Finished and ready to use

Hello there,
Rachel asked me to do a guest post about this project, since it’s one she and I had worked on together before and that I recently took on all by myself. It probably would have been a good use of your Power-Off Weekend. Well, maybe next time. So! Let’s talk weaving.

Time required: Uh… several hours.
It took me an American football game (roughly 3.5 hours) and another hour or so to finish, but in fairness, I made a custom-size basket out of magazines, so there was a lot of time spent looking at things sideways and gluing bits together to make them as long as I needed them. So, if you use newspaper, or use magazines to make a smaller basket, it will take less time than that.

Materials needed: a newspaper or magazine, scissors, glue/tape/staples.

Skills needed:
cutting, using adhesives, patience, putting one thing on top of another.

The original idea: Rachel tells me she saw it here… http://www.craftstylish.com/item/47658/the-times-they-are-a-changing-how-to-make-a-basket-from-a-newspaper.

The process:
Rip pages out of your chosen newspaper or magazine. I chose, with all the irony I could muster, an old Martha Stewart Living. Fold each page in half the long way, then in half again, then in half again. I used the handle end of my scissors to get a nice strong crease on the last fold.

crease those bad boys.

Next, weave the pages together, using an alternating over-under technique.

that's as over-under as it gets.

you can see the strings i used to figure out when i needed to start the sides.

When you’re ready to start the sides, fold the paper up. I used as little adhesive as possible, so this was a little frustrating and seriously don’t feel bad if you use some glue or something. It would make your life (or at least this project) easier to stick it together a bit with something other than physics.

selective adhesion = lengthy project.

When you’ve got it as tall as you want, just fold the leftover bits at the top back over and weave them back down again; for extra security, tape, glue, or staple the ends.

Hey, it’s a basket!

and there she be.

[Note from Rachel: These also make great presents, so this is Part 4 of my Frugal and Green Christmas Gift series. You can find all the projects by clicking on this tag (also on the righthand side of every page): Christmas.]

Decorating the fireplace for Christmas

This I believe to be one of the earliest of human inventions and in all honesty, it is superior to the man-made, metal equivalent.

For one thing the parts are white and shiny, so reflect more light. For another there are many flutes thus allowing multiple wicks and thus variable brightness (the world’s first ‘dimmer switch’). Oh, and they are free, recyclable and beautiful.

Waiting for dark to be lit

Recycling a Scottish tradition

During the 17th – 19th centuries, and probably long before, traditional cruisie lamps were used to burn fish oil.

The upper bowl can be tilted to keep the wick wet so it doesn’t burn down

These were generally made of two metal dishes mounted one above the other, on the wall or hook. Now we are going to update this old lamp for the 21st century.

What you need

Rushes grow all over boggy fields

• scallop shells or similar containers
• vegetable oil or any oil that burns
• rushes or cloth, string or matchsticks

Readying the shell

Eat your scallop. Clean the shells, especially the insides, so there is nothing to ‘go off’. This also helps with reflectance.

The flat shell will catch any drips

The flat half of the shell makes an ideal base, to steady the upper shell and catch any oil that may run down the side of the shell. It also helps you tilt the curved shell at the right angle to keep the wick in oil.

That is the shell done!

Making the wick

You can use anything that will soak up oil, including cloth, string and matchsticks. I use the traditional wicks made from the soft rush (Juncus).

Gathering the rushes

Rushes grow all over boggy fields

The soft rush has been used for rush lights and wicks from long ago. As it is nowadays treated as a weed or plant of waterlogged and overgrazed land, it seems a good plant to use.

Gather a few stems of soft rush by cutting low to the ground. It is the soft, white pith in the centre that you want.

You can try peeling the dark green outer fibres as you would a banana, but for high quality wicks and speed, try this:

How to make the wicks from rushes

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Insert a nail, key, bone or similar hard object into the rush, leaving an inch or so of rush to grip (with your teeth). Note, the nail goes right through the rush stem but leaves the outer fibres intact on either side of it.

The green rush is pinched with finger and thumb against the nail. One hand is holding the nail, the other is pinching the rush sides against the nail.

