I decided that I'm giving all my girlfriends a similar gift. But first I need to give you some background: about a year ago a friend and I, giddy at work, decided to start a Bad Girls' Club (inspired by _The Bad Girl's Guide To Getting What You Want_). We wrote up this whole manifesto and rules for picking a name, etc. Anyway, although we're not exactly a clique or anything (and in fact they only all met one another fairly recently) membership is now up to 7. It's hysterical! Everyone gets such a kick out of it-- and really, all it is is a concept. We've only had one Bad Girl event (a Naked Lady party). Anyway, I decided I'm giving them all "Bad Girl Kits" for Christmas. Each girl gets:
-a homemade eye pillow (I already had fabric, rice and oil, so this cost me nada!)
-cute little sexy tank tops for bed with various designs/sayings on them (ie, "Rock Star" for my best friend who's in a band)-- got these for $5 or less at the swapmeet!
-a few of them will get fun little undies instead of/in addition to the tanks (ie, one of the girls is a rockabilly chick who is obsessed with cherries; hers have cherries on them and say "Luscious"-- these were about $2 at the same swapmeet
-a cheap plastic lighter
-a nail file w/a cute design on it
-a "Bad Girl Soundtrack" I'm burning (complete with decoupaged cover-- again, didn't cost anything since I already had tons of blank CDs)

I'm still looking for things to add-- cute and vaguely trampy. But you get the idea!

Also, you might try looking on www.craftychica.com for really cool crafty gift ideas!

This year I am making:

-paper doll magnets
-marble magnets with family pics
-pine cone wreath
-knitted "smoke ring" (oversized tube that acts as a hat and a scarf
-knit wash cloths
-hand decorated glass xmas ornaments (clear glass balls with stuff in and on them)
-vanilla sugar
-brown sugar body scrub

quote:

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Originally posted by leanne:
I am always the Queen of Craft at xmas.

This year I am making:
-marble magnets with family pics

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I am also decoupaging journals for the girls. I was happy to find some blank books at B&N on sale. yeh!

quote:

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Originally posted by giamaria:
Jezebel-
I am doing those marbles too...any idea where to get magnets that will be strong enough?

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Um, giamaria, sorry to give the impression I'd actually tried this. To be honest, the marbles are sitting on the corner of my desk, taunting me. I was just very excited about the idea! Although, do you have any reason to think that the regular magnet-with-adhesive-on-one-side, comes-in-a-roll-at-all-crafts-stores would not be strong enough?

Here's the link to the marble project at Crafty Chica:

http://www.azcentral.com/home/crafty/1010craftyideas10.html

She's got it set up as a Halloween accessory for kids, but it's easy to see how to get around that. Also, the glue issue is addressed.

This year, I am making beaded snowflake tree ornaments, and soap. Actually, I got all the soap stuff and brought it home and sweets just went ape over it all and has taken over that project. Now I am just technical advisor. It was funny, actually. I started the project and was bumbling along. the soap requires a certain amount of time spent waiting. We went running during one of those waiting periods and when we got back, sweets was full of all these ideas he had brainstormed during the run. So he's now constantly microwaving soap and adding stuff to it to make it even better.

Gia -- the journal thing is always great; I worked for Borders for years, and you can always get cheap blank books there -- in addition to decoupaging the front, I would go inside and write in the margins of random pages a particularly funny/happy/ special memory of that person, ie: for my sister, "when mom would let us decorate cookies and we'd have frosting contests" etc.

HUGE hit. DEFINITE tear inducer as well.

quote:

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Originally posted by giamaria:
Jezebel-
I am doing those marbles too...any idea where to get magnets that will be strong enough? help! I am decoupaging fun little girly pattern things from magazines and such on the back.

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I got the strong, round, thick magnets from the craft section at Walmart. I prefer really strong magnets, as I tend to have a lot of pictures and such on my fridge.

Walmart also had big hearts and flowers made out of metal that you could paint and hang up for bulletin boards. I was thinking about a trip to the home improvement store to get a sheet of metal to make my own bulletin boards.

Sugar Scrub Recipe:
1/8 Cup Macadamia Nut Oil
1/8 Cup Sesame Seed Oil
3/4 Cup Turbinado Sugar
10-15 drops of essential oil
Mix oils together, add essential oil and mix well, then add sugar. Voila!
*note - I couldn't find Macadamia Nut Oil, and made the mistake of getting TOASTED Sesame Seed Oil (yuck for scrub, yum for stir fry) so I substituted 1/4 Cup Apricot Kernel Oil and it turned out just fine.

