Winter is usually perceived as a fun, festive time of year where people spend time in the snow and listen to classic songs in front of decorated trees. Despite all of the good cheer that is celebrated during these times, it can be difficult for low budget high school students to give quality gifts to their friends and family. Handmade gifts are the answer to this problem.

Senior Joey Nadel believes that handmade gifts can be the perfect solution for anyone.

“I would make something for friends and family because I can. I wouldn’t make a Picasso, but a simple desk or chair is well within my reach, and if you keep it simple it can still be a very good gift. It is often times cheaper but still shows that you care,” Nadel said.

Handmade gifts may not be for everyone in your life but adding a personal touch to your gift can let the receiver know how important they are to you. One thing that you can do is to make something that represents a special memory that you share or an inside joke.

For example, you can write an original story or a poem about that memory along with an illustration. Make sure to add as much detail as you can to show that you put a lot of thought into it. English teacher Jacob Silver is a fan of handmade gifts because of their sentimental value.

“If I receive a handmade gift, I feel like the giver: put a lot of thought into something I might like, put

their own time and effort into putting it all together and created something completely unique just for me. That’s a great feeling, especially in today’s day and age, where every minute is precious,” Silver said.

Making gifts for family is easy in theory because they’ll probably love whatever you make anyway, but if you really want to give them something unique, then you should try to make something that reminds them of yourself.

You can make a wide variety of things depending on who you’re gifting to. However, one thing that anyone can appreciate is a holiday card. You can get artistic and draw pictures that symbolize your relationship, leave them an important message and tell them how much they mean to you, or even make a collage of photographs and add those on the card.

If you can’t decide what to do, then you can do all of these things and even more. If you’re having trouble thinking of creative handmade gifts, the website Pinterest.com is full of greatideas with easy to follow step-bystep instructions. All you have to do is search for “do it yourself holiday gifts” and you’ll find an assortment of helpful posts. A sample size of what can be found on the website includes painted coffee mugs, leather friendship bracelets and even a pull out photo album.

One trending item on Pinterest is the mason jar. Mason jar crafts have become popular gifts. Gifters sometimes include ingredients inside to make baked goods, a candle holder, a decorative vase or a drinking cup.

If you haven’t completed your holiday gift list quite yet, consider spicing things up by giving your loved ones something that will always remind them of you. Try your hand at creating your own holiday gifts this year. It’s worth it!