownies, milk bath, body scrub...... think I will buy some poufs to put in them as well as a candle or two and perhaps a new release movie coupon! Got 12 packs almost fini WOOOHOOO!!

Speaking of poufs: I saw an older gentleman buying a ton of nylon netting, all different colors, at the fabric store one day. He said he and his wife liked to sit around making poufs while they watch TV. I don't know exactly how to do it, but it can't be that hard.

PEN!!!!!! so glad to see you posting here!!!

i've actually been knitting, by the way. just to keep my fingers busy [wonder how many calories knitting burns???? it HAS to be more than staring at the boob tube, doesn't it????]

first, there was a scarf for the seamans' church institute [which i still haven't mailed!!!], and then my niece saw what i was doing and asked for a scarf and hat. so there's that nice bulky chenille yarn, and i've finished a hat and am working on the scarf. this year, scarves seem to be about 8 feet long, so i'm about halfway done.

and then there was this cool fake fur yarn. i got red and bronze. and will make scarves for both nieces, and probably a headband. and if i get ambitious, i'll try black mittens with fur trim.

and then and then and then and then....

I just wanted to let you chicks know this has been a very inspiring thread. I am sitting here inhaling all kinds of yummy scents and getting ready to make my creations! Thanks tremendously! Su

Good for you Su!

Happy crafting, let us know what you made.

I picked up several today at the drug store along with a bag of epsom salts and was shocked when I got to the till. I ended up cutting back to just one $10 vial of rose scented essential oil. I realize it only takes a few drops to make the milk bath and the body scrub but once I'd been to the dollar store and bought pretty jars, some bath mitts and some pouffs, I'm wondering just how inexpensive these presents are going to be.
I also would like to know what you're doing to decorate these containers. I bought two larger ones for the milk bath and a few stubby ones for the body scrub. I figure to use the pouffs on the top of the milk bath jars and the mitts will be attached somehow to the body scrub jars but I'm not much for decorating. Do you just use pretty bows or ribbons?

I am in the midst of crocheting dishcloths to decorate the top of my soup jar gifts.

A pouf on the milk bath sounds purrrrrfect!

I am just gonna decorate the body scrubs with ribbon!

the ylang ylang I bought was $17.00 for a tiny bottle, but I made 12 jars of milk bath and 12 jars of body scrub with it and still have some oil left over.

That's reassuring, Meowna. Thanks. I figure each of these containers will probably wind up costing about $3 to $5, considering that the smaller ones hold about 1-1/2 cups and the larger ones about 2 or 3 cups.