Insert the key into the rush

Now, keeping the fingers pinching the ‘nail’ at all times, push both hands down the stem, whilst holding that inch of rush firmly between your teeth.

Beginners will want to choose only a short length of rush, maybe 4-6 inches, to start.

You will find the white inner pith is pushed out by the hard ‘nail’, as it cannot pass either side of the nail because of your pinching the sides to the hard object. The pushed out pith will then magically extend, like a concertina.

An alternative method is to strip away one half of the green outer fibre (as per the banana skin method, then use the back of your thumb nail to push along the inner of the remaining fibre, thus pushing the white pith forward and out, like a snow plough.

Either way, you are looking for nice, plump wicks. They can be used straight away or kept dry for storage.

Add the oil

Traditionally the oil could be coming from fish, seabird, seal, whale or animal fat (as tallow). If it burns, you can use it.

The easiest to use, and handiest in a power cut, is vegetable cooking oil. You usually have some of this in the kitchen, though it does give of a bit of smoke and the smell depends on what it is. You can add scent with essential oils.

Be safe

Burning oil can cause other things to catch light, so be careful.

Whilst the shell itself is low-lying and thus pretty stable, it can be knocked, spilt or spread. Do not light your lamp when it is set upon something flammable. Wood and plastic objects burn. Things like tables, televisions, stereos etc. All serious fire hazards.

Do not leave a naked flame unattended. Do not let pets near (the vegetable / fish oil is very edible).

How to use

Fill the shell with oil, place one wick in the fluted groove of the shell (perfect isn’t it), leaving half an inch protruding over the end of the rim.

Get the wick tip covered in oil too.

Lighting the rush wicks

Keep the oil level high and close to the rim by repositioning the shell on it’s flatter, lower partner. Take care to get it stable and not having oil dripping over the edge.

Light with a match or similar flame.

Lighting the rush wicks

Take care, please

Please take care! Ensure all fire, flame or heat is safe and out before you go to bed or leave the house. Accidents happen by their very nature when not expected. That said, many fires are started by electrical faults.

In this case, the safety is up to you. Fire and alcohol do not mix.

Final point

There is no point trying to replicate the light of a 100w lightbulb with candles or lamps. Instead, enjoy the calm and soft light of a natural flame.

Now run that bath and set up your lamps, with essential oils added, and relax. Who needs TV?

Peanut butter chocolate balls

The reason for the rush is I looked up the date you have to post all your gifts to the USA, and it’s December 10th — Thursday. To be honest, I’m not sure I can make it in time, but we’re giving it our best shot.

To help spur our efforts, we’ve been watching Christmas movies one after another, and we’re in the middle of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory — the 1971 version with Gene Wilder mind you, which we both prefer.

So given the theme of candy deliciousness at the moment, today’s post is about making Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls. I use these as “Hitching Treats” to thank strangers who give me and Malcolm lifts, but I’m also going to use them to fill presents like the Felted Tin Cans I’ve made.

[Note: This is Part 3 of the Frugal and Green Christmas Gifts series. You can find all the projects by clicking on this tag (also on the righthand side of every page): Christmas.]

Time to make:

1 hour including freezer/fridge time

Materials needed:

Ingredients for chocolate peanut butter balls

• 450g (16oz) peanut butter — the cheaper, processed kind works best to be honest
• 200g (1 1/4cup) icing (confectioners’) sugar
• 50g (3/4 cup) powdered milk (optional)
• 115g (¼lb) butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla
• 450g (16oz) dark chocolate
• waxed paper

Original project from:

The BBC site had a good recipe that I modified. Because I used a lot less sugar, the peanut butter is gooier, so the milk helps it dry out a bit. But if you don’t mind it being softer, leave out the milk.

There are many recipes out there for chocolate and peanut butter treats, but most use milk chocolate and several call for paraffin wax, which I find slightly bizarre. I’m guessing the reason for the paraffin is to harden the chocolate so it doesn’t melt in your hand, but ugh.

Skills needed

• Measuring and mixing ingredients

What to watch while you make this

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory of course. You can eat about half what you make and feel completely justified in doing it.

