Grandparents adore gifts that put a clever angle on the family connection

Gifts for grandparents don’t need to cost a small fortune; sometimes, the best ones are those that are homemade.

One can memorialize tiny hand and footprints in paint on canvas, a stool or a pillow (http://www.tipjunkie.com) or on a stepping stone, available online, at a craft store, or at pottery store such as Peace of Pottery in Manassas.

Handprint poem art and wall hangings are among the 100 Homemade Gift Ideas offered on the website http://www.familycrafts.about.com.

Grandchildren’s artwork can be showcased in an album or on a candle (http://www.cometogetherkids.com), mugs (http://www.tipjunkie.com) or in a frame. Handmade placemats, Christmas tree ornaments and potholders are perennial favorites.

Photos of the grandchildren are always a hit.

Things Remembered (http://www.thingsremembered.com) and many other websites offer personalized frames and albums, but a “Grandma’s Brag Book” of photos is much less expensive.

Websites Shutterfly and Snapfish offer an assortment of photo books and calendars, from as low as $12.99.

The process is simple, with the website leading the purchaser through uploading and arranging of photographs and it produces a professional-looking product.

These websites will put a photo on just about anything, including, but not limited to, blankets that display up to 30 photos, mugs, plates, coasters, magnets, pillows, photo cubes, iPhone and iPad cases and Christmas ornaments.

Grandparents who live far away might appreciate the opportunity to bond with the grandchildren via a recordable story book. A number of titles are available from Hallmark online for $29.95 and in stores. However, Grandma and Grandpa will need access to a laptop and to be at least marginally computer savvy (they’ll have to download an app and hook up the book to their computer).

Websites and their associated stores, such as Things Remembered, Harry and David and Brookstone feature lists of gifts aimed specifically at grandparents.

At Things Remembered, everything can be personalized. Gifts for Grandma at this online and in store retailer include lockets ($39.95), an assortment of bracelets and a musical water globe with a photo inside ($39.95). Choices for Grandpa include pocket watches (from $60), a pocketknife and an engraved decanter. From Christmas stockings to mugs and from a throw to a picture frame, Things Remembered can personalize it.

Online (http://www.HarryandDavid.com) and in the retail stores, Harry and David offers gifts of fruit, cheese, wine and more, including special collections for those with special diets.

From a Thanksgiving turkey to towers of candy and treats, Harry and David offers “exceptional gifts for every occasion,” including the ever-popular Fruit of the Month Club.

However, this option is not inexpensive; a gift of ten pears retails at $39.95, while Fruit of the Month starts at $89.95 for three months.

The grandparents’ shopping list at Brookstone, (http://www.brookstone.com), offers “unique gifts and smart solutions.”

Featured choices include a throw blanket, a heated mattress pad and the Tranquil Moments Sleep Sound Therapy System. A self-setting alarm clock and fleece sheets are also available.

Also making the list are an automatic wine opener and a wine chiller, available alone or in a gift set. Topping off the selection are a digital blood pressure monitor and a 1950s payphone.