Craft: More Gift Ideas for Teachers and Leaders

In my last post, I shared the gifts our family has given to our daughters' teachers at the end of the school year.  Our family also gives teachers homemade gifts for Christmas.  These ideas would make great end-of-the-year gifts as well.

CHIPBOARD ALBUMS, SCRAPBOOKS, AND RECIPE BOOKS

Many years ago I purchased several chipboard books from the dollar bin at Michaels.  Each year for Christmas, my younger daughter helps choose the paper that covers both sides of the chipboard pages.  Scrapbooking is a hobby of mine, so I have a supply of patterned paper to use.  Additionally, we bought a pack of coordinating Christmas paper specifically for these chipboard projects, and we've been using this paper for the past couple of years.  In this case, buying the paper pack proved to be more economical for us than to buy individual sheets of paper.  For these projects, I tend to prefer the kits that include coordinating paper and stickers like the Bella Blvd Christmas Cheer Scrapbook Collection Kit or the
Carta Bella Paper Company "All Bundled Up" Collection Kit.  

Since there are five pages, there are ten sides to cover with paper.  This means we need to trace and cut ten different sheets of paper.  My daughter decides which papers to use before tracing the chipboard page on the paper.  I cut around the scalloped edge and divide the circle.  The photo above shows the paper has been cut in half.  Usually I start to the right of the scallop with the ring and cut straight down as I have shown with the white dotted line in the picture below. 

 

My daughter lays the papers out on the table, arranging them as she would like them to appear in the book.  She uses a glue stick to adhere the paper to the chipboard.  I cut thin strips of coordinating paper or cardstock to cover the seam where the papers meet.  Occasionally she uses a wallet-sized photo as a template and cuts a photo mat to add to each page.  Since the paper kit we bought included matching stickers, my daughter is free to embellish the pages as she wishes. I do not have a picture of the Christmas chipboard albums, but I have included a couple pictures below of a project we did together as another example.

  

In that same dollar bin at Michaels, I found some 6x6 scrapbook albums.  My older daughter likes to help me with scrapbook pages, and she enjoys creating a scrapbook for her teacher for Christmas.  Due to time constraints and to keep the cost of the project manageable, I encourage her to keep the pages simple.  She may add a strip of patterned paper, a photo mat, or a decorative triangle to the corner of the page.  While we have purchased a package of coordinating paper that she uses specifically for these gifts, she is able to use some of the scrap paper I have remaining from album pages I've already finished.  For the past couple of years she has written her favorite recipes on recipe cards and adheres them to the pages, including photo mats on the other pages.  The teachers can either add photos or recipes of their own.  

Just like the end-of-the-year gifts, these presents can be modified for other special adults in your child's life (like coaches, band directors, and Girl Scout troop leaders).  On that same note, these small books could be given to the girls in a troop in honor of a special occasion (like Bridging).  They could be made for the players on a sports team, or the cast of the school play, or Sunday School volunteers.  In my experience, these books are treasured keepsakes--for those receiving the gift as well as for those giving it.  Thank you for reading!