Personal Finance

Everyone wants to give a little bit of themselves during the holidays. Even though you may not be "cash rich," by focusing your energy on a DIY gift exchange, you can still partake in the seasonal fun with your friends and family. Some affordable and easy Christmas craft ideas include:

1. Framed Pictures: Dollar stores are a great resource for affordable picture frames. All you need to do is embellish with a coat of paint, buttons or even mosaic tile-work and include a great photo.
2. Holiday Music: Making and burning a CD of music specifically catered to the taste of the intended gift recipient is a fun, easy and an affordable gift idea. They can enjoy it every holiday season!
3. Baking Mix: Share your holiday cookie recipe by filling a Mason jar with all the non-perishable ingredients. Make sure to layer nicely, include a set of instructions and adorn with a bow. Your friends will delight in having access to your homemade treats at a later date.
4. Refrigerator Magnets: Nearly every craft store has easy-adhesive magnetic tape. A trip to your local flea market may unearth vintage buttons, marbles, coasters and plenty of items that can be turned into a delightful and useful gift that requires minimal skills to make. Just glue the finds to the magnet.
5. Throw Pillows: Go to your local thrift store and find some interesting t-shirts or sweaters. To make these simple pillows: turn the shirts inside out, sew the sleeves, neck and part of the bottom, flip it right side, stuff and finish off with hand-stitches.
6. Necklaces or Bracelets: Although you may have to lay out some extra cash for the initial supply purchase of crimping pliers, wire cutters and all the beads and baubles, you will have a kit in place that will allow you to make new gifts year after year.
7. Gift Basket: Stuff a wicker basket with goodies customized for the gift receiver. Just pick a theme (aka, chocolate fanatic, ice cream junkie, PBJ lover, etc.) and go to town.
8. Holiday Wreath: A Styrofoam circle, green fabric or yarn, a glue gun and festive decorative add-ons all combine to make this great Christmas craft.
9. Christmas Ornament: One great option comes from Familyfun.com, the "Yarn Candy Cane." By investing an hour per cane you can make enough for a complete set that would surely dress the gift recipient's Christmas tree beautifully over a weekend.
10. Cat Toys: Pet owners love sharing the spirit of the holiday with their four-legged friends. By utilizing your basic sewing skills, you can purchase some festive fabric (cotton is best), catnip and hand sew pouches worthy of the furry house residents.

Christmas is about creating memories and a family and friends DIY holiday will certainly add to your collection. Your loved ones will appreciate the thought and effort put into these sure-to-be cherished Christmas gifts and the overall expenditure won't break the bank.

As America's banks mismanage themselves into a hole, then come to the government demanding vast infusions of cash to get them out of it, attention has justifiably turned to their practice of charging sky-high overdraft fees.

By now everyone has heard vexing anecdotes about the $40 cup of Starbucks. A person uses their ATM card or writes a check to pay for their morning fix, but they're too close to their account margin and the purchase makes them overdrawn. While the bank pays for the cup, they charge a $35 penalty for the overdraft protection "service."

Blame for the overdraft lies squarely with the bank customer, of course, but by the same token $35 (sometimes higher) is extreme, and leaves the person in a far worse place than before. Where is the "protection" in that?

Moebs Services, Inc., a leading financial-services industry analyst, concluded the following in a 2009 survey of banking overdraft statistics:

• 44.5 percent of all banks and credit unions have OD income greater than net income.
• Higher overdraft fees were led by Wall Street banks, which charged a median price of $35 per overdraft vs. all financial institutions, which charged a median price of $26 per overdraft.
• The South continued to lead in overdraft charges regionally, with a median charge per overdraft of $29.00 vs. $25.00 for the North, East and West regions.
• Some national retail merchants charge more than $35 for a bad check, exceeding even the Wall Street banks.
• 45 percent of Wall Street banks tier OD prices, vs. 2 percent of Main Street banks and credit unions. The OD charges range from a first-time charge of $25 up to a $35 charge per incident.
• 54 percent of all financial institutions offered a formal overdraft program, down significantly from 69 percent in 2008.
• 86 percent of all financial institutions that offer overdraft services allow the consumer to opt-out at any time.
• Less than 20 percent of all financial institutions pay checks in the order from large to small, with the vast majority paying checks in the order of presentment to the financial institution.
• 35 percent of all financial institutions allow consumers to overdraw their accounts at an ATM or with a debit card, charging a median of $26 for this service.

As grim as all this may be, America's banks have come to realize that sky-high bank fees make for rock-bottom press. As a result, many have not only set aside their plans to charge more, they've lowered their fees. To get a sense of who, specifically, is charging what, Go Banking Rates took a look at the overdraft practices of some leading national banks:

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