Getting started

Mix the peanut butter, butter, sugar and vanilla together. I like to let the butter sit on the Aga to warm up for a while to make it easier to mix since I don’t use an electric mixer.

Who needs an electric mixer?

At this point, you need to decide which you want to make: clusters or balls.

Chocolate peanut butter clusters

Clusters instead

If you want clusters, just dip your spoon in and drop a bit onto the waxed paper.

Peanut butter clusters ready for freezing

Then place the tray of clusters into the freezer to harden for 10 minutes.

Rolling into balls

If you’re making balls, pop the bowl of peanut butter mixture into the fridge (or freezer if you’re in a hurry) to harden it up. I’d say 30 minutes in the fridge, 10 in the freezer will do it.

I forgot to take a photo of these next sections because I got so caught up in what I was doing…

Then bring the bowl out and, taking a spoonful at a time, roll into balls in the palms of your hands as quickly as possible.

Drop onto the tray and place back in the fridge or freezer to cool down and harden a bit.

Heating the chocolate

5 minutes before you take out the peanut butter mixture, start heating the chocolate.

Just use any old saucepan and put it on the stove with water to heat up to simmering. Place any bowl that fits over the pan on top.

Break up the chocolate into squares or pieces and let them sit in the bowl for a few minutes until they start to melt. You can stir with a spoon to check they’re completely melted.

Drop into chocolate

Drop the clusters or balls into the chocolate. The BBC recipe says you can use toothpicks to dip them, but I didn’t have any so I just used 2 spoons to roll the clusters and balls in the chocolate.

Alternatively, you can just drizzle chocolate on top of the peanut butter if you don’t mind it being more like a cookie.

Let cool and decorate

Sifting sugar on top

After letting cool for 15 minutes, I sifted some icing sugar on the top of several because I actually used even less sugar than I’ve given for this recipe and I found it not sweet enough. But try one without and see what you think.

For variation, you could add chopped nuts on top, or substitute a different nut butter like cashew or almond.

Enjoy.

Doesn't that look tempting?

Felted tin cans: one with lining, one without

For example, taking my cat Caper down to the beach this morning was a simple thing that seems to make her ridiculously happy.

Caper and I comb the beach this morning

Funny what it took to bring that lesson home to me.

It took reaching the brink of ruin, where the bank balance was shrinking, the bills were mounting, and I felt one of the worst feelings ever: I am a failure.

A failure as an adult, as a person

That’s the point we were at just six weeks ago.

I felt like I’d failed to be a success in business, failed to earn the money I thought I would when I went to university, failed to own a house, go on vacations or have retirement savings.

I remember we had The Talk, to figure out whether should move from Orkney to a city where we’d have more of a chance at getting so-called real jobs. Were we just being naive, irresponsible, to think we could continue spending our days doing what we wanted to do?

Malcolm and I spent hours discussing, trying to keep the fear from overwhelming us and staying focused on coming up with solutions.

We woke up the next morning and Malcolm said to me, “I think we should sell the car.”

The adventure of frugality

That touched off a chain of events that led not only to getting rid of our one and only car, but to examining every aspect of our lives, looking for ways to cut expenses and prioritise what really matters: our health, our relationship, and our belief in Touchwood and its goal of helping people to transition to a more environmentally responsible way that’s all about being happy and enjoying it.

I got Frugal Living for Dummies out of the library and read up on how to make a grocery list and comparison shop. We combed through the bills, making cuts in every area.

We decided to live during the day in kitchen where the Aga keeps it warm and not have heating on anywhere else. It’s where I’m writing this now, curled up in a cushy chair dragged from the living room.

Malcolm started planning the Power Off Weekend project, and we decided to try to make all of our Christmas gifts.

A doorway to plenty

The reason I share this with you — and you’ll be wondering what happened to my tutorial, which I promise is coming shortly — is that I’ve been…awed by the generosity, creativity and energy from people reading this blog and participating in our lives.

It’s been our new friends, Michelle and Erlend, organic farmers a few miles down the road who have offered to teach us the ropes of milking cows, shearing sheep and other farm skills we’d love to learn and haven’t a clue how to do.

