Sure, you can stuff a stocking with trinkets and small gadgets, but handmade gifts from the heart are so much more meaningful and will be cherished long after the holiday season.

These festive peppermint-scented soaps are made in a mini loaf pan -- each "loaf" yields six bars of soap.

Made of woolly white pom-poms, felt, and ribbon, this frosty friend never has to melt. He makes a great toy for a child; add a loop to the hat, and he becomes an ornament.

Stuff stockings with effervescent bath treats in a variety of shapes and colors.

Who wouldn't love to see a glittering "gem" nestled deep within their stocking? These baubles are fun to wear around the holidays or any time of year. To make them, glue wooden beads to ring findings, and then wrap the beads with strung sequins.

Use leftover string from crafts projects to make custom textured bangle bracelets.

Take poetic license with a box of ordinary pencils, and dress them up in complementary shades.

Add sparkle with a leather cuff bracelet covered in festive sequins. They're so easy to make, why not create multiples?

Make stylish leather cuffs using a simple mystery-braiding technique.

Handmade votive candles are wonderful small gifts -- the perfect size for filling a stocking -- and making them is a good way to use up beeswax left over from other candle-making projects.

This incredibly soft polar bear was made by needle-felting. The technique involves sculpting shapes from unspun wool called roving, by manipulating the fibers with a special needle until they interlock and become dense.

This petite argyle pig is so cuddly, you'll want to produce a whole pen's worth. Wrap up a woolly creature to give to your favorite tot, or use one as a stocking stuffer.

When coiled, these luxurious, stylish belts are just the right size and shape to fit in a Christmas stocking.

You need only four ingredients to make these moisturizing exfoliants. Once they're inside little glass jars, they'll easily slip into the toe of a Christmas stocking.

Tuck a few of these sweet-smelling prints into a stocking for a treat that will delight well beyond the holiday.

You won't find these earrings at the mall. That's because you create them yourself -- in five minutes, and for less than $10.

Scented sugar adds a subtle perfume and flavor to coffee, tea, fruit desserts, or baked goods. Mix a small batch in a pretty jar for a creative and aromatic stocking stuffer.

These handmade soaps can be stamped with any message, or made in a variety of shapes to suit your gift-giving needs this season.

Give plain winter hats, mittens, and other items a decorative touch with a simple technique called needle felting.

You may remember seeing charming strawberry pincushions like these in your grandmother's sewing box. Our version is made from scraps of ribbon -- just right for tucking into the stocking of your favorite sewing enthusiast.

Washing up has never been this much fun! These adorable soaps make great gifts for friends of all ages.

Quarters come in handy at the newsstand, campus laundries, and video arcades; cover their utilitarian wrappers with candy cane hues.

Create extra sets of these pretty soaps to have on hand as gifts for unexpected guests.

Heat makes a crayon a little loopy; it may melt into a swirl or pool into a whirl. With this in mind, we chopped up crayons and baked them in shaped mini cake tins, making large blocks that are easy for toddlers to hold and will surely inspire older artists.

On chilly days, slip kids' hands into mittens you've decorated to look like ferocious beasts.

This spa-inspired gift can be created from basic kitchen ingredients and craft materials.

These felt cases hold travel packs of tissues to be stashed in a purse or attached to a stroller or car seat with double-sided mounting tabs.