Kids' touch will create great gifts
Tired of shopping for ties, books or boxes of candy for the children to give to those hard-to-buy-for relatives?
Some local families get pretty creative about either making or selecting some fun holiday gifts.
Amy Swarts of Forward Township and her children Jordan, 12, and Hannah, 9, opt for handmade, homemade gifts for their grandparents.
"It is hard to know what to buy for people that are scaling back on things," said Swarts. "Last year we used stencils and made holiday trays for the grandparents. They were very well received.
"Great-grandma who was in a nursing home got a weaving that we made and framed," said Swarts.She and her daughter use a wooden loom, which can produce place mats, belts and a variety of other items. Jordan draws cartoons, which can be framed and given as gifts to family members."We've also painted wooden ornaments and decorated birdhouses with ceramic tiles," said Swarts, who also enjoys collecting objects and making mosaics with her children."Last year, my sister sent us a neat book that was a collection of pictures of our family gatherings throughout that year. She did the copy and layout and created it online. It was really special," said Swarts."Creating your own crafts is a win-win," she added. "The children's grandparents are touched by the care and time the kids took in creating, while I am blessed by the memory in the making of it," she said.B.J. Herr and her daughters have been making gifts to give relatives since the girls could color and draw. Kati is 12; Brianna is 8; and Sydney is 5. The family lives in Butler."The girls have made grandma beaded chains to put around her neck to hold her glasses. Kati has also made grandma a garden stone with her hand print on it," said Herr."The girls are working on this year's gift, which is a trivet with their handprints," she added."I will put a poem on the back of the tile and some felt pads — and the grandmothers will be able to preserve their little hand prints," said Herr.The girls' grandmother looks forward to receiving the hand-crafted treasures.
"I appreciate the uniqueness of each gift. My eyeglass chain draws comments, and when asked where I got it, it is always fun to say my granddaughters made it," said Carol Mona of Meadville."I have treasured the ornaments they've made since they were little. There's just something about childhood creativity," she added.The girls don't just reserve their creativity for Christmas; Katie enjoys making bracelets and jewelry for her friends whenever a gift is needed."Our children made 'healthy' gift bags for their grandparents last year," said Jill Walls of Penn Township."We included all natural and organic products. The gift included bittersweet chocolate, almonds, grape seed oil, peanut butter with flax seeds, gunpowder green tea, mixed dried fruits (blueberries, cranberries, and raspberries), crossword puzzles and a bottle of red wine," she explained."I also included gift tags on each bag and bottle explaining about their health benefits," she added.Walls said that everyone really enjoyed the variety of products and the thoughtfulness about the items."My kids enjoyed putting the gift bags together and sampling some of the products — the chocolate especially," Walls said.
Lyn DeAngelis of JoAnn Fabrics in Pullman Square said that it is less about saving money when families make gifts to give, and more about making a gift personal.DeAngelis said the store sells a lot of tie-fleece blanket kits, which come in diverse themes and involve only cutting and tying."We have prints for fishermen, swimmers, horse people, hunters and many other hobbyists," she explained."The blankets were a big item last year and it appears they will be a gift worth giving again this year as we are seeing mothers and children already purchasing their materials," she said.As well as fleece items, craft stores offer a variety of other kits for the holiday season.Other popular suggestions include photo frames with a recordable message, glass items etched with a cream available in stores, musical socks, personalized stationery made with a home computer, computer-generated photo calendars, holiday aprons, handmade holiday soap balls, recipes in a jar, museum memberships, magazine subscriptions and meals in a basket."Often you can make gifts cheaper than you can buy them, but it seems like moms and kids enjoy the process as much as giving a personalized gift to their loved ones," she added.
So often gift giving can reap twofold benefits — creating a memory in the selection or creating of it and then leaving a lasting memory with the receiver of the gift.Being on both ends of the gift giving give and take has its advantages, although with some of these families being on the receiving end might just be a little less messy.
