Saturday, October 13, 2007

Sharing Holiday Gift Ideas

For everyone's convenience, I have decided to start my blogs with my eBay Store. After all, it is fast approaching the holiday season! I can notice the difference in sales recently. Buyers are finding just the right gift for their friends and family.

I am a nut for browsing magazines and books to find new products and things to make. I do this after a day of listing on my website or on eBay. It doesn't take too much brain power because I want to let you know, my brain is dead after a full day of internet work! I often have my doctor's office make a copy of a certain page and I gather old magazines from our local library. I then take the articles and pictures I want. I must take at least 10 publications myself and do the same. Browse, rip, browse, rip and then recycle. Today, I will share some of what I have found hopefully helping you get some gift ideas to purchase or something to make.

  • Lauren Bush and the United Nations World Food Program has a really cool feedbag selling for $50.00. It helps feed children in developing countries around the world. You can see a picture and purchase the bag at www.worldfeedbag.org. In the same venue, The American Red Cross has a new line of retro 1930's looking T-shirts. I especially like the one that reads, "Handle With Care". Go to www.redcrossstore.org to see their complete selection of fun and altruistic gift ideas. I found these ideas in Country Home Magazine.

In that same magazine I found some cool junk gift ideas or even for your own home:

  • They took three fluted metal pans that sell for about $3.00 each or 25 cents at a yard sale. They took a large nail to punch three holes evenly spaced around the edge of each tin. You then prime the tins, then spray paint with your favorite color. You then attach a small chain with "S" hooks through each hole, squeezing the hooks shut with pliers. Gather the chains at the top with your larger "S" hook and hang from the ceiling. This is great for fruit, veggies or even a collection of grapevine balls, sea shells or another treasure. I can see it spray painted then sponged with a contrasting color to give it an antique look. I'd like to see it just sponged with that liquid that makes your metals look all weathered and green. Why couldn't you even put one by your kitchen desk to hold all those small office what nots that get spread out all over the place?

  • Being into rustic, I especially loved their idea of using vintage bisquit cutters (those usually have a green or red wooden handle. You take a jar lid and metal glue it into the cutter. Use these new lids to cover jars of tea or dried spices and even a jar of nuts. I know I have some of those cutters in my bin of cookie cutters that I have collected for the past 40 years! Wow! I sure don't make many bisquits.

  • I also ran across a lovely bird house to decor perfect because I have lots of sticks! You buy a birdhouse from a craft store or find one at a garage sale then gather a bunch of sticks. Using a handsaw or pruning sheers, but branches or thick vines no larger than 1 inch in diameter. the legth of each depends on the size of the birdhouse you buy. Attach the twigs using hot glue. Layer and overlap to be creative. Secure twigs with nails so that when you put the bird house outside, the glue won't leave you twigless! Make sure the nails are short enough not to protrude into the bird's house. Take one or a couple of U hooks and nail them to the back of the house and thread a wire through each. You can then attach it to a post or fence. Wouldn't a collection of these be great on your back fence! I'd like them attached to my pump house. This is even a project fine for kids....well be careful with the hot glue!

  • Want a really inexpensive project? Take some of those plastic thubtacks that come in multiple colors and then search out your button box. Find the really neat buttons that you no longer know why you saved them and take some Gorilla Glue to the tops of of the thumbtacks, place the button and let dry.

A few years ago, a friend gave me some of these that she created. I remember opening them and being so pleased to get such a nice pretty gift. I use them on a cork bulletin board attached to my desk right here where I am typing. I have sissors hanging from one, my watch from another and a list of birthdays on a small calendar sheet held in place with a lovely crystal button covered thumbtack.

  • Did you know that you can take one of your vintage lunch boxes, fill it with sand and then put in some candles? Wouldn't the kids love to create a winter scene in one of these lunch boxes? I think so. I can see white sand looking like snow, or sand covered with artificial snow, red and green candles and some of those small figurines that go with Christmas villages to place for an action filled holiday scene. My children would have had a hill with a sled going down, a little pine tree and maybe even some deer or dogs...a couple of small candles to light and wow! You have Christmas on the table that the children can claim as their own. Kids do love to be an important part in decorating the house!

I promise to go through my treasure box of magazine articles again to share with you some great fun ideas that don't take too much work. I have no time, but I love to create. I imagine most of us suffer from the same problem of no time!

Don't forget to check out my husband's electric fishing kayak. I know, it takes time to build a kayak, but it is fun to see and just maybe it would fill a need for just that perfect gift. www.jimskayak.com . You can buy the plans, the kits, or a finished kayak.

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We blog about our rural area in the Pacific Northwest . This blog is all about my life and the places where my mind wonders from day to day. Have fun reading and looking at pictures. We welcome comments.

Be sure to watch, just above this blurb, my husband, Jim, using his 10 foot hands-free electric fishing kayak

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Electric Powered Hands-Free Fishing Kayak

Be sure to check out the separate blog to find out about our electric kayak, Kingfisher 10! You can find the blog at http://electrickayakkingfisher-10.blogspot.com . You can also read the features list on this kayak and purchase building plans and building kits at www.winchuckriverstore.com .

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We moved to our current home on the Wild River Coast of Southern Oregon from San Jose, CA. Our family consist of Jim and Karen, two dogs and two cats. Karen's passion is gardening. Jim's obsession is building electric powered fishing kayaks and fishing.