Fall semester is almost over, which means Christmas is only a few weeks away. That doesn’t leave you with a lot of time to find the perfect gift for everyone, and a lack of time isn’t the only thing that we college students have to worry about this Christmas season. We also have to take into consideration our less than stellar budget. Sometimes the best way to go about giving Christmas presents when you’re on a budget, and under time constraints, is to put all of your faith into the DIY Christmas gift. Here are some fun DIY ideas:
1. A Gift in a Tin
This great idea comes from thediymommy.com. She has come up with six different gift basket ideas including Spa Day in a Tin, Christmas Baking Kit, Movie Night in a Tin, Coffee Lover Survival Kit, Winter Cold Survival Kit, and Snow Day Survival Kit, and if you are inclined to use these ideas, The DIY Mommy offers free printable labels for the tins. So as you can see, a gift in a tin has endless possibilities. They can be catered to a specific person and their interests, and you can even play around with the “tin” part of this equation if you find the tins to be too expensive.
2. A Gift for the Senses
This idea comes from the blog, What’s On My Porch. The blogger’s DIY gift was a Valentine’s Day gift for her husband, but it could easily become a Christmas gift for whomever you choose. All you have to do is buy five little items that represent the five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. So maybe you buy a movie for “see”, an iTunes gift card for “hear”, a candle for “smell”, their favorite candy for “taste”, or massage oil for “touch”. You can get creative with this gift by buying things that will make the receiver smile or laugh.
3. DIY Tile Coasters
Not everyone feels the need to use coasters with their drinks, but once you make them these cute custom tile coasters, they will be unable to resist. All you need is some tiles (approximately $0.15 at Home Depot or Lowe’s), Mod Podge, acrylic sealer, felt rounds for the bottom, and scrapbook paper. The scrapbook paper is used to decorate the tile and there a ton of great patterns out there for you to use, but if you don’t feel like going in that direction, you can use family photos or sports logos, too. You can find further instruction here.
4. DIY Personalized Glassware
Personalized coffee mugs have become very popular as of late, and they are so easy and fun to make for those special people in your life. All you need is a plain white mug, glass paint pens, and an oven. Coming up with a design or text is probably the hardest part of making this gift, and maybe you’re not the best artist or you don’t have the best handwriting either, but there is no harm in asking a creative friend. The receiver should love the personalized gift no matter what. Common instructions are to let the mug dry for at least eight hours, put it in a cold oven, heat the oven to 375 degrees, bake for 45 minutes, turn off the oven and let sit until cool. There are debates over which type of marker to use, but you can check out this website and decide for yourselves.
These are a few ideas to get you started, but if you’re on the search for more, I’m sure that you know Pinterest is the place to look. You can type in “DIY Gifts”or “DIY Christmas Gifts”, and you can include tags like “for him” or “for her” if you want to search for a specific someone. Have a happy holiday, and let us know about any DIY gifts that are successful!