Easy Holiday Homemade Gift Ideas

 

 

They say home is where the heart is. Here at Darn Tough, we call Vermont home because it's filled with heart. Darn Tough socks are made right here in Vermont by real people, our own type of homemade gift (which is Guaranteed for Life). Every sock at Darn Tough is made with the love and care of our employees, and that’s something we’re proud of.

Not sure what to get that special someone for the holidays? The most meaningful gifts come from the heart. Give a unique gift made at home with love. Gifts that come from the heart reflect the thought and effort you put into them.

In addition to giving our socks, we’ve gathered some other easy homemade gift ideas that you can make yourself and give to those you love.

Check out our creative gift guide below (and our sock gift guide here).

Turn your old socks into a holiday decoration

One of our talented employees Laura uses her old socks to create beautiful handmade holiday decorations. Instead of cutting up your good pairs of Darn Tough socks though (which are covered under our Lifetime Guarantee), here’s a creative solution to help recycle your old ones.

Supplies:

• Old socks
• Fake hair
• Stuffing
• Cotton balls
• Buttons
• A sewing needle
• Scissors
• Some thread

This is a fun idea you can use to upcycle any errant single socks or even older non-Darn Tough socks into something fun and memorable. Possible options for creation include gnomes, sock monkeys, cats, owls, and anything else you can think of. Get creative and start sewing!

Make a Hot Cocoa Kit

Here in Vermont, we experience some unforgivingly harsh and cold winters. On those days, nothing hits quite like a fresh cup of hot cocoa. Hot cocoa is the perfect gift to warm both your hands and your heart.

You can make a big batch of your own hot chocolate mix which will be better than any store bought hot cocoa, and more meaningful, too. Plus, there’s no better gift combination than hot chocolate and a pair of the world’s best, warmest, most durable Merino Wool socks. Trust us, Vermont is cold.

Supplies:

• A white mug
• Porcelain paint
• Cocoa powder
• Sugar 
• Marshmallows

Step 1: Paint the mug with porcelain paint.

Step 2: Bake the mug in the oven so the paint stays permanent.

Step 3: Create a delicious hot cocoa mix by combining cocoa powder with sugar and mini marshmallows.

Step 4: Write a personalized card with instructions on how to use the cocoa powder.

Pro tip: Add a note with recommendations like adding vanilla extract, candy canes, or whipped cream.

Holiday Coloring Pages 

Tug on the heart strings of your relatives with a unique handcrafted gift from your child. Nothing is more significant coming from your kids – and if you don’t have kids, from you than a gift that they put their love into.

This year, we leaned into nostalgia and took inspiration from our sock design process by sprucing up our site with Holiday Bitmaps. Then made them into a downloadable PDF, cause yeah - we wanted to color them!

Teach your kids the gift of giving by lighting up their family and friends with their masterpieces. Who knows, someday they might be worth something.

Download Holiday Coloring Pages PDF

Step 1: Print out the free coloring pages.

Step 2: Have your child color the pages.

Step 3: Tell them to write a personalized letter to the recipient.

Step 4: Watch everyone light up when your kid gives them their favorite gift of the year.

Yarn Ball Ornament

We’re constantly looking at yarn and thinking of different ways we can have fun with it. A couple of years ago, we even made a Christmas tree out of yarn! Though this would be a waste of Merino yarn, other types also work great for this. If you like getting messy, this is the craft for you.

Supplies:

• Yarn
• A balloon
• White glue
• Glitter (optional)

Step 1: Blow up your balloon to the desired size of the ornament.

Step 2: Fill a bowl with glue and mix glitter in.

Step 3: Hang the balloon with a piece of string to mitigate the mess and keep the balloon from rolling around.

Step 4: Once your balloon is hanging, cut a strand of yarn and dip it in the glue. Carefully wrap the yarn around the balloon in different directions.

Step 4: After the glue dries, the yarn will harden and hold its shape.

Step 5: Finally, pop and remove the balloon and attach a small piece of string to hang it up.

Knit Something

There's nothing better than a warm knit scarf, hat, blanket, or pair of gloves (or a pair of socks). Give the gift of warmth by creating something that will keep both their hands and hearts warm. There are endless style options, colors, and weights to choose from making this the perfect personalized gift for your loved ones. Pick the colors, yarn type (we’re partial to Merino Wool), and the pattern you think would suit them the best!

Creating a gift is a great way to make a holiday more memorable without spending a lot of money. Rather than stressing about what gift to buy someone, how much to spend or whether they will like it, we challenge you to create something! Making crafts is a fun way to destress from the pressures of the holiday season and will make someone else happy in the process.

Happy holidays and happy crafting!

P.S. This yule log video makes for a great background while you're crafting.