those are super cute! thanks for sharing!!

love that <3

anyway, these are some thoughts on how to withhold your money from corporations and billionaires and still have a fun, fulfilling holiday season with meaningful gift giving minus the overconsumption and mindless capitalism

feel free to add more and i hope this at least got the creativity flowing!

finally, experiences make great gifts even small day trips or activities can be more meaningful than any mass-produced item
you dont have to blow hundreds for this kind of thing - quality time is so valuable so think of ways to give that to the people in your life :)

if you’re REALLY not about making your own things, lots of towns host christmas/holiday markets that feature local artists and small businesses and they often offer freebies or discounts at these events- these are another fun activity to invite friends along with and shop smaller

pretty much all humans have an inherent drive to create- you might not be super talented just starting out, but you’ll only get better with practice and it’s so satisfying to make things and develop new skills! these activities can help you build community and confidence and save money on gifts!

if you have a little more time or can make a bigger investment- take an art class of some kind! i’ve taken ceramics a couple times and people LOVE getting handmade ceramics as gifts, you don’t have to be super experienced to make some nice little cups or bowls!
these are some cute cups i just made

it’s also super easy and cheap to get a bunch of jewelry fastenings and beads or decorations, in a few hours you can make a variety of bracelets, necklaces, and earrings for gifts, this is another fun one to do with friends and make it a fun activity on top of taking care of some of your gifts!

last year i hand painted all my christmas cards, i did 3 different designs and made 12 cards in a couple hours with my sister. they were by no means professional quality, but they went over so nicely and people loved the personal touch!

you can make candles by melting down old ones, or getting wax and wicks from a craft store. you can repurpose and decorate old jars, or use cans with cool designs on them, get some friends together and make a night out of it for more fun :)

even without a sewing machine, i hand sewed this bag over the course of 3 days, all from a youtube tutorial, if i had a sewing machine i could have probably done it in under 2 hours

more complicated, sewing:
the learning curve is a bit steeper with this one, but especially if you’re not trying to make fitted garments, it can be very forgiving! you can thrift or repurpose fabric for cheap, and lots of libraries have sewing machines you can check out
again- youtube tutorials!

knitting needles are super inexpensive and can often be found at thrift stores and you can even thrift knit sweaters and unravel them for SUPER CHEAP yarn
i have exclusively learned knitting with online resources and i’ve made so many cool garments!!

but it’s very easy to get started super simply

probably easiest and cheapest to start: knitting
there are SO MANY free patterns and tutorials online and there are even youtube videos that will take you from the very first steps to having a finished item and explain every step of the process. simple hats and scarfs can come together in a day

i know a lot of people dont really fancy themselves as makers or artists, but i PROMISE it’s sooo much easier that it looks and with a little bit of practice or a quick class, you can be making tons of cute gifts for your family and friends and learn new fun skills in the process!

this was my sign, i was in Denver CO today!