Simpler Celebrations: Less $tuff, More Joy for the Holidays . . .
During Christmastime, my old college roommate, Irene, used to exchange heartfelt letters with each member of her family, and that was pretty much it. Instead of spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars on battery-powered sweater shavers, bad cologne, and the occasional Ronco egg-scrambling device, they sat around, ate delicious food, and visited for days. It was simple and joyful.
But, in the face of modern, consumer culture, I guess Irene's way of doing things sounds a little bit subversive. For instance, according to a 1999 report from the American Bankers Association, most credit card users require an average of four months just to pay off their holiday bills! As I have never been a very good "consumer" myself, that statistic seems a little crazy to me.
When the Holidays(tm) hit, you won't find me dutifully stalking bargains at the mall. Instead, I choose to give useful—and often homemade—gifts. This is partly political, but mostly out of habit as I rarely have gobs of money just lying around. Besides, I think the very best gifts come out of careful thought and time well spent.
What follows are a few simple and inexpensive gift ideas for you to try...
Handmade birdhouses and feeders make very good gifts. My boyfriend and I recently razed an old barn that had beautiful cedar siding, and I'm planning on giving some of that scrap wood new life this winter. In the past, I've used old license plates and flattened tin cans for charming and effective roofs. Need more inspiration and specific plans? Check out your local library!
Homemade cookies and candy are usually well received, too. This recipe for stained glass candy comes from my sister-in-law...
Ingredients needed: 1 cup granulated sugar, 1/3 cup hot water, 1/3 cup light corn syrup, 1/2 tsp. liquid food color, and 1/2 tsp. flavoring (such as vanilla, cherry, etc.)
Utensils needed: greased, thin cookie sheet, candy thermometer, pastry brush, heavy, one- or two-quart pan, and wooden spoon.
Combine sugar, hot water, and corn syrup in pan. Place on high heat. Stir with wooden spoon until all sugar is dissolved. Wash down sides of pan with pastry brush dipped in hot water.Clip thermometer to side of pan, and continue cooking mixture without stirring. When temperature reaches 270 degrees F, remove pan from heat. (Entire cooking process takes ~10 min.) Let mixture stand for ~2 min. until bubbles disappear. Add flavoring and food color. Stir to blend. Pour onto greased cookie sheet. Once candy has hardened and cooled, gently hit the bottom of the pan against a table or other hard surface to break candy into small shards. Stained glass candy can be topped with powdered sugar if you like. Candy will keep at room temp. for ~6 weeks. And to contain your homemade candy? I like to look for unusual vintage plates or tins at Goodwill, the Salvation Army, and assorted junk/antique shops.
Compilation tapes or CDs also make thoughtful and fun gifts. Does your dad dig jazz? Maybe mom loves musicals? (The trickiest part is picking stuff you think they'd actually like and not stuff you wish they liked.) Again, your local library should have a decent assortment of old vinyl or maybe even CDs that you can check out by the armload and compile for their listening pleasure.
Finally, as to store-bought goodies, I love the idea of giving pre-paid phone cards and postage stamps to promote staying in touch year round.
onward!