Sincere, but forgot to shop? Last-minute handmade gifts

As Christmas closes in and you still haven't done any shopping, a weird thing happens. You lose your judgement.

For example, you want to give something to your buddies at work; a box of deep-fried macaroons would be a perfect reminder of all the cholesterol-soaked lunches you've shared in the past year. But you forgot to pick them up at the macaroon specialty shop in early December. Now all they have left are green ones.

If you'd bought the green macaroons three weeks ago, they would seem okay as a gift, because you had thought ahead. But now it's late in the season, and the fact that you don't have anything for your co-workers makes you think you must get something really nice, to make up for the fact that you don't have anything yet.

That's what I mean by "losing your judgement". These are the same co-workers who, three weeks ago, deserved macaroons. Now, you're looking at leather desk accessories and cashmere Palm Pilot protectors, because you don't want anyone to know how late you've left it.

But they WILL know, because everyone knows the truth about Christmas shopping: The later you leave it, the more you spend. You didn't care enough to shop early, but you don't want anyone to guess you didn't care, so you spend way more than necessary. With me?

So your options are to go elbow-to-elbow with the other low-lifes who didn't shop early, and squirm through a wriggling morass of panicky consumers, or stay at home and go with a saner option.

My favourite last-minute gift is candles appliquéd with flowers pressed instantly using a microwave flower press. You may need to pick up a couple of supplies, but it's way better than joining the crushing throngs at the mall.

Tools and Materials

• Microwave flower press (Available at Lee Valley Tools, $29.95 - Item GM420)
• Natural coloured beeswax, either sheets or chunks (available at White Rose and other craft stores)
• Tin pie plate for melting beeswax
• Fresh flowers, pine needles, cedar, rosehips, or leaves
• Big candles (at least 4" in diameter)
• 1/2-inch art paintbrush

The key item you need for this project is the microwave flower press, a kiln-fired pair of terra cotta slabs measuring 6" x 6". This remarkable unit presses flowers in less than two minutes (instead of the three weeks it takes in a traditional press) and preserves the colours brilliantly.

Steps

1. Put on some Christmas music and pour yourself a libation.
2. Count on making a mess. Arrange newspapers and paper towels on the kitchen counter to catch waxy drips.
3. Melt beeswax in a tin pie plate. The reason I use beeswax and not paraffin is that it's more stretchy and gooey, so it makes a nice flexible seal for the flowers. Paraffin tends to chip, crack and crumble when used as an appliqué medium.
4. Start pressing flowers. Roses take about two minutes. More delicate flowers or leaves may take only one minute.
5. Dip your paintbrush into the melted beeswax and dab it all over the back of a pressed flower. While the wax is still hot, press the flower onto the surface of the candle. Then paint lots more melted wax over the surface of the flower so it's preserved under a layer of wax.
6. Add more flowers to the candle surface. When you've finished covering the candle with flowers, paint over any blank spots with more beeswax so the whole candle is the same texture and colour.
7. If you're making the candle for a guy, use screws, nuts and bolts instead of flowers and he'll have his own workshop candle for screwing emergencies.

If the flower-pressing thing doesn't grab you, try carving designs on the surface of candles using a chip carving knife or traditional v-tool, available at craft stores or Lee Valley Tools. Carving wax is way easier than carving wood, so it's a great project for beginner carvers. You can carve geometric patterns, or your company logo (urf!) or wavy, curly ivy vines. Then if you're really hot-dogging, use a contrasting colour of beeswax to paint in the lines you've carved.

Even a really homely candle is a lot nicer to receive than green macaroons. Of course, everyone who gets a candle from me this Christmas will know the truth about why they're getting it. But it's worth it if it stops even one of you from buying gold-plated monogrammed aromatherapy mouse pads.