Is It REALLY The Thought That Counts?

We've talked a lot on our journey to "the good" about gift-giving. Gift-wrapping ideas, party ideas, the importance of friendship in our lives...and now, since it's Bargain Thursday, why not find some ways to give your gifts that extra special, personalized touch without breaking your bank or emptying your wallet?



Wouldn't this be cute to give a friend before they set out on a road trip?!

I recently came across a blog called "Thirty Handmade Days", and it inspired me to do this post.  The writer of the blog actually started it with thirty projects in mind (hence the name) to share with her readers.  She has now been working on the blog for three years!  Obviously that's a lot more than thirty projects!  It's been so inspiring to look at all of her ideas...I've only been looking through them for a couple days, and I can see that I will be spending quite a few more days on her site!

Anyhow, my point is this...let's try to remember that gifts truly are about the thought.  This is a hard concept in today's world, considering everything seems to be about monetary value--who brought the biggest gift, who brought the name-brand gift, etc.  Let's try to break that mold!  And the word "handmade" seems to have gotten a bad rap lately, and there's no reason for that, either!  Especially if you read my post the other day about Just Duckie Blankies (www.justduckieblankies.blogspot.com), you could see that handmade (and personalized) gifts are not only very special to receive, but in the end can many times be more affordable than the gifts you may find at your local mall or specialty store.  So, why not try more handmade gifts?



I love these "on the hour gifts" (works for any ocassion!)

I think if you check out this blog, you will be inspired as well.  She gives some great gift-giving project ideas, and not only are they simple enough for us to understand, but it appears that they are fairly affordable to accomplish as well.  What more could we ask for?

So I'm challenging you to make at least one handmade gift this summer...just give it a try, what harm could it do? Look through her ideas, and keep following us on "The Good" for more thoughts on bargain-priced gift-giving. I know this is a touchy subject (no one wants to be known as the friend who gives the "cheap gift"), but we want to find a healthy balance between "cheap" and "meaningful".  And to remember that it really is the thought that counts.  When my friends and family give me handmade, personalized gifts, I really do feel even more special receiving them--knowing that my loved ones have put so much thought, and time, into my gift means more to me than how much they swiped on their credit card at Target. It really does.

Happy project-making!