Top 21+ easy last-minute DIY Christmas gifts

Get crafty and make these gorgeous holiday gifts

Nothing makes a loved one feel special quite like a homemade holiday gift. Not only is it a thoughtful option, but at what can be an expensive time of year, they're usually thrifty, too. From DIY decorations to personalized planters and stylish macramé makes, these easy-to-make festive presents for the home are sure to be a big hit.

Click or scroll through for last-minute ideas...

Mini cactus planters

These mini pentagonal pots are the perfect gift for plant lovers. You can pick up similar mache planters from hobby stores or use terracotta or concrete versions.

Start by painting the outside of the pots with chalk paint. Once dry, use a fine brush and gilding wax to highlight the edges – a metallic paint or pen would also work well.

It’s a good idea to protect the outside with clear varnish or wax before planting a mini cactus or succulent. If your planter is made from papier-mache, use a separate container inside to avoid water damage.

Decorative snowman sticks

These adorable snowman sticks are easy to create and make sweet gifts when added to a plant pot or bouquet. All you need are wooden beads in three sizes, one for the head and two for the body.

Draw eyes, a carrot nose, a dotted smile, and buttons using pens. Glue the beads to a wooden stick and finish with a scarf made from baker’s twine tied in a neat bow around the snowman's neck.

Festive nut vases

Nuts are not only a tasty festive snack, but can also be used to make these cute vases. Use a hot glue gun to stick a selection of large nuts together to build up a tapered tower – walnuts, Brazil nuts, and hazelnuts still in their shells work well.

Once dry, decorate with mini pinecones, pearls, and sprigs of pine. Finally, pop in a test tube or flower tube filled with water and place a cut poinsettia inside.

Poinsettia planters

Poinsettias are a symbol of Christmas, so what better plant to gift at this special time of year? Make your gift personal by decorating the plant pots with foraged woodland foliage such as dried leaves and bark.

Vintage-style bird feeder

Bird lovers will be delighted by this vintage bird feeder that makes a gorgeous backyard upcycling idea. Use an old cup and saucer from the back of the cupboard or a charity shop. Stick the cup to the saucer with super glue, and once secure, fasten it with twine or ribbon to allow the recipient to hang it from a hook or tree. Gift the DIY bird feeder with a packet of bird feed. 

Scandi Christmas trees

Add some seasonal decorations to the present pile this year for a low-cost and eco-friendly stocking filler. These also make great gifts to send by post as they can be disassembled and laid flat.

To make, draw two same-sized triangles on sheets of thin plywood and cut them out using a craft knife or fine saw. Sand the edges smooth. Draw a line down the middle of both triangles and mark the center.

Cut along the lines, halfway down on one triangle and halfway up the other. Paint the shapes any way you like, then slot them together to create 3-D Christmas trees.

Woodland jar terrariums

Gift the biophilic trend to your green-fingered friends with a woodland terrarium. You will need a glass terrarium or a large glass vase, moss, moss branches, pinecones, Christmas tree trimmings, and a few decorations.

Start with the compost and moss, then add in your pinecones and moss branches to create depth within your terrarium. Faux eucalyptus injects an extra pop of color.

Scented room sprays

Here's an easy stocking filler house-proud friends will adore. In clean, empty pump spray bottles, add lavender, lemon or orange peel, or rosemary essential oils to a solution of distilled water. Add an emulsifier to make sure they mix – this can be alcohol, sea salt, or witch hazel.

Lemon salt scrub

Mix up a homemade hand scrub that loved ones can keep by the sink; a great gift for gardeners. Mix coarse sea salt and natural oils (such as coconut or almond), and add lemon zest with a few drops of lemon juice.

Transfer the mixture into a mason jar and tie a ribbon around the neck in the same colors as their kitchen scheme. 

Say it with words

Keep spirits high with inspirational metallic wall art. With a gold leaf pen, trace a favorite quote onto the glass of a photo frame and, hey presto, you have a picture-perfect typographic frame that will look stylish and opulent on a wall or shelf.