Quick Gift Ten

Ten Things You Can Make or Put Together as Last-Minute Holiday Gifts

Audio Car Package: Choose an audio book for your recipient, and package with a travel mug and some envelopes of their favorite hot beverage mix for a nice treat they can use the next time they head out on the road. One of my favorite all-time audio books is Powers That Be by Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough, marrated by Star Trek's own Marina Sirtis.

Book Stack: Buy your favorite novel series or some books in the same genre, stack, and tie a ribbon around them like they're a box. Use a bookmark as the gift tag. See some other fun ways to gift-wrap books over at Book Riot here.

Homemade Bread: One of our neighbors always gives us a loaf of her homemade bread as a holiday gift, and it's one of my favorite treats every year. Make your favorite bread, wrap in a pretty tea towel and place in an inexpensive bread basket. If they have kids, add some jars of peanut butter and jelly. Don't want to make a whole loaf of bread? Go for a batch of homemade cinnamon rolls, buttermilk biscuits, or garlic knots.

First Aid for Kisses Kit: Glue a piece of white cardstock to the top of a small empty tin. Write "First Aid Kit for" at the top of the cardstock and draw a lips puckered for a kiss in red marker below it. Fill the tin with a stick of lip balm, disposable mini toothbrushes and breath mints.

Framed Pic or Poem: Print out a nostalgic photo, or handwrite or print out a favorite poem, place in a pretty frame.

Pre-Addressed Book: Buy an inexpensive address book and fill it with the names, updated addresses and phone numbers of mutual family and friends. I honestly wish someone would do this for me.

Quick Fabric Placemats: For each placemat cut two 16" X 8" rectangles from matching or contrasting fabrics, pin together right sides facing out, sew 1/2" around the entire border, trim the edges with pinking sheers. You can do the same thing to make coasters; just downsize your fabrics to two 4" or 5" squares.

Sugar Scrub: Whip up a homemade batch of sugar scrub (click here for 21 recipes) and place in a mason jar. Write the ingredients on a notecard and tie with a piece of ribbon around the lid.

Tea Lover's Stocking: Fill an inexpensive stocking with individually-wrapped tea bags, a pretty mug, a jar of honey, a small package of cookies, etc. You can also make individually-wrapped tea bags into a wreath by following the directions over at Kojo-designs.com here.

Writer's Block: To making an uplifting paperweight, use an indelible marker to write short, encouraging phrases on a 4" square wooden block paperweight. For a more elaborate version, purchase a photo-frame block (like this one from Pier One) and insert inspiring quotes and photos in the frames.