It’s been the many people writing in to offer lifts into town and those who’ve stopped to pick some big bearded man with a rucksack on the side of the road and given him a lift.

Perhaps best of all, it’s been the stories from my mother and grandmother who have started sharing their own frugal tips, ways that were once everyday years ago but which have largely been put aside in recent times. These stories nourish a new kind of relationship with my family, across thousands of miles and with a very different lifestyle.

So reaching a point where I thought we had nothing, where I thought I’d failed as a grown-up, has been the means for a sense of success, for discovering a wealth of friends, resources and creativity I’ve never felt before.

I’m in the middle of that maelstrom of things happening and have no idea yet where much of it will lead, but for probably the first time in my life, I have long periods of a kind of calm, deep happiness alongside a genuine sense of bounty.

It’s that energy that motivates me to keep writing, to share with you my dorky little projects and our late night thoughts, in the hopes that you too won’t feel alone and will keep going down the road that’s uniquely your own, even when it looks crazy or like something other people might call failure.

Project: Felted Tin Can Containers

[Note: This is Part 2 of the Frugal and Green Christmas Gifts series. You can find all the projects by clicking on this tag (also on the righthand side of every page): Christmas.]

Today we’re going to use leftover pieces from our first project, the Felted Sweater Bag, to make this next project: Felted Tin Can Containers.

Felted tin cans are great for beachcombing

I wanted to create a simple container that could hold pencils or knitting needles or kitchen utensils. They could be used as a small gift for a neighbour or coworker, or even as stocking stuffers.

You could easily buy some chocolates — Ferrero Rochers or Lindt truffles would be excellent — to stuff inside.

Reusing tin cans

There are many websites out there touting cleaning and reusing your old cat food or tomato tin cans, but one of the biggest problems I’ve always had with reusing cans is it can look too unfinished for me to want to give it as a gift.

A nice solution is from CraftStylish, which uses them as herbal plant pots.

I would have done that for this post, except there weren’t any around to use.

So I had to come up with something else that hides the inside of the can, which is too industrial looking for my taste, at least as a present to someone else. By adding a simple liner, you can give it a little bit of prettiness.

Adding a liner in one

Here’s how you make it.

Time to make:

1/2 – 1 hour

Materials needed:

• leftover sleeves from Felted Sweater Bag project
• empty, clean tin can
• scrap of fabric approximately 12 cm x 24 cm, or to fit your tin can
• Ferrero Rocher, Lindt or similar chocolates (I used my own Chocolate Peanut Butter Clusters)
• optional: fabric glue

Original project from:

This is a different take on Timary at CraftStylish’s Recycled Sweater and Tin Can Herb Garden. See also Re-Nest’s “10 Ways to Use Tin Cans”, which includes using them to hold your kitchen utensils or as a flower vase.

Skills needed

• How to sew a seam (see Felted Sweater Bag post for demonstration videos)

What to watch while you make this

It’s the little kind things you do that matter.

That’s one of the themes of It’s a Wonderful Life, and so while you may have seen it 20 times — or just feel like you have because it always seems to be on television — it’s a film worth seeing again to be reminded of that as you make your humble tin can project. Malcolm and I watch this every year, well up a bit, and feel rejuvenated, grateful for the little things. I hope you will too.

Getting started

Now let’s get started making something. Grab some used tin cans from your recycling. We have so many from cat food that I’m thrilled to be actually doing something with them.

Empty cans, ready for reusing

Remove the labels and wash cans thoroughly.

Next, grab the sleeves left over from the Felted Sweater Bag project.

Leftover scraps from bag

Measure the length of the can. If you don’t have a measuring tape handy, just mark the length on a scrap of paper. Add 1 cm or 1/2 inch to this measurement. My can was 11cm long, so I’m going to cut 12 cm section off the sleeve.

Cut the sleeve slightly longer than the can

If you don’t give some extra length when you cut the fabric, it’ll look like my first attempt:

Oops

Check out that vastly uneven cutting job I did too. Luckily I could make 2 more from one sleeve.

