So now I’m over my birthday, my thoughts have turned to Christmas. Yes, it’s early. So let me set a scene.

It’s Christmas 2009, I have no job, money is tight and I’m wondering how to do Christmas. Everyone says make some Christmas presents to save money, I looked into it and it’s not that cheap because ingredients are expensive! Later on when I am working but still not entirely recovered, I start buying ingredients in August and for some of the gifts making them in advance. There are several posts, handily labelled ‘Homemade Christmas’ if you want to see what I’ve done.

We are now slap bang in the middle of a cost of living crisis, as we get nearer Christmas people will suggest making presents is cheap. I don’t necessarily agree but if you want to get this way (it’s a lot of work) and if you want to do it, you need to start planning for it now.

One of my favourite Christmas presents, was The Aperitif Pack. It was inspired and themed presents like this are really good because you can make a couple and distribute.

Food generally is a really good shout. I have made fudge, salted caramel sauce, assembled a ‘make your own cookie’ jar, given people a tin of biscuits, vin d’orange, gingerbread syrup and a mulled wine syrup. If you make jam, then a hamper type situation is possible, for people who like savoury things, a jar or green tomato chutney (or Nigella’s chill jam) with a chunk of good cheese would also work. My most requested food gifts are in no particular order, cheese stars, cocktail cherries, mince pies and marmalade…

I also given people I know will have a busy Christmas, cinnamon rolls for an easy morning breakfast over Christmas. (The linked recipe is the one I use and I tend to give them with a bag of frosting attached!)

Look at the miscellaneous Christmas gifts in places like M&S and work from there to make something fun. Non food gifts are trickier, but lotion bars, hand or body scrubs are all good shouts of things you can group into ‘hampers’

If you want to make alcohol, you pretty much need to start them now, there are loads of recipes about

So if you’re thinking about handmade gifts for Christmas, have a think about budgets, about who you’re giving to and plan ahead.