The point of the holiday season is to show friends and family that they are loved and appreciated, and handmade gifts help express that spirit and will likely be remembered longer than any gift card, toy or electronic gadget that will be obsolete by next holiday season.
With the pandemic stretching into its 21st month, many families have missed out on sources of income and other opportunities to earn money. With many still struggling, putting more thought into gifts without putting as much money into them may be a more reasonable option.
With the weather getting colder even in North Carolina, warmer clothes are a necessity. Knitting hats, scarves and sweaters for loved ones during the holidays is an old tradition, and Chapel Hill’s Yarns Etc (1322 Fordham Blvd., Suite 4) is the perfect place for both beginner and expert knitters.
Yarns Etc is owned and operated by Mary Stowe, a Greensboro native. The shop offers a personal experience to all customers, regardless of their knitting, sewing or needlepoint experience. The store also provides classes so customers can learn how to create gifts for themselves or others, though the classes are limited to private lessons due to the pandemic.
For shoppers not interested in picking up a new skill in a short period of time, Firefly, located in Carrboro’s Carr Mill Mall (200 N. Greensboro St., Suite A-9), has an assortment of beads, charms and tools for creating bracelets and other jewelry as gifts. The shop offers customers a chance to buy beads to make something themselves or allow a staff member to craft something for them using materials the shopper selects.
If these options seem too artsy, Fitch Lumber (309 N. Greensboro St.) in Carrboro is a great place to start for any handy person. The store, just across from Carr Mill Mall, offers a variety of tools and lumber for any project and might just the perfect destination for a group of friends to pool their money on supplies and materials and create a gift-making workshop to rival Santa’s very own.
Handy skills are not required, though, to give handmade gifts. Similar to Yarns Etc, Mulberry Silks (200 N. Greensboro St. Suite B-6) in Carrboro offers classes and help to anyone learning how to sew or looking to fine-tune their skills. The business, also located in Carr Mill Mall, has been a community staple since 1982 and has a large selection of tools and fabrics for anyone looking to pick up or continue the art of sewing. Mulberry Silks set up a pop-up flyer shop during the pandemic, so customers can get fabrics from their homes or pick them up curbside without being concerned about the spread of Covid.
Handmade gifts are also not limited to art; nothing says you care about someone like a tray of delicious baked goods, Carrboro’s Weaver Street Market (101 E. Weaver St) has a good selection of ingredients for baking regardless of dietary restrictions. The Carrboro store also has a large variety of its own baked goods to draw inspiration from.
There are also ways to give handmade gifts by spending very little money. A handwritten letter is appreciated by the right people, as long as it is personal and enough thought is put into it.
In short, the holidays are about letting people know that they are appreciated, and unlimited amounts of money are not required to let them know. With enough thought and effort, handmade gifts make excellent substitutes for overpriced store-bought gifts.
