Gift ideas for the college and university students on your Christmas list, and the twenty-somethings just starting out on their own.

Once again, I’m excited to be partnering with Ten Thousand Villages on this post. As always, all ideas and opinions are entirely my own.

Well my friends, it's one month till Christmas.  One month.  till.  Christmas.  Yikes!  Isn't it time to get shopping?  So raise your hand if you love a gift roundup... *raises hand*. I personally love them all.  I find them super helpful, or at least super fun.  And I thought I’d put out one of my own. One for students and twenty-somethings, because that’s who I have on my gift-list. So I consider myself a bit of a pro on that age group.

Last-Minute Candy Cane Jar Gift

last-minute + easy + candy canes

So as December is progressing you're probably systematically going down your to-do list checking things off in an organized way.  You’re probably right on schedule.  No late nights for you.  It’s all going according to plan.  Right?  In that case you can just skip this and move on to another blog that never uses words like last-minute.  The rest of us will stick around here in the world of procrastination, panic, and doing crafts late at night because we suddenly think it’s vitally important.  Who’s with me?

Candy Cane Shortbread + Christmas Playlist

candy cane shortbread

So when I’m having a complete Christmas moment, and I’m baking away, and the tree is up, I love to have a great Christmas playlist happening that I can sing along with, and love every song that comes on.  If your Christmas playlist needs some mid-season additions, then here are my top three albums for this Christmas.  I could put this set on shuffle and listen to it all day.  I think.  That opportunity hasn’t come up yet!

Top 5 Supplies for Easy Personalized Gift-Giving

personalized gift-giving made easy

Hey everyone!  I’ve been meaning to write this post for a long time.  There are several versions and attempts in my drafts folder but I’m finally putting it out there.  First because it is the gift-giving season of the year and I’m here to help you out.  Second because I have something to give away for you which I’ll get to at the end.  Super exciting!

Classic Ginger Molasses Cookies

A classic old-fashioned gingersnap recipe with a perfectly crinkled top and chewy center.  A must-have for Christmas baking, but delicious all year long!

With the Christmas season around the corner, serious bakers will getting busy stocking up on cookies for the holidays.  I wouldn’t call myself a Serious Baker, but these ginger molasses cookies are always on the list of Christmas baking.  If you’ve been around here very long you know that I stick to the tried-and-true.  Recipes that never fail and that everyone will love.  Christmas baking is no exception.  In my repertoire I have gingerbread, shortbread, sugar cookies, lemon thumbprint, plus something chocolate.  With chocolate I’m willing to experiment…you can’t really go too far wrong.

Handmade Chipboard Photo Book

handmade gifts rock

Hey there friends!  We haven’t done something crafty here for a little while, but today we will.  It’s a handmade chipboard photo book, as part of a Canadian handmade gifts blog hop.  That means you can search this hashtag on all your social media #CDNHandmadeHoliday and find lots of ideas for handmade gifts for less than $25.  Fun, right?  It's no secret around here that I love a handmade gift.  Check out the Handmade tab in the top menu bar to see what I mean.

 But let’s get started.

Christmas at my Kitchen Table

Hello friends, old and new.  How did you spend your Christmas days?  Were you among family and friends or among welcoming strangers?  Were you home or far from home?  Was it a season of noise and plenty or of minimalism and quiet?  I hope that your soul was filled with what you were able to give and receive.

Merry Christmas

Wishing all of my readers a very Merry Christmas this year.  May you find joy in your celebrations, comfort in your sorrow and hope in the birth of the babe for whom this day exists.

And the angel said to them, Fear not: for behold I bring you tidings of great joy which will be for all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour who is Christ the Lord.  (Luke 2:10-11)

‘Twas the Night Before the Last Day of School

…and I realized that Personally Junior had done nothing crafty to add to his teachers’ Christmas gifts.  What??!!  How could that have happened?  Well, the truth is that with only one child left in elementary school a lot of that type of thing becomes a last-minute thought, or even an afterthought.  Sorry PJ, you see how it is.  But really, there are also a lot of perks to not having your mothers’ undivided attention, right?

