Handmade Holiday Tutorials

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! …Sorta. I don’t know about all of you, but shopping for holiday gifts is intensely stressful for me. Between going to stores and fighting the crowds, worrying about whether or not an item is in stock (or will ship on time), or just not finding the perfect thing for the geek in your life, holiday shopping can be a real hassle.

So in an effort to be thrifty/clear my ridiculous fabric stash and hand out some more personalized gifts this year, I DIY-ed most of my gifts! Here’s a round-up of my favorite quick-ish and easy tutorials if you’re still looking for the perfect gift this year:

Stanley Tree: This is a free pattern from Sewaholic! I made this tree out of some super adorable Avengers fabric I got at Jo-Ann’s several months ago. The first one went to my work white elephant gift exchange, and my co-workers loved it! I left mine plain out of time concerns, but you can easily add bells, ornaments, and ribbons for a bit of extra flair.

Infinity Scarves: These are way easier than I expected! I cobbled this one together from scraps of exploding Tardis fabric and some fleece, so it’s totally reversible. I also made one out of wool for another gift. This does require a touch of hand-sewing, but it’s still a super fast project. My first one took about an hour (again, cobbling together several pieces of fabric), and my second one took around 30 minutes.

Throw Blanket: I have a ridiculous amount of wool in my fabric stash, but I had no clue what to do with it. After some digging, I figured out how to turn it into an easy throw blanket! All you have to do with this project is cut the fabric to your desired length and trim it in double-fold blanket edging. You could get real fancy and add a lining and batting for a super cozy blanket.

Reversible bag: I’ve made a few versions of this bag, and it’s a great introduction to making your own purse! Try geeky fabrics on both sides for a fantastic convention bag, or put a more subdued fabric on the outside for a more subtle purse.

Pillow cases: These are super quick to make and easy to customize! For a basic pillow, all you need is about a quarter yard of fabric depending on how large you want your pillow to be. From there, you can do just about anything! For a very simple approach, try an envelope pillow. If you’re ready to go further, add an invisible zipper, some piping, a liner for a reversible pillow, contrasting fabric on the backside, or make a character themed pillow like the one Space Cadet Cosplay and I made. I’ll post a tutorial (and possibly a pattern) on this after the holidays.

Bow clutch: I love, love, love making these clutches if you can’t tell. While I’d hesitate to recommend this to a straight-up beginner, they are fairly straightforward if you’ve got a bit of experience under your belt. Don’t want to make one? Grab one from my Etsy shop! There’s still time for you U.S. folks to snag one for Christmas 🙂

Here are a few other tutorials that I haven’t tried yet, but are on my radar for next year/belated gifts for this year:

• Classic Necktie
• iPhone Wallet
• Organizer wallet
• Phoebe Purse
• Wine Tote

Are you DIY-ing any gifts this year?