DIY Holiday gifts I’ve actually made

And people actually seemed to like

A huge part of my Christmas Planning involves coming up with gifts for everyone.  Its not always fun and can even get a bit overwhelming at times.  I find it best to start making a list.  Once you see everyone you have to buy for, it’s way easier to start brainstorming gift ideas.  I like to list all my ideas for each person too. 

Over the last few years I’ve started doing a a few DIY gifts. I have spent a ton of time searching pinterest for DIY gift ideas! In this post I want share the ones I have actually made and also seemed like the people truly enjoyed them.  Lets be honest, there are some DIY’s out there that just make you wonder why? And who would want that?  Read on for my top 3!

Photo Letter

This was a big hit. I made one for my sister a few years back and it came out great!  It wasn’t too hard either. 

What you’ll need

1. Large metal letter
2. Mod podge 
3. Photos, roughly 20 

Cut your photos to fit the letter of your choice. Cut them so the edge is at the edge of the letter. Don’t have it hanging over the side. Figure out your arrangement before you bust out the mod podge.  I did 3 coats of mod podge allowing it to dry in between. 

Photo tile Coasters 

I’ve made these a couple of times. They are really easy, inexpensive and so personal!! Nowadays its so easy scroll someone’s social media and get some of their favorite pics, print them up and make a set of 4-6 tiles.  I bought plain tiles from Lowe’s. 

Here’s what you’ll need

1. Tiles
2. Mod podge
3. Photos
4. Acrylic sealant
5. Self adhesive felt pads

Pick your tiles. Trim your photos. Start mod podging! 2-3 coats of mod podge should be good. When it it completely dry spray with your sealant. The sealant is very important for this project. Coasters are going to have drinks on them, which means they will be getting wet, the sealant will protect them. The ones I made few years back are still looking good!

Sharpie Mugs

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This was one of the first DIY gifts I did. And they are still a favorite. I buy mugs from the dollar store and can personalize them anyway I want with my paint sharpies.  

What you’ll need 

1. Mugs (my dollar store usually has nice oversized ones)
2. Oil based paint sharpies (oil based is important, once baked it won’t come off)
3. Stickers or stencils (depending on what design you want to do)

You can get a pack of sharpies like the ones below from Amazon or go to your local craft store and pick what colors you want and buy individually. 

Clean and dry your mug. Place your sticker on and start making dots. It make take a sec to get the hang of this part but there is room for error here. You can just keep making dots until it looks good to you. Allow to dry for a few hours. Then, carefully peel off your sticker. Put in the oven, set it to 450° and bake for 45 minutes. Turn oven off and just leave your mug in there to cool. Once its cooled, your good! As far as I can tell the design stays on really good! I would recommend hand washing though. 

These mugs are great for those extra people you need to get small gifts for. And the possibilities are endless! Pair with hot cocoa or tea or nice coffee. Or fill it with candy…get creative!

One more DIY gift I’ve recently tried a wood photo transfer. It’s so easy and comes out really cool looking! I made one for my parents anniversary and they loved it!

Here’s what you’ll need

• Wood plaque. You can find these at Micheal’s or your local craft store and they are fairly inexpensive. I put links to the ones I have used.

Wood Plaques from Michael’s

• Gloss Gel Medium. Below in the one I used and liked.

Professional Gloss Gel Medium from Michael’s

• Printed Photo. The thinner the paper the better. Just printing on plain paper works best.
• Foam brush

• Mod podge

• Washcloth

First, coat the piece of wood with a lot of gel. Place your photo, face down, on the wood. Press the photo in and remove any air bubbles. Let it dry overnight or at least 8 hours. Then, lay a wet washcloth over the paper, pressing it into the paper. Then wipe away all the paper leaving an antique looking photo. It really is a unique, special gift!

So those are my top DIY gifts! If you have any questions about any of them please leave them in the comments below! And if you try any of them, let me know how they came out!! Happy holidays and happy gift giving!!

Stay tuned for my next holiday themed post!