Simple Christmas Gifting: Spa-Style Soap Tin

Gift-giving is a huge part of what makes the Christmas season what it is.  Some of us have long lists of people we’d like to give to, and some of us have only a few we’ll exchange gifts with.  Either way, to me two of the most important elements of a gift are that it has a personal touch and that it’s beautifully presented.

 

Simple Christmas Photography: Bokeh Lights

Photography is one of the best ways to capture some of the magic of the Christmas season.  And all the lights we have strung up outside and inside provide a beautiful backdrop for preserving some of those moments. 

Simple Christmas Florals: Carnations & Candy Canes

It’s so great to have a little floral arrangement to brighten up a corner of your countertop, kitchen table or desk.  There’s just something cheerful about having a bit of greenery and fresh floral scent nearby.  And guess what?  It’s super easy to put them together yourself.  Here’s what you do…

Simple Christmas Decorating: Bell Garland

It’s hard to maintain an element of simplicity at Christmas time.  The stores and the internet are bursting to overflowing with everything from sublime to ridiculous, all advertised as must-have and must-do this year.  On the weekend all my bins of Christmas Past came out of storage.  To be honest, I took out a few things and set them up, then closed the bins to be put away.  I played a board game with Personally Junior then we watched A Charlie Brown Christmas.  (The first of many times this Christmas, probably!)  So here for the next little while I’ll be sharing my few attempts at keeping it simple, but still Christmas-y and worthy of the season of celebration.

Advent Candles for a Mantel

Are any of you celebrating the Advent season this year?  Besides being an exciting countdown to Christmas, does it mean something more to you?  On the liturgical calendar, Advent takes place on the four Sundays preceding Christmas, with the Advent candles being lit one by one as the weeks go by.  That means that the first Sunday of Advent is coming up this weekend. 

How to Take Your Own Family Photo

Besides vacations, isn’t Christmas the next most popular time to want a family photo?  To include in Christmas cards, to frame as gifts for parents and grandparents.  Kind of an end-of-the-year milestone, right?  OK well obviously it’s just me who wants the photo and sends the cards and figures out the gifts for the parents and grandparents.  And cares about milestones.  Not anyone else in the family.  Some years it works out to have a portrait professionally done.  But most years I’ve gotten into the practice of setting ourselves up to take a family photo at home, and with a bit of experience it’s gotten easier each time. 

Christmas Presents

Well, it has all been enjoyed…the baking, dinners, decorations and wrapping a la Pinterest.  What remains after it’s all been said and done are the gifts.  Carefully (or hastily) shopped for.  Or handmade.  Here are a few that were under the tree for me.

“Angel of Harmony” by WillowTree.  This from flute-playing Teenaged Daughter.  Very awesome gift on so many levels…the WillowTree, the flute and the Harmony.  This has found a perfect home on the library shelves in the living room, also affectionately known around here as the Music Room.

These from The Boys.  I have a collection of Christmas mugs that comes out for the season.  All tasteful, none tacky!  This one will make an excellent addition, and also I claim it as my personal mug, just in case anyone else thinks they can use it. 

And Christmas Blend Via.  Because Christmas Blend rules, and sometimes you don’t want to make a whole pot, or grind beans, or run the Nespresso.  There’s something very comforting and homey about instant coffee.  But still, it has to be good.  The Boys know their Mom.

This from my award-winning woodturning Dad.  Stunning.   Very worthy of being displayed on the countertop.  Small enough to hold in your hand and press the “grinder” down with your thumb. Especially appreciated since I have somehow been living with a grocery store quality pepper grinder for ages, with Children constantly complaining of having actual peppercorns in their food. 

My life was improved this Christmas.

Decorating the Tree

So, this year I let the boys decorate the Christmas tree.  By themselves.  Aha, you’re thinking.  There’s a wonderful mother, and she doesn’t care how her tree turns out.  Not so.  Well, I am a wonderful mother, but I do care…deeply…how my (did I say my?) tree turns out.  You see, there’s a method to my madness.

