Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Easy, Inexpensive Gift Tag Ideas

My favorite part of Christmas has always been Giving. As a child, my parents always treasured my homemade gifts (or at least appreciated the thought). I still often struggle with picking out the right gift. It is so much more fun to make something rather than buy it. Once the gift is made, my next favorite part of that process is the gift wrapping. I've always wanted something beautiful but not expensive. 

With gift wrapping comes GIFT TAGS!

What's better than paper? Sticky Paper! My budget likes the adhesive gift tags, but I can't stop there. I do not like ending the life cycle of a gift bag with a sticker. Gift bags are meant to be re-usable, right?

The answer is YES, so go with me here.

The good news is that you can make lovely gift tags out of several things you may already have at home. They can be used on any size or shape gift. I've compiled me three favorite inexpensive gift tags.

Use scrapbook paper with large designs. Yes, I do have an obsession with craft paper. Some scrapbooking papers have large prints on them. Simply cut around the edges. Write the recipient's name on the back, and you have an instant gift tag!


Trace a design on paper. Again, this can be done with scrapbooking paper with very little design or just use some colorful paper. I do a google search for coloring pages of Christmas items: holly leaves, Christmas trees, wreaths, etc. After printing out, I place my paper under the printout and cut around the design. You can write the recipient's name on the front or back. Since I put outlining on this gift tag, I'd need to write the name on the back.


For this gift tag, I decided to copy the outlining onto the tag.

Turn adhesive gift tag into a hanging gift tag. Place the gift tag on the wrong side of a scrap piece of wrapping paper (pretty paper facing out). Then, cut around the tag. For this gift tag, the front has the recipient's info. The back is the decorative part. I love two-sided gift tags!

I think I bought these gift tags after last Christmas
for less than $0.50 for the entire pack.

Finishing the gift tag
After cutting out your desired gift tag, you will just need two things: (1) hole punch and (2) coordinating ribbon or string.

 
Slip the ribbon through the hole and affix to the gift. So much fun! Yes, I am easily entertained.
 
What kind of personalized details do you like to add to your gift wrapping?

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Advent Calendar and Jesse Tree Ideas - Celebrating the Christmas Season

This year, Advent begins on November 27th. Before the season begins, I wanted to share a few favorite idea's I've found. In addition, I'll share some of the ideas that I want to incorporate this year. We will be starting our calendar on December 1st, so we'll finish on Christmas Eve. I'm going to be gracious with myself and "be OK" if I tweak the plans mid-stream... it only makes me more knowledgeable for next year, right?. Well, that's my story, and I'm sticking to it. I hope you can be gracious with yourself, as well.

There are so many beautiful, creative ideas for an advent calendar. In true "Almost On Purpose" style, I wanted to find my readers some lovely advent calendars that were made from something else. Here are few beautiful idea's I've found:

Picture Frame Calendar. Source: Fiskars via The Crafty Chicks


Recycling bath-tissue rolls. Source: Maya*Made



Boxes and old cards or cardstock. Source: Full Circle via Liz Busby on Pinterest

Plus, The Crafty Crow and Tip Junkie have their own plethora of ideas for advent calendars. So many beautiful, handmade, and thrifty things. You may need to set a timer for yourself, so you don't get sucked in and lose track of time. Sure, I may have lost track of time a few times.

Growing up, we had an Advent Calendar with a tiny door for each day. Tucked inside, we'd find a piece of candy. It was a great memory! With my own little family, we are still trying to figure out how we want to countdown to Christmas. There are some great resources out there for specific scriptures to read and for details on the nightly lighting of candles.

However, until this year, I've not found anything that really interests the boys and is more than just "going through the motions." I heard about a Jesse Tree. It goes back to the Scripture in Isaiah 11:1-2. It is the prophecy about the Messiah coming from the tree of Jesse. Each day, you take an ornament and read the Scripture associated with the foretelling of the Savior.This is something I have been searching for quite sometime and has given me inspiration for next year's Christmas play, as well. Yes, I do love dual-purpose things!

Here are Jesse Tree and Advent suggestions and activities that I like:
  • The Voice.Offers some background and a clear list of Scriptures for each day.
  • King of Peace Episcopal Church.This reference provides information on both Advent and the Jesse Tree, which will be very helpful in developing our "clues."
  • TeachingMOM. She supplies an interactive calendar with all the traditional Advent Scripture readings. In additions, she has a very extensive list of other Advent ideas.
  • Christmas Your Way.This site gave me the idea for using printables as ornaments. They have a few links where you can download the pictures.

Our Plan
My parents bought us a lovely, fabric advent calendar from Sweden. Sadly, I've not put it to good use yet. I think this year, we'll be able to make GREAT use of it.

We are continuing to teach our boys that Christmas is about the Ultimate Gift that was given on the cross. The Jesse Tree offers more opportunities and discussions about it. As you know, preschool- and kindergarten-age kids are asking lots of questions. It is my goal to provide a safe place for my kiddos to ask their questions and show them that we can discuss ideas.

I'm not sure that we'll have room in our quaint house for another small tree, but we will find a way to display our ornaments. At any rate, I will put a "clue" in each day's pocket. We will work together to find the ornament.

The clues. As I mentioned, I'll write the scripture reference and some clues on the back of a piece of scrapbook paper, cut into a 4x4 square. Yes, you know I love pretty papers!!

The ornaments. I am planning on printing off a small printable (about 3x3) for the boys to color. However, I will keep all of them in a box. 
Matching game. From the scripture, I will describe the ornament for the day (read about it, study it, give some tips) and have the kids find the right ornament. We can work together to color and decorate the picture. Then, we can glue the ornament to the clue card and decide how to display it. 

Supplies.
  • Printer paper for printables
  • Scrabook paper
  • Paper cutter or Scissors and ruler
  • Glue
  • Crayons, markers, glitter
  • Hole punch
  • String
Have you used an Advent Calendar to countdown to Christmas? What has worked best for you?