Dear Husbands (Gift Guide Part 1)… and a giveaway!

(Hi. If you are a regular reader of my blog, please send a link of this post to your loved ones. It is a gift guide for them that I think you will love!)

I know it can be hard to pick out crafty goodies for us crafters for Christmas. You never know what we have or exactly what we want. So I am here to help.

If you really want to make us smile on Christmas morning, get us a few crafty tools – ones that can be used over and over again. Many of these goodies are inexpensive… which I know is hard to believe with the usual high cost of our hobby. 🙂

So, I am here to help save the day. Here are some goodies I know your favorite crafty loved one will adore. These are tools that I LOVE. I only recommend the things I think are fabulous, so you can be sure your crafters will love them too. And I am not associated with most of these companies – I am sharing these products because they are great… not because I was paid to. 🙂 If you are interested in the price or where to easily get them, just click on the links for each. I listed a lot, so hopefully you will find something to suit your crafter.

And! I was telling Heidi at Simon Says Stamp that I was going to do this post and I was bold enough to ask her if she could hook you hubbies/loved-ones up with a deal. Kindly, she said yes! You can get 15% off everything, in addition to their normal free shipping for orders over $70. Woohoo! Just enter the code "jenmcgink" at check out.

Every crafter needs a great trimmer – one that will cut straight. And this Fiskars one does it, and also has a great wire guide that shows just where you are cutting. Hands down – this is the best trimmer out there. And for about $25, you can't beat it. (Click HERE for more info.)

Here is another must-have tool that costs only about $10. These Tim Holtz scissors are great for everything from crafting with ribbon and paper to wire and metal. I even use these to prune my garden and my husband steals them often. Fabulous, I tell ya. (Click HERE for more info.)

Many crafters already have one, but this baby is the Merecedes of heat guns. This heat gun from Hero Arts gets super hot and does a fabulous job. For about $30, it is a great gift idea, too. (Click HERE for more info.)

I am sure you non-crafters have no idea what this tool is. However, this Ink Blending Tool is awesome. You use it with Distress Inks (which would also be great stocking stuffers) and for so many techniques. For under $5, who can say no? (Oh, and you might as well also get some additional foam pieces – they are reusable). I promise your crafty loved one will smile. (Click HERE for more info.)

Check your crafter's room. Do you see a kraft-colored piece that she works on? If not, get THIS. It is an amazing work surface that is perfect for inking and painting and all that good crafty stuff. I use it for everything and you can see it in action in all of my videos. For about $15, this is a GREAT gift. (Click HERE for more info.)

This gift idea is a hard one to explain if you have never stamped before so you are just gonna have to trust me. 🙂 The Stamp Press (or as I call "Stamp Thingy") is great to use with clear stamps and cling stamps. I find it so very helpful and for about ten bucks, you can't beat it. (Click HERE for more info.)

This next idea is something your crafter likely doesn't have but sure would love. It is the new Natural Sticky Back Canvas. (Self descriptive, huh?) There are so many fun crafty things you can do with it… a fabulous gift. (Click HERE for info.)

Every crafter needs adhesive. And I have tried them all! There are four adhesives that are the best of the best: Mini Glue Dots, American Crafts Dot Runner, American Crafts Foam Dots and Glossy Accents. All of these goodes are under $5. (Click on each product name listed for more info.)

Speaking of the best of the best, Hero Arts stamps are incredible. Since they are all made in the USA, you can be sure the quality it top notch. They make a TON of great products including stamps, embellishments, papers and more. (Click HERE to see all of the newest Hero Arts products.)

For today's last gift idea, I would recommend any of the Tim Holtz Alterations Dies. These can be used with ANY die cut machine (even the Cuttlebug) and can cut through everything. There are some new ones out that are great, too. My favorites? The Ornamental, NEW Mini Ornamental, Styled Label, Baroque and NEW Mini Baroque. (Click HERE to see all of these dies.)

So, there are my first 10 gift suggestions for you to get your crafty loved ones. I will be back tomorrow with 10 more.

Now, for all you regular bloggers, I have a giveaway for you! Just leave a comment here by Friday night and I will pick a lucky winner of each of my favorite adhesives listed up there under Gift Idea 8…

Good luck… see you soon!