Friday, November 18, 2011

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Turn Your Travels into Homemade Gifts

Posted: 18 Nov 2011 01:00 AM PST

T-shirts, keychains and shot glasses are easy souvenirs, but they don’t carry a whole lot of significance for the giver or receiver. Besides, what’s the point of buying something made in Thailand when your vacation was actually to Costa Rica?

If you didn’t have time (or funds) to comb through artisan markets and pick out locally made crafts for all of your friends and family during your trip, it’s not too late to turn your travels into meaningful gifts… Roll up your sleeves and start making them yourself.

First, identify what materials you have to work with. Besides the photos you took, did you save any maps, brochures, currency, transit passes, newspapers, magazines, bottles, coasters, shopping bags? (If not, then keep it mind on your next trip!)

The list of objects you can craft from these salvaged bits of your travels is endless. Here are some ideas to get your imagination rolling:

  • Print your best photos and stick them onto business-card-sized magnets.
  • Cut maps into squares and make origami ornaments.
  • Construct a mobile or piece of wall art out of subway passes.
  • Cover a box with clips from travel brochures and fill it with homemade treats from a recipe you learned on your trip.
  • Use a page from a foreign-language newspaper or magazine to make a picture frame.
  • Craft maps into paper flowers and use exotic glass bottles as vases…

What other DIY souvenir ideas do you have? If you’re looking for more inspiration, search on Etsy for “map” or “bottle cap” or whatever you have on hand, and you’re bound to find some interesting inspiration.

To tie it all together, you can use materials saved from your trip for presenting the gifts as well. Use a map or a newspaper as wrapping paper, or turn a coaster into a gift tag. Fashion a foreign-language newspaper into a bow or ribbon, or create a card with photos or remaining scraps from your project.

Joanna Eng is a New York-based writer and editor who covers travel, green living, food, careers, entrepreneurship, and more. Her travel experiences have ranged from hostel hopping in Mexico to staying with distant relatives in China to renting a beach apartment in New Jersey.
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