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Author:
Posted: Nov. 17, 2002
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Vox Q Stats

Times Viewed: 32,767

Reponses: 43

Lurker/Post Ratio: 762 to 1
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Question of the Week: 18 - 12/11/2000

Your Gift, Craft and Holiday Celebration Ideas!

Over the last few weeks, TWV has tried to offer a balanced assortment of gift, craft and Yule/Solstice planning/celebration ideas. Gifts can be homegrown and homemade and some other ideas may send you off to "shop 'til you drop". We would now like to hear about YOUR gift giving ideas. Are you making some gifts or craft items this year? Would you like to share your favorite 'bargain spots on the web" secrets with us? Do you have any good projects for Pagan children or ideas for coven/group/family special 'traditions' that can help to make the Holidays especially meaningful or spiritual? C'mon! Give!
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Reponses: There are 43 responses posted to this question. |
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Craft- This Is Cutting It A Little Close For Yule Unless You... | Dec 13th. at 12:39:33 pm EST |

Ariendel (Cedar Rapids, Iowa US) | Age: 29 - Email |

Craft- this is cutting it a little close for Yule unless you can devote a weekend to it, but I put together a pattern for quilt that was designed to be consecrated at Yule. It began as a Mystery Quilt in August, but all the parts are available now. See: http://www.wicca.drak.net/ariendel/quilt/mystery.html
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My First Yule Celebration And Having A Very, Very Small Amount Of... | Dec 13th. at 11:36:54 am EST |

Jackie (Boise, Idaho US) | Age: 31 - Email |

My first Yule celebration and having a very, very small amount of money has brought me to making my gifts this year. After a divorce and all the junk that goes with that I have found myself very thankful for what I do have, my children, family, health and spirituality. To give back to others I am making "christmas" tea and "Magic Snowman Soup" to give to friends and family.
The "magic snowman soup" is just a paper mug cut out of card stock, glued together with a packet of hot cocoa, the recipe and a small candy bag with the other ingredients in it. You will need the card stock for your mug, instant hot cocoa packets, mini candy canes, hershey kisses and mini marshmellows. Cut out and decorate your mug any way you want, print out your recipe, place both in the paper mug and place one candy cane, 2 hershey kisses and 6 mini marshmellows in the candy bag and attatch it to the mug so it hangs over the front. The recipe goes like this: Magic Snowman Soup Empty cocoa into mug fill with water add a kiss or two stir with magic stick (Yum! Yum! Have a lick!) Don't forget to add the scoop of the fluffy snowman poop! Stir occasionally while sipping and enjoy the magic!
The "christmas" tea is the following ingrediants: 2 cups orange drink mix (like Tang) 2 cups white sugar 1/4 cup instant tea 3/4 cup of lemon flav. instant tea 1 tsp. ground cinnamon 1 tsp. ground cloves Red Hots (if wanted)
I placed this mix in small jelly jars with some cute lids and placed the directions on the jar. For a single cup of tea, place 3 tsp of mix into cup, add steaming hot water, mix, adjust to taste and enjoy!
I have also made cards to go with each of these jars of tea. (I like to stamp!)
I hope that these ideas can help someone who is on a limited budget!
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As Your Children Grow And Become Ready To Go Out On Their... | Dec 13th. at 10:41:50 am EST |

stargazer (Harmony,`) | Age: 46 - Email |

As your children grow and become ready to go out on their own, why not create an altar they can take with them? A few years ago i built a small "stool" for my daughter, 12" by 16" by 16" high. The lid lifts up to reveal a drawer for her tools and implements. Six years later it still goes wherever she does. Blessed Be.
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Another Online Resource Which Looks Good For Presents Is E-witch - Usual Internet... | Dec 13th. at 6:00:02 am EST |

Skye Cat (Edinburgh, Scotland UK) | Age: 27 - Email |

Another online resource which looks good for presents is E-witch - usual internet auction caveats apply.
I think the URL is www.e-witch.com
Hope this is useful to someone.
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We Can Give The Gift Of Life To Wild Birds By Putting... | Dec 13th. at 12:37:42 am EST |

Emerald (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania US) | Age: 57 |

We can give the gift of life to wild birds by putting out a bowl of fresh water when the temperatures are freezing outside. Many of us remember to throw out bread scraps and seed but the birds biggest problem when the temperature is freezing is not having a fresh water source that isn't frozen.
Sacred Yuletidings to all!
Emerald
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So Many Wonderful Ideas! Here's My Humble Contribution. I Plan To Write... | Dec 12th. at 9:31:54 pm EST |

WindSong (Los Alamos, New Mexico US) | Age: 17 - Email |

So many wonderful ideas! Here's my humble contribution. I plan to write poetry about what I associate with my close friends. Then I will put it in calligraphy, hopefully, with nice designs around it.
Have a wonderful holiday season and enjoy Yule!
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I Taught Myself The Ancient Art Of Baking During The Course Of... | Dec 12th. at 4:29:50 pm EST |

Anita Ashcraft Drake (Boise, Idaho US) | Age: 29 - Email |

I taught myself the ancient art of baking during the course of this year, as a response to being diagnosed with cancer. This life is too precious to waste on food not prepared with loving hands and a loving heart. So this Yule I'm baking challah (braided bread) for my friends, coworkers, and family. I've baked birdseed wreaths for our feathered visitors (hung in the trees with hemp twine), and am also making sock monkey dolls for our young friends. Every child needs a sock monkey! I find that active hands help to heal my scarred body and spirit, and the time spent with my family as I sew and bake reflects the season's gifts of light and love.
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This Will Be My First Yule. I Will Be Celebrating With My... | Dec 12th. at 3:24:54 pm EST |

