7 holiday crafting apps
Nothing's more thoughtful or personal than a handmade gift or message -- and often they're less expensive than store-bought goods, too. Create holiday cards, scrapbooks, and even stylish gift wrap with these seven creative crafting apps.
Craft & Home Projects Magazine (iOS)
With vivid photos and beginner-friendly directions, the Craft & Home Projects Magazine app is a great resource for crafting year-round. For the holidays, it offers dozens of ideas for easy-to-make decorations: wreaths, stockings, centerpieces, sweaters, and more.
ScrapPad (iOS)
Scrapbooks capture memories to last a lifetime, but making them shouldn't take as long. With ScrapPad, you can quickly touch, drag, and pinch your way to perfect photo layouts. The $4.99 price includes 20 themed kits, such as Christmas Cheer, with thousands of Retina HD elements, and you can buy more kits through an in-app store. Share your masterpieces via email or Facebook, or order printed books from the app.
Snapguide (iOS)
This streamlined discovery app offers recipes, crafts, fashion tips, life hacks, and more. Try Snapguide for a variety of holiday DIY: find a new roast recipe for dinner, create a personalized card, or lengthen your lashes for a night out at "The Nutcracker."
Guidecentral (iOS, Android)
Guidecentral is a great place to discover craft ideas, such as Polaroid necklaces, Pringles can planters, and personalized lip balm containers. You can also make money from your designs: register with Guidecentral's Maker program and earn up to $7 for each guide you share.
Ink Cards (iOS, Android)
You can spend hours searching through cards at your local store, looking for the perfect one (or at least one that doesn't make you cringe). But none are as unique as Ink Cards' offerings. With just a few clicks, you can order a 5x7 card showcasing your selfie or family photo for just $1.99, including postage, which is far cheaper than most cards in stores.
Mosaic Photo Books (iOS, Android)
The holidays are hectic, so don't waste time editing pictures for photo albums when Mosaic Photo Book can do it for you. Select and upload 20 iPhone, Facebook, Instagram, Afterlight, or Pic Stitch photos that you want to share, and a high-quality 7-square-inch photo book will arrive on your loved one's doorstep in four days.
Gift Wrapping Ideas (iOS)
Now that you've made gifts, it's time to wrap them -- and why not make your own? Gift Wrapping Ideas points you to over 100 items that you may already have around the house -- sheet music, ribbons, artificial flowers, candy canes -- to create wrapping too good to tear.
