As usual, Christmas is arriving quickly. Especially with finals at school, who has time to think about Christmas gifts?
Here are 10 easy DIY and store-bought ideas to slip into your favorite person's stocking!
1) DIY CANDLES:
To make your own candle, you can use old candles that you no longer use, but I used candlesticks for mine instead.
Here's the fun part:
Break the candlesticks into pieces (or smash your old candle into pieces) and stick them into a glass measuring cup (or any durable glass you prefer to use). When you break the candlesticks, try to take the wicks out so you can use them for later (or you can purchase brand new wicks). Then, place your measuring cup into a pot of water. As the water begins to boil, add some scented wax cubes (mine were found at Walmart). What good is a candle if it doesn't smell nice?!
When the wax pieces melt to complete liquid, carefully remove the measuring cup (oven mitt!) and pour the liquid into any container of your choice. Then place your wick into the middle of the liquid and use skewers or pencils to help hold the wick in place while the candle hardens.
For decoration, I placed tape in horizontal lines along the outside of my candle jar. Then, I applied Mod Podge all over and sprinkled glitter along the outside of the jar. Remove the tape and you've got a sparkly candle! Then, add another layer of Mod Podge on top of the glitter. It'll dry clear and the glitter will be less likely to fall off with the second coat of the Mod Podge! You can also use this same method to create shapes or words or you can even cover the entire outside of the container with glitter! Just be sure to keep the glitter on the OUTSIDE, because some glitter is flammable.
Instead of glitter, you can use washi tape for decoration or you can paint the outside of the container. There are a million ways to decorate!
For my next candle, pictured above, I obtained inspiration from Jo-Ann Fabric & Craft Stores.
You can definitely just stick to paint pens (make sure they aren't flammable though) and write whatever you wish alongside a white candle, but a way to ensure that the paint won't wash off is the following:
Cut a piece of tissue paper down to the size of your candle. Draw a design on the piece of tissue paper, and when you're finished, wrap it around the candle.
Take a sheet of wax paper (also cut down to the size of the candle) and wrap it around the tissue paper. Tape down lightly to secure. You should now have a layer of wax paper, then tissue paper, and then the candle.
Then, using a hair dryer, create steady movements along your design. Once the tissue paper melts on to the candle, remove the wax paper and you're finished!
2) DIY TEA BAGS & COFFEE MUGS:
An incredibly easy stocking stuffer for the person who loves tea!
First, find your recipient's favorite kind of tea. You can buy tea bags, or you can make your own with coffee filters and tea grounds.
Then let your creative juices flow! At the end of the tea bag's string, attach a message, a shape, a picture, anything you want. Small tip: You may want to cut the string down a little, depending on the size of the cup/mug you think your recipient may use!
To gift this, I made multiple tea bags and placed them into a mason jar along with some coffee and hot cocoa packets. Or you can use a giant box of tea bags and create an individual message for each tea bag in the box. This way, they'll see a new surprise message/picture every time they drink their tea!
Another small gift that can go with the tea bags (or can be packaged entirely separate!) are DIY coffee mugs (mine is the red and orange "I love you" mug pictured above in which I gave to my wonderful boyfriend)!
All you need are markers and a coffee mug/cup/whatever you want to design. I used a plain white mug from Target for mine, but you can use any color/style/pattern you want. I washed and dried my mug and then started writing.
After I was done writing/coloring, I stuck my (porcelain) mug in the oven at 350 degrees and waited for about 20 minutes. And it's complete!
Tip: Before gifting this to someone, I would recommend washing the mug (gently) first, just to make sure that the ink doesn't wash off. Some mugs are okay for the dishwasher, some aren't. Because some textures and materials of coffee mugs are different, you may need to bake yours longer or use different types of markers!
3) DIY PHONE CASE:
Who doesn't love phone cases?
One idea for a DIY phone case is to cut a piece of paper into the shape of your phone. Design the paper however you wish and stick it in a clear case. Now whoever receives this gift can replace the sheet of paper as many times as he/she wants without having to buy a new case!
Also using a clear case, you can spray Mod Podge along the inside of the case and sprinkle glitter throughout. When you sprinkle glitter along the inside rather than the outside, less glitter will fall off which is definitely a plus.
