CHRISTMAS PRESENTS.

Some Suggestions About Holiday Gifts – What Not to Buy – Some Things That Are Particularly Accep- able – Christmas Trees And Santa Claus. A great variety of Christmas gifts can be made at home with a small outlay of money. Whatever the gift, rich or simple, it should be suited to the needs and character of the recipient. Do not give books to people who do not care to read; do not give a delicate tidy to a great Jumbo of a man, who would care more about a good meerschaum. As a rule, people who are able to buy almost any trinket they want at the store, generally appreciate some nice little, simple present made by a friend's own hand; and, on the contrary, those who have few of this world's goods are apt like most something new and different from what they are accustomed to, some of the pretty and useful things in the shop windows.

What did Charles Andrews find under his tree in 1888, the year this photo was taken? Judging from his top hat, cane and fur-trimmed coat, the Mankatoan was a man of some means. And yet it looks like he could have used a decent pair of gloves. (Photo courtesy mnhs.org) A very sensible present for a little girl to make her mother is a set of washstand tidies. Get ordinary white ball cotton and crochet round mats in plain stitch for washbowl, pitcher, soap dish (make this one oblong), and cap. If like better they can be edged with some color which will bear washing and starching. These have much more body and are much nicer if crocheted round and round over a corset lacing. The latter method is a nice way to make lamp mats, using colored zephyr, and making a fluffy border around the edge. Another unique article suitable as a companion to the washstand set is a splasher to tack up behind it. Get a yard of white canvas. Fringe it out as much all around, overcasting finely so that it will not ravel. Embroider some simple pattern with split zephyr in cross stitch and in the middle work the motto, "Cleanliness is Next to Godliness," with a bird, or flower or comic figure washing. The very nicest thing a boy can do for his mother, if he knows how to use tools, is to make a little barcan of thin wood, about 18 inches long and 15 inches high with five drawers, in which to keep her collars, cuffs, ribbons, laces and jewelry. Line the drawers with velvet paper and ebonize the outside, putting on tiny brass knobs. A set of drawers in which merchants keep thread is just the thing when one can be tempted to sell it. Boys who can use a scroll saw can make many beautiful things, brackets, picture frames, etc. A dressing gown, lounging cap, and slippers, is a set that any gentleman will appreciate. Single gentlemen are generally in need of good pincushions. A handy thing for people who are going on a journey is a pocket pinholder. Cut two round pieces of pasteboard, cover them on one side with silk or velvet, and overhand them together on the edges with embroidery silk. Stick a row of pins entirely around. A needle book is a companion piece, or the two may be made in one article.

This young woman, photographed in about 1880, could have used a hatpin or two to secure her headgear. Or maybe an eyepatch to match her outfit. Or a sturdy buttonhook for that top. (Photo courtesy mnhs.org) A serviceable work stand can be made in the following manner: Have a frame made of pine with four posts fastened together at the top by thin, narrow strips and toward the bottom by a shelf, and also a shelf in the middle. The frame should be about 28 inches high, 18 inches wide and 12 inches deep. Stain and varnish it, or ebonize it. Any girl can do it. Then with coarse cotton crochet in open work a basket to fit the top, and ornamental pieces to put on the sides of the shelves. Starch stiffly and dry the basket over a dripping pan to shape it, or over a block of wood the desired shape, and other pieces tacked on a smooth surface. Rub with thick starch after they are in place. When dry, stain and varnish, or ebonize, on both sides (they will be stiff as boards) and fix in position on the frame with brass headed furniture tacks. Line the basket with colored flannel, silk or satin, and add pockets inside for scissors, thimble, etc. Ribbons can be run through the open work around the shelves and tie in pretty bows, if desired. Put mother's sewing implements in the basket, her cut work on the first shelf, and her [illegible] work on the lower shelf, and if she is not a happy woman Christmas day, then – we shall give up all pretenses to infallibility!

Good gravy, is that a kilt on this poor lad? Let's hope he found a pair of stout woolen pants under the tree in 1890, the year this photo was taken. (Photo courtesy mnhs.org) Ladies who can knit rapidly in silk have an unfailing source to draw upon for the holidays. Silk mittens, silk stockings and silk "wristers" are great luxuries to most of us. And those who can paint and embroider on velvet or do any kind of decorative art work are practically unlimited in a variety to draw from. But there are still a great many people who work hard all day and have no time to make gifts for their friends. For these the shops furnish a profusion of articles, and the greatest trouble seems to be to know what not to buy. Books are beautiful presents to people who enjoy them and who have not many themselves. Do not give a book to a person who is in the habit of buying books for himself as fast as he wants them. In three months he will not know your present from any other book unless he happens to open the fly leaf. It is not satisfactory to have one's earnest efforts to give pleasure forgotten in less than a year.

Not sure what this refined young lady of the 1880s would have put on her Christmas list. Following the Tribune's advice, I would have recommended a crocheted lamp mat. (Don't let that book fool you; it's clearly a photographer's prop.) (Photo courtesy mnhs.org) A small pocket diary is a neat present – not one large enough to keep a journal in, but one in which to record obligations, business transactions, and engagements that they may not be forgotten. A scrap book is a nice thing to receive, or a portfolio for people who are at all given to writing, or for students. A waste paper basket is a convenient thing for a gentleman's office. A common wicker one is prettily ornamented by drawing in and out bright ribbons and tying them in bows. An inkstand with pen rack attached is acceptable to almost anybody, as is also a gold pen or a nice pencil. A small hand satchel is a present which always delights any lady. A nice box of paper and envelopes is a pretty and inexpensive present. Get a box which can be used for handkerchiefs or gloves when the paper is used out. A paper weight and paper knife are also simple, inexpensive and useful. Then there is always any amount of pictures, plaques, statuettes (Rogers' groups are excellent), pieces of silver, china in single articles or sets, jewelry, etc., from which a liberal purse may draw. The Christmas cards this season are exceptionally beautiful with their rich silken fringes and delicate flowers. Indeed some of them are cards no longer. They have develop into padded cushions and actual books full of gay pictures and compliments of the season.

Another 1880s photo, another prop book. This faux-hawked old fellow probably would have been delighted to find a jar of styling gel under the tree. (Photo courtesy mnhs.org) Where many children are to participate in the Christmas festivities, it gives them more pleasure to have a home Christmas tree. They take great pleasure in wondering what is going on in the closed parlor, and when the taper-lighted tree with its load of strange fruit bursts upon their view, their delight knows no bounds. "Merry Christmas" and the "Star of Bethlehem" should be conspicuous somewhere, and the tree should be laden with popcorn, candies and nuts, besides the more substantial presents. In rural district, where an evergreen is not easily obtained, any prettily shaped tree may be used. The young folks will enjoy fringing out strips of green tissue paper on one edge and winding the branches with them. By all means have some funny brother or young cousin for Santa Claus. Dress him in cotton flannel, fleecy side out, with green cap and long flowing beard. Great merriment will be occasioned as he gives out the presents with his odd, funny speeches to each recipient.