Every Christmas morning, I used to rush down the stairs, taking them two at a time and elbowing my brother out of the way as he raced to get ahead of me. Our final destination? The Christmas tree decorated with sparkling lights, dainty tassels, and years-worth of curated ornaments. Most important to us, the tree was lined with treasures galore, wrapped and ready to be torn open.
Now, the holy grail gift for many college students like me is money. From a Benjamin Franklin bill to George Washington, I’m grateful for any small reprieve to my bank account. With that being said, it’s even harder to finance gifts for all my friends and family.
If I could spend a fortune on my mom, dad, brother, and (of course) my dog for their gifts this season, I would. Unfortunately, my dwindling savings has urged me to search for cheaper — yet still heartfelt — options. With my love for crafting and anything creative, I found some easy, cute, and handmade gifts that will make the holiday just as special as any other.
My first suggestion is a scrapbook: classic but thoughtful! Print photos (I usually go to Costco or CVS), grab markers, and find some magazines (for design elements to cut and paste on) to get started. You can scrapbook some favorite memories or a specific trip or experience. My number one tool for scrapbooking is a double-sided tape roller. It makes the process way less messy and much more efficient. For a scrapbook, you should add little notes of personal anecdotes and fun messages.
Another gift idea is a custom cigarette box with rolled up notes inside. For this, you can print a template to fold the box shape. Write what you love about the person on paper and roll the pieces up to put inside the box. Make sure to put a good amount of thought into each entry, you want to put effort into this gift to make it more valuable to the person who will receive it.
Crafts involving sewing may seem intimidating, but if you stick to the basics, it won’t be too discouraging. For this, you don’t need a machine! If you thrift a shirt and some scrap fabric, you can cut and hand-sew something cute onto an otherwise plain shirt. You could sew just a simple shape (like a heart) or word that relates to the person you’ve intended the gift for. For example, my friend sewed “UCSB” onto a shirt and has gotten countless requests for copies. A shirt like this would be a rarity and exclusive adding value upon the rather inexpensive cost to make it. You could even add character to the shirt, making it a funny shirt with an inside joke on it!
This next no-sew fabric gift is likety split, just thrift a picture frame, print a photo (smaller than the frame size), and back the photo with spare or thrifted fabric. I recommend any fabric with a pattern to make the boarder more distinctive. For this gift, I would recommend using it as a supplementary gift. You would want to show more time and effort to make someone feel truly special.
Lastly, for any of these cheap gifts, the wrapping is quintessential! Place the gift in a box and wrap it neatly. I usually watch a YouTube video (click here) to make sure I’ve got good technique. Then for the inside, fold any sort of paper accordion style and cut it into strips to resemble confetti paper. By personalizing the decoration and sprucing up the smaller details, you can really personalize the unboxing experience.
All of these gifts are meant to be budget friendly and while they are gifts for either family or friends, the time spent reminiscing memories is just as much a gift to yourself. From one broke girl to another, make this holiday season count and capitalize on valuing your loved ones through time and effort as your currency.