You could stop here

Now at this point, you could fill it with soil and a plant. Pick up some basil or cilantro at the grocery store and call it a day. Or if you like the look of the tin, leave it.

Alternatively, add a simple liner.

Adding the fabric liner

I hunted around until I found a scrap of fabric to use. See what spare fabric you can unearth. Then measure around your tin can. Add 1 cm or 1/2 inch to length and width, then cut.

In my case, I cut out a rectangle 24 cm long by 12 cm high (11 cm height of can + 1 cm).

Cut the lining with 1cm added to length and width

Now fold the rectangle in half, right sides together, so that the long ends meet and then sew a simple straight seam. If you don’t have a sewing machine, you can sew this by hand.

Sew the seam

Now insert the tube inside the tin can. Roll down the felted outside fabric half way, then fold the lining over the top of the can.

Fold over lining fabric

Now you can roll back up the felted outside and leave it as is, or if you want to secure it more firmly, you can add a bit of fabric glue. Malcolm’s just asked me if he can help, so I’ve sent him to go ahead and do this step.

Fabric glue is nice, but not necessary

If you don’t have any fabric glue, don’t worry about it. You could also use a rubber band. Or just leave it.

Filled with chocolates in one, seashells in the other

Now just add some Ferrero Rocher, Lindt chocolates or your own treats and you’re good to go!

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Why work hard to make something from scratch when you can be lazy and reuse someone else’s stuff?

Today we’re going to be recycling an old sweater into a fabulous felted bag, all ready to wrap and present with a flourish to your Aunt Rebecca or best friend Steph.

From old sweater to lovely new bag

Time to make:

3 hours

Materials needed:

• old woolen sweater (acrylic and other synthetics won’t work so check the label)
• scissors
• needle and thread or sewing machine
• embroidery thread
• embroidery or large sewing needle

Original project from:

Alterknits will get you knitting creatively

Skills needed (if you don’t already know them, you’ll learn right here)

• How to sew a seam

What to watch while you make this

Like the right glass of wine improves your meal, the right film makes a craft project that much better. Since these projects can take some time, watching a great show while you’re doing it adds to the fun.

So for every Christmas gift project, I’ll also recommend a film, TV show or audiobook which fits into the theme of the project.

Recommendation: Being Erica, Season 1, currently on Channel 4 in the UK, and Soapnet in the US.

Being Erica is about a 30-something who’s given an extraordinary chance to do over the events in her life she most regrets. Each episode sees Erica going back in time into her past to try to set right something and make her life better now.

Theme: Going back to the old to become something new. That’s just what we’re doing with the old sweater to new bag.

Here’s a quick preview:

Felting the sweater

First, find an old woolen sweater, one you don’t, or someone you know doesn’t, wear anymore.

Or try a charity shop and wade through the old lady and old gents’ sweaters.

Now we’re going to do a neat little trick to it to transform it something your aunt or good friend would love for Christmas. Felting.

Once you’ve gotten your old sweater, squeeze a few bursts of dishwashing liquid (or detergent if you don’t have any dishwashing liquid) onto the sweater.

The sweater to start with. Add soap.

Break a sacred rule

Never put your woolens in hot water.

Except for today. Break the rules and throw your slightly gooey sweater into the washer and turn to the hottest wash you have.

I used “Boil wash”, which to be honest, I was a bit nervous about doing, but it came out great. A regular hot wash will probably work just fine too.

Let the cycle run, including the spin cycle.

When you take it out, it will have shrunk magically to about half the size. You shouldn’t see any stitches — it should all be a fuzzy mass. If it’s not, put it through the cycle again.

Whip out the scissors

Time to cut up your sweater. You’re going to remove the collar and sleeves, so that it looks like this when you’re done:

After cutting the basic shape out

Perfection is for machines, mistakes show you care

Cutting up a sweater for the first time caused me a bit of anxiety. It seemed so permanent, and what if I cut it wrong or something?

I find I often worry like this when I’m learning something new, whether it’s cooking or playing my violin or riding a bicycle. I’m afraid I’ll mess everything up, I’ll ruin something or somehow hold other people back.

Or I worry I’ll make something and the person I give it to won’t like it because it’s a few million mistakes in it.

