Unique Christmas Gift Ideas

[tarheelmjfan]

I asked this on the "Families" board, but thought I'd post it here too, in case all of you don't visit that board. Every year my sister gets me a very unique, sentimental gift for Christmas. She and several of her friends are very creative, and talented. One advantage I don't have. Some of the things she has given me are a painting of the Inn where DH & I were married, a family video recapping our childhood, etc. Last year she found a photo of a pastor and my dearly departed father baptizing me, and had it framed. This year I really want to surprise her. I need your help coming up with a really unique, one of a kind gift for her. The reason the "Budget Board" is a good place for this, is we don't spend alot of money on our gifts. We have 5 sisters, all with families, and we buy for everyone. Please put your thinking caps on and help me come up with something incredible, yet reasonable to buy or make her. Thanks

 

[flyingenie]

How about a personalized calendar? Pick 12 of your favourite pics of you/her over the years, and many copy shops will put it into a calendar for you. I think it cost me less than $20 canadian to get done.

Some photo shops do personalized mugs, mousepads, puzzles, shirts, etc. I would probably get a mug done (less than $20) and fill it with goodies- teas, hot chocolate, apple cider and cinnamon sticks, etc. so she can think of you while warming up on a cold winter day (well... I guess it depends where you're from!)

 

[dis4me]

How about a CD burned with all ongs she loved as a child o that have special meaning to the two of you.
A scrapbook with a poetic tribute to her in the front.
A picture of her children if she has any that she doesn't have to get them ready for or deal with the hassle.

 

[bettyann29]

Last year my friend had a cool cd made for her mom and dads anniversary.. She went thru pictures of them and family and I think she brought it to Walgreens or Eckerds or something like that.. They put them on a cd and made a slideshow and put music with it.. Really Cool!!! I was thinking of getting with my brothers and sister and all of us getting our pictures together of each of our familys and doing one like this for my mom and dad as a gift this year.. If interested I can ask my friend exactly where she had it done but I think it was only like $20 or something .... You could get pictures of all you kids growing up and each family and pictures with your parents and put that on a cd for her..

 

[ILMOUSE]

As far as a slideshow of pictures on a CD there are several different types of software out there that will allow you to make your own if you have the necessary components on your computer. I know my husband has taken home videos and made them into DVD movies and included a slideshow of pctures set to music at the end for various occassions.

Also in my husband's family, they gather pictures and one person makes them into a calendar. Not the normal one picture per month but a collage of pictures per month from great-great grandparents to the newest addition to the family. It has become a huge hit that people look forward to seeing each year.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Thanks for all these great suggestions. Unfortunately, I live in Florida, and the rest of my family along with all our childhood photos are in North Carolina. These are some great projects that I could start working on for next year. She has made me a scrapbook, a calendar, and a video recapping our childhood. As I said earlier, she's very creative. It's really hard to one up her. Someone suggested a poem. I wrote a poem for my parents 50th Anniversary. I don't know why I didn't think of that. Any other suggestions? Thanks again

 

[AMaloy314]

How about a cookbook or recipe box with several favorite family recipes? Perhaps you could include a little anecdote with each one. You may still have time to collect recipes of family members written in their own handwriting.

I once heard of someone altering the lyrics to "A Few of My Favorite Things" (apologies if that is not the title) to include specific memories of someone--- like jumping in snowbanks, wearing Mom's perfume, doing holiday dishes, etc.

Did she have a favorite toy as a child? Many of the 'retro' toys are coming back in the stores again.

Hope this helps!

A

 

[CheapMom]

Find some old strange toy that you and she loved as a child.
I am planning on getting Mystery Date for my sister this year.

 

[foxfire]

How about a photo pillow?

Someone asked how to make one in another post. I think it's the one with the subject line of 'Does anyone know how'.

You could make a pillow with one large photo or a pillow with several smaller ones. There are links in that post to pics that would give you an idea of what the pillows look like.