(Edited because I forgot how to code links.)

quote:

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Originally posted by lwasie:
gia- i haven't seen a walmart, but i've seen a target and a kmart even if they are nearly impossible to get to. i too am dying to find big circly maggots for my fridge. i hate the ones that don't hold anything up. i know at chiasso and cb2 they have those tiny little ones that are super mega strong, but they're like $6 for 10. i don't know if i'm willing to spring that much. strangely enough, i haven't tried any art supply stores though.

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EW! Maggots!?!?! hehe

I will see if there is a Michael's around here somewhere. That's one thing about Target, they don't have craft stuff. I wonder if Pearl Art Supply has them....

Lwasie, I saw those really strong ones at CB2 as well, but balked at the price too.

Yeah, it may be time to clean out the fridge if you've got maggots on it. EW!

I will post some instructions for the different projects throughout the day.

You guys figured that marble magnet thing out. I went and bought some photo paper and finally got around to printing off all kinds of tiny pics of Jesus and His Bleeding Heart, Shiva, Buddha, Ganesh, Mary the Long Suffering Virgin Mum, Day of the Dead Skulls and Such and other fabulous creatures small and small. I haven't gotten around to the cutting and gluing phase but y'all sound like you can figure that bit out.

Any way. I'll post more ideas and instructions so that YOU TOO can make a bounty of Christmas booty for a fraction of the cost of a cashmere sweater or two!

Oh and the sugar scrub recipie is about the same as mine:

Leanne's Pine Cone Wreath!!

Here the lowdown:
Needed:
-Pinecones - Lots of 'em (collect mostly the "woody" ones that come from long-needled trees and try to vary the size)
-Anything else you want to affix - fake fruit, berries, ribbons, nuts, etc.
-Wire wreath frame (above 12" otherwise it'll be too small)
-Heavy wire wire (for affixing)(but not too heavy, just heavy florist wire)
-Needle Nose Plyers
-Spagnum or Spanish Moss
-Garbage Bags (pref. black or green)
-Clear Gloss or Satin Acrylic spray

Instructions:
-wet the moss down in the sink
-lay the wire frame down on your working surface and arrange the moss on top of it (that means hump down towards the table, hollow hollow to be filled with moss))
-tie garbage bags tightly around the moss and frame to secure all.
-let sit for a day or so
-working from the edges in and with your largest pinecones on the edges:
-wrap the wire around the end of the pinecone you want to face inward
-poke the wire through the base (through the mossy part first)
-grab the wire on the opposite site with your plyers and pull for a snug fit
-affix the wire to the frame wire in the following way: pinecones on the outer edge of the wreath are affixed to the inner frame wire, pinecones on the inner edge are affixed to the outer frame wire, middle pinecones and pretty stuff affixed to the middle/humpy frame wire -- creating a cisscross of wires to redistribute the tension and weight of the wreath
-larger pinecones go on the out sides, medium in the middle, small fill in the gaps, pretty stuff to add interest and fill in any remaining gaps
-when you are finished affixing stuff, spray the entire thing in a coat of clear acrylic, in a well-ventilated space (the driveway!)
-let dry
-hang it
-show it off to everyone you know
-give away as the coolest handmade gift you ever made!

The great thing about this wreath is, aside from being crushed, its virtually indestructible, due in large part to the criss-crossing of those wires.

(All components for my wreaths have come from the trees in the neighbourhood and Michael's Craft Store)

Alternates to pinecones:
-fragrant herbs
-colourful rags/rags made from sentimental old clothes
-coloured fake berries
-candies and lollipops
-beads and baubles

quote:

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Originally posted by giamaria:
that's funny, Briddy. We spent time this wknd on the same project! I cut a bunch of fun patterns out of a Delia's catalog for most of them. I used the same marble things too.

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quote:

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Originally posted by emmalola:
this may be a little late, but you can get maggots online at www.joann.com- the web version of joann fabrics.

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We are all such smartasses! I love it.

MJO, Okay, I think you need a trip to a dollar store. Making crafts at home to give as gifts is fine if you have the funds for every little ingredient or item needed to complete a project, but the dollar store can be your saving grace this season. You don’t have to limit yourself to the dollar store, but it’s a good place to start and I often get my gift shopping done there, especially when I’m low on funds.

Here are some things I’ve put together from the Dollar Tree this year.

