Give a homemade gift this Christmas

It only takes a little time and effort to make your own truly special gifts – our easy ideas are designed to be quick and simple. Make an effort with the wrapping – pop your jar in a gift bag and finish it with ribbons and tags, for instance – to create something memorable.

Make your own fudge or biscuits and pop them in a container. Or just pack a jar with all the dry ingredients they’ll need to make their own batch of Christmas cookies. You’ll find plenty of recipe ideas at Waitrose.com. Make sure to add a tag, a fabric lid or a lavish bow too, along with a hand-written note.

Not a home cook? Why not create a mini spa day then, filling a lidded jar with handcream, emery boards, nail polish and other beauty goodies? Or a hair-care version containing clips, scrunchies and a hairbrush for style-loving girls? Or one for smaller children filled with mini toy cars? For very young recipients, though, replace the glass container with a plastic or tin one. You could even plant up a terranium with succulents for plant-loving friends.

There are a range of kits that contain all you need to make your own special gifts – among our favourites are TOFT's range of knitted and crocheted toys, and Trimits felt decorations. And don’t worry that you might not be able to get the gift finished before Christmas Day – you can always snap a work-in-progress image and present that in place of the finished thing. 

And if you have friends who are just as crafty as you are, why not gift one kit to them and treat yourself to an identical one? Then you can then arrange virtual craft-alongs via Zoom in the new year, helping each other on.

Nervous about going it alone? Then join in with fellow Christmas crafters at a John Lewis Virtual Craft Event. They’re hosted through Zoom and you can sign up for free or paid-for classes that run through November and December. Buy what you need in advance from the kit lists and check that there aren’t any necessary basics that you need to know before the class starts – the Make a Rockin’ Stocking with Wool and The Gang free class, for example, recommends that all attendees already know how to cast on.