Gingerbread Playdough

I know this old blog has been quiet the last two years, but it turns out I have an abundance of Christmas content that I've collected and photographed during that time. Even when I don't have time to actually blog about it (6 kids and what not), I always have some kind of project going (especially around Christmas time!) and thank goodness I had the good foresight to photograph much of it! So hold on to your hats while I try to bring you as much Christmassy goodness as I can over the next couple weeks!

Let's kick-off this Christmas season with gingerbread playdough. This is great to make right away because your kids will be able to enjoy it all season long! It will help keep little hands busy through Christmas read-alouds or while dinner is in the oven. It would also be fun to have on hand when grandkids come to town!

Day 31 - Gift Wrapping

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

We made it to the last day! And it's only like halfway through November... so... yeah. It's been fun, but I think I'll be passing next year. I may still do a series if something tickles my fancy, but it will have to be something less stressful and more at my own pace. A.k.a. the pace where taking care of two little boys comes first. But I guess that's getting ahead of myself, so let's go ahead and wrap this baby up with an easy gift wrapping idea!

I still love my gift wrapping from two years ago when I used brown paper, newspaper, salt dough gift tags, and ribbons (you can read more about it here) so I decided to go back that direction this year.

But this time I wanted something even faster & easier. And what do I grab when I'm in a hurry? gift bags! So that's what I focused on this year.

Easy to decorate, easy to pack, and they come in lots of sizes for whatever you're gifting!

And I think they're going to be super cute under the tree!

Here's all you need:

Day 30 - Cloth Napkins

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

We're almost done! Today is our last gift project and tomorrow we'll do some easy gift-wrapping. So let's get started on these cloth napkins!

These are a great gift for just about anyone. They're practical but also super fun to use. And really easy to make!

I picked a fun print so these are perfect for everyday use with the family. If you wanted more formal napkins you could go with something like a natural linen for a boost of fancy.

You can use just about anything that fits the style of the recipient! (I made sure the print I chose was pretty dark so it won't stain as easily. My style is "little boys eat here.")

Here's what you need to make a set of four napkins:

Day 29 - Owl Pillow

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

We're wrapping up the series with a few random projects that help fill in any gaps we missed earlier this month. Today's project is a little something for the home. It's an owl pillow!

This is great for, well, anyone who likes owls (and come on. who doesn't?) but also could be fun for anyone who likes to keep things fresh around the house.

And you can totally suit this to anyone's style. Change the color of the pillow cover to match their decor, or even change the color of the owl to mix things up a bit! A white pillow with a rainbow color owl would be a fun twist, or even a gray pillow with a red and white owl. Or try a monochromatic owl in shades of blue.

But let's start with this guy. Here's all you need to make one (actually you can get two out of it so go ahead and make a pair!):

Day 28 - Baking Mixes

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

Today we're back at it with a great gift for neighbors and friends, especially those who enjoy cooking or baking. We're making a couple baking mixes!

We're making two different kinds of mixes so you have a few gift-giving options. The first is a White Chocolate Cranberry Bread mix. It's easy to mix up and pop in the oven, so it's great for a cozy Christmas Eve! To make the mix, just layer the following ingredients in a quart size jar:

Day 27 - Button Paperclip Bookmarks

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

We're making up for lost time and getting started with our final week! This week is all about miscellaneous projects and gift ideas... things that you can give your neighbors, coworkers, and friends. And we'll even work on a cute gift wrapping idea later this week. But today we're starting with a really fun and easy project - button paperclip bookmarks!

This are great for anyone who likes to read. They're perfect for marking your spot in a book (or a journal) because they won't fall out and they're small enough to fit in your pocket while you read so they don't get lost!

Plus they are really cheap and easy to make. What more could you ask for in a bookmark?

Here's all you need to make them:

Day 26 - Hot Chocolate Mix

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

So yes... I did fall off the 31 day train. It was a series of failed projects in a row that had me spending way to much time working and not enough time with my family (not to mention things that keep the house running like dishes and, you know, cooking). So I had to step back a bit to get the focus back on my priorities. But with that said I'm still working on finishing the series, just at a slower pace, and I hope to have it all caught up next week. So... this project is the last of men's week and it's inspired by my own dear Husband. It's a yummy homemade hot chocolate mix. 

