Handmade gift exchange connects young widowed crafters
April 2026
A group of 18 young widowed crafters turned the post-Christmas lull into something more productive this year – organising a handmade gift exchange that brought together creativity and connection.
The idea emerged in the January gloom from a subgroup of crafty WAY members without children (known as WAY Wocs), as organiser Jodie explains:
“One of our members suggested a Secret Santa style gift exchange after Christmas and we thought ‘why wait until next Christmas?’ So everyone was allocated a person to make a gift for and we organised a little Zoom meet up for everyone to join so they could get some secret clues if they wanted about what to make.”
“Participants were paired up and given the chance to gather hints about their recipient, helping guide what they made,” she says. “For many, it was also a rare opportunity to create something knowing it would be properly understood and appreciated.”
“Someone who is a fellow crafter knows how much work you’ve put into making something,” she adds. “It just felt like a feel-good thing that could help everyone show off what they did. As a crafter you want your gift to be appreciated.”
Here’s what some of the participants said:
Jess
“A handmade gift exchange such as this is a wonderful way for us to share our talents and passions, and everyone gets to experience the special gift of a handmade item, specifically designed and lovingly created just for them.”
“For creators, making special gifts for family and friends is usually a part of life… The truth is, for many of us, we rarely receive anything handmade from within our family and friendship circle because hand-making gifts is really quite rare in this day and age.”
Lisa
“I enjoyed the process of making my crafts, as it made me take time out of the usual day-to-day stuff I would get occupied by. I was very excited to receive my gift, which was a handmade candle and a knitted cushion! There are some extremely talented people in the group.”
Jeanna
“I received some Star Wars diamond art, a cross-stitch campervan picture, some bracelets, a felted bee, a sticker, a chocolate rabbit and some treats for my dog. I was absolutely over the moon with the gifts I received… I love that they included a gift for my dog, Chewbacca, too!”
Barbara
“I started knitting this scarf to go with a pale blue hat Steve bought me… I haven’t worn it once since he died. It’s finally ready, having added a couple of glittery pom poms from Boyes! I’m sad to see it go but I’m hoping the person I’m sending it to in Cardiff really loves it.”
Konrad
“I have been making pompoms for years… Although I have branched out into felting, my rabbit kit looked like an emancipated carrot for a lot longer than I had thought possible. But with encouragement from my amazing crafting friends, I persevered and it all came good in the end!
It was that community of encouragement, support and fun that drew me to the gift exchange, and, I figured, I needed to up my crafting repertoire. So I signed up and instantly realised, that maybe, just maybe, my lucky recipient would expect a bit more than a pretty pompom.
One of my favourite scenes is of a fishing boat lent over on a mud bank, moored up in Red Wharf Bay – one of many amazing dates on Anglesey, with my wife, Chris, who died in 2021. I love that picture and recreate it all the time when I’m being creative – I’ve carved a relief of it in African Mahogany, I’ve welded a version in scrap metal, and I’ve painted it numerous times.
With the search on for something impressive for my recipient, I remembered that I had been given an engraving tool for my birthday – et voilà! I had a plan: I set to, practising on bottles.
When my gift recipient gave me the clue that she liked purple, the search was on for purple bottles. There are not so many purple bottles as it turns out – most are filled with Whitley Neill rhubarb and ginger gin. I started drinking it like it was going out of fashion so that I would have bottles to practise on!
Finally I’d done it – a scene of a fishing boat on a mud bank with the Welsh hills in the background. I even stencilled my recipient’s name on the bottom of the bottle as an extra special touch.
I received an amazing lino-cut scene of a sailing boat… and a few days later, a super cute puffin… These crafty people are so amazing, thoughtful, gifted and supportive.”
WAY members have created and coordinate a fantastic and wide-ranging array of subgroups, which reflect the incredible range of interests among our members. From crafting to running, there are over 35 special interest groups listed on our Members Hub. There are 180 members of the WAY Wocs crafting group.
With more than 4,500 WAY members throughout the UK, each one of us has our own individual journey, but finding people who share similar interests can really help along the way.
Read more stories about WAY’s crafting community
Your donations are always welcome.
Donate