Christmas Gift Ideas

My cute friend Kari from Ucreate asked me a few weeks ago, to think of a good idea for her,

"7 days of perfect gifts for co-workers, neighbors, friends, teachers.. etc." feature!

You MUST check it out... these are some super talented ladies, with GREAT ideas! :)

I have to say, that it was a little bit challenging to think of JUST one! lol.

So here are three, that I thought would be fun to giveaway to friends and neighbors, this year!...

You can get all the vinyl decals from our shop, The House of Smiths Designs.

The first was actually my brothers idea!

He came up with this fun saying and put it in his own home.  I LOVE it!  It just speaks volumes about how "we roll" as a family. LOL.

I thought it would be fun to tweak it a bit and put it on a small board, with some "make-shift" mistletoe!

All I did was take a piece of scrap wood I had in the garage,

Paint it with some leftover blue paint we had from the kitchen... Sand down the edges, and then ink them with

"Distress Ink" that I got from my local craft store.

Then I applied the vinyl and a claw hanger on the back... and, Wa-La!

Cute sign, ready to go! :)

I also picked up these leaved, green berries, and a small bunch of some white berries, and tied them with some white fabric... to make... 

"my own mistletoe," since all I could find at the store was red mistletoe.

It's probably not the most traditional looking, but it goes with all the other Christmas decor in my home,

... so, it's staying...lol

. . . 

My Next gift is a, pretty simple, really inexpensive one!

So... you see those white berries up there, in my "mistletoe?"  Well... I had some left over,

so I was trying to figure out how to use them.
If you read my blog regularly... then you know that I'm a pathological picture taker. LOL.
Whenever I can... I snap pictures of whatever moment I'm in.  I just LOVE looking back at the memories!

Needless to say, I have GOBS of pictures that usually just sit in my computer... to never REALLY be appreciated.
So I thought this next idea was a REALLY good one, for all those great pictures that you have, of close friends or neighbors... that don't make it into a frame.

I purchased these large, clear, plastic ornaments at Michaels Crafts, and put some of the leftover berry stems, inside.

Then I sized down and printed (using photoshop elements)

a photo of my friend Laci and I.

I also added a little "2010" to the bottom of the photo, so that she could remember what year the picture was taken.

Then I used a foam bump out sticker, to make the photo stand out a bit from the paper... just to give it some more visual interest.

Then I folded it, neatly in half... making sure not to crease it...

and placed it inside the ornament.

After this... I used some tweezers, to straighten out the picture a bit, and move it where I wanted it.

Then I added some "Laci inspired ribbion" ha!

and done!

This gift would have to be my favorite... because it's not only cute, but sentimental.

And you can give it alone... or attach it onto an additional gift!

I don't know about you, but I love pulling out old pictures, and things that remind me of great friends, and moments in my life :)

. . .

This next idea was inspired from one of my favorite Christmas songs :)

I pretty much used the same idea for painting and prepping this wood, as I did, for the Mistletoe saying.

Except I didn't use any distress ink, because I liked the color of the warm wood, peeking through.

This 1.5 x 7 inch piece of chunky wood is GREAT size to give as a gift, because it doesn't require a  plate stand... and is beefy enough to stand on it's own!

I DID round the edges of the wood a bit, with a router and sand paper... but you don't have to :)

Then I just paired up this small board with a $1.97 jar, that I bought at Walmart, adorned with our families name and a ribbon...

and filled it with some Hershey's Mint Truffle kisses.

what?  You haven't tried these?  You're missing out!

I usually get a bag eat half on the way home and put them in the freezer, for a slow melting, cool treat!

Ooo... they are DEVINE!

. . .

Okay... so I couldn't stop myself at just 3 gift ideas... how about one more!!!

(hmm... sound like a game show host, much?... lol)

Alright...So, I thought this would be a great gift to give, if you DON'T celebrate Christmas, or if you would rather give a gift to your neighbor, friend, or family member that will last ALL year!

And the best part... is that it's REALLY simple, quick and easy!

I just bought this plain, square, white plate from Walmart for... I think about $3 or $4 dollars.

and then put these two vinyl decals on the top and bottom!

Then I attached a dry erase marker to the back of the plate, with a piece of Velcro...

for easy access when needing to write notes down, in the kitchen, that you don't want to forget! :)

I thought this idea would work well, because it can go in ANY style kitchen :)

Okay... WHEW!  I think that's it!

Between these, and all the other great "neighbor" gifts already posted on Kari's blog... there's GOT to be an idea, that you can use, for those fabulous neighbors, friends and co-workers!