When finances are running low, try crafting gifts from scratch.
There is a sense of accomplishment that can't be diminished by stinging paper cuts, superglued fingers or the sweat invested in massive cleanups.
With St Valentine's Day approaching, we looked for websites that provide inspiration as well as easy-to-follow instructions for any gift-swapping event.
Kaboose
The crafts section of Kaboose (crafts.kaboose.com), a family-oriented site, includes crafts organised primarily by season and holiday.
Projects are geared towards younger kids who would find making a simple love-bug pin or a pompom polar bear worthwhile.
Each tutorial is labelled with a difficulty level and recommended starting age.
Craftster
Craftster (www.craftster.org) bills itself as the hip, alternative crafting site.
Here you can browse through member forums about anti-Valentine's Day crafts and DIY home furnishings, such as a hanging light fixture made from empty yoghurt containers.
All projects are user-created and threads can grow lengthy with members' comments.
This can make piecing together instructions tedious if the original poster did not include them.
But you can add a comment or question if you can't find information.
Craft
Craft (www.craftzine.com) takes on a range of projects.
You can learn to sew baby booties decorated with fireflies that glow with LED lights, or the basics of silk-screening.
Written instructions and photographs are provided with each craft.
You can also download and print patterns, and some tutorials include video.
A blog points readers to other online tutorials and crafting blogs.
Cut Out + Keep
Eight years ago, Cut Out + Keep (www.cutoutandkeep.net) was a blog of personal crafts.
It has evolved into a community-based multimedia site that includes a webzine, podcasts, message boards and more than 5000 user-generated project tutorials.
Each tutorial, labelled "How-To", includes a supply list, an estimate of how long the craft takes and its difficulty level.
Once you become a member, you can collect projects on your personal page, make friends, leave comments and share projects.
Instructables
For the more techno-savvy among us, there is Instructables (www.instructables.com).
Some projects are targeted to those with certain knowledge and skills, such as converting an old radio amplifier so it can be used by an iPod, or building a honey extractor from an old washing machine.
Each tutorial includes detailed instructions and images.
There are also easier projects, such as creating duct-tape wallets.
