Who to Knit Gifts For

I have knit a lot of gifts over the past few years for friends and family, and I've come to learn that there are people that are worth knitting for and there are people who's presents I buy instead. Making a handmade gift, knitted or crocheted, takes time and effort. Of course it is so much easier to swing by Target and grab a gift card, but knitting something for someone is special, and you shouldn't waste your efforts (not to mention time and money!) on someone who doesn't appreciate it.

With the holidays coming up and gift making on lots of knitter's and crocheter's minds, I thought I would break it down for you who gets handmade presents and who doesn't. I've broken it into 3 major categories of gift recipients. I'll explain each one and we'll determine - To knit? Or not to Knit?

The Appreciative One

This is the person who - no matter what the gift - raves and gushes over it when they open it. They say things like "This is amazing!" "I can't believe you made this!" "This is so thoughtful!" We all love giving gifts to these people because all that appreciation feels good!

These people though, at least in my case, don't always get a knitted gift. I only want to make something for someone if I know they'll use it. Who needs another thing in their closet that they don't wear taking up space? Regardless of how amazing of a gift receiver they are, they might be just as amazed and appreciative with something you picked up at a store they like. If you know that they will wear or use whatever you make them, make them all the things!!!

The Knitwear Lover

When the weather turns chilly, this person will be wearing a hat. They might have dishcloths that their grandmother gave them in their kitchen, or maybe a granny square afghan on the back of their couch. This person appreciates a good knitted or crocheted item, because the know how great they are!

In my case, this person ALWAYS gets something knitted as a gift. I'll make hats for every birthday and Christmas gift if I know the person will wear them! Nothing warms the cockles of a knitter or crocheter's heart more than seeing someone wearing something they made them. Recently, a friend of mine asked me to make her husband a new pair of fingerless gloves for his birthday because his other ones I made him years ago had worn out, he wore them so much. Of course I'll make you a new pair!

The One Who Doesn't Seem to Care
This gift recipient is hard to figure out. They may not seem to care that much about your knitted gift at the time you give it to them. Maybe they say thank you and tell you that they appreciate it, but you never hear anything about it again, or you never see them wear it. There's always the possibility that they are just bad at receiving gifts, but they secretly love what you've made them, but chances are they just may have been just as happy (or more happy) with something you bought off their Amazon wishlist. I don't want to seem cynical, but I know for the time and effort that I put into making a gift, I want a little something back.

This also brings up the idea that, when you give a gift, you don't have any hold on it anymore. If you don't see them wearing the scarf you gave them, you can't ask for it back and give it to someone you know will wear it. You just have to think about that next time their birthday or the holidays roll around, and pick up a gift card instead. I will say, in my experiences, most people are ecstatic to get a handmade gift that they know took time, effort, and love! Get your needles and hooks going, there's only 41 days until Christmas!