Every year I get more and more averse to buying cheap, imported stuff; stuff that breaks, gets tossed aside the moment the newness wears off and becomes little more than something I can’t wait to discard so I don’t have to keep picking it up so I can vacuum.

Here are a few of the favorite things we’ve featured on the site over the years that can be inexpensive, simple, homemade gifts. We have so many of them I’m sorting them by theme and will have some more themed collections coming soon. Today we feature the humble stick.

The Gee Haw Whimmy Diddle: Sit around the fire on a cold evening and whittle a few of these for the kids, young and old.

Blueberry Buttons. Sew a few of these on a hand-decorated, personalized card with a skein of yarn and this super-easy cowl pattern.

Continuing with the wood theme, this is useful, simple, and if you make it from a special tree, priceless: Sentimental Pencil Holder

Here’s a tidbit that might be useful: if you cut a branch in the winter, the bark stays on. If you cut it in the summer, the bark will shed. Both are good looks for pencil holders.

So far we’ve only used sticks you find in the yard. Now for a stick you find in the tool shed: Dibble made from a broken handle

When I first made mine, I didn’t know if it would prove to be useful or not. I LOVE it! I use it for beans and peas and beets and cukes and all the larger seeds. I don’t have to bend and it makes planting faster and easier.

And back to more sticks: The Stick Plant Marker

These are cute in a basket with some seed packets and other gardening supplies like gloves, gardening soap, etc. In fact, they are part of a gift basket featured in our book, which incidentally also makes a great gift ;).