The problem with that thinking is that it’s kept me from doing a lot of stuff and I think it keeps a lot of other people from doing stuff too. I didn’t know how to cook so I never did and I made do instead with a lot of macaroni and cheese, pizza and Ben & Jerry’s.

The other problem is that something with no mistakes in it, something that’s perfect, looks just like something you’d buy at Ikea or H&M.

Perfection comes mostly from machines, not real people, and I like to think that when I give someone something with a few mistakes in it, they’re reminded of how hard I tried, of how much time and effort I put into it just for them.

So if you make a mistake or 100 on this project, consider just leaving it as a nice reminder of your gift’s handmade provenance.

Sew seams around the top edges

Stitch a seam around the top and handles about 1/4 inch (.5 cm) in

If you’ve got a sewing machine and know how to use it, then sew a simple straight stitch about 1/4 inch from the edge along the top. This should help reinforce the fabric.

What if I don’t have a machine or know how to sew with one?

If you don’t have a sewing machine, you can often get older models for free on Freecycle or Freegle, which is how I got mine. Or ask to borrow a friend’s or a family member’s machine.

Once you get a hold of a machine, it’s really easy to sew the simple line you need for this project, so it’s worth taking the time to learn.

A good place to start is “The Basic Sewing Lesson Class 1″, which will show you all the basics to getting started with a sewing machine.

How to sew a straight stitch by hand

Another option is to sew the seams by hand. Here’s a good video tutorial showing how:

Sew up the bottom of the bag

Now you’re going to sew up the bottom of the sweater. In Alterknits, she shows sewing right across the bottom of the bag on the outside. I used a zigzag stitch for extra reinforcement.

You could just use a straight stitch here, particularly if you double up the thread for added strength.

This is what mine looked like:

You can use a zigzag seam on the outside.

I thought this looked ugly, so I redid it.

Alternative: the I-shape seam

The seam creates a T shape at each end, forming an "I"

Many bags, if you look at the bottom, have this kind of seam. It looks like a long capital “I” turned on its side.

This is a stronger, more finished-looking seam.

Here’s how to do it.

Turn your fabric inside out. Sew both layers together using a zigzag (or straight stitch if you’re sewing by hand).

Fold the fabric at one end to create a triangle shape.

Fold fabric to create a triangle shape

Then sew across each side like so:

Sew across the first seam

Now on to the handles.

Sewing the handles

To make the handles, fold over the fabric and hold it in your hand. This way, you can see how far down you need to sew to keep the handle folded over.

Fold over the fabric in your hand to decide how long to make the handle seams

Then you sew the two pieces together, about 2 1/2 inches on either side or 5 inches overall.

Since the fabric is so thick, I used embroidery thread and a big needle to do this, but you don’t need to.  I happen to have a bunch of embroidery thread because I got suckered in by all the pretty colours in a job lot selling for next to nothing on eBay.

Sewing up the handles with embroidery thread and needle

And you’re done!

Optional: add a back pocket

I wanted to add a bit of the Fair Isle pattern back to the bag, so I added a back pocket made out of the leftover pieces from the neckline.

I just sewed another straight seam using embroidery thread and needle.

Optional: Sew on the back pocket

Now here’s the finished product, which I think I’ll give to my sister-in-law to gather her eggs in the morning with.

This side shows the buttons:

The end result

The other side with the pocket:

With the pocket showing

Done!

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Your feedback on the tutorial

My goal is to help more people make their own Christmas presents and not put it off till next year, when it’s more convenient.

I’m hoping by making this project and the others I’ll be doing in the Frugal and Green Christmas Gifts series, people who might feel nervous or reluctant to make their own gifts actually give it a go.

So did I give enough information? Too much? How could I improve it?

Crowds line up before dawn, eager for bargains, their credit cards at the ready. It’s the biggest shopping day of the year.

At long last, the doors to Wal-Mart open

I’ll give that a miss this year because as much as I’ve enjoyed shopping in the past, I enjoy making stuff more.

So today I’m going to remake Black Friday — and anything that grim sounding cries out for a makeover — into “Green Friday”, the day where we start making our own green Christmas presents.

