Inspiration Machine 22: Gift Maker

Clockwise from left: dodidoune, dodidoune, verhext, Tinta China

Strapped on what to give this season: make it yourself! This Inspiration Machine is dedicated to gifts you can give from your own 2 hands:

1. Get out your needle and thread: Sew, Mama, Sew! offers a full 30 days of easy-peasy hand sewn gift tutorials and patterns.

2. Deck the Halls: Make your own set of playing cards for your friends. Buy some pre-cut small cardstock, and make a full 52 card deck. Create your own suites, and have a blast with the face cards!

3. Gorgeous Glassware: Go to your local thrift shop, and purchase vintage glassware, and then hand paint over them with glass paint. The result will be a one-of-a-kind piece of usable art your friends will treasure.

4. Cast On: Hop over to Knitty, my absolute favorite knitting pattern website. Not only do they have HUNDREDS of free knitting patterns available online, but they categorize them by experience level, so you can pick a project that won't leave you all tangled up.

5. Book, Covered: Got a book nerd on the gift list. Absolutely delight them with a handmade book cover. It's a personal touch to any book gift that is sure to thrill them. Sweeten the deal with custom bookplates that you can design.

6. Clothe Them: Utterly wow your pal with a handmade shredded tee. For those friends who live on the eccentric side, offer them a pair of fantastic bleached jeans.

7. Shoe Fly: No one can have too many shoes, especially original hand-painted shoes. They'll get quite a "kick" out of them ;)

8. Sketch Betch: Add a divine touch to a blank book: purchase a Moleskine blank notebook, and decoupage the cover with beautiful images. personal notes, and lovely paper. Dabble inspirational quotes and sentiments throughout the pages.

9. Sculpture, Reanimated: Go to a thrift store, and hunt out unique sculptures and figurines (you will find a wealth of owls and gnomes, I promise you). Pay special attention to form, and positively none to color. Once home, lay them out and spray paint them a uniform color (black or white looks fab: or match the color to your friend's interior design).

10. Spice it Up: Every cook-happy pal on your list will flip over these Chinese Papercut Spice Jars. Take that extra step, and give them along with a hand-written recipe. Fill the jars with the spices necessary to make it!

Today's inspiration machine was inspired by Avrille Lavallee. Thanks for the suggestion, Avrille!

Need some inspiration? Email me inspiration machine requests at kissandvinegar((at))yahoo((dot))com.