Giving a gift is a great way to express how you feel and your appreciation of those around you. When you give a gift you can brighten someone’s day and turn it into something better than what it was when the day began. An excellent type of gift to give that shows exactly how much you care is one from the heart. A do it yourself present says that you put in the time and effort to make the gift extra special. If you are into DIY projects then you are going to love making “green” projects. Not only will you be giving someone you love a fun gift, but you will also be helping out the environment. Here are five great DIY green gifts.
Homemade Cookies – Now you are probably wondering how homemade cookies are a green DIY gift, well here’s how. What you are going to do is take an old spaghetti jar (preventing it from going to the landfill) and insert the dry ingredients for chocolate chip cookies. What you will need is a chocolate chip cookie recipe. Then you will find the dry ingredients and measure out what you need and put them into separate bowls. Now take each dry ingredient and put it into the glass jar. What you should have is different layers of ingredients in the jar. When you have all the ingredients in the jar seal it up and put on a bow. If you have one that you saved from Christmas then that would work great. To finish off write up a little tag (on a piece of scrap paper) telling the recipient what “wet” ingredients they need to add and how long to bake the cookies. You can even add a personal message. The great thing about this gift is that the jar can be used over and over again to repeat the process, making it the ultimate green gift.
Potted Plant – Potted plants are fun gifts and will brighten anyone’s day. They are a great green gift because they are good for the environment. For your potted plant you will need an old pot (preferably a recycled clay one) some paint, potting soil, and a plant. What you will do is take the paint and decorate the old pot with whatever you choose. Once you are done and the paint has dried just put in the dirt and the plant. You can add a recycled bow and a personal message to complete it.
Pinata – A pinata is a fun gift to give to someone who has an up coming birthday (especially a kid). For this project you will need a balloon, old news paper, glue, and paint. What you will do is blow up the balloon. Next you will take the newspaper and rip it into strips. Take the glue and soak the paper and then put the paper on the balloon. You are essentially going to cover the balloon with several layers of paper. Next you need to let your creation dry and then you can paint it however you desire. Cut a small flap near the top, toss in some candy, and your gift is ready to go.
Handmade Tote – If you are a crafty person then you can make a handy tote or purse out of old jeans. Just grab a pair that you don’t want anymore and follow this pattern. When the purse is done just add some fun decorations or embellishments and then wrap it up for whoever it is meant for. I guarantee they will love it.
Book With a Secret Compartment. – If you go to a garage sale then you will probably come across lots of used books. More than likely if the books don’t sell they will be tossed out. If you happen to come across a good sized hardcover book pick it up because it will be great for this project. What you will need besides the book is some glue and an exacto knife. Take the book and make sure it stays closed (maybe with a rubber band). Now get the glue and start to smear it on the 3 sides of exposed pages. You will need to do this several times. Make sure you don’t glue the front cover closed. Once you are finished with this you will have a book with all the pages glued together. You can glue the back cover to the block if you want. Now take the exacto knife and cut out a good sized square from the inside pages. Make sure it is deep enough. What you should be left with is a book with a cool secret compartment. The recipient can hide his or her money or valuables in a cool safe place. This is a great green gift.
Well there you have it. Five great green gifts that anyone would love. Now get out there and start creating.
