This is our final installment in our three part series on holiday gift ideas, and it’s the one that your recipients will appreciate the most: the stuff you make yourself. Fellow makers will especially appreciate something handmade as they know what goes into the art of creation. Here is a list of items that don’t require a lot of time to make, but that are the perfect handmade gifts for this holiday season. Nothing in this post is sponsored, but includes some of our genuinely favorite tools that we regularly use while creating.

Bags

Is it possible to have too many bags, especially when they are made with some of your favorite fabric prints? Here are some of our favorite go-to patterns for bag making. They vary in skill level from easy to more difficult to make. 

Sweetpea Pods by Lazy Girl Designs 

This is a fairly easy bag to make and the fabric square you cut will make two bags. It’s the perfect little bag for filling with treats when gifting. 

Stash and Dash by By Annie 

By Annie always has fantastic, easy-to-understand directions for making bag patterns. This bag pattern falls into the moderate skill level needed to make.

Sew Together Bag by Sew Demented

The Sew Together Bag is a little more difficult to sew, but you won’t regret it once you’ve completed it. There are also some good tutorials from people who have made the bag that you can Google that will help you walk through the steps of making it. 

We also love thisOpen Wide Zippered Pouch tutorial by Noodlehead. It’s quick and easy to make and you can make it in whatever size you want. 

Pincushions

There are so many different options for making a pincushion, and they make such a cute addition to a sewing table. Whether a small stuffed quilt block or one created from a small container, your imagination is the limit on these ubiquitous gifts. This ceramic unicorn container was purchased at a home goods store and turned into a pincushion with a small square of wool, some walnut shells, cotton/poly filling, and glue. Any glass, wood, or cute metal container could be turned into a pincushion. You could even use a small, fancy repurposed tea cup. We recommend using a container that has a wide, unobstructed opening. 

Crushed walnut shells can be purchased from the pet store. When using walnut shells to make pincushions be very careful to not get them near your sewing machine as they are small and if they fall into the machinery, could damage it. Additionally, be sensitive to giving them to a recipient with nut allergies. 

TheSit and Stitch Pincushion is a fun and useful pincushion that sews up quickly. 

Ornaments

Some of our favorite ornaments are handmade ones that have been gifted to us over the years. They always carry much more significance than store bought ones and are a great way to show someone you care for them. 

Felt Ball Wreaths

Trader Joes sells good quality, inexpensive felt ball garlands during the holiday season. One garland will make lots of felt ball wreaths by restringing the felt balls into circles and attaching a hanging thread. 

Yo-Yo Wreaths

Five small yo-yos sewn together make the perfect wreath. Smaller scale fabric prints work best when making yo-yos.

From your friends at Curated Quilts, we wish you happy and healthy holidays and winter season!

To see more of our favorite patterns and sewing tools, check out Curated Studio in the latest issue ofCurated Quilts.  

By Brittany Bowen Burton