To help the holiday take hold, I’ll be running a series of tutorials to help you make your own. I’ll share with you what I’ve uncovered in my quest to make 20 presents with £20.

Here are the requirements. Gifts must:

• cost as little as possible
• be environmentally responsible
• handmade
• be fun and easy to make

The best projects made easy

There are a million craft and DIY blogs out there, so my job isn’t to repeat that.

Instead, I’ll be gathering the most fun and useful projects I’ve found, as well as using a lot of photos to show you how to do them yourself.

If these tutorials can help you feel a little less stressed and enjoy the season a little more, I’ll be happy.

What kind of projects?

I’ll be focusing the projects mainly on:

• felting
• knitting
• sewing and
• potions (as in herbal concoctions and soaps)

ANY of these projects could be done by someone who has no previous experience.

Your help, please

My goal is to help people actually do the projects, rather than just read about it and say “That’s nice.” So I’d really appreciate it if you would share your thoughts on how to make these tutorials better.

Make multiples

A word of caution for those who’ve never made their own gifts before: it will take time. The shortest project, Potted Herbs, takes about 15 minutes, but many take several hours.

The key here is to make multiples.

Once you’ve made one present, make another one since it will be much faster this time. Watch a good film or listen to an audiobook at the same time. Not sure what you’ll do with five tea coseys? Save one or two for someone’s housewarming or birthday — you’ll be grateful you did.

Upcoming project: The Felted Sweater Bag

Felted sweater bag

My first project requires an old woolen sweater, so dig through your clothing (or anyone else’s) and see if there’s one that’s not getting worn anymore. Or head to the charity shop and root around.

Here’s to Green Friday.

Ha. I assure you, I’m far too lazy to make all these changes for some distant noble cause. Nope, I’m doing it first and foremost because I’m enjoying myself, a point which a little adventure reminded me of recently. I’ll call it “The Tale of the MacGyvered Christmas Gift.”

MacGyver to the rescue

Like the hero of the 80s show MacGyver, about a peace-loving secret agent who inevitably saves the day with his Swiss Army knife, a metal tube, and a piece of gum, I was in a sticky situation with only a few bits and pieces to rescue me.

My problem was Christmas.

The Christmas challenge

Since Malcolm is the youngest of five, we’ve got a lot of presents to make, what with nieces and grandparents and stepparents and three continents to worry about. We’ll be with my in-laws down in England for the holiday, and I’ll be honest: I’m feeling under pressure to come up with presents that won’t embarrass me or break the bank.

If it was my family, they’d like anything I came up with, under the motto of “It’s the thought that counts.” But with in-laws, as wonderful as they are, there’s still that anxiety over whether it will be good enough, whether they’ll actually like what you’ve done or just wished you’d given them a gift certificate instead.

Oh and did I mention we’ve got a budget of £20 for all the presents? Yes, £20 for about 20 presents. A year ago I would have said it was impossible. But I’ve learned a lot of tricks since then.

Putting the plan of action together

My first essential tool for the mission: a ball of yarn I’d gotten secondhand for free.

Treasure #1: free yarn

Thanks to learning how to knit two years ago, I knew I could make something with it and knock off at least one gift.

Next stop: Ravelry, a website for knitters, where I found a free pattern for a cowl scarf. But then I realised I only had one needle that was the right size. In the past I would have just bought a new pair like these, which would have set me back £15.

Beautiful but expensive knitting needls

But forking over £15 isn’t an option, so what to do?

Hm, could I make my own? A quick Google search and indeed, I can.

Going that frugal step further, instead of buying wooden dowels I scrounged around Malcolm’s woodpile that he uses to teach firemaking and stripped a stick with a knife. Then I sanded it smooth with an old bit of sandpaper lying in the garage. Perfect. Pretty as the bought ones and I can make multiple ones, saving myself £15 every time.

Onto the scarf. Encouraged by my success, I curled up in the kitchen next to the Aga stove, chatted with Malcolm, listened to the audiobook of Made to Stick and peacefully knitted. For an hour I just enjoyed the play of colour as it popped into view with each stitch and lost all track of time.

