Inexpensive Homemade Christmas Gifts: Eye Compresses, Bath Oils and Bath Salts

Christmas gifts don't have to break your pocketbook. You can make many ideas for pennies. If you have a lot of gifts to give, try duplicating several of them and save. There is nothing better than receiving a little bit of stress reducer at Christmas. The bath oil and bath salts can be a wonderful addition to the decorations as well as being useful. Adding ready to use eye compresses adds to the relaxation and the luxury.

Create Hot and Cold Compresses.

You can give slices of frozen cucumbers, 2 per snack bag. Slice a whole cucumber into 1/8 to 3/16 inch slices. Put them in the freezer. Give them frozen. The cucumbers will melt quickly in the bathroom, leaving just a wonderful cool eye soothing treatment. You can also gift a whole cucumber with the same instructions for making the frozen eye compress.

Give the cucumbers with a gift of tea bags and a cup. Insert a note with the tea. "Brew a cup of tea. Remove the bags. Place the moist warm bags on the eyes for 15 minutes. Follow with a cucumber slice on each eye.

Herbal Bath Oil

You will need to get some decorative bottle to hold the oils. I know it has been mentioned before, but particularly when it comes to glass containers, there is no place better to pick some up inexpensively than a charity resale shop. I have found several good ones for a dollar at the stores that advertise everything as a dollar.

Once you have located, washed, and sterilized the containers stop at the craft store, online, or herbal store and procure a large enough container for 1 1/2 cups. You are also going to need 4 tsp of essential oils. You can use any but the citrus scents, bay, clove hyssop, rose, and mint are a few you might try. The only limit is your imagination. There are several sites that list the uses of the oils, and some may fit your recipient to a tee.

Put a few flower petals or sprigs of herb in the jar after you put both the jojoba oil and essential oils. Depending on how large your containers are this is probably enough for three to four gifts. Print out the instructions, "Shake before using. Fill your tub and as you do add 2 teaspoons of the oils under the running water." Tie a beautiful decorative bow on the container and you have a gift in less than 30 minutes.

Scented Bath Salts

More bottles are necessary for this one. I love the tall bottles with a cork for the top. If you find the bottle you love, but the top is missing, you can get a replacement cork at the hardware for pennies.

An inexpensive bath salt that has the relaxation quality that only lavender can bring begins with simple baking soda and Epsom salt. Pour 2 cups of baking soda and remove a few spoons. Put the spoonfuls into a bowl and add 1 ounce of oil of lavender. Mash this, mix it, and stir it, until it is well blended. If you have a pestle and mortar, it works particularly well to mix the two.

Put the blended oil and baking soda into a bowl and add the remaining baking soda, 2 quarts of Epsom salts, and 2 cups of dried lavender flowers. Mix this thoroughly. I have kept the plastic jars that you get when you purchase giant containers of mayonnaise. These have lids and if you put all the ingredients inside, close the lid, and shake, the mixing is thorough and easy.

Pour the mixture into a thoroughly clean and dry container. Cap it and decorate the bottle with sprigs of lavender held on with a bow or raffia.

Print directions on your computer that read. "Relaxing lavender for your bath. Turn on hot water add 1/2 cup directly under the faucet, and prepare to relax." Attach the directions to the bottle.