Have you been wondering what to get the cat lovers on your holiday gift list? With this holiday season upon us, and the economic woes we’ve been experiencing lately, many of us are looking for ways to make this holiday season more affordable.

Here are some holiday gift ideas for cat lovers that are either free or inexpensive.

Crafts
If you are a crafty person, why not make homemade gifts for your cat loving friends and family? Many craft stores, like Michaels and Jo-Ann’s, offer coupons in the local Sunday newspaper for 40-50% off one item. Take advantage of this and go shopping for your supplies. Many items are also on sale each week. Also check discount stores, like Target or Wal-Mart, and compare prices on the various supplies needed for the project.

First, you must decide what to make – and the choices are endless. Some options include wood staining/painting, fine art painting, fabric painting, cross-stitching, needlepoint, rug hooking, stamping, and paper crafts.

I like woodcraft projects, and there are many wood items available to paint and decorate. Many crafts stores also have pre-painted wood pieces in a variety of shapes, often including a cat or two, which can be glued to bigger wood projects.

BellaOnline owner, Lisa Shea, offers free video instructions for creating an origami cat. You can find her cat video links below:

Origami Cat / Kitten Folding Instructions
Video 1
Video 2

Photo Collection
If you can get pictures of your cat lover’s cat (or cats), you can create a nice photo album or scrapbook.

Calendar
With pictures of your cat lover’s cat (or cats), you can also create a calendar. Some places, like Cafepress, give you an outlet for a more professional looking calendar. You can also create your own by printing out a picture of the cat (or cats) and printing out pages for each month. Print each month as half of an 8 1/2 by 11 page. Use a piece of card stock, or decorated cardboard, for the backing of the calendar. Glue the picture on the top part of the card stock and staple the months, in order, to the bottom of the page.

Creative Writing Projects
If you like writing, you could pen a poem or short story with your cat lover’s cat as the subject.

© Melissa Knoblett-Aman