The glass blocks would make great night lights for kids. You could do them with the themeof their room. I'd also love to hear if anyone has done these before.

we made the blocks last year, was really pretty, but broke two of my husbands drill bits for the hole

hey, everyone! this is my first post, so hopefully it might help someone out!

last year for christmas, i made last name signs. i got the idea from those "primitive" country decor signs that have the cute little sayings like "home is where the heart is" on them. the first thing i did was go to a free font website (like fontfreak.com) and picked out some really cute decorative fonts and downloaded them. i typed out the name in a really large size and then printed it out on photo paper (since its a little thicker) to use as a stencil. my fiancee cut out lengths of pine (one of the cheapest woods) from a 1x8x12 or a 1x6x8 (i really don't know how exactly they sell lumber) and then routered around the edge to make it cuter. i sanded them, wiped them down with a damp rag to get the sawdust off, and then painted them with that really cheap acrylic paint - i used maroon, hunter green, and navy blue, since the family members had them in their living rooms.... i traced on the letters in pencil and then painted them in a cream color. i let everything dry and then sprayed about 3 coats of laquer on them to seal them. and that was it! everyone loved them and they even hold up outside. half of the people i made them for put them by their front door and one put it in their flowerbed hanging from a chain! i wish i had a picture, but my digital camera isn't working at the moment. that's like a 25-30 dollar (retail) gift for probably about 7 dollars!

anyway, there's my 2 cents!

Thats a great idea, I think I might try that THANKS! I made Quillows for everyone last year. Let me tell you, it took a LOT of time making 10 Quillows, and it didnt really end up saving me any money because fabric is expensive and I made them for people I wouldnt have otherwise bought a gift for....but because I was making them for some I couldnt leave anyone out. So my advice is don't make Quillows unless it's for a select few special people who you would've ended up spending more than $20 on anyway!

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Hi ladies, I haven't read everything on this thread yet, so I hope I'm not repeating someone else's idea.

A real simple and inexpensive thing to hand out to classmates:

Holiday bookmarks. I cut up cardstock in various colors. I give my boys Christmas stickers (you can get a ton at teaching stores, discount stores etc...) and they decorate them. My older son writes a message like "Happy Holiday Reading!" Or something like that. They turn out very cute. you can punch a hole, add yarn if you like. One year I took them and had them laminated at a teaching supply store for a few cents.

He passes them out before Christmas break.

My mom made lap versions of these with fleece. A lot cheaper and she hand stitched them with embroidery floss. (which was great for her b'c she doesn't sew) We kept one in our car for the longest time.. really nice for those cold evening rides or if the baby fell asleep in the stroller and needed a covering, or even a lap blanket for church. The directions are super easy if anyone wants them.

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I tried the Sweet Potato Butter. It turned out too sweet for me, but yummy. (With DH avoiding sugar lately, it was too much for us.) For some loopy reason (I think I got over-excited), I made a lot -- I ended up canning the stuff at like 11:00 at night just to get it overwith so I could take it out of my fridge! LOL I got 9 pints out of the triple batch. So I guess you'd get about 3 pints per batch. DH was so excited he took one to his friend the next morning. I just have to figure out something to go with it for gifts..

I want to try the caramel apple butter as well, but I think I'm just going to start with applesauce -- and not 10 jars of it! :D

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I'm making a poundcake for my stepdad. He loves it he won't eat storebought cake and since he doesn't need anything else He'll be getting yummy cake for Christmas. I know that he'll appreciate it. He is the greatest to give a gift to because he really loves it and never expects anything at all. That makes giftgiving really great.

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On the CD cases with pictures do you use 12 CD cases? I'm confused on that part.

Thanks
Randi

I liked that idea so if you could send me the recipe on that I would really appreciate it.