I made the promise to myself last year after the holidays that 2008 would be the year of handmade gifts for Christmas. Not necessarily handmade by ME, but handmade by someone - no cheap plastic molded by someone in china, imported on a boat that uses millions of gallons of oil to get here. Minimal gift cards purchased because I have no idea what that person would like. I wanted to purchase items directly from the hardworking, creative people who imagined them up. That said, not EVERYTHING I give this year will be handmade - I'm not convinced I will find much stuff for my dad or brothers that is handmade. Maybe I'll get a quilted Scrabble carrier for Jake. =)
So far it's going well. I have purchased items for quite a few members of our family, all from different shops on Etsy I'm also knitting a few scarves for friends (one of my Alpha Phi friends is paying me for them! Woohoo! Granted, I'm basically just recouping the cost of the yarn, but it's still exciting). Mostly I spend entirely too much time surfing around Etsy, coveting all the wonderful things I want to buy for myself. Check out some fun things here, here and there. These are just a few of the shops I love - there are so many more that are also fantastic.
I've gotten my craft room sort of organized, so perhaps I'll be able to start doing some projects of my own. Scott recently put together some nice storage cubes for me that I immediately filled with supplies, so I'm well on my way to actually being able to find what I'm looking for. I'm hoping Santa will bring me a small flat-screen television that can be hung on the wall so I can watch tv and movies while I work.
My other goal is to spend a weekend in early December baking like crazy in order to have treats to give our friends. I'm so tired of buying a gift for someone that isn't necessary or was purchased as a last-minute thing because I couldn't figure out what to get them. Everybody likes cookies, so dammit, everybody's going to get cookies. =)
My parents will be here for Christmas, so right now we're plotting out things to do, scheduling the get-together with Scott's family and procrastinating on the cleaning of the house. I have every intention of getting it done slowly, but let's be honest - we all know it will be a mad-dash the day before my mom and dad arrive to get the guest room cleared out and the bathroom cleaned. It's just who I am.