DIY Christmas Gift Crafts (Or Other Time-of-Year Gifts!)

My friend Kelli (www.livingwellbykel.com) and I attended our first barter fair a few weeks ago with some of our handmade crafts and canned food. I posted the photo below to my Instagram and told a few people what we made. Since I was asked how to make these items, I wanted to share the links here!

Barter Fair

You may be first of all wondering what a barter fair is. Basically, you bring your homemade or homegrown goods to the fair for trade – no money allowed. It’s a really fun way to exchange things with local people who also like to make things themselves.

Finger Knit Boot Cuffs

Boot cuffs are really popular right now, so they were a great addition to our table. I saw someone at the fair wearing boots and just asked if she would trade her ornaments for a pair. These are perfect gifts for any woman or girl who wears boots! (and really… who doesn’t?)

Materials:

• Chunky size 6 yarn – 1 skein of Bernat’s made 6 boot cuffs
• Fingers (yes, your actual fingers)
• 2 buttons

Instructions

Kelli found this tutorial by the Kurtz Corner. It took me a little while to get the hang of it, but once I knew what I was doing, it went pretty quick. I’m thinking this would be a great craft to do on the train during my daily commute.

My boot cuffs were 8 stitches wide by 24 or 28 long. Audra Kurtz’s tutorial was only 20 long, but at the end she tells you she has small calves. The best way is to just test the length on your own calf.

Soy Candles in Tea Cups or Mason Jars

My old roommate and I made these candles last year at Christmastime too. I still have a bunch of tea cups that I bought at a garage sale so I used them again this year, along with small mason jars. Making candles is pretty quick and easy.

Materials

• Soy wax
• Wicks
• Tea cups or mason jars
• Scent (we used clean cotton and baked apple pie)
• Color dye

Instructions

Here’s my blog post where I describe how to make soy candles for under $2. I’m still trying to figure out/fix the circular crack in the wax. I assume it has to do with the shape of the tea cup. Once they are lit once though, the crack will melt away.

Cinnamon Christmas Ornaments

I have to admit Kelli did these all on her own. We worked together one day making these things while our guys watched football. We finished our crafts just in time to watch the Seahawks though!

Materials

• 1/3 cup cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 2 tsp Elmer’s glue
• Baker’s twine (mine was leftover from my wedding and I bought it on Etsy)
• Cookie cutters (any shape you want)

Instructions

Kelli had made these before, so I’m not sure how much she actually used the instructions, but she pinned this one from the Gooseberry Patch.

Canned Food

I forgot to bring my canned food, so everything you see here was Kelli’s. She’s the foodie between us two. Check out her food & health blog at www.livingwellbykel.com! For the fair, Kelli brought peaches, pears, and pickles.

Ingredients

• Fruit or veggies
• Mason jars
• NEW lids
• New or used rings
• Canner
• Stove

Instructions

It depends what you’re making, of course, but here are a few of our recipes:

• How to make canned peaches (BexBernard)
• Kelli’s Great Grandma’s Pear Sauce (LivingWellByKel)
• Old Fashioned Raspberry Jam (LivingWellByKel)
• Spicy Dill Pickles (LivingWellByKel)