Another idea is a DIY needlepoint phone case. For mine, I started with a plain white (plastic) phone case, but you can use whatever color you wish. Then, I poked holes into the back of the case. My case was pretty thick, so I had to use a drill to create the holes, but you can use a needle or exacto knife if that works for you. For whichever method you use, be careful! You can create the holes in a specific pattern, or just scatter them, totally up to you.
Then, I picked up some ombre'd rainbow string from Walmart, and threaded the string through each of the holes using a slim needle.
To gift this, you can either pull the thread through the holes of the case and wrap it up for your recipient, or you can simply give them the blank phone case (with the holes already punched out) and the string, and have them pull the thread through themselves.
Either way, the case ends up looking super adorable.
4) DIY TIGHTS:
No pictures for this one, but it's winter, who doesn't love tights?
All you need for this DIY are tights of your choice (I used plain black ones from Target), fabric paint, brushes, and a stencil.
For mine, I cut out a heart stencil and painted tiny hearts allover the legs of my tights.
You can wrap these up and throw it in a stocking or you can make multiple pairs with different designs. Super simple!
5) DIY NAIL STICKERS:
Due to accidentally dripping nail polish on a plastic sandwich bag, I discovered that the polish hardens and you can peel it off. Which means... DIY nail stickers, anyone?!
Here's how to do it:
All you need is nail polish, any nail art tools you want (or toothpicks, bobby pins, etc), and wax paper or plastic sandwich bags. I started by creating all kinds of designs on my wax paper (although plastic bags sometimes work better). You want to make sure you use a generous amount of polish when doing your designs so that it's easier to pull the polish off.
Once your design is finished, wait for it to dry COMPLETELY. Then you can pull the design off of the paper and place it on your nail. Add a top coat, and you're all done!
To gift this, I used glue dots to attach the sheet of wax paper on to the inside of a Christmas card. I then put another sheet of wax paper on top (to protect the stickers from getting smashed) of that. Confusing? Think about those store bought cards for kids that have free stickers attached in the inside. Same concept!
Then I wrote my message on the opposite side of the card, explaining what the nail art stickers were. You can also throw in a gift card to Sally's to make the gift even better!
PURCHASED GIFTS:
Maybe you aren't in the mood for anything crafty this Christmas or maybe you're just too busy -- totally understandable!
There are plenty of creative gifts to give people without having to make them yourself.
6) LAPTOP DECALS: I have found a lot of cute decals on etsy.com, but you can find laptop stickers at Walmart, Best Buy, and many online stores too. They are usually fairly inexpensive and make for a great stocking stuffer!
7) PERFUME ROLLERBALL: If you know what kind of perfume your recipient uses/wants, this gift is perfect! At stores like Macy's, you can find almost any perfume with its matching rollerball. But even if you don't know what kind of perfume your recipient uses or wants, this gift is still perfect! Go to Kohl's and pick up an EMPTY perfume rollerball. This way, she/he can fill it up with any perfume (or cologne) that she/he wants. Perfume rollerballs are extremely convenient, as you can just throw THEM in your purse or backpack and be on your way out!
Also, Walmart sells perfume pencils, another wonderful gift for someone on the go!
8) IPHONE CHRISTMAS CHARGER: Personally, I could always use another charger. Mine are always breaking or lost, and it never hurts to have an extra phone charger, right? Thinkgeek.com sells iPhone chargers that look like CHRISTMAS LIGHTS. iPhone charger + Christmas lights? Sounds like a perfect gift for the holiday season, right? Thinkgeek.com also sells a ton of other creative gifts with plenty of options for fast shipping, check it out!
9) EMOJI STICKERS: Here's a perfect stocking stuffer for your friend who uses emojis way too often (or the perfect amount!). What's better than texting emojis? Sticking physical emojis everywhere! You can find these on emojistickers.com or at Walmart and Urban Outfitters!
10) NAIL POLISH: When in doubt, nail polish is always a great gift for the girls in your life. There are so many choices for nail polish. Colors, glitter, brands. Or you can branch out a little and get nail stickers, nail art tools, nail stripers, nail pens, etc. You can stick all of the polishes into a mason jar or wrap them individually!
Don't stress too much about gifts for your friends and family. It's the thought that counts. Happy Holidays!