But then, whoops. I looked down at my tiny ball of yarn, annoyed because I didn’t have enough left to finish the project. I’d end up with half a scarf at this rate.

Now if money were no object, I’d just hop online and buy some more. £5 a ball and away I’d go. Instead, here was another opportunity to MacGyver a fix. Mulling it over with a cup of peppermint tea, I remembered some cream coloured yarn about the right size that’s hiding in the attic.

Raspberry swirl

Put em together and lo, there were stripes.

After another couple hours of happy knitting, I ended up with a snuggly, tasty raspberry and cream scarf, ready to be wrapped for Christmas. First part of the mission accomplished.

The scarf and handmade knitting needles

Knitting may not be your thing, but it’s the challenge that makes life fun. It’s finding a solution to each problem I encountered that excited me more than a trip to the mall or a spree on eBay could ever do.

It’s not all sunshine and roses

Lest all this happiness start to annoy you however, I assure you I do get cranky. Learning new stuff means you’re a bit of a loser at first. You’re a novice, and that means you often look like a dork.

It’s like this new bicycled experiment we’re on. I don’t ride much, I’m not in shape. When we were cycling into Stromness the other day for the first time ever, you should have heard me swearing as I huffed and puffed the 5 miles into town.

Legs on fire, lungs heaving after 2 miles. Then we hit a headwind and I kid you not, I had to switch to my very lowest gear of my 21 speed bike and we were on flat ground. I wasn’t peddling uphill, I was simply trying to move forward on a flat road, and you could have walked faster than I was going.

That's about what it felt like

Cars zipped by and I pictured the drivers looking on, amused at or worse — pitying my slow, slow wobble forward. I imagined lean lycra-clad cyclists whizzing past to leave me in the dust, contempuous of my snail’s pace.

Still I kept on cycling, pushing one foot then the other, finally resorting to counting each revolution to keep me going. Twenty-four, twenty-five...Get to 100 and start again.

I saw Malcolm up ahead, valiantly cycling as slowly as he possibly could, clearly having little trouble but doing his best to hide it. Humiliating.

But then we crested the hill into town and I saw I was home free. A nice long road downhill, coasting into town. I had done it. And I felt really, really proud of myself. Like I had run a marathon or birthed a child.

I figured the next morning I’d be dying, but I was surprisingly okay. Even weirder, I wanted to do it again.

It’s never the right time

That’s been my experience of doing new things so far. At first you think you could never do it, or that it’s just not the right time. You’ll do it when the kids have left the house, when you get the next raise, when you can afford to, when you know exactly what to do.

You couldn’t possibly make your own Christmas presents! You don’t have the time, you’re not artistic, no one will like what you make anyway.

Channeling your inner McGuyver

But then you start. You’re awkward, like I was riding the bike. You run out of resources, like I did knitting. But then you adapt and you keep going. You get wiley, you devise a cunning plan.

You start doing it and you focus sharpens. Time disappears. You forget to snack or complain or feel bored because you’re too busy doing your thing.

Then the best part: you succeed! You make the top of the hill or finish the scarf and you’ve done it. You’ve won, using your wits and your determination. You’ve done what they said couldn’t be done and won.

That’s the kind of happiness I’m talking about. It’s saying you want to do something, thinking it seems impossible, and then doing it anyway.

It’s enjoying setting challenges for yourself and succeeding at it. Saving the planet is just one more challenge that each of us can take on and have a great time overcoming with creativity and an easy laugh.

When we’re our own personal McGuyvers, we get to save the day on a regular basis — and have more fun than any 80s action star ever did.

What Would Your Own MacGyver Do?

What are your MacGvyered projects?

What challenge have you faced lately that required some MacGyver ingenuity? Have you made something out of stuff you had lying around that solves a problem? I’d love to hear your stories, so please share them here.

Update: Inspired by Darcy’s and Kerrilee’s hula hoop and fly swatter MacGyvered projects, I’ve added a new feature below that will let you upload pictures of your projects so we all can get some good ideas on how to tackle everyday challenges.

Just click on the Add Photo button and upload a picture of your project!