I think Husband's favorite thing about cold weather is hot chocolate. The man could drink it by the gallon. So I thought a great gift for him would be a yummy homemade version. I have a big jar I can keep stocked all winter long.

It's also nice to save some money with a homemade recipe, plus I know exactly what's going into it!

To make the hot chocolate, just mix the following ingredients and store them in an air-tight jar:

Day 25 - River Song Tardis Moleskine {Dr. Who}

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

Aaaaand I'm late. Sorry guys! I actually tried two different projects yesterday and they both failed miserably. So I went back to the drawing board and came up with a new plan to finish guys' week... and started from scratch this morning (hopefully I'll catch up tomorrow!). And Husband actually hopped in a whipped up today's Dr. Who inspired project! It's a Moleskine Journal with a Tardis twist, inspired by River Song's own journal.

It's more of a subtle modern twist on the actual notebook, but I think it's something the Whovians out there will enjoy and it's really easy to DIY.

Husband came up with this one all on his own. We're definitely Dr. Who fans and River Song is my favorite (I put in on our list of baby names in case Baby A turned out to be a girl. Husband vetoed it. Boo.). But he knows I love a good Moleskine so when he came across these pretty blue ones he hatched a plan!

I'm sure they are great as journals, but they're also great for general note-taking and such. I have one that I use just for writing down all the funny things B says and does. Read it and you will laugh until you cry. Seriously. But I also like them for writing down anything I want to remember later. Favorite verses, new recipes, good advice, Christmas lists.... you name it!

Here's all you need to make one:

Day 24 - Wallet

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

We're spending this fourth week on gift ideas for the guys! And today we're making a handy canvas wallet.

It's easy to make and doesn't take much fabric so it's pretty cheap.

And of course it folds up to fit in his pocket.

It has room for all your monies (a $2 bill was literally the only cash I could find in the house. Win.) and six card pockets for credit cards, library cards, and of course that handy chik-fil-a card!

I love this fun beachy stripe print. It's fun twist on a traditional wallet! But of course you can use any print or color you like. If your guy is a bit more traditional a solid black would be spiffy, maybe with a pinstripe lining?

Here's all you need to make a wallet:

Day 23 - Spice Rub

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

Today's gift is great on its own, or it can be paired with the grill apron we made yesterday. It's a yummy spice rub!

It seems like even guys who don't normally like to cook get excited about using the grill! So a spice rub is a really easy and cheap gift that they can have fun using (and kind of like a gift to his wife, too, if it means his making dinner!).

All you need are a few things from your spice rack and a jar to gift it in (I have printable labels you can use too!) Start by mixing up your spice rub. This is one we've been liking lately:

1/3 c. salt
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. paprika
2 Tbs. oregano
2 Tbs. thyme
1 Tbs. Parsley
dash of pepper

Day 22 - Grill Apron

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

Today we're NOT making a key chain (I know!) This one is for the guys who like to grill. It's a reversible grill apron!

And here's my main squeeze showing it off. It's nice and wide to keep the mess off his clothes and has a couple pockets to keep things handy.

And did I mention reversible? Why hello, plaid. Let's be friends.

I even made this fun "Grillmaster" logo you print onto iron-on paper. You can choose black print like I did, or red print. And just like with my child-size apron, I save a bunch of money by using flat sheets to make this!

And while I was at it... I made a smaller version too that you can use to make a matching grill apron for your littler guys! (use this apron tutorial and just skip the ruffle)

Here's what you need to make one:

Day 21 - "Lucky Us" Keychain

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

We're tackling gifts for the guys this week, and today we're making... another key chain. They're not all keychains, I promise! And I planned to spread these two out across the week. But it pretty much came down to this being the only thing I could pull off today. So we're going to roll with it. :)

This is another way to commemorate special events in your guy's life.  You know, all the things that make him such a lucky guy. And what better way to do it than with some lucky pennies?

It's all metal so your guy won't feel shy about carrying it around.

The fun (and maybe a bit tricky) part of this is finding the right pennies. Try to find some with years that you got married, met, had kids, or even graduated. So many possibilities! You could even do the birth year of a parent or grandparent as a portable memorial.

Here's all you need to make one: