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It's almost that time of year again--"The Holidays"--and whether you celebrate Christmas (the cultural or the religious variety), Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, Pancha Ganapati, or any other lovely holiday that I've neglected to mention, gifts are probably involved. In my opinion friends, it's time to get your craft on!
Crafting gifts expresses care, makes a smaller impact on our world and our wallets, and just generally makes a person feel hygge. How does crafting promote soulcare?
- When you make a craft you fine-tune your ability to be present. (After all, you've got to pay attention to count stitches, apply paint, or thread the machine.) The practice of presence allows you to live a more vibrantly connected life within your own self and with others.
- When you step out of the cycle of commercialism you break allegiance with Money/Mammon and connect with other, more positive forces. National Buy Nothing Day has been encouraging this for years now, and this video from the Simple Way community shows you how to do it with gusto! (I smile every time I watch that video.)
- When you make a gift you are present to the act of creation -- something that connects us to The Divine, who in most traditions is seen as a creative force.
- Making gifts can help you tread lightly upon Mother Earth. Reducing one's environmental footprint is an increasingly significant part of many people's spirituality. Earth stewardship and respect for the creative order brings more "shalom", or "wholeness", into our world. Kristin at Craft Leftovers, Ricci of The Revolution Starts at Home and Christine at Godspace have all got great green crafting ideas, as do the other contributors at Make Something Day.
- Handmade gifts help us connect with the deep-root values of the 'gift-giving' season: generosity, compassion, and a basic expression of love.
The problem with crafting is that is often involves purchasing a lot of supplies and/or making something that isn't especially functional. (Not that everything has to be functional -- but I think we've all received handmade gifts that have added to the clutter, if you know what I mean.) So here are some ideas for crafty gifts that reduce waste, release us from excessive spending, allow us to be present, and connect us to the creative energy of The Divine.
Knitting: cozy socks, a warm scarf or a lovely pair of mittens make a lovely gift. They don't require a lot of supplies. Some can even be made out of your stash. And there's nothing to help you practice presence like knit one, purl two.
Cooking: there's nothing more nostalgic and lovely than one of Grandma's secret recipes on a pretty card and the promise to bake something up together. A gift with heritage is good soulcare because it links us to life lessons and values passed down through generations. Don't have any of Granny's secrets? Give away the dry ingredients for these or these and make someone happy (happiness is always good for the soul!)
Paper Crafts: a set of stationary made with your rubber stamps, note cards printed with one of your well-shot photos, or some pretty altered postcards like these tied in a bow make a lovely gift and encourage the sacred art of letter writing.
How about you? What are your ideas for soulful crafting and gift-giving this season? Leave us your thoughts, ideas, and link love in the comments below!
Rachelle Mee-Chapman is an alt-minister, mom, and writer blogging at Magpie Girl, and now at Food Hero. She'll send you helpful links and updates if you follower her on Twitter. Thanks for reading!