 

[RobinMarie]

How about making up a newpaper front page and framing it? You take a treasured memory, a funny story, an embarassing one about your sister and create a front page story of the whole event - as if it was worth reporting!

Include quotes from your parents, neighbors and whatnot.

Take an old pic and scan it and include it in your layout. Print the page and frame it.

 

[geetey]

I like that idea RobinMarie. Especially the embarrassing part.

What about a jigsaw puzzle? If your sister likes to do puzzles, you can get a customized one or make it yourself. I found this site http://jigsawpuzzle.com/index.html on the web.

Another idea is to paint something ceramic for her. Every town seems to have those ceramic places now where you can paint your own piece and they fire it for you. You could paint a picture frame, a large serving bowl, a tea pot, fun platter, spoon rest, plate for Santa (can you tell I have done several of these?). I have even matched pieces to someone's wallpaper (per their request). It is simple to do - fun for you - personalized for them.

Oh! What about a Red Plate? The You Are Special Today plates... You could be starting a new family tradition for her. We received one as a gift and the kids love getting to be the ONE to eat off of the Red Plate on their birthday or other special occasions. Visitors like it too. The 'special' person of the day gets to sign the back of the plate with a sharpie marker (usually included) with the date and occasion. Hand wash only and you will be able to fill up the back and look back on some fun memories!

It looks like this...

PS: I have never seen the mug before.

 

[patriciah2]

I just made a special framed "quote" for my daughter. Pick a quote or up to several sentences that have special meaning - there are lots of quotes sites on the internet. Type it up in a calligraphy script add a graphic - I "imported" a picture from another web site and then buy a frame. I did an 8 by 10 with a quote from Alice in Wonderland. I printed it on very nice paper and bought the frame at WalMart. I had seen some very similar at a gift shop for $11 unframed or about $30 framed. I paid $9 for the frame, but I'm certain you could look around and find cheaper ones. This way you could do a special one for each sister. Or you could do it by scanning a special picture and adding a quote. I had this done with a wedding picture and then had one of the reading from our wedding added.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

This is great! I'm making a copy of all these ideas, and keeping it for Christmas ideas in the future. I decided to try the photo pillows. I had to get the stuff for my 7th grade son to make pillows in Sewing in school today. I was fortunate enough to have a very helpful salesperson at Walmart. She got me everything I need to make the photo pillows, and convinced me I could make them. I just hope the photos turn out good on my scanner. Wish me luck!

 

[IStoleMyKidsPins]

If you're looking for a Disney-themed idea, how about this. Get a large shadow box{Michael's has them right now at 40% off}. Then buy like 4 or 5 pins related to a special memory they have from Disney. Like certain resorts, rides, characters, etc. Also get a 3x5 or 4x6 frame. In the frame you can put a special photograph or postcard relating to the same thing the pins do. Get some velcro or double-sided tape & place the framed picture in the shadow box along with the pins. I plan on doing this for my sons this year. For example, I plan on framing a postcard my DS recently bought at WDW of Chernabog{villain from Fantasia}. Under that, I'll be lining up 4 or 5 of his favorite villain pins{or buy some new ones}. It's a relatively inexpensive project that looks very classy & professional. Plus, you don't have to go to WDW to get the items. I just search Ebay for any specific needs I have. Good luck!

 

[HALEYSMOMMOM]

I love angels, so one year my sister found an old photo of me as a child and had her very talented friend make a painting based on the photo, and she added angel wings. It is really unique and a lovely keepsake.

Also, another idea if your sister has children: find an old photo of her with a special toy that is still around. Take a picture of her child with that toy and have the two photos framed side by side. These kinds of things are very dear to me. My daughter and I both were (are) dancers as children, and I have a special dance outfit that I kept. I took her picture in it, and I also have a picture of myself in it (as a child of course). These sorts of things are what tug at your heartstrings and make great gifts.

Mementos of your father with her would be great as well, just as she has done for you.

Good luck!!