Get your knit on for a present that will last a lifetime, or customise an old favourite with a few deft stitches to make a new gift
This Christmas, forget expensive trinkets, or designer handbags – if 2010 has taught us anything, it’s that there’s more to life than crazed consumerism. Which is why we’re celebrating the charm of the home-made Christmas present. Personal, thoughtful and unique, a home-made gift means a lot. “When you give or receive something home-made, it’s a powerful expression of love and connection,” says writer and craft blogger Léan Ní Chuilleanáin. “It’s possible to nip into a shop and buy a gift without putting much thought into it, but you can’t do that with something you make. The gift is not only the object itself, but also the time and care that went into it. It’s deeply personal. It touches us.”
For a while, as Ireland became wealthier and more obsessed with shopping and conspicuous consumption, home-made gifts were something we wanted to leave behind; they were seen as shoddy or second-rate. Lavish gifts were seen as proof that someone was important to us. But now we’re coming to realise the importance and the charm of something unique, something personal, something made for us with love.
The gifts in these pages don’t look cheap or amateurish, but they won’t cost a fortune, and you don’t have to have incredible crafting or artistic skills. You don’t even have to make something from scratch, as customisation is an easy way to make a one-of-a-kind gift. But whatever you do, you know that when you make the right thing for the right person, it’ll be treasured forever.
RIBBONS
Ribbons may sound a bit girly, but they don’t have to be. Pippablue in Galway sells gorgeously Scandinavian-looking ribbons in fresh, clear colours, made by a company called East of India. As you can see, a ribbon trim can transform a high-street jacket. “I stitched along both edges for a neater finish,” says Pippablue’s co-owner and manager Ger Collins. “But you could stitch along the centre, using a contrasting embroidery thread.
The ribbon was attached in one piece, taking care to fold at corners. We used an East of India ribbon in neutral colours which complement more classic looks such as tweeds, wools or the school blazer style.” And ribbons can be used for more than customisation, as this rosette brooch shows.
For full instructions on both of these projects, see pippablue.com, and click on Blog. Pippablue, 1 Middle Street, Galway; 091-566972.
SAY IT WITH A SHRUG
This classy knit-one-purl-one shrug is very straightforward until you get to the buttonhole (but you can omit the button hole altogether if you like, and simply afix a brooch).
This big button comes from A Rubanesque in Dublin and the following instructions allow for it:
You will need chunky yarn and size 5mm needles. Cast on 80 stitches. Each row K1,P1 for 35 inches (88cm). Work in K1,P1 rib until the shrug is 35 inches (88cm).
On the next row, begin the button hole:
K1,P1 six lines, cast off one stitch.
Turn and complete the next K1,P1 rib.
Rejoin the yarn to stitches left on needle and K1, P1 for eight rows at which point the buttonhole is complete.
K1,P1 for 14 rows knitting straight across.
Cast off.
STITCH IN TIME
If you want to turn something ordinary into something uniquely personal, try embroidery. A plain, cheap pillow case or duvet cover can be transformed with just a few stitches, whether you adorn it with an elegant monogram or a kitsch hula girl. You may think embroidery is complicated, but it’s really much more simple than it looks. It’s now possible to get lots of hip, fresh embroidery patterns that you simply iron on to fabric and then sew along the lines, using basic stitches. American artist Jenny Hart sells a range of adorable patterns on SublimeStitching.com, many of which are anything but cutesy; they were used to apply these 1950s-style atomic symbols to a boring old pillow case. Or just get a transfer pencil at any haberdashery, and design your own – once you draw your design on some grease-proof paper, it can easily be transferred to the fabric of your choice.
