Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People

You’ve met people who learn that you have crafty skills, and immediately say, “I love that, but I could never do that thing!” (Or you are one of those people, in which case, hi there!)

So what to get for this person if you want to gift something with just a bit of a crafty edge? Or rather, what can you make?

How about homemade cookie mix? That way the receiver just has to dump the mix in a bowl with wet ingredients, just like a regular store-bought mix, but with a more personal and handmade touch! Here’s a website with a wide variety of mixes, and here’s another! They are still making something, just with a little facilitation, and maybe they’ll ask you for the mix recipe afterward!

What do you think of a homemade kit? Say you’re a fan of embroidery, and a friend seems like they’re dying to try it. Why not make a kit for them, with a handdrawn or traced design, embroidery thread you’ve hand picked, one or two of your favorite embroidery needles, a hoop that you know works well, and some perfect fabric! The same idea can work for quilting, or garments, etc!

Make something for their home! If there’s a spot of wall they keep complaining about, or you really need to make them a quilt because they’re always chilly, the home is one of the categories where you don’t necessarily need extensive measurements or reconnaissance, but can still make something super useful for them!

How about something for their pets? I have a friend who would flip out if I made something for their (incredibly adorable and dorky) dog. He wore a bow tie for Halloween, and looked so miserable, so I’m holding off for his sake, but I know my friend would love it!

Make them something for themselves! This one is the ultimate, especially if the item has been requested before, but if you’re superstitious think hard about the boyfriend sweater conundrum… I don’t knit anything for a S.O. I guess I was rather superstitious for a scientist…

So that wraps up my gift guide series!

I didn’t quite expect them to get so philosophical, so I hope you enjoyed them!

As with every post this week, let me know if there’s anything else I should add in the comments below!

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Wednesday – Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Thursday – Gifts for Makers

Gifts for Makers

Maker is such a general term, but that is on purpose, because it means anyone who lives to make stuff. From textile based people (like me!) to 3D printing gurus, to wood workers, etc.

And in my experience, most of us are somewhat generalists. A lot of sewists also do yarnstuffs. A lot of people who laser cut also do woodwork. A lot of scrapbookers also do vinyl work, etc.

Like the term, this list is also somewhat vague, since I can’t guess what all makers might want to do or try out, but it will hopefully give you a jumping off point.

Sound good?

Gifts of Time

Offer to shop for material with them with no judgements allowed unless asked. Dream killers need not apply.

If the craft is something they typically do alone, offer to accompany them, whether that’s bringing your own project in the room to simply be a physical presence and an idea springboard, or if you ask for lessons/suggestions.

Gifts to Buy

Buy them some hardware or tools that could level up their skills with practice. For sewists that could be a serger or coverstitch, for woodworkers that could be a hand planar, etc. Asking them about their dream tools could lead to the perfect gifts!

Get them a kit for a new type of craft. I’ve personally tried basket weaving (underwater was not mandatory) and dyeing fabric, and growing plants. I made some awesome stuff, picked up one new hobby, and gained an appreciation for craftsmen who do it well.

Get them a spot in a local workshop. If they love quilting, but have never done a workshop, buy them a spot for the upcoming quilted tablerunner tutorial, etc. They can meet fellow makers, and hopefully learn something!

Anything you’d like to add? Let me know in the comments below!

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Wednesday – Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Gifts for a Yarn Crafter

Alright, next up in the gift guide lineup for the day is gifts to give yarncrafters! Anyone who knits or crochets, or generally lives covered in small amounts of alpaca fluff?

Gifts of time:

Accompany them to a local yarn store (LYS) without complaining or dream killing! Only use this at your own risk (if you’re anything like my brother who lives to kill dreams).

Gifts to make:

embroidery bag

Project bag. Your yarn loving friend is going to need somewhere to put their project while they take a break to eat chocolate! (See Monday’s post here, or you can buy the one pictured above here).

Gifts to buy:

yarn.jpg

Yarn! Chances are your yarn lover’s stash is already chock full, so any yarn could do, but think about what they like to make and buy accordingly. However if they only knit sweaters, consider a gift certificate to a LYS.

mushroom.jpg

Fun yarn toy/tool! This mushroom cord tool was a gift from my aunt that I got as a child (before easy internet searching was a thing) and it was just a cute decoration for about a year before my mom and I figured out how to use it, and now it’s both adorable and functional!

knittingstuff

Replacements for some of the small yarn related things that are easily lost. For me it’s needle caps, yarn needles, and stitch holders. The only reason I had these to photograph is because of a really recent organization.

Cute or topical stitch markers. I don’t tend to use them, since I’m either hyper organized or winging it, but some of my friends love them!

yarnwinder.jpg

A yarn winder is amazing to have, if your crafter bought a lot of yarn before discovering the magic of caking them…

Anything else to add? Let me know in the comments!

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Thursday – Gifts for a Maker (people who like to make or craft or build)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Gift Ideas for an Established Sewist

So yesterday’s gift guide was for new sewists, but what about the sewist that’s been practicing for a few years? Someone who has all the beginner materials, and really doesn’t need another pair of scissors?

Who am I kidding? I own at least 8 pairs of scissors. Bring another pair on!

But seriously, what kind of stuff should you give to the established sewist in your life?

Gifts of time:

Clean their sewing space (under their supervision). There’s nothing I dislike more than vacuuming threads off the floor, or organizing fabric scraps and ironing fabric that fell off my bookshelf full of fabric.

Clean out their sewing machine(s). Have you seen how much dust and lint is in there? If it has been awhile since the last cleaning, that’s even better!

