Homemade Gifts Kids Can Make
Posted on December 12, 2018 by CHS
Holidays are right around the corner and it’s time to start thinking about gifts for family and friends. For most children, one of the most exciting parts of the holidays is receiving gifts. However, it’s also important to teach your children the importance of giving. You can help your child to learn about giving by creating low cost homemade gifts that your relatives and friends will love. In this blog, you will learn why giving is good for you and get various homemade gift ideas that you can create with your kids.
Giving offers many benefits for both our mind and soul, and to those around us. According to Jason Marsh and Jill Suttie from Greater Good Magazine, giving makes us feel happy, is beneficial for our health, promotes cooperation and social connection, evokes gratitude, and, perhaps most importantly, is contagious. Take the time this season to encourage your child to give to others by creating homemade gifts for his relatives and friends.
Here are three homemade gifts from How Wee Learn that you can make with your child.
Fingerprint Holiday Photo Frame
Items you needed for this gift are:
- 4x6 wooden frame
- Your family photos
- Acrylic paint with various solid colors
Paint the frame white together with your child and let the frame dry overnight. Once the frame is dry, write your child’s name on the bottom part of the frame with a fine point black permanent marker, and have your child decorate it with fingerprints in different colors. When the fingerprints are dry, either your child or you can use the same permanent marker to draw a string to connect the fingerprints around the frame. Insert the family photo in the photo frame and wrap it up for your relatives and friends. Your child will have fun passing out the gifts himself. You can find the full tutorial on Fun-A-Day website.
Scented Bath Bombs
What you’ll need:
- 1 cup of baking soda
- ¾ cup of corn starch
- ¼ cup Epsom salt or cane sugar
- ½ cup citric acid
- Food color
- Essential oils
- Large bowl
- Measuring cups
- Mixing spoon
- Sifter
- Spray bottle with water
- Materials to use as a mold such as plastic Easter eggs or muffin tin lined with saran wrap
First, mix the baking soda, corn starch, Epsom salt, and citric acid in a large bowl with the measurement given above. Use the sifter to break up some of the bigger chunks that may have stuck together. Next, depending on which scent you want to make, add several drops of food coloring into the water in the spray bottle. For example, you can use lavender scent and use purple food color to match the scent. Mix the spray bottle well and spray into the dry mixture. Spray it lightly so that the mixture creates a clump when mushed together instead of adding too much and losing the fizziness. Afterward, add few drops of lavender essential oil and thoroughly stir the mixture. Scoop the mixture into the molds and firmly press it down to create its shape. Let it dry overnight and gently take them out of the mold and store them in an airtight container and wrap them up to use as presents. Learn more about this tutorial at Playdough to Plato.
Tie Dye Bookmark
What you’ll need:
- An empty plastic container (this can be from a used gallon of milk, vinegar, etc.)
- Various colors of fine-tip permanent markers
- Rubbing alcohol (99% isopropyl)
- Spray varnish
- Medicine dropper or pipette
- Ribbon, twine, or cording
- Button or decorative bead
- Scissors and hole punch
Remove the label from the container by filling it up with hot water for about 10 minutes. The heat from the water will allow you to peel off the label easily. Once the label is removed, trace a bookmark you have at home with a pencil and cut it out; you should be able to cut out four bookmarks from one container. Have your child color the bookmarks with variety of different color permanent markers however they like. Fill your dropper/pipette with rubbing alcohol and place your bookmarks on the sink for safety and have them sit on paper towel. Help your child drip drops on the bookmark to see the effect as the color fills out and blends throughout the bookmarks. This could look very magical for your child! Let it sit until it dries completely. If you’re not happy with the blend of colors, you can always wipe it off and try it again. Once you’re satisfied, you can make it permanent by lightly spraying the spray varnish. Don’t spray too much or else the ink from the marker will start blending again. Once the bookmarks are dry, punch a hole centered on the top of the bookmark and decorate it with a ribbon or string with button or decorative bead and you are done! To see the full instruction, go to Happy Hooligans.