Cut coins, a unique gift

My Grandpa collects coins so when I came across cut coins for the first time I was excited to of found something for him (he insists every year he wants 'an empty box'.

If like me you have never heard of them then they are normal coins which someone has taken a very fine drill too. You can get ones with lovely designs cut into them but by far my favourite are the ones that stick to the design of the coin. I went for the ship £1 coin.

From some sellers you can choose which year you would like so I went for 1951, the year my Grandparents got married. The little loop on the top is so cord can be threaded through and the coin worn. My grandpa doesn't aspire to be Del Boy so won't be wearing it but he can hang it up to display. After I brought it my Dad pointed out how similar it is to the symbol for our village, I shall pretend I thought of this all along!

There are lots of people on Facebook, Ebay and Etsy doing them, I am told they are quite common now at Christmas markets too.

I got mine from here for £21 including postage, to my surprise it arrived in a matter of days and I'm very pleased with the quality.

Sweet tress and magnetic pegs finished

I posted before about the trees and magnetic pegs I was making, here are the finished results.

Buying gifts for the ungrateful this Christmas.

Buying gifts for the ungrateful this Christmas.

We all have a relative who makes Ebenezer Scrooge look positively cheerful at Christmas and it can cause lots of stress. We had a relative who was never happy with any gift and my Mum spent 30 years trying to get her a gift she would be pleased with. All gifts would get a smile, then be placed back into the half undone wrapping paper never to be seen again, they would either reside in the back bedroom, be given away or quite often, wrapped up and given back to us years later! She always wanted what others got, a good example was she used torches all the time and had a big fear of power cuts, she used little naff ones which didn't give much light so my parents brought her an expensive torch which had different settings including one which lights up the whole room. She moaned that a friend got a security light for Christmas and that would of been better, Dad lost his temper and said 'but there's a bloody lamppost outside your house, how much more light do you want'. In the end we finally gave up trying to please her with nice gifts and our lives became happier for it. We just gave socks, something food related, trousers identical to her normal ones, a pair of socks and ginger wine. Her last Christmas was spent in a nursing home with dementia, we gave her some biscuits and a box of tissues as she seemed to like pulling them out of a box.

Most of us want to please our grumpy relatives but if they are determined never to enjoy something then it's an impossible task that takes both time and enjoyment which could be better spent on enjoying Christmas. Why do we feel guilty though when it's the person who takes it upon themselves not to enjoy things?

In the end we finally cast our guilt aside, she doesn't want any main gift? Fine, just buy her a few things we know she needs. She doesn't want to join in the family activities? Fine, it's her choice, as long as you have invited then there's no reason to feel bad if they have chosen to isolate themselves. They just want a sandwich after looking at what your cooking? Fine, let them have a sandwich.

Cast your guilt aside and spend your time and energy on those who actively want to enjoy Christmas. After all, if someone doesn't care about it then it is just another day on the calendar.

Sweet Christmas trees

I've had a bad week M.E wise so no Christmas crafting has been done except for making a sweet tree yesterday. I had the idea ages ago but never got around to trying it out. As a very quick attempt I was quite pleased, I used Tesco fizzy belts (£1 for 3 packs) and Haribo Stars which also happened to be fizzy (60p a pack). I think a mini gem would make a good 'pot' but I'm just going to cellophane them.
 

Crafty gifts, making presents and finishing abandoned projects

I'm having a crafty week and trying to finish lots of things I've started over the past couple of years but never got that far. First up is peg magnets, I've stuck ribbon along the peg with PVA and once dried I've added an embellishment of some kind (what ever I have, I've not brought anything new) and then have stuck a strong magnet on the back with glossy accents. The magnets were very cheap on ebay. When finished I plan to clip some on a piece of card (maybe with a message on) and then in cellophane for gifts. It's an easy thing to make but I'm surprised at how much time and energy they have taken. Next I've been sewing cute little bells onto ribbon. Studio 24 sell nice bauble storage boxes (£3.99 this year, last year they were £2.27 so I'm hanging on to see if they reduce), they do the job but are very plain, just green with red trim. I've taken some red gingham ribbon I already had and brought some tiny bells from ebay (£1 for 100 multicoloured) and have sewn them on. Once I've got the storage boxes I will glue the ribbon across it. I did this last year and was pleasantly surprised how it turned out. I've also been doing some painting this week. Painting is not a skill I have, that's an understatement! A family friend works for the local disabled children's respite centre and made clay shapes for the kids to paint and be sold but they ran out of time. I offered to paint as they only have to be at the standard of a young child, now that is something I can do (although I'm sure a lot of 3 year olds can do better than me!). I painted them with glaze so hopefully the colours will be prettier and shiny once out of the kiln. So that's my crafty week, Christmas is fast approaching so it's time to get prepared to avoid last minute stress (and last minute relapses in my case).

Some Christmas gift ideas

Now it's November people are thinking about Christmas. I'm a bit of a Christmas nutter and aside my love of Christmas decorations, one of my favourite things is presents! Not in the greedy 'give me gifts' way, I just love coming up with ideas and searching out the perfect gift for everyone. I entered a gift idea competition last year and 3 of my entries were selected, I won the year before too, probably as I think of ideas year round!

Today I thought I would post a few ideas Incase your stuck for inspiration.

