14 Easy Crafts and Gifts for Cooks and Bakers (DIY Gifts for Foodies Week)

~ Looking for a creative, truly special gift idea for someone who loves to cook? Or maybe you’re a room mom in charge of the class gift? We’ve been there, and we have lots of great ideas to help! These ideas are wonderful for DIY bridal shower gifts, hostess gifts and holiday gift giving, too! Just perfect for all the cooks, bakers and foodies in your life! ~

All week long, we’ve brought you oodles of fun, easy, delicious edible gift ideas – from fresh herbs to dried spice blends, homemade granolas to layered soup in a jar (and lots, lots more!).

But gifts for foodies don’t always have to be food!

Every good cook needs gear, too … gizmos and gadgets and mementos (oh my!).

So today, we’re bringing you 14 cool handcrafted ideas for foodies. Gift ideas that go way beyond yummy recipes. Today it’s all about DIY crafts and projects that any cook would just love to receive!

~ Super-Easy Gift Basket for Cooks and Bakers ~

First off, we wanted to share with you an idea that we’ve both used and loved. This is one of Gretchen’s all-time favorite bridal shower gifts. Loaded with kitchen utensils and gadgets, it’s the perfect idea for a new bride who’s just starting out.

But it’s also easily adaptable as a really sweet class gift (we’re thinking of you, head room mom!).

When Shelley’s kiddos were in first grade, her daughter’s teacher was an avid baker. So, for the year-end class gift, Shelley suggested that each family donate in whatever way they chose toward a big, baking-related group gift (from utensils, to handwritten recipe cards of family-favorite recipes, and cash for a gift card … and even a cookbook signed specifically for the teacher!).

It turned out just great and was so personal!

To make your own version of this easy, super-fun gift, simply buy a large mixing bowl, and fill it with confetti shredded paper (like you can find in the gift section of craft stores). Tuck in pretty towels and all sorts of utensils or cooking and baking supplies. For a favorite teacher or a new bride, it’s fun to personalize it with handwritten recipe cards, but you could also include a favorite cookbook or a subscription to a cooking magazine. (Helpful hint … if you’re including a gift card, too, just be sure it’s safely nestled inside the card so it doesn’t get lost in the mounds of fluffy confetti!)

Then just wrap it all in gift cellophane, tied with a pretty bow. So easy, right!?!?

~ Handmade Recipe Scrapbook (Makes a Great Group Gift!) ~

Another teacher appreciation gift idea comes from the class gift Shelley coordinated for her daughter’s second-grade teacher. After exchanging cookbooks and recipe ideas with the teacher all year long, Shelley knew that a cooking-themed memento would be just perfect alongside the gift card the class was planning.

Shelley asked each kiddo to decorate a page featuring one of their favorite recipes, to be included in a recipe binder for the teacher. Some pages were colorful and bright, some included sentimental letters to the beloved teacher, and some were just ridiculously cute … but every page really reflected each child’s personality in such a genuine, sweet way!

You can also easily adapt this idea as a group gift for a new bride, or maybe as a gift for a grandmother with lots of adoring grandkids. Simply ask each person to choose a recipe or two and then to customize and personalize their recipe pages any way they’d like.

It’s best to offer parameters on the size and shape you need each finished page to be, and to let your contributors know if they need to leave extra-large margins so you have room to three-hole punch or bind the pages together at the end.

Once you’ve received all the finished pages, combine them together in a scrapbook or binder. You might also want to create a cover page filled with photos from the class’s year together or from the family members who contributed to the gift.

Such a heartfelt memento that’ll be treasured for years!

And so, with these two ideas from the cooking-themed gifts we’ve both given to cherished teachers and family members, we started looking for other great project ideas to inspire you even more. (Because who wants only a teeny bit of inspiration when you can have gobs and gobs of it, right!?!?).

We couldn’t be happier with the darling ideas we found (thanks to some awesome bloggers!), and we’re so excited to cap off our week-long DIY gifts series with these other terrific gift ideas!

Enjoy … and happy crafting!

Apron in a Jar from Stephanie at Evermine Occasions

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Family Recipe Shadowbox Frame from Brandie at Home Cooking Memories

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Handprint Aprons from Kierste at Simply Kierste Design Co.

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Kitchen in a Mitten from Brooklyn at Cook & Craft Me Crazy

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Monogrammed Dish Towels and Kitchen Gift Basket from Amy at Amy Giggles Designs (update Dec. 2017 – Amy’s site is no longer available, so we can’t link to it anymore, but we left the photo for you, since the concept for this gift idea is pretty easy to understand, just from the picture.)

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DIY Fabric-Covered Wooden Spoons from Sara at Alice & Lois

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Magnet Board from Jennie at Cinnaberry Suite

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Recipe Holder from Kristyn at Lil’ Luna

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Miniature Whisk Earrings from Mindie at Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo

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Kitchen Tablet Holder from Jane at Mamie Jane’s

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DIY Paint Pen Plates from Toye at Dish Up Love

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Framed Recipe Cards from Brandie at Home Cooking Memories

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Loving all these fun projects and easy crafts? If you have lots of cooks and foodies on your gift lists, then be sure to check out all the other DIY gift ideas from the rest of this series, too! Homemade spice blends, darling DIY herb gardens, always-popular Mason jar gifts, and all sorts of yummy snacks and treats … it’s an entire week of fantastic ideas for you! (Psssst … you’re welcome! 😀 )