Crystallyne (Niles, Michigan US) | Age: 21 - Email |

This will be my first Yule. I will be celebrating with my best friend, his first Yule as well. Being there for each other is probably one of the largest gifts we will share. Any others will have very little, to no, material value. I have always been one to indulge in gifts from the heart. Some of the best things I could recieve would be a poem or a piece of homemade jewelry. In my opinion it is truly the thought that counts.
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Another Great Way To Give To Friends And To Give To The... | Dec 12th. at 3:23:29 pm EST |

Hunter (Peterborough, Ontario CA) | Age: 23 - Email |

Another great way to give to friends and to give to the planet is to adopt endangered species in their name this Hoilday season. For my friends that are hard to shop for I adopted a polar bear in their name through the World Wild Life Fund. For a small amount $25 my friends get a beautiful picture of a polar bear in their natural habitat a critficate of adoption and the rather unique thrill to say that their adoptive parents of a rather large nordic animal. The money goes toward wild life preservation in the nordic regions and is a great way for me to give a gift that I feel really matters for more information check out the World Wildlife Fund web site www.worldwildlife.org The best thing about this organization is that they try to presearve habitat for animals in urban settings as well so they look out for species that are native to your own region. You might also want to check into your nearest metro zoo or even the local animal shelter for ways that you can help there too. Zoo's often run adoptive programs and although you might not want to adopt a pet for the holidays from the local animal shelter donations are always welcomed and appreciated. Giving this way takes the commercialization out of the festive season and gives you a real warm fuzzy feeling. Warm Wishes
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Children In Our Home Made Cookies...simple Enough When They Com In... | Dec 12th. at 2:28:52 pm EST |

Amber Buck (Houston, Texas US) | Age: 27 - Email |

Children in our home made cookies...simple enough when they com in tubes and allyou have to do is cut ad cook. The fun part comes in decorating them! Simple and decorative icing can be made with some powdered sugar and food coloring..just mix in the coloring and a tad of water till its the consistency you want and then spoon on the drippy stuff over your cooled off sugar cookies. We did a light glaze for the back ground colors on the cookies in greens and reds and yellows then added more powdered sugar to the glaze to thicken it up and did designs in opposite colors ontop of the galzed cookies that had dried. It was a ton of fun for the kids, they get so creative! We did penatcles and rising suns and hollys with red berries. It was an excellent time to share the meanings behind Yule decorations and cheap to boot...a bag of powdered sugar and a package of food coloring comes to about 5 bucks total and they go a LONG way.!
Yuletide gifts: Mostly we bought at malls, however I did find some great jewelry deals on EBAY.
Homemdae Yule Gifts: I did do a secret santa thing at work where I only did crafts gifts...made a wreath with all kinds of different santa on it. Filled a jar full of nuts and hot-glued 3 small dollar store santa figures to the top and wrapped with a festive bow. Total gift price was well under 20 bucks, and they look really great :) Both of my children got crafts this year and hand made all of their gifts for family. We have picture frames and necklaces galore. :) My daughter also bought one of those paint the plastic pictures candle holders and had a blast with it , resulting in a special gift for her teacher.
Traditions: After reading and thinking about how easy it is to make Yule logs we will be adding that tradition to our existingones this year! My oldest girl ( 9 ) loves to play with the power drill. She'd love to do the candle hole drilling and my son ( 7 )gets all excited about using the hot glue gun, so he can attach the decor around the log :)
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This Year I Am Giving Out A Couple Of "bath Kits" For... | Dec 12th. at 2:25:19 pm EST |

Colleen (Santa Cruz, California US) | Age: 22 |

This year I am giving out a couple of "bath kits" for the women in my life. They consist of:
2 herbs (labeled, in plastic bags) 1 muslin tea bag 1 homemade bar of soap (in my case, bought), or 1 wish-charged candle (I would put both in, but there isn't enough room) 1 semiprecious stone
I have a few abalone shells left over from my boyfriend's abalone-hunting escapades, so I will put the above items in the shell and wrap it in with plastic wrap, ends attached on the bottom with a sticker, to give to them. The herbs should be put in the muslin tea bag and put into a hot bath to steep for a while before one steps into the bath.
Before a friend told me I should use the abalone shells, I was thinking of using baskets, so if you don't have shells, you could easily do it with some other container. This is the first time I've really made gifts instead of buying them, and I hope to do more of it in the future!
Happy Yuletide to you and yours!
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This Year Is The First Year I Will Get To Actively Celebrate... | Dec 12th. at 1:59:22 pm EST |

Greg (Mesa, Arizona US) | Age: 23 - Email |

This year is the first year I will get to actively celebrate Yule, and I'm really excited about it. For friends, I decided to make spell kits. I'm providing materials (candles, stones, herbs, matches, etc.), instructions (get creative with the paper!), and a pretty bag to put all this stuff in. Then the person can do something good and nurturing for themselves, and I will have given them something that I worked on and really thought about. I've found that writing spells for my friends has been truly delightful, and I'm looking forward to giving these presents to them. Plus, this is really inexpensive and heartfelt! Much love, light, and laughter to you during Yule! Blessed Be!
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