Well, once again the holiday shopping season is upon us and once again I am hard at work putting together some kick ass indie holiday coverage for you. I have lots of things in the works, among them: the Holiday Galleria, contests, crafty tutorials, recipes, wrapping guides, holiday card ideas, decorating tips and more…so stay tuned and make sure to check back every day!
Today, I am debuting Handmade Holidays: The Recession Guide. I know many of you may be cutting back this year on the amount you spend on gifts, I can totally understand and I’m doing the same, but cutting back doesn’t mean cutting out indie shopping. It’s even more important than ever to remember the independent artists, crafters and designers out there. They have less of a profit margin than big box stores and so are going to be harder hit by this recession, (yes I know I keep saying the ‘R’ word. It’s okay, it’s not like saying Voldemort).
So, support small independent businesses and save a few bucks. Here’s the first installment of Handmade Holidays: The Recession Guide—Gifts Under $5 (actually they are $5 & under)!
Printable 2009 calendar. Print, cut & give from Little Brown Pen – $5 :::::: Adorable Baby Bird Rubber Stamp from Nora Jane – $3.
I would just display this Wooden Tree Card, it’s so pretty. From Night Owl Paper – $2.50 :::::: Who, who wouldn’t love this set of Owl College Ruled Paper from Rock Scissor Paper – $4.50.
Help brighten someone’s day with these Zippity Do Da Post-It Notes at ShanaLogic – $3.50 :::::: Where Rainbows Come From and Drama Llama notepads from my favorite Nut and Bee – $4.
Give this key to my heart Muslin Bag from Something’s Hiding in There, it’s cute and useful – $2 :::::: Pretty Contrast Ring from Posh Totty Designz– $5.
Give some good clean fun with this Lego-style Block Soap from Washable Art – $5 ::::::: Gift some homemade fudge using this cute Gift Box PDF from A Little Hut – $3.99.
Shift Keyboard Keychain for the computer geek in your life from Geekware – $3.95 :::::: These Rainy Day Stickers from MAUStudio are just too cute – $4.25.
The Handcrafted Soaps from Boh Bon Soap Company are always a real treat – $4.25 :::::: This one is a little over $5, but it’s too cute—Teapot Brooch from Munieca – $5.50
What a perfect little Notecard Set from Anna Ruby King – $4 :::::: Postcards are a great gift for art lovers—Le The Suspendu Postcard from anne julie – $3.35
Here are two things I’d love to be gifted…but then again, I’m a paper nerd. Library Pockets from School Locker – $3.75 :::::: Magnetized Tree Motif Notepad from Cicada Studio – $4.50.
Okay, sometimes it’s okay if the package costs more than the gift. Make a homemade gift and mail it off in thisPadded Hot Chocolate Envelope from PickalaPoopa – $4 :::::: I have one of these Crafty Motherfucker notebooks from Rar Rar Press and it’s a conversion starter for sure – $5.
Make something with this pattern or gift it to a crafter—-Forest Friends Embroidery Pattern from Sublime Stitching – $3.50 :::::: Add these Blue Daisy Stud Earrings to someone’s stocking instead of coal. From B. Radley – $5.
Those are terrific gift ideas and so affordable!
great round up!
Jenn,
This is a great great GREAT article! I am so excited to see affordable indie gifts that would be perfect for my close friends and family. Thanks so much for all that you do!
I just came across your blog from Little Brown Pen and love it. Thanks for the great ideas. This year my family is abroad and I am really trying to find inexpensive gifts that also work well for mailing and so many of these are great!