Recently a friend asked, quite innocently, “How many pairs of leg warmers do you have?”
The answer: um, many.
It’s true, I have at least six pairs rolled neatly and stored in my closet. I used to own more, but I finally deemed a few sets “excessive” and sent them packing to the thrift store to entice some other eighties/dance-fashion refugee.
What does this have to do with holiday excess? Well, as I don my leg-warmer-pair-of-the-day and set out on bike, I consider who is left on my holiday list and how I should treat them to my love this year. The problem is, we all have so much stuff! I mean, do I really need six sets of leg warmers, three of which were gifts from friends?
My dilemma-of-the-moment is what to give my friends -all of whom are working adults- when I know most of us have houses a-burstin’, but I also don’t have the time or energy to craft, or even bake, gifts? Cows, goats, geese, and rabbits are enticing (or tasty, depending on the families who receive them), but giving a gift that can’t be touched doesn’t exactly satisfy my desire to collect the bursts of good will that come from giving something tangible yet thoughtful.
If this is something you struggle with, how are you solving holiday-gift-excess in your life?
Phoebe Sinclair Writes 
I’m only giving gifts to 3 people this year– my parents and the boy– and I’d say about half of those gifts came from local crafters or indie shops. I’m also wrapping more conservatively. My mom’s wrapping paper came off a box of candy! Re-usable and smells delicious!
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I can’t recall the last time I had such a small group of gift recipients in mind. . . :^) Sounds rather delightful.
I, too, buy most of my gifts from local crafters/independent shops. My usual is to go the last farmer’s market of the season and stockpile garlic, baking kits, syrups, and honeys -but I missed my opportunity this year so I feel more at a loss.