Years ago the banks offered "Christmas savings accounts".  We put $25 per month into the account starting in January of each year.  In December we withdrew the money to pay for Christmas presents.  Your family could decide to either save money for Christmas or to make Christmas Presents.  Some stores have started offering "Lay Away" again allowing you to pay a little each week for your gifts without incurring the finance charges of a credit card.

Banks, Credit Unions and some retailers still offer Christmas accounts.  Check to see what the fees and interest rates are.  The sooner you start to save the better.  Create a budget so that you know the amount you need to save.  

Start new family traditions.  Do a family secret santa by having each member draw the name of the person they are to buy a Christmas present for.  Set an upper price limit.  The rest of the presents can be from "Santa".  

Each person including adults can sort through their things and give some away so other people can have presents and your children not only make room for new toys but appreciate them more.  Every year in St. Croix where I grew up my brother and I choose some of our toys to give to the children at the Queen Louise Orphanage.  We had to clean, repair them  and make sure they were in working order.  Our Private Family Foundation, The Faile Foundation continues to support this organization, now called Lutheran Services.  The time it took for me to clean a Barbie doll, fix her hair and choose her clothes really helped me to try to make up the best presents I could.  The idea of creating a "present" for another child as opposed to just throwing some broken, old or dirty toys into a garbage bag to give to a thrift shop had a huge impact on me.  To this day I take a great deal of time to create meaningful presents for others.

I hope Christmas for your family is about love and sharing this year.

Toni Faile Lyerly

I used  an extra curtain for this  skirt.   The others I made with $3 fabric  I found at  a remanent place,   I made some with shorter top skirts to give it a double layered look.  You could also use  bed sheets and let your children decorate each one with handprints or drawings made with fabric paint.   Buy a yard for 18 inches long, a yard and a quarter for a  22 inch skirt.  You can sew this instead of ironing on the stitch tape.  But I thought for college students in dorm rooms or those of you without a sewing machine this might be fun to make for gifts.

I also used these  same techniques to make table runners out of a coordinating fabric.  It does not matter how long the person's table is or what shape.  If it is a long table then the runner becomes a centerpiece.  If it is a short or round table then the runner hangs off of the sides.  I made runners 10 inches wide  by 34  inches long finished.

Send a comment or an email with any questions you might have or share your creations.

Toni Faile Lyerly