Giving Handmade Gifts for Christmas

Hi everyone!
Christmas isn’t too far off, so here’s my question for you:
Do you give homemade gifts for Christmas? I mean, things that are crocheted, knitted, sewn, or handmade. It’s not really about the craft technique right now, but rather the fact that it’s handmade.
Does that make it something very special for you even while you’re making it? Because when you’re crocheting, knitting, sewing, or crafting, you can really think about the person you’re making something for with your own hands, right? A handmade gift is, after all, something completely different from store-bought gifts.
Plus, you don’t have to be out in the stores during the Advent season while tons of other people are buying their Christmas gifts more or less at the last minute—after all, you can easily stock up on yarn or just order it online. :)

Has this ever happened to you—that you saw a pattern here at crazypatterns or somewhere else and thought, “This is so great, I don’t just want to crochet, knit, sew, or craft this for myself, but also for my friend or someone I know”?

What was the reaction from the recipient? Is it something really special for the recipient to get a handmade gift? Is the time and effort that went into it properly appreciated? I’m just not entirely sure about that, because I figure you can’t make everyone happy with handmade items. Someone who wants a new smartphone for Christmas, for example, probably won’t know what to do with an amigurumi. You could give them a smartphone case instead, but that’s only useful if the person already has the smartphone or has received it as a gift.

I know full well that this is a pretty general topic and that there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, because people and their tastes are just different. But I just wanted to ask if you’d like to share your experiences with me.

I don’t really want my Christmas gifts to reinforce that stereotype of giving socks and shirts for Christmas—I want them to be something special. But there’s plenty of choice here in the shop.

In any case, I’m curious to hear what ideas you’ll come up with.

You’d have to know the person the gift is for

Yes, mostly phone cases, scarves, or doilies; in the past, more handmade crafts.

Hi,

this year I gave away three elaborate crochet projects. Looking back, I have to say the only woman who was "appropriately" happy about it (from my point of view) was the one who can crochet herself. In another case, I had the feeling that the recipient felt uncomfortable that I had gone to so much trouble for her - probably also because she sees crocheting more as a punishment. I had a hard time making it clear to her that I enjoy crocheting and that, quite apart from her, I take pleasure in finishing a big project. 

I give away smaller things every now and then, and always successfully. But there are friends I know can't do anything with that kind of thing, so I'd rather give them something bought. ;)

I also make crafts/crochet things in advance, little gifts to take along when visiting people, etc. It saves buying chocolates or flowers and is always well received. You just have to be careful where you store that kind of thing so you can find it quickly if needed.

Love, kais

I often come across knitted or crocheted pieces and think, “That would be perfect for so-and-so.” But I often don’t have the time to knit or crochet those things. Still, I do make a few small pieces every year. Mostly hats, neck warmers, or scarves. Those are really in right now, and they let me make the people around me happy—they appreciate them and sometimes even mention wishes of their own (“For Christmas, I’d love a hat to go with my new jacket,” or something like that...).

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend—it’s perfect knitting weather :-0

Nici

Oh dear, Karis, that’s a tough situation—it must be uncomfortable for someone to realize that so much effort went into it. Hopefully, things worked out.

@hamster: I think the friend simply couldn’t believe that crocheting could actually be fun ;)

Yes, I also give things like that as gifts to people I care about, but only if I know them well enough to be sure they’ll be happy with it and actually use it

Thanks for your contributions to this thread so far. It’s great to see the topic is being so well received. :)
In addition to all the points already mentioned above, unfortunately I still have to add that I’m still not particularly good at crocheting.
I mean, I know the basic stitches and all that, but I mostly like crocheting scarves and blankets. I do think, though, that amigurumi and things like that would be more suitable as Christmas gifts. I don’t really think I’ll manage to improve enough by Christmas this year for it to be enough for nice amigurumi. Maybe next year. But scarves and smaller blankets are going quite well by now. My crochet work hasn’t looked like it does in my avatar picture for ages. I took that photo back when I had just (re)started crocheting. :)

How about you sellers - do you get a lot of orders for the Christmas season?
I mean, do people ask you to crochet/knit something because they want to give it to someone as a gift?
What kinds of items are in demand? Socks? Scarves? Amigurumi, or simply crocheting one of your own patterns and selling the finished product instead of the pattern?
Well, if that question is too nosy, I completely understand, of course.