First of all, I did a “base” decoration of white lights, white mesh garland, and white decorative vine balls.

Second, I did a preliminary sort of all my ornaments.  I took out ONLY the ones I wanted on the tree this year…in the same rustic/white/natural elements theme as my mantel.

With a little bit of coaching along the lines of Don’t Put Them All At Eye Level, it was pretty hard for them to go very far wrong.  So now the tree looks great and we are all one big happy family.

A few of my favourite ornaments…

A couple of these textured but clear stained glass stars.  I think I got them at the One Of A Kind show in Toronto.  Great show!  Catch it if you can.
 
In German these are called Strohsterne…straw stars.  I made this one!  Actually!  With my mom, back in the day when I had time to create such intricately beautiful things.  Sigh.

My dad made this one.  A few years ago he made quite a lot of them and gave them away as Christmas gifts.  All with different designs cut out of the centre.  Epically talented, my dad.
Oh, and the tree is real.  Always.  I’m a little diehard about some things…

Christmas Mantel

My favourite place to decorate for Christmas.  The mantel.  I’ve decided that creativity reigns, and tradition does not dictate.  As it does…and should…for other aspects of Christmas decorating.

This year, I’m feeling a white/rustic/natural elements vibe.  A swath of burlap as the basis, tied in a huge bow at each end of the mantel.  The mirror was already there…I think I bought it at Homesense.  And my decorative spheres from IKEA have made another appearance!  I bought a box of pinecones at Home Depot c/o Martha Stewart.  Love Martha.  The tin buckets are also IKEA.  Here with a twine embellishment and holding pinecones, these are another staple in my decorating/entertaining/PersonallyPackaged repertoire.  Hugely versatile and incredibly useful…I keep tons of them around.  Another item I recommend to stock up on!  A galvanized lantern and white pillar candle complete the scene.

(Cool how you can see the reflection in the mirror of our Advent wreath.)

On the other side, a wooden carving of the holy family wrapped in the embrace of an angel.  One of VERY many nativity scenes that come out each Christmas.  This one is my favourite.  Simple and bit rustic, but profound.  Add a repetition of the tin bucket/twine/pinecone ensemble and the decorative spheres, and that’s it. 

All ready to have stockings hung on Christmas Eve.  A white/rustic/natural elements plan in the works for those as well. 

Wait and see.

DIY Family Photo

Props.  Not the fist-bump kind. The kind for using in a photo shoot.  

Of course, “photo shoot” is possibly an elaborate term for trying to get the family to co-operate for a current family picture for the Christmas card.  However…in real life this scenario can be an unnecessary stress, and a few props will make your life easier and your photo better.  So here we go.

First of all, outdoor overcast light in an open space is the easiest to photograph in.  No weird shadows, no squinting. 

Secondly, if your backdrop is NOT something fabulous like the Rocky Mountains or a Caribbean beach, then try to make it as simple as possible…fence, brick wall, hedge, etc. 

Third, props.  Two things…something on which people can sit, perch or lean…and something simple that lends purpose or timeliness to the photo.   In this case the bench from the deck and a little fir tree borrowed out of the indoor decor.

Set up.  Even a little bit of thought and prep will help this go a lot more smoothly.  One co-operative assistant is also useful.  Warn everyone ahead of time so all the groaning and eye-rolling is out of the way.  Pick through their closets (or floors) and find what you want them to wear.  Set up your camera.  Explain to each one where and how they will sit.  Then let them chill while you figure out the last details of focus, exposure, timer/remote.  And you’re ready to go.

Not perfect.  It was –3C and it did actually start precipitating some frozen substance.  Husband forgot to fix the boot/pantleg situation.  Two other shots were maybe better but The Dog wasn’t looking.  And see how happy everyone looks!?!  It’s worthy of being sent out to the family and friends who love you.  Some may even keep it on their fridge for an entire year.  All for zero expense and a little time and effort on your part.

We wish you a Merry Christmas.