thats a good idea... in fact i've bought almost everything i need to make my christmas gifts for people this year...

but if everyone is gluing and coloring their gifts... would that be less environmentally damaging than just getting it from an eco-friendly company that minimizes waste, packaging, and the necessary raw materials? i would think that everyone getting their own stuff would be more wasteful... just a thought...

unless you consider that if everyone were forced to make their gifts and not just buy them... there would be less consumption because people wouldn't want to go through the hassle of making everything themselves...

I tell everyone I know to not get me anything. Their company during the holidays, or any other time is good enough for me. Handmade is better, but if I get a bunch of stuff I don't need and will never use, how much more helpful is that really being?

Not to mention that most "crafty" things are completely unnecessary - jewelry, clothes, bags, home furnishings, etc., which people almost certainly have plenty of. Buying someone something they actually NEED seems greener to me.
I personally prefer the idea of donating to an organization in recipients' honor - my family has been doing that for years. The Center for a New American Dream has a bunch of great ideas on alternative gifts: http://www.newdream.org/holiday/index.php

here's a good idea for a present: do some task for a person that they haven't gotten around to doing. my dad's work bench was covered with all kinds of crap to the point where you had to sweep away a bunch of things to get any work space. I put up a peg board on the wall where he could hang his tools, tidied up the table and gave it a much needed wipe down.

I pledge to not only buy handmade but to also handmake some gifts myself this year. :)

@11:04:

I totally agree! The worst is the line of Etsy shops popping up where everything is made out of felt (not to last) or has really poor workmanship and wouldn't survive a single washing. On one hand, I'm glad crafting has caught on so well in the past few years but on the other -- it seems a lot of it is poorly made &/or not that functional.

I am all for handmade but gifting is particular -- I usually try to stick within requested items they'll use, nonprofit donations or biodegradable comestibles or bathstuffs/non-gender-specific lip balm (like basic soap - I know most people don't do bath salts). (I do get my bathstuffs/lip balm from Etsy!)

I like the "no gifts" thing too --- my siblings and I have agreed to do that for years --- and I do knit things for people who like that sort of thing. Another thing that's nice and low-impact is to give services (a massage, a membership to a local museum) or donate in someone's name to a charity. Does that sort of thing count?

I love the idea of handmade gifts when they are made with stuff you already have or require only one or two more things. I support small businesses and artisans so this is pretty cool, but everyone's right that it's so much better to get something you actually need than the knick-knack stuff lying around the house. This year my husband and I have been following an anti-consumer plan: http://www.mydailypeace.com/2007/09/26/the-deep-green-anti-consumer-plan/
so we can only buy stuff we really need. I would like to suggest that everyone adopt a family for the holiday through a local city charity instead of buying anything.

I took the pledge and think it's a good way to support a small business aka "the little guy".. Many times handmade gifts are more sentimental and have more keepsake value then some mass produced piece of junk.
Thanks for posting this!