Crafty ideas for charity

Each year my friends and I put together Christmas gift baskets for women who have left abusive relationships. The shelter has 8 apartments where women and their children can live for up to a year while they rebuild their lives. The women often find it hard to make ends meet and most rely on the food bank to feed their families.

This time each year I ask for a list of the ages for the boys and girls living in the shelter and the ages of the women. It is not a lot of information to go on soI am constantly trying to think of good, general gift ideas for the women. The children are easy to buy for and people are anxious to buy for the kids. I find it harder to get items for the moms. One of the comments that we have had each year is how much they appreciate handmade items. We ususally include a handmade dishcloth and I make neck warmers out of snuggly flannel. Of course, Christmas would not be complete without goodies so we have a cookie swap where we do up 8 trays of goodies. I would like to do something different this year.

Does anyone have ideas for handmade gifts that are quick, easy, inexpensive and suitable for someone you don't know anything about? It is a tough one. I'd love to hear some suggestions!