As I saw a friend post on Facebook, there are less than 100 days left until Christmas!!!! I LOVE Christmas and the giving spirit that goes with it. However, we all can't afford to spend a lot of money on Christmas gifts. Throughout the years, I have come up with many ideas of how to give nice Christmas gifts, with out breaking the bank. Here are a few I would like to share!!!
- Homemade cards - one of my hobbies is card making.Throughout the year I try to always make four of every card. By Christmas time, I have quite a stash. They make a great gift for teachers and friends who enjoy sending out cards!
- Food - there are so many things you could do with this one! From cookie mixes to homemade caramel corn, place the goodies in a pretty tin and you have a nice gift!
- Deals, deals, deals - I try to watch out for deals all year long. I have a space in my guest room closet designated to gifts. I will often get coupons in the mail for spend $10.00 get $10.00 off. Use some self-control and go spend $11.00 at the store. You get a nice $10.00 gift for a $1.00!!! Place a little post-it note on the item to remind yourself how much you spent. That way you already have your $10.00 Christmas gift for the Christmas party at work, without breaking the bank.
- Photo collection - what Grandparent wouldn't like a nice little photo album or photo collection? You could either make it yourself, or watch for coupon codes for sites such as Shutterfly and Snapfish and make photo gifts for a fraction of the price!
- Re-gifting - yes, in some circles this might be REALLY taboo, but let's face it, we have all been given gifts that we have and will NEVER use!! I am not a scented lotion person, yet I get lots of scented lotion every year. I set most of it aside (unless I really like a certain one) and re-gift them to people I know really like scented lotion. Please, don't hate me for this one :0)
- Recipe Collection - this is a great idea for newly weds, or people just getting out of the house. Type up your favorite (or their favorite) recipes and place them in a nice binder. It will be a great resource for years to come!
- Make Christmas Ornaments - we did this as a kid EVERY year. I am not a big fan of this one because I am a minimalist and feel most people already have too many Christmas Ornaments. But it is a fun project to do with kids. We would use old Christmas cards, Popsicle sticks and glitter. Use the Popsicle sticks to make a frame for the Christmas cards. Decorate with glitter and use ribbon to hang on the tree.
- Sewing projects - If you know how to sew and like doing it, take on some sewing projects throughout the year. By Christmas, you will have a nice collection of gifts!
- Organize - what do I mean by this?? Well, it this takes some planning. I did a project like this for my Grandma. I took all her pictures out of her old photo albums (those static cling ones) and put them in acid free albums. Took me weeks to go through them all!! I wrapped the new albums up and the whole family looked through them Christmas day.
- Photo DVD - you can either scan in old photos, or use one you already have on the computer. Make a slide show, set it to music and burn it on a DVD. Great gift for older family members that really don't need anything, and do not get on the Internet to see all your family latest photos.
Hope some of these ideas help you!!! I am sure you can come up with many more ideas, feel free to leave a comment and tell me what they are!!!!!!!!
Great ideas! My family always did "Christmast lists" so it wasn't easy or possible to buy ahead. However, my husband's family buys whatever they think of for whoever they want, so it makes it much easier to shop for deals year round.
ReplyDeleteGeorgia, you have quite a collection for gift ideas. Note to self: Georgia doesn't like scented lotions. If only I had known my best friend didn't like that when I purchased you a $50 gift set from Bath&Body Works....haha. I'm glad it made someone else happy, though. :)
ReplyDeleteI think homemade/photo gifts are the best. It's also nice to all donate to a charity in lieu of gifts, if your family culture is down with that. We drop A LOT of cash over the holidays b/c that's what's expected (on my husband's side). On my side, we draw names (7 siblings), if anything.
ReplyDeleteOh! I really like some of these ideas. I think I'll make a photo album of my son as a gift for the grandparents this year. Thanks!
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