Homemade Christmas Presents!

I am such a pinterest fan. Seriously.

If you aren't following me yet, you can follow me here: http://pinterest.com/abi_fasciano/

I am so very thankful for Pinterest this year, because I got some great ideas to make homemade gifts for all of my family. I love being crafty, and I was able to get great ideas in one place, in a short amount of time, for things that don't cost a lot of money, and turned out really cute.

You be the judge :)

I started making things in October, and I can honestly say I did something Christmassy every single day until it was time to celebrate. It was fun, and I felt good about putting time and thought into gifts instead of a lot of money. If got decides to bless us financially in the future, I still think I may give gifts in this way :)

Here's what I made, thanks to pinterest:

Salt Dough Ornaments (hand and foot prints)

I made these because I KNOW I will want to remember Adrian's cute little hands and feet when he was 9 months old on his first Christmas. This recipe is not so easy - it's easy to find all over pinterest and google, but here are some of my tips based on my experience:

1. Microwaving the dough will make it puffy and ugly and uneven. Don't do it.
2. My oven bakes unevenly, but if your's works great, than use it.
3. Otherwise, letting it air dry will take two weeks or more. If you set it outside, don't forget it in the rain (been there, done that).
4. If you have even a microscopic paper cut, the dough will really really really hurt when you are kneading it thanks to the salt.
5. Besides all that, it's great :)

(The finished product, now hanging on my living room wall)

PhotoCopied Hand Print

When I saw this on pinterest, I had one of those, "wow, why didn't I think of that?" moments, that I'm sure all you other pinners have had. Instructions are easy:

1. Place hand on copier over baby's

2. Photocopy

3. Frame

So cute! This is also hanging on my living room wall :)

Wreath

There are A MILLION (or more) wreath tutorials on pinterest. I didn't use any to make this wreath, but I love how it turned out. I used ribbon, hot glue, and flowers from Michael's. This was my mom's birthday present - I wanted it to be feminine, sparkly, and pink, like her!

Tip: Michael's has printable coupons online. Print and use!

Cinnamon Dough Ornaments:

This dough recipe was SO MUCH easier than the salt dough recipe. All you need is cinnamon, apple sauce (I used cinnamon apple sauce) and elmer's glue.  I cut them into star shapes and tied them onto gifts for sweet-smelling happiness :)