PUT SOME JOLLY IN YOUR JUMPER
If all this knitting and stitching is making you break out in a sweat, and you don’t know your cast ons from your bind offs, then you can always cheat. This gensaí Nollaig is from Jollyjumpers.ie, and it looks handmade enough that you’ll be able to pass it off as your own seasonal work. There are a number of designs (expect snowmen and reindeers to be popular), but we reckon this Christmas pudding with intricate bauble work is the one that will be defining the winter/spring catwalk this season. Don’t expect cheaper imitations on the high street – this is a strictly couture business set up by graphic designer Emma Hogan. Get yours from €25 (plus €1.50 for next day delivery in Ireland) from jollyjumpers.ie, and light up every Christmas party you walk into. Laurence Mackin
BUTTON UP
Never underestimate the power of a button. Beautiful buttons can turn a plain, cheap coat or cardigan into something truly extraordinary – it’s amazing what a difference swapping cheap plastic buttons for something fancier can make. Take wool gloves from Penneys, for instance, and transform them with buttons or ribbon. For just a few euro, these little additions will ensure that your gift is one of a kind. See arubanesque.ie, tel: 01- 6729243;thisisknit.ie, tel:01-6709981.
COVER IN STYLE
You can easily and cheaply make a gorgeous cover to protect beloved books. You can also use a cover to transform a cheap hardback notebook. This is a chance to use really amazing fabric, as you’ll need very little material. I used a Liberty cotton, but Galway’s Pippa Blue (pippablue.com) sells wonderful Japanese cottons in small amounts that would be perfect for this project.
To make a cover, all you need are two pieces of fabric in contrasting colours or prints.
1. Make a pattern out of newspaper: measure the width of your book or note book, double it, and add 4.4 inches. Measure the height of the book and add an inch. Pin pattern to fabric and cut out fabric.
2. Pin the two pieces of fabric with the right (printed) sides together, and, using a 1/4-inch seam allowance, sew around the edges, leaving an unsewn gap of about four inches at one side.
3. Turn the cover the right way out through this gap, then sew it up neatly. Press over two inches of the outer edges to make flaps and secure by sewing along the top and bottom in whip stitch, leaving a gap of 1.4 inches at the outer corner.
Where do I begin?
Literally don’t know how to thread a needle? There are many amazing basic sewing and craft books (Alison Smith’s ‘The Sewing Book’ (Dorling Kindersley, £25) is the needlecraft bible), but if you want the basics, go online. Ehow.com has instructional videos on just about everything – just search for the skill you require.
WORLD’S EASIEST SCARF
Even if you’ve never picked up a pair of needles and don’t know your garter stitch from your elbow, making a scarf is a doddle for knitting novices. For materials and knitting tips, see springwools.com
Skills you’ll need to know:
Cast-on, garter stitch, cast-off.
Materials:
1 pair of 12mm knitting needles (€6.95)
3 balls “Sirdar Indie” self-striping yarn (€4.35 a ball) available from Springwools
Method:
Cast on 14 stitches. Knit every row in garter stitch. When you have approximately 100 centimetres of yarn left in your last ball of yarn, cast off all stitches. Weave in loose threads.
FABULOUS FELT
If you associate felt with primary school crafts, think again. This durable and cheap fabric can be used to create gorgeous gifts such as these deceptively simple brooches. "Felt is a great fabric for beginner crafters because it's really stable," says Léan Ní Chuilleanain, who designed and made these pieces and writes about crafting on her blog String Revolution (string-revolution.com). "It won't slip and slide as you're working with it, it keeps its shape, and unlike a woven fabric, it won't fray when it's cut, so you don't need to finish off the raw edges." These brooches were made by cutting out and then layering simple shapes, then sewing them together with a few central stitches; you can find patterns and full instructions at string-revolution.com.
CRAFT MEETS TECHNO
Handmade doesn't have to mean traditional. This simple iPod/iPhone cosy was made by Léan Ní Chuilleanain out of a few scraps of fabric and decorated with basic appliqué (sewing decorative pieces of fabric to another piece of fabric) and embroidery. The cosy is lined with a matching fabric to make it more durable and protective of your tunes. Find full instructions at Léan's blog, string-revolution.com.
