Holiday Gift Guide 2005	Do It Yourself by Katherine O'Day

(photo: Rose Mattrey)

There are people whose homemade, or DIY (Do-It-Yourself), gifts are their Christmastime trademarks. One friend gives a small bottle of homemade vanilla—a whole vanilla bean marinated in vodka —tied with a ribbon and small card. Another woman I know gives a brown paper bag, similarly tied, filled with roasted chestnuts. There’s a man who makes his own Scottish malted ale, a heady, intoxicating brew with an alarmingly high proof. One bottle can get you pretty drunk, and that’s exactly what he gives, with a personalized or holiday themed label in place of a card (think Molson Canadian labels, but not so stupid). Such gifts are perfect because they are completely impersonal, in that they can be given to almost anyone, while also being extremely personal because they are homemade.

A Do-It-Yourself Surprise...

Ready-Made Magazine (available at the Lexington Co-op, or by subscription at www.readymademag.com)is a great DIY guide. City-wise and eco-friendly, it provides unusual, resourceful ideas that are certainly do-able, as well as being off the beaten path. Here’s an idea for how to give money that came from there, and though I don’t quite understand it, it sounds cool:

Put some cash (or a diamond ring, if the occasion warrants) into a plastic ziplock bag. Mix up some Durham’s water putty according to instructions on the package, and pour into a square baking dish or seasonally shaped mold, if you have one. Fill mold halfway, toss in the money or trinket, and cover with more putty. When it dries, it will be a square (or tree shaped) cement block. The cement wrap can be easily cracked open, and no one will suspect what treasure lies within.

(photo: Rose Mattrey)

Wrap It Right

Speaking of wrap, why not coordinate it with the present’s theme? It’s obvious when someone is about to open a CD, or a book. Work with that, and wrap CDs in sheet music, books in newspaper. Or Xerox a scrabble board to use as wrapping paper—you can even plot out a tiled message by way of a card. When shipping packages, use a map as wrap, and chart the present’s course from your home to theirs.

If you want your gifts “pretty” rather than “witty,” there are various treatments that can be given to on hand materials that produce beautiful, professional looking results. Tie-dyed tissue paper (green, red, & white, for instance) is an example of a simple technique that can look like it came from a specialty boutique. Plain brown paper looks as glamorous as any wrapping when decorated au naturel with raffia (available at Hyatt’s (910 Main St.) or any craft supply store), dried berries, and leaves. Hint: cinnamon candies glued to raffia look a lot like hollyberries.

Festive Foods

The ever-popular “Gifts From the Kitchen” are always in order this time of year. Making chocolate is a snap with DIY chocolate-making kits available through most candy manufacturers. The local supplier Make-n-Mold (www.makenmold.com)sells equipment that includes everything you’ll need, like colored chocolate wafers, dipping trays, and eleborately shaped molds. You can even make a “Christmas Tree” out of homemade chocolate bonbons, like Make-n-Mold’s “Tree Full of Candy,” which looks like something out of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. To really do it from scratch, make the classic french croquembouche (loose translation: “crunch in the mouth”). This cone-shaped pastry, made from caramelized cream puffs and served at weddings, takes the form of a chocolate “Truffle Tree” at Christmastime.

For those with a tried and true sense of humor, gag gifts can also be handmade. Scan and enlarge photos or catchphrases for T-shirts, throw pillows, and even mouse pads, using an iron-on transfer kit (also available at Hyatt’s for about $10).

No scanner? Hate the office supply store? Don’t even want to leave the house? You can always Google somebody, and depict the results in a humorous comic strip. You never know who might share a name with a Christian rock idol, Nobel prize winner, or porn star.

(photo: Rose Mattrey)

Vodka Vanilla:

1/2 pint plain vodka

Vanilla bean (or two, depending on length)

Decorative bottle

Cut a lengthwise slit down the middle of each vanilla bean. Cut bean to fit into your bottle or container. Pour vodka into your container. Add vanilla beans.

Once each day, for 30 days, vigorously shake the container for 30 seconds. Strain liquid through a coffee filter or fine sieve and return to bottle, along with a tell-tale vanilla bean. (Find whole beans at Lexington Co-op or Wegman’s.)

Chocolate Truffle Tree:

2 cups heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract, brandy, or liquer

2 lbs. bittersweet chocolate, chopped

4 oz. unsalted butter, softened

Cocoa, finely chopped nuts, assorted sprinkles, flaked coconut

1- 9 inch tall foam cone

box wooden toothpicks

candied flowers or leaves (try Watson’s Candies or Fowler’s Chocolates).

Bring cream to a boil in a heavy saucepan. Remove from heat; add vanilla and chocolate. Stir until chocolate has completely melted. Allow mixture to cool to warm. Add butter and vanilla and stir until mixture is smooth and glossy. Pour into shallow dish. Cover and refrigerate until just firm, about one hour.

Shape half mixture into 1-1/4 inch balls. Shape remaining mixture into 3/4-inch balls. Roll balls into nuts, colored sprinkles, or sweeted coconut (to resemble a snowball). Refrigerate truffles until firm, about one hour.

Cover cone with foil. Starting at the bottom, attach larger truffles with wooden toothpicks. Insert the toothpick at an angle, then press truffle onto the end of the toothpick. Use smaller truffles toward the top of cone. If necessary, add candied flowers or rose leaves to fill any spaces. Refrigerate until serving time.

(photo: Rose Mattrey)

Basic Bath Oil Blend:

1 1/2 oz. olive oil

3 oz. almond oil

1 oz. sesame oil

1 oz. canola oil

1/2 oz. wheat germ oil

Any essential oil, 25 drops or so.

Rosemary sprigs

Rose petals (at Buffalo Wholesale Florist, Trillium, or Glaser’s).

Pour oils in a jar, cap with a tight-fitting lid and shake well. Insert one or two rosemary sprigs and some rose petals, re-cap, and tie with a ribbon or bow.

Wine Glass Charms:

Earring wire

Distinctive center bead (an easily identifiable shape or color, as these are meant to be ID tags for the wine glass)

Four to six smaller beads - either of different colors in one shape (like a fish, or a butterfly), or six beads of varying shapes in one color.

(Materials available at Bead Creative, 5401 Sheridan Dr. or The Strand, 818 Elmwood).

Thread beads on wire, make a small hook with pliers at the end of the wire and attach to loop in earring wire. Make a set of at least six charms.

Tie-Dye Tissue Paper:

Tissue paper

Eyedroppers

Pack of food coloring

Cookie sheet

Place to hang wet tissue

Cover your work surface with newspapers. Set a folded piece of tissue paper on a cookie sheet. “Paint” the paper by dripping streaks of food coloring from eyedroppers, using a new dropper for each shade. Hang the paper to dry, clothesline-style.