by Heather Little

Created on: December 14, 2010

Oh, the wails of the unemployed - we have so much time, but no money! - Which is posing an even bigger problem now that the holiday season is upon us. Cure your boredom and keep your Christmas budget as small as possible with these crafty ideas:

1. Pop Can Tab Jewelry

What you will need: Lots of those little metal tabs you can pull off of soda cans, paint, and string.

Instructions: First, paint the tabs. A variety of colors works well. You can get really inventive with stripes, polka-dots, etc. - the steadier your hand is, the more creative you can get! Then let them dry before stringing. When you're stringing, you can have some fun with color patterns to find one that looks really unique. Voila! A fabulous, eco-friendly necklace straight from the recycling bin! The best part is that you can still return the cans later to collect the deposit. The downfall is that you need a LOT of tabs to make this project look really cool.

2. Origami Ornament

You can find a simpler variation of this in my article on the Top DIY gifts of 2010. But you're feeling especially creative, you can get even more involved with this idea.

What you will need: 5 sheets of origami paper, embroidery floss, several smaller beads, one larger bead, and a long sewing needle.

First, make five origami water balloons.

Second, there should be a hole on one side, where you blew to inflate the balloon. On the other side of the balloon, there should be creases that meet exactly in the middle. Use the needle to poke a hole through this exact spot. Do this in each of the balloons.

Third, figure out the order of everything. Figure out what order you want the boxes in if you used different patterned paper for each balloon. Then figure out which beads and how many you want  to use between each balloon. The large bead will dangle at the very bottom of the finished ornament.

Use the large bead as an anchor. Tie the end of the thread to the large bead, then thread your needle. String first any beads you want between the anchor and the fifth balloon; then the balloon itself (bring the needle in through the blow-hole and out through the hole you made in step 2); then the beads that go between the fifth and fourth balloon; etc.

When you have strung everything together, tie a loop at the top. You will use this loop to hang your brand new origami ornament!

3. Friendship Bracelets

Knitting, crocheting, and sewing can lead to some amazing gifts - but these require a LOT of patience, and the supplies can get pricey if you don't have them lying around. Try your hand instead at a good old-fashioned friendhip bracelet. It may seem cheesy, but if you and your friends haven't done these since you were kids, this can turn into a nostalgic gift that leads to lots of fun childhood memories.

4. Picture Collage

Finally something to do with that Cosmo you bought in 2007! Cut up your old magazines and make them look cool. Give the this idea a twist by putting it on a Mead notebook - cutting out lots of one thing, like eyes or lips, can have a really cool effect when they're put into a collage!

For any of these projects, don't stress too much about getting everything exactly right - your loved ones will appreciate all the time and thought you put into their one-of-kind handmade gift!

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