Handmade Gifts for the Fellas

A sweet girl named Megan posted a comment asking for some handmade gift ideas for the guys in her life. Here's what she said:

I need some help!
this year I wanted to make christmas presents for everyone in my family. I have great Gifs made/almost made for all of my girl relatives... but when It come to my dad, grandpa, uncle, and 14 year old brother I'm stumped! I try searching google for ideas, but it's not really helping me out, (I'm only 12 and can handle adult craft stuff, but some of the ideas on other sites seem really hard, and expensive to make and will take a long time!). I really need some help because christmas is in 14 days and I want to make something really special for everyone!

Hopefully you can post something to help me out,
~Megan

Megan, this post is for you and anyone else who needs some ideas for the fellas in your life!

My favorite place to look for inspiration is Etsy! They have a gift guide section for the guys that is fantastic. Another place to find inspiration is with the fellas themselves. What do they like? Hobbies? Music preferences? Favorite sports teams? What gadgets do they already have? What type of things would make their life simpler? What do they like to eat? Their favorite places? Then I figure out if I can make something in answer to one of these questions.
And YES, I copy other people's ideas. NO, I don't feel any shame when I do it and neither should you! ;D

• For the techno-guy with cell phones or hand held video games then, perhaps sewing a protective case using fabric with some of their favorite colors or sports team logos. You can "man up" this case at Sew Mama Sew with leather, denim, suede, etc and use metal snaps or buttons. Stitch in a belt clip on the back to make it functional too.

• Create a laptop case. Here's a link to 12 different free tutorials. Use tweed, wool, or a range of fabrics you can easily find in the men's department at the thrift store. This keeps the cost down and allows you to quickly find material deemed "manly".

• Consider Kellie's coffee cuff for the coffee drinker in your life. Give it some guy flair with skull and cross bones fabric, denim, camouflage, leather, or other dark colored fabric with metallic buttons.

• For the businessman in the family, make (or buy) an simple tie and screen print it with a design you create. Here's an easy an inexpensive tutorial for screen printing with Modge Podge. An idea you can really go nuts with!

• Consider making scarves and hats. I can't knit or crotchet but if you can, this would be great time to bust out those skills. Kellie has a great tutorial on making them from old sweaters. I make mine from two colors of fleece. Cut two long rectangles for the scarf. Stitch the long sides. Pull through to hide the seam. Cut fringe on the ends and tie to each other in a square knot. Fleece doesn't unravel and it's warm! Here's a tutorial from Martha Stewart's site to make the fleece hat.

• Another great idea is a home baked goodies! I haven't met a man yet who doesn't like a home baked treat! Bake a batch of their favorite cookies, package them in an inexpensive decorative tin from the dollar store. I have a super simple chocolate toffee recipe you should be able to make with no trouble at all. There's also Stephanie's Chocolate Covered Pretzels. PLEASE make sure to get parental permission first.

• Make a simple clock with an inexpensive clock kit from the craft store and a dry erase board, an LP record, picture frame, or virtually anything else. Search for things at the thrift store to reduce your cost. Leave the glass out of picture frame and seal the background image with a clear top coat or modge podge to make it easier to install the kit. Background ideas: a photo collage, poster, cd cover art, movie and dvd cover art, fabric, a painted design, etc.

• My husband also suggested a couch caddy! Here's a free pattern I found but it's basically a pouch that fits over the arm of your chair. Perfect for the remote, TV Guide, pens, pencils, and anything else they might need to stash.

• For the writer, aspiring journalist in the family, a customized covered journal. Again, man it up with images of their favorite sports teams or interests. Use blues, greens, black, silver and camoflauge fabric or paper. Here's a great tutorial on how to do this quickly and easily.

• I also made a wallet for my step son who FLIPPED over it. Granted, he's 11 but I think this would work for a 14 year old. I used fabric from one of my husband's very worn western shirts and equally worn denim jeans. Added some black felt detail and wha la! It didn't take me long to make and cost nothing. I used denim because it's durable and will last but you can use just about any kind of fabric just make sure you add several layers of interfacing!

• For the traveler's of the bunch, sew custom luggage tags. Skip To My Lou has two easy tutorials for this. One with a business card window and one with the information printed on printable fabric.

• Reusable lunch bags and sandwich wraps would be a very useful gift.

Find other great gift ideas in this Father's Day post as well as this article full of sewing tutorials. This is all the ideas I have for the moment. What other ideas do you, the wonderful MIFS readers, have for Megan?

On a slightly unrelated topic, I have a giveaway going on at Frugal Front Porch where 2 winners will receive an eBook bundle from You Can Make This.

*Jenn also writes about craft, recipes, and frugal living at Frugal Front Porch.