All posts by Kirsetin

Homemade Holiday Gifts that Rock

November 17, 2009UncategorizedKirsetin

If you’ve ever been on the receiving end of a great homemade gift, you know how cool it is. Taking the time to make something says something both about the recipient, and how you feel about them. So whether you’re looking for homemade ideas because this year’s budget is a little tighter, or because you want to step up the personalization factor, here are a few ideas.

Homemade bread and jam.

If you’ve ever received either of these as a gift, you know how awesome receiving BOTH would be! This is the gift of time, because, really, that’s what it takes.

Homemade (white) bread:
5 3/4 – 6 1/4 cups all-purpose
1 pkg active dry yeast
2 T sugar
1 T shortening, margarine, or butter
1 t salt

This is all you need to make great bread! My favorite traditional cookbook is the Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book, and this is the recipe I use.

Homemade strawberry jam:
4 c prepared strawberries (about 2 qts)
7 c sugar
1/2 t butter
1 pkg CERTO Fruit Pectin

Again, this recipe calls for just a few ingredients, but this jam is wonderful. My friend Holly has made it several years in a row and swears by it. I’ve been the lucky recipient and I can vouch for its tastiness. Here’s the recipe she uses.

Chocolate-dipped pretzels.

I make and give these almost every year to rave reviews. The hardest part is getting them out of the house before the children claim them for their own. They’re easy, I promise–again, it just takes some time. Wrapped with cellophane and a festive bow, they’re gorgeous and tasty. Click here for my post with the recipe.

Candy: the universal crowd pleaser.

When choosing a candy, I suggest making something you really love to give. As a little girl, I visited my Aunt Jo’s house at Christmas time and loved to indulge in the hard tack candy she’d made. As a grown-up, it’s one of my candies-of-choice to give.

Homemade caramel is another of my favorites, and people love it. I have a couple of recipes, but one is significantly more difficult for basically the same end product. Check back Thursday for both the hard tack candy recipe and the easy caramel recipe.

Cookies.

Homemade, decorated cookies are a scrumptious treasure in a sea of same-old slice-and-bakes. I love to plan an afternoon to bake with a friend, then split the goodies—we end up with twice as many varieties for the same amount of time in the kitchen. Fair warning: talk about what you’ll make. My friend Sheri and I did this one year and laughed ourselves silly when we realized how many of our cookie traditions were the same.

You guessed it: I’ll share the recipe (and a couple of icing tips) on Friday.

What about you? Do you have tried & true homemade gifts you can share with the rest of us? If so, please write about it in the comments. If you’ve done a post about it on your own blog, leave me the link and I’ll link to any great homemade gift ideas on Friday.

How An Allen Wrench Saved Me $600

November 12, 2009finances, home projectsKirsetin

Once upon a time, in a memory long ago, I thought I would grow up and spend money on fine furniture like this lovely side table for the dining room. You can purchase this treasure at Ethan Allen for a little over $1000. Yep, you read that right. It’s a pretty piece of painted wood to store stuff in and put food on. They even throw in the cute wine rack: $1049.

But Ethan Allen, as fine as it is, isn’t as trendy as say, Pottery Barn. And, oohhh, who doesn’t love Pottery Barn? You could buy this beautiful side table there for only a few dollars MORE. Candles and wine not included: $1399

But a funny thing happened on the way to growing up. Although I still think both of the above buffets are absolutely lovely, I have, along the way, acquired three helpful boys with the ability to destroy anything new within moments of said item entering our home. And so I ask myself, “Is this the best use of my $1000?” Ummm, what do you think?

So I looked around, and I saw this fantastic buffet for less than HALF the price of the others at the always wonderful Cost Plus/World Markets.

And you know what that means, don’t you?

Uh huh. It means screws and allen wrenches and an hour of looking at an incredibly lame instruction guide. It means a little sweat and a little frustration.

But it also means I won’t tear my hair out the first time I find matchbox or lego scratches. It means that instead of hanging onto this piece long after we’ve worn it out, because Dear Lord I paid over $1000 for it, instead I will happily repurpose it or give it away when its time comes. And in the meantime, darn, isn’t it cute?

The brown plates, though, they might have to go. I was trying to be practical, because I use them ALL of the time and where can I store them (?), but I think it’s too much dark in here. What do you think? Find them another home or leave them be?

When Is A Shoe Box Not Just A Shoe Box?

November 10, 2009activities for kids, christmasKirsetin

Do you have one of these in your closet? Hidden in the back, maybe, beneath an old sweatshirt?

You could recycle it, or use it to store photos. OR, you could gather your children and, together, you could add a few little trinkets, things like toothpaste,

matchbox cars,

and pretty little barrettes.

You could even throw in a little treat, like this:

Then you could follow the instructions here, for Operation Christmas, and instead of an old shoe box bound for the trash, it could be magically transformed into a joy-giving gift.

One look at these faces tells me it’s true: It’s not just a shoe box anymore.