Subtle DIY Gift Ideas That Look Professionally Made

You will be thrilled to make and give any of these thirty DIY Gift Ideas, and the recipient will be thrilled to receive any of them.  These creative homemade gifts are useful and unique and don’t scream ‘DIY!’

Full confession: I can be a bit of a snob.

Not a full-on, nose-up-in-the-air, thinking-I’m-better-than-you kind of snob; more of an I-do-appreciate-nice-things kind of snob. To that end, I like giving my friends and family nice things at gift-giving times.

I get the whole ‘it’s the thought that counts’ thing, but at the same time that I’m thinking of what to gift someone, I like to go just the extra little mile to make sure that the gift I give is one that they would want and use. I am sensitive to giving gifts that just end up as clutter, and ain’t nobody got the room for that! And if I can MAKE a useful and appreciated handcrafted gift, all the better!

Giving handmade gifts imparts a little of the love that made it along with the gift.

I’ve rounded up some fun, useful, and lovely DIY Gift Ideas that you could start on now to get a jump on your holiday gifting.

30 Creative Handcrafted Gift Ideas
I’ve grouped these handmade gifts into categories for your ease.

Bath + Body/Spa Handmade Gifts

Lemon Peppermint Hand Scrub

My brilliant and gracious friend, Kathleen, makes this antibacterial and moisturizing Lemon and Peppermint Hand Scrub to gift to her friends and family. And I love the packaging she puts together…she just goes the extra mile to make it extra special.

Tins of this Hand Balm can be scented with any of your favorite essential oils. Made with Cocoa Butter, Beeswax, and Grapeseed Oil, this hand balm nourishes dry skin on your fingernails, fingers, and knuckles.

Moisturizing Heel Balm

Along the same lines, make tubes of this moisturizing heel balm to give along with the hand balm for the start of a great spa gift basket.

Microwavable Neck Warmer  
I’ve made several DIY Lavender-Buckwheat Filled Microwaveable Neck Wraps to gift and they are so very appreciated. I mean, who doesn’t love a warm hug around their neck? This post walks you step by step on making these neck wraps.

Melt and Pour Goat’s Milk Soap

This easy goat milk soap recipe uses a melt-and-pour goat milk soap base, shea butter, and essential oils. This is an excellent recipe for first-time soap making.

Easily put together a gift basket of a bar of your soap, a few handmade washcloths or store-bought washcloths, and some herbal bath salts for a very welcome, thoughtful, and useful gift.

Handknit Washcloths

For my knitting friends, knit up a slew of washcloths to give with a lovely bar of soap, a bottle of bubble bath, or bath salts. These handmade washcloths are always in demand! This post shares seven free knit dishcloth or washcloth patterns for various skill levels.

Upcycled Candlewick Handtowels

These Upcycled Candlewick Handtowels, paired with a lovely bar of soap or jar of bath salts, are such a great gift. My friends and family LOVE these hand towels. Pop by your local thrift store and nab an old Candlewick bedspread to whip up a bunch of these.

Herbal Bath Salts

When added to your hot bath, this Herbal Bath Salt recipe offers many beneficial properties for your mind and body and is easily made in bulk for your use or to give as gifts.

Think of combining the bath salts with a bar of handmade soap or one of the moisturizing balms. You could even add a neck warmer or some washcloths.

Lavender Filled Sachets

I have yet to find a person who doesn’t appreciate lavender’s relaxing and welcoming fragrance. Whip up a couple of these handmade lavender sachets that you can personalize with the recipient’s hair and eye color.

Wire Macrame and Beaded Votives

Put a fragrant candle in one of these macramé wire votive holders for a unique and much-appreciated gift. This is a gift that would work perfectly as part of a ‘spa’ package or as a hostess gift or for someone who just like unique home decor.

Very flexible wire and beads come together for a glistening votive holder. Video and step-by-step instructions help you make these votives.

DIY Gifts for the Kitchen
Does the gift recipient like to entertain or spend time in the kitchen? These handmade gifts, either singly or paired together, will surely be a useful and appreciated gift.

Loom Potholders

Remember Loom Potholders? Guess what? They are back! This post isn’t as much of a ‘how to’ as it is a reminder of how fun and quick these potholders are to make. Customize a colorful loom potholder with the recipient’s favorite colors or kitchen colors.

Beeswax Food Wraps

We are a full service provider here at N+N! Not only do we share step by step instructions to make Beeswax Wraps, but we have a free printable to help you package a set of these wraps for you to gift them!

