There are tonnes of reasons why making your own Christmas gifts is better than buying them, but here are three big ones.

 First of all, you get to make stuff! If you're a keen crafter or itching to start a new crafting hobby, DIY Christmas gifts are a great place to start and are super fun.

Secondly, giving handmade Christmas gifts is just about the best feeling ever. Your friends and family will be unwrapping something you've spent time and care over, and that will make them feel really special.

The third reason is that it costs less. Let's face it, shelling out for the latest gadgets can have a serious impact on your finances. So swapping them for making heartfelt homemade gifts is an easy money saver.

If that's left you sold on the idea of making your Christmas gifts,  then pop your best Christmas jumper on, crack open the mince pies and take a look at our easy Christmas gifts to make.

5 Easy DIY Christmas Gifts

 

Christmas Countdown Box

Help someone countdown the days until Christmas with this handmade Christmas countdown box. This gift is an adorable way to build excitement for the big day. It's the perfect gift for helping countdown the days until Christmas dinner, or it can be a cute way for your nieces and nephews to keep track of how many days there are left until Santa comes. The best bit about it is that it's super easy to make if you follow the below steps.

Equipment you'll need:

Step 1
Take your deep box frame and open it up at the back, removing the paper that comes with it. Place the frame face down on your work surface.

Step 2
With your frame flat on your work surface, glass side down, take the polystyrene mini-balls and fill it up. You've now got some fake snow in your frame. You don't want to want to turn a smattering of snow into a blizzard – so don't overdo it.

Step 3
Put the paper back in the frame and replace the back. If you want to make it extra Christmassy, replace the original paper with some Christmas wrapping paper.

Step 4 
Now it's time to cut out your Christmas countdown message. Use your Digital Cutter and Vinyl to produce the lettering for the front of the frame. You can style this section however you want. We've kept it simple with a banner and a "Days until Christmas" message. Whatever you do with this section, the most important thing to remember is to measure the lettering as you only have a limited amount of space.

Step 5
Now it's time to stick the lettering to the frame. Before sticking the adhesive vinyl to the box, make sure you have a clear idea of where you want it to go. Once you've done that, simply press down the adhesive vinyl and peel back the tape. Then for that final touch, take out a marker pen and write down the number of days until Christmas.

And voila! You're all done and ready to hand over your DIY Christmas gift.

 

Christmas Jingle Bells Box Frame

Like the last handmade Christmas gift, the Jingle bells box frame is super easy to make. It essentially follows the same steps with one key difference – you stick your message to the paper on the inside of the frame.

Equipment you'll need:

Step 1
Take your deep box frame and open it up at the back, removing the paper that comes with it. Place the frame face down on your work surface.

Step 2
Take your decorative paper pad and lay it flat on the surface. This is the paper that you are going to add your message to, so if at this point, you're not 100% sure what your message is going to be, you need to have a play around placing your wooden tiles on it until you've got something that you're happy with.

Step 3
Once you've got a message you're happy with, put a little pencil mark where each line starts and finishes. This is to help make sure you can line those tiles up perfectly again.

Step 4
Now it's time to start sticking. Get the glue gun out, add a little glue to the back of the tiles (one at a time)  and start sticking them on the pad. Make sure that you start with the first letter of each line and add it to the pencil marks you made. We'll then work our way through each word, letter by letter.

Step 5
Once the message is on the pad, it's time for the finishing touch – the jingle bells. Add a little bit of glue to each jingle and dot them around the message. We always think less is more for a design like this, but if you want to go a bit crazy with it, you can.

After the bells are added, it's just a case of placing the pad in the frame and putting the back on it again.

 

Christmas Scene Boxframe

Create a mini-winter wonderland with this Christmas boxframe. With a few well placed, wooden embellishments you can create a super cute decoration to gift to a loved one.

Equipment you'll need:

Step 1
Take your deep box frame and open it up at the back, removing the paper that comes with it. Place the frame face down on your work surface.

Step 2 
This is the point where you want to work out where you will place your craft embellishments. Place the paper pad face up on the work surface and start laying your embellishments on it. 

Step 3
Get the glue gun out and stick the embellishments to the paper pad. We start with the trees at the bottom and then stick the "Merry Christmas" message in the top right corner. Then with the space in between, we'll add five reindeer to the pad, working their way diagonally from the right to the left side of the frame. Then to finish it off, we add a couple of star embellishments above and below the reindeer on the left-hand side.

Step 4
Now it's just a case of slotting the paper back into the frame and putting the back on it. Then you're all done, and you've got an easy to make DIY Christmas gift.

 

Christmas Tags

Imagine if you could make a Christmas tag that doubled-up as an ornament, bauble or keepsake. Now you can! 

Equipment you'll need:

Step 1.
Use DAS clay, a rolling pin and your cookie cutter to make the basis of your tags. Keep the clay around 5mm thick, and cut out whatever shapes take your fancy. 

Step 2.
Take some letter stamps and punch that joy right into your clay cutouts! Spell out whatever you like; 'XMAS' '2022' 'JOY' 'NOEL', or spell out the name of your recipient for a personalised touch.

Step 3.
Pop a hole through the top of your tag so you can thread your twine through it later.

Step 4.
Wait patiently for your clay to dry, and then get creative with the paint, but only if you want to! We love these tags au natural, but it's up to you. 

Steps 5.
Once your gift tag is completely dry, thread your white and red twine through the hole, and you're done—a perfectly Christmassy homemade gift you can use as a tag or an ornament for the tree.

The best thing about this DIY Christmas gift is that it looks better when it's not perfect. Homemade clay tags look great when they're a little rough around the edges because the look you're going for is that rustic and natural. So relax, the end result will be ideal even if you're a beginner!

 

Wooden Star

OK, this DIY Christmas gift idea must be the easiest on the planet. 

This is all about choosing the right words and embellishments to make it unique and special for the person you're giving it to, because the main part of the gift is done for you - the wooden hanging star, which you can pick up for just £1.50.

Equipment you'll need:

Step 1.
Decide what words you want to print and set up your digital cutter - we like lyrics from Christmas Carols like 'All is Bright', 'Holy Night' or 'Star of Wonder'. Choose your favourite vinyl and get cutting!

Step 2.
Peel your letters away from the vinyl and place them in the centre of your wooden star - it's a good idea to place them there before you peel off the backing just to make sure they fit and it looks how you want it to. 

Step 3
Add more stuff! Use embellishments to decorate the rest of your star and BOOM, you've got yourself a unique DIY Christmas craft present! 

So there are a few easy ideas to get your Christmas craft juices flowing! Just remember that the effort you put into crafting your own Christmas gifts will go a long way, even if they're as easy as these!

Have fun and happy Christmas crafting!