A Homemade Christmas

All the gift buying really upsets me around this time. Not because we're giving, but because people expect us to buy them gifts, and the pressure we feel to spend money on others. Me, I'd rather spend time on others. I want to give a gift that says "I like you. I think about you. Your friendship is meaningful to me." What better way to show love than to spend some of your time on other people. I'm not talking about slaving away all week long, instead, just doing a little here and a little there.

One of the things I have been making is bath salts. They are really quite easy. You mix up some epsom salts with an essential oil (available in craft stores in the soap making section - use about 4 or 5 drops per cup of salts), and some food coloring. You can also use some Kosher salt with the epsom salts. Then you just put in a jar, and add a little label and decoration, like some ribbon and a small ornament.

Another gift for this year is pretty soap dispensers. Get a clear plastic soap dispenser (I got mine in the pharmacy at Target, in the travel-sized stuff). Put some silk flowers inside, and pour in some liquid soap. They will easily spiff up a bathroom or kitchen sink.

Do you make up mixes to keep on hand? Try putting a mix in a mason jar. You can make something like Instant Potato Soup or Flour Tortillas, where all the ingredients are stirred up. Or you can layer ingredients for a pretty effect with a cornbread mix (I like one from The Gluten-Free Kitchen), or the Orange Dreamsicle Cookies (these will be very pretty, with the Tang layer - or two). Put a label on the back with the directions, or for a craftier (and prettier) approach, write it on a homemade gift tag. Get some mason jars and get creative! Dry ingredients for many of your baked goods can be mixed or layered in a glass jar.

Another good glass jar gift is some nuts (like pecans) in honey (especially local, if you can get it for a good price). My brother recently bought some honey from a farm in his town, and the taste is so amazing! My mom's not going to have many pecans left in her jar if I don't get my own jar soon. :)

Please leave a comment and share with me some of your ideas for a Homemade Christmas.
Ginger's Making Christmas, too, over at Gluten Free in Georgia (and Florida).