* You can pick up small baskets there or even a gift bag, tissue paper and ribbons, some vanilla candles in a package, potpourri, or buy a Christmas tree ornament or two for their tree. An additional surprise is if you write the person(s) name(s) on the ornament and the year with a metallic paint pen, it makes the ornament even more special.
* Recently I gave a small birthday gift bag to a 27 year old. The bag had shower gel, bath scrunchies, lotions, nail files, etc…you get the idea. It was very well received.
* For my 5 year-old nieces I bought a few things, all of the items are $1 at the Dollar Tree; Christmas storybooks, some funny foam eyeglass frames (2 for $1), a few Barbie-like clothes, some animal activity sticker books and large bag of animal crackers. I arranged all of these in a shirt box and topped the package with a small stuffed reindeer (very cute, for kids or adults) holding candies. I used this on the package instead of a bow (reindeer is almost 7 inches and comes in purple and green or red and green). I spent $8 on this gift.
* Nice large mugs are available at the dollar store. You can make up a tangy cinnamon drink powder to place in a plastic bag, then place it in a mug or two with a ribbon on the handle. Those winter drink recipes are always online at about.com.
* Or make a kitchen gift basket or bag; a wire whisk, a few hand towels instead of tissue paper, nice big wooden spoons, a lettuce knife (3 sizes for $1) and a few other kitchen gadgets and you’re done. You could even save the kitchen towels for the wrapping and tie it closed with a bow.
* A small gift basket of food is a good thing from the dollar store. My husband loves the dollar stores steak sauce and thinks it’s better than Lee & Perrin’s brand. Some beef jerky, steak sauce, a fancy mustard, some salsa, sardines, special crackers, etc. would make a great gift for under $7.
* They even have boxed Christmas cards (15 to a box) for $1 and they’re very nice. I bought 4 boxes.
* They even have holiday dinner plates for $1 right now. I think that 4-8 of those would be a cool gift, especially the ones that have snowmen or snowflakes because they can be used throughout the holiday season, not just at Christmas. Or buy one of these holiday dinner plates, make some cookies and deliver them on the plate. How’s that for a beautiful, low cost gift?!
* Often the dollar store will have some nice picture frames available as well as purse size soft leather picture albums. A great gift, but even better when you place a significant photo in the frame.
* I hesitate to write this, as I always want an artist to receive their royalties, but you’re desperate, so I’ll suggest this; you could make tapes of music as gifts. People still play tapes in their cars. Or burn some CDs if you have the capability.
* As far as wrapping a small gift, such as a tape or CD or small box, here’s what I do, no matter what the season or occasion. Make your own personalized wrapping paper in your word processing program. I use MS Word. Just set the margins to as wide as your printer can handle. Type in the text (ie: Merry Christmas Mom, Love Eva). Select the point size and color and center the text, then copy it all the way down the page. Print it out and your friends and mom will be oooohing and ahhhing. They always do! It’s simple, but makes a big impact because it’s so unexpected.
* I also buy large rolls of wrapping paper at the dollar store. I just can’t see spending even a few dollars on wrapping paper.

Mjo, if you want more ideas, just ask. I think I’ve used up enough bandwidth for the day.

I have to share my crafty-ass (presently un-shrunk!) treasure found at my local dollar store last night: tin snips!

I want to make some Mexican-inspired stuff and was going to buy tin snips at Michael's for a billion dollars so I can make those punched tin bits, but low and behold, the dollar store had a pair of tin snips on the wall, right beside a 3 pack of box cutters (which I wanted to better cut the paper doll magnets).

thanks for the tip on the magnets/maggots! Went to Joann's at lunch (along with every other woman in the greater Chicago metropolitan area) and there were!

I had no idea they had so much crafty stuff there! score.

On the wrapping paper -- I always buy a nonholiday specific jumbo roll, last year it was red and gold stripes. I never use it all at christmas, but then I never have to buy it again for the year because it isn't out of season, it's just red and gold stripes!

quote:

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Originally posted by giamaria:
Jezebel-
I am doing those marbles too...any idea where to get magnets that will be strong enough? help! I am decoupaging fun little girly pattern things from magazines and such on the back.

I am also decoupaging journals for the girls. I was happy to find some blank books at B&N on sale. yeh!

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This may seem like a dumb question but how do you do decoupage? The directions I found online seemed awfully involved. I am not sure all their steps were necessary. Anyone have a quick and dirty guide?

Decoupaging is just cutting stuff out and affixing it to other stuff, ie, magazine pictures glued to a notebook cover. Generally the idea is to cover the surface of whatever you're working on with pictures. They are often different sizes, shapes, etc. You can use plain old Elmers glue, or buy Mod Podge at a craft store (I find I prefer Elmers though). Once everything's glued down you use a thin coat of the glue over the whole thing, and voila!

I think etching the negative space shows up better.

Did you use that weird cream or something else?