SUGRU
Sugru is a silicone-based putty that can be moulded into any shape. It bonds to anything and sets hard in half an hour. It is dishwasher-proof and comes in four colours. The wonder stuff has been featured in Time magazine and was invented by London-based Irish woman Jane Ní Dhulchaointigh. A pack costs €8 from sugru.com or the Science Gallery in Dublin. Use this "mála for grown ups" to make quirky Christmas gifts:
(a) Decorate a cup with sugru. Ní Dhulchaointigh says that because Sugru is rubbery, the decoration can also act as a coaster. You can also personalise a cup – or a plate or a glass – with a name.
(b) Make customised USB keys of music and movies. This is the classic mix-tape option with a nice bit of craft thrown in. Fill a USB stick with music, rip off the casing and replace it with a cool new one made from Sugru. Embellish it with beads or foil-backed crystals if you're feeling a bit blingish.
(c) Gift repairs and little improvements. Does someone in your family hate the wastefulness of buying new things at Christmas that they really don't need? Then take them at their word for once, and delight them with thoughtfully observed repairs and improvements to the stuff they already have and use everyday. For example, if your boyfriend's intercom receiver slips every time he puts it back or your mum's iron is always falling over, does the tap in your friend's house always dribble? For more sugru inspired gifts check out the gallery at sugru.com.
JENNIFER JACKSON HAIRPIECES
Redundancy was a mixed blessing for freelance designer Jennifer Jackson. Having worked for almost 10 years in advertising, redundancy gave her the push to pursue her dream of designing jewellery on a full-time basis.
Having completed a silversmith course at the National College of Art Design, she found her niche in mixed-media creations, applying her creative skills to haberdashery items to come up with some stunning and unique designs.
For Jackson, the biggest challenge has been competing with cheap, mass-produced accessories, but the strength in her design is the unique individual hand-made attention to detail that sings out in every piece she makes.
Best-sellers are her bright attractive hair-pieces, which feature sequined motifs that catch the light beautifully, feathered combs, and rosette creations. They are perfect for dressing up day-wear or for adding a subtle finishing touch to evening looks. The perfect complement to the look would be her delicate fine-gold feather earrings or one of her quirky safety pin chains.
Jennifer Jackson's head pieces and jewellery are stocked at Emma and Occasionals, Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, priced between €19 and €30. For details of Christmas markets she will be attending, see jenniferjackson.ie.
BUTTON BAG CRAFTS
Button Bag Crafts are themed craft-kits for the beginner. The small brown boxes are a treasure trove of trimmings – buttons, glitter, wool, beads – which look bitsy to begin with but which can be stitched, knitted, and glued together to make your own cloth or peg dolls. The cloth animal kits are cute and colourful and suitable for the six-plus age. There is the Bunny Hutch, Bird Box and Owl House for starters, which involve basic sewing skills set out in clear child-friendly instructions. There are instructions for recycling the packaging as a home for your creations, too. The Peg Doll kits, which include Fairytale, Adventure and, seasonally, a Nativity Scene, are stuffed with wooden clothes pegs and a variety of sequins, ribbons and felt pieces. They involve no sewing at all, so even younger kids can be drafted in to help.
Button Bag Crafts are available at A Rubanesque in The Powerscourt Centre or online at buttonbag.co.uk. Prices range from €12 to €20.
BEAUTIFUL BEADS
Bead shops such as Dublin's Crown Jewels
offer everything you need to create unique
jewellery. And that's basically just beads, wire and
a clasp. Anyone can make a necklace, says Crown Jewels owner Veronica O'Connor. "It's just about choosing a colour, stringing the beads, and attaching the clasp with pliers. People shouldn't be intimidated." Home-made jewellery is amazingly cheap – you can make each of these gorgeous necklaces for under €20, and O'Connor points out that you could make an even more simple but beautiful one for about €5.
Ear-rings are even cheaper. Crown Jewels,
Castle Market, Dublin 2; tel: 01-6713452.