Wine Stoppers

These wine stoppers are beautiful handmade gift ideas that can be made to reflect the recipient’s likes or personality.

Personalized Mixing Bowl Set

Personalize a set of mixing bowls! Certainly, a useful homemade gift! Personalize the bowls with favorite sayings or names.

Turk’s Head Knotted Trivets

These Turk’s Head Knotted Trivets are not only handy but quite lovely, especially for a ‘nautical’ look. A video and template are provided to help you learn the knot.

Crochet Edged Linen Cocktail Napkins  
Who can’t use some linen cocktail napkins? Sew up a couple of these linen napkins and then spend a few evenings putting a crochet edge on them. This is a handmade gift that will impress!

Handknit Garter Stitch Trivet

With this Free, Knit Garter Stitch Trivet Pattern and a spool of rope, you could knit several handy trivets in a day!

Trivets are one of those things that everyone can use and make great gifts, especially for anyone who spends any time in the kitchen. If you like to make and give handmade gifts to your friends and family, these trivets are fantastic DIY Gift Ideas.

Hand Stamped Napkins

I hand-stamped these napkins with trees for the holidays, but the possibilities are endless. I have some fern stamps patiently waiting to be stamped on napkins for a spring and summer gift idea.

Block Printed Napkins

Along the same lines, these block printed napkins are so easy to make! I made these as a Valentine’s Day gift, but there are so many wood block stamps for you to choose from!

Crochet Edge Dinner Napkins

Sharing this how-to for easy-to-make napkins. With miter-edged corners and a crochet edge, these napkins are perfect gifts…but you will most likely want to fill your own napkin drawer!

Handknit Linen Stitch Potholders

The Linen Stitch is a perfect choice to knit a potholder. It lays flat and doesn’t have too much texture. Plus, it just is a lovely stitch! Add some faux leather tabs, personalized or not, to finish the potholder.

And, I’ve yet to meet the person who can’t use a new potholder. If you do meet that person, please give my address to them!

Crochet Thermal Stitch Potholder

I don’t know about you, but it seems that ‘potholders’ are something that often make it on my ‘stocking stuffer gift ideas’ list that I give to my family. With that in mind, I figure that they are great DIY Gift Ideas for your handmade gift stash.

This crochet potholder pattern uses the thermal stitch for a double-thick fabric without having to crochet two separate pieces.

Handknit I-Cord Trivet

This tutorial shows you how to knit an i-cord with double-pointed needles and then how to coil the knit i-cord to make a lovely and useful trivet. This Free I-Cord Knit Trivet Pattern features step-by-step and illustrated instructions to ensure your i-Cord Trivet success!

Homemade Food Gifts
Handmade Gifts for Cooks

These 3 Gifts for Cooks are so easy to make and much appreciated. Rosemary Fleur de Sel, Vanilla Fleur de Sel, and Peppermint Sprinkles. Homemade gifts from the kitchen are always a hit.

Mulling Spices

This Mulling Spices Recipe is filled with warming and aromatic spices. Homemade Mulling Spices makes an easy and welcome gift, especially when paired with the included label and a mulling ball. Make sure to nab the printable label.

Handmade Home Decor Gift Ideas

French Knot Monogrammed Pillow

Simple French Knots gather together to form a lovely monogram. Make a pillow that your gift recipient will cherish.

Crochet Flower Bookmarks

Crochet a bookmark, or a whole garden of bookmarks, to give to your favorite bibliophile! They are a quick, 30-minute project that is also quite economical! And not for nothing, these colorful, whimsical bookmarks will surely put a smile on the recipient’s face.

Monogrammed Leather Cord Keepers

Seed Paper
I made quite a few of these cord-keepers and have already depleted my stash, but they were easy handmade gifts.  You could make a whole bunch and leave them un-monogrammed for easy stocking stuffers or as an add-on DIY gift to some new tech gadget.

Gift a stack of handmade seed paper to a gardener, an eco-conscious friend, or someone who loves to send notes on lovely paper.

Wildflower Seed Cards

Use your handmade seed paper to make Wildflower Seed Paper Cards to give with your handmade gifts, or gift a stack of cards as a gift. Lovely and unique Thank-You notes are always a welcome gift.

Do you keep a stash of homemade DIY gifts? I’d love for you to share some of your favorite DIY Gift Ideas.
If you are anxious to get busy with your handcrafted gifts, bookmark this page or pin the following image.