To start here are some gifts I've made in the past for friends and family

Name- Colouring book for adults and older children
Cost-£7.99 on Amazon

'Secret Garden- an inky treasure hunt and colouring book', it's the most beautiful colouring book I have ever seen. The artist was inspired by The Secret Garden and the level of details in her drawings are mind blowing, there are also sections to doodle, mazes to complete and little things to hunt and find. I first brought a copy for a friend (adult) who was very stressed and loves children's literature, so as soon as I saw it I had to get a copy for her. Colouring is such a fantastic way of relaxing and doesn't take much energy. I ended up buying one for myself and my friend liked it so much she brought one for a friend.



Name- Chimney magic
Homemade
No extra cost, just extra magic

If you have a chimney that Santa comes down then add some magic to the day by him dropping a present. Take any little gift (either for the purpose or one you had brought anyway) and wrap in a box about the width of the chimney then jam the box into it. When the kids wake up see if they spot it or direct them to the gift that Santa dropped!





Name- Santa hot chocolate cones

Homemade
Cost- under £1 when making several

You will need red and white candy canes, mini white marshmallows, hot chocolate and some clear cellophane cones (cones are cheapest on ebay, you need 2 per finished hot chocolate cone).

Take one mini marshmallow and squash into the very tip of a cone (this is the bobble on the end of the hat), then add small chunks of crushed candy canes until it's the size of 'hat' that you want. Twist cone, cut off all excess and tape down. Slip this hat into another cone and add hot chocolate powder. When it's the size you want it to be twist the cone and tie very tightly with some ribbon, make sure it's very tight so no powder can leek out, add a bit more ribbon and curl. Trim off most of the cone leaving just a few cm under the ribbon. Turn around and you will now have Father Christmas, draw on some eyes with a marker or add wiggly eyes and draw a smile.

Alternative to Operation Christmas Child, make a sick child smile

JINGLE BELLS AT THE READY!!

 We know it is early but Post Pals is doing the Elf and Reindeer schemes again this Christmas as they create lots of smiles, but we need YOUR help. Could you use your imagination, send a Christmas card or do a 'shoe box' of smiles?

 Maria is being the “Head Reindeer”. A Reindeer is someone who is assigned a Pal and their siblings and sends 9 cards during the month of December, one from each reindeer, talking from the reindeers perspective i.e. talking about the sleigh getting full, getting ready for the big night, loving carrots being left out etc. It is not only fun for the children receiving the cards, but also for the volunteers getting to do imaginative writing. In the past one girl believed the reindeer wrote to them as she helped look after her disabled brother. Another little boy was very relieved as Father Christmas definitely knew he was in hospital so wouldn’t be missed out. If you would like to volunteer to be a reindeer please send an email to Maria at maria.carney5@yahoo.co.uk

 Kim is being our “Head Elf”. She will assign an Elf (volunteer) to every child and the elf then gathers gifts up to the value of £15 and sends them in December. It is a little like the Christmas shoe box appeals we are all familiar with. Anyone of any age can be an elf, whether it’s little children picking gifts which they think someone their age would like, or adults who now have a good excuse to buy that pink fluffy present! We like to assign 2 Elves to every child as in the past people have committed to being an Elf but then not sent anything (or let us know they couldn’t continue) so that means we have 240 volunteers to find! If you would like to volunteer to be an Elf please send an email to Kim at postpalsmonthlyprojects@hotmail.co.uk and include how many children you would like to be an Elf to, and any requirements i.e. a young girl. We have a particular problem finding volunteers for teenage boys so if you would be happy to take one on please let Kim know.

You can of course send Christmas cards or gifts (of any size or value) to individual children by following the “5 Easy Steps” on the home page.

After writing this I will post an email, please consider forwarding it to friends, family, posting on blogs, message boards etc. Hopefully we can bring lots of sparkle to families who have had a very difficult year. I will sign off with a little poem which I like,
I heard a little Christmas in the laughter of a child,
I saw a little Christmas in a snowman’s jolly smile,
I felt a little Christmas when I have a gift away…
Just little things…
An yet they filled my heart with joy today

Nikita with a bear from her elf, (Nikita passed away on Christmas Eve)

Email to send. Hello, this Christmas I’m planning on making some sick children smile simply by sending some post. Post Pals brightens the lives of seriously ill children (most of whom are fighting cancer or going through transplants) and their siblings by featuring them on the website www.postpals.co.uk with their own page, with their story, interests and a forwarding address. Members of the public from around the world can log on and send cards, letters, emails and small gifts to brighten the child’s day and let them know someone cares. Post Pals does this all year around but at Christmas they run some special schemes. Reindeers (volunteers) are assigned to a young child and their siblings and during December they send a card from each of Santa’s reindeer, talking about anything from loving it when carrots are left out or how full the sleigh is getting. It is great fun to use your imagination and the children really enjoy it, one boy was so relieved as it meant santa definitely knew he was in hospital at Christmas and another girl thought the reindeer wrote to them as she was good in helping her mum look after her disabled brother. The elf scheme is another project, a little like the Shoe Box appeal we all know. You’re assigned a child and you have a read their page to get to know them. Then you gather up gifts to the value of £15 and send them off to the child in December. Post Pals needs to find 240 volunteers for this so please spread the world about how to make a difference this Christmas. You can also send christmas cards or little gifts to any child, just log onto www.postpals.co.uk click on “News” to find out how to volunteer and see how a simple gesture can make a big difference. About Post Pals; www.postpals.co.uk – Post a Smile on a Sick Child’s Face Winner of Queens Award for Voluntary Services 2008 Supported by Princes Trust and Children in Need Patron Fearne Cotton Post Pals on the BBC http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/3673782.stm