Ask for a beginner project and tutorial (if you’re interested in learning a bit). I love sharing my skills with people who ask and are truly interested! Word of warning: only ask if you’re willing to put in the time…

Gifts to make:

A project. This one’s a bit abstract, but if you know their likes and dislikes you can put together all the parts needed to make a thing, and give your sewist a ready made project that they’ll love. (For instance, gift some fabric, and a pattern, along with some elastic, etc!

pattern weights.jpg

Some pattern weights. My favorite ones are kinda janky looking, but they’re nothing more than washi tape and washers from the hardware store! I’ve seen cool looking ones made with ribbon in the same way!

A funky/cool sign. Does the sewist in question love sewing more than coffee? Or threaten murder over improper use of fabric scissors? Make them a cool sign/art piece to show them that you were paying attention and will never use fabric scissors to cut paper again.

DO NOT cut out your sign from paper using fabric scissors.

Gifts to Buy:

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A pair of scissors! I jest, I jest…

(Here’s one link and another one) 

notions.jpg

Vintage notions that are in good shape. I love bias tape and vintage lace. The former I use, and the latter I hoard. If your established sewist likes notions, consider going to a thrift shop or resale store to pick up cool looking notions, like bias tape, seam binding, or cool looking zippers!

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A cool tool that’s unusual or new to them. Last year I got these cool tools that have been so neat to have around. The hummingbird is a needle threader, and the gauge has been so helpful with hems! This is the time to look for that thing they lingered on in a fabric store!

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Magnetic wand! So helpful for picking up pins. Telescoping ones are great so you don’t have to aim as well! While we’re on the subject, a magnetic pincushion is pretty cool too.

embroidery kit

Small project in a new “field.” If they’ve always wanted to try embroidery, why not give them a kit? Or if they’ve wanted to try the coloring craze for awhile, pick up a coloring book, or download and print some pages, and some markers!

Anything that you sewists out there want to add to your wishlist? Let me know in the comments!

Gift Guide Lineup

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Wednesday -Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Thursday – Gifts for a Maker (people who like to make or craft or build)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Gift Ideas for a New Sewist

It’s almost the holiday season, and it’s the time for thinking about gifts (unless you’re one of those organized people who already has all the presents wrapped… I envy you)!

So I’m taking this week (with an extra post on Wednesday in addition to the regularly scheduled programming) to share some gift ideas for new makers, starting today with new sewists (or sewers or seamstresses or non gendered sewing people) in your life.

Many of you (from what I can tell) are sewists yourselves, so this is geared as a mentoring type of list, and please leave any suggestions in the comments! As part of my job at a makerspace, I’m surrounded by people who are learning to make, so I’m trying to channel that into what I’d give to a friend getting started.

**Other than the links to my own shop, I’m not affiliated with any of these companies. I just like or like the look of the product.**

Gifts of time:

Spend a few hours showing them the ropes. There’s nothing more rewarding for both you and the new sewist than sharing your experiences and helping them through a first project.

Spend some time in a fabric store, helping with choices. I know that my friends who I’ve shared fabric shopping with have been both overwhelmed with all the options, and then underwhelmed with the options for the project they had their heart set on, so having someone experienced can help with both the first and the second problems. I know that if I had someone experienced in garment sewing with me for my first garment fabric trip I would’ve had a much better luck in making it up (I chose very woodgy fabric so cutting it was a nightmare, and then the entire top was too small for my bust, but I didn’t have enough fabric to fix it. Cut to 3 years later before I sewed another garment).

Spend some time shopping through your own stash with them, so they can get some experience with fabrics that you know and have experience with. Plus you get to destash too! (Hide the stuff you can’t bear to part with first though…)

Gifts to Make:

embroidery bag.jpg

Project bag/box. There’s always a project that needs to be stored, right?

Pincushion. There’s nothing more fun than an awesome and/or cute pincushion for beginners.

  • Here’s a tutorial for a pincushion on the top of a mason jar!
  • Check out some to buy in the next section…

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A design or pattern all to themselves, or a copy of your favorite entry level pattern. Sharing something you like to make, or one of your favorite easy patterns is a great way to support someone starting out!

 

Gifts to Buy:

scissors

Pair of sharp new scissors. I like the normal scissors option, like these, but some people swear by more expensive brands, like these. Bonus points if you decorate them in some way so that the non-sewists don’t use them for silly things like paper! I like to wrap the handle with yarn.

sharpener

Scissors sharpeners. Optional, but good if the new sewist already has some good scissors that just need to be a little sharper. I bought this one from Lowe’s one day, but here’s a good option that’s similar.

needles.jpg

Book of needles – Handsewing and/or machine. depending on if the new sewist has a sewing machine of their own. I personally think both are good to have in a sewist’s arsenal, but it’s up to you!

seam ripper

Good quality seam ripper. I have both a new one and a vintage one, but I definitely prefer the long handled ones because they feel better in my hand when I settle down for a long, frustrating unpicking session. This one here is pretty close to what I’m used to.

pincushion

Cute pincushion. If your aspiring sewist is a young girl, or generally likes cutesy things, an adorable pincushion is the most awesome gift. My first pincushion was a purple and yellow flower that was gifted to me by some early quilting mentors of mine, and I kept it for 10 years. This one that looks like tomato is my favorite, and it came as a topper to a small storage box, and I can’t imagine another one on my sewing table.

Fabric (or both). Fabric is a tricky gift in my mind. I’m particular about my fabric choices, so it’s rare when gifted fabric actually gets made into something. But if your aspiring sewist is less picky, its a good option.

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And chocolate. Chocolate is always good. Or insert other candy of choice here. Or cookies… Today was a cookie day for me.

If there’s anything you want to add to the list, put it in the comments! I’m sure there are things other sewists would put in a beginner sewing kit!

So the remaining lineup:

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Wednesday -Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Thursday – Gifts for a Maker (people who like to make or craft or build)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Hope you enjoy this series!