Budget Friendly Gift Ideas

With the holidays coming up, I know a lot of us are searching for that perfect gift for our loved ones. December can be a month of stress when it comes to finances especially after a year like 2020 where a lot of us are on a tight budget. The good news is that you can still get your family and friend sentimental gifts without draining your bank account! To help generate some ideas, here is a list of budget friendly gift ideas and where to find them:

1.) Flowers/Seeds/Plants

Who doesn't love flowers?? Go to your local flower shop or grocery store for some fresh flowers or plants to give to someone you love. Succulents and cactus plants are normally on the inexpensive side if you're struggling to find a good plant. You can also buy plant/flower seeds, which only cost a couple of dollars for your loved one to plant in the spring or maybe start an indoor garden!

2.) Baked Goods

Everyone loves delicious treats! You could do Oreo truffles, cookies, brownies, cake pops, etc. Even if you aren't much of a baker, you can stop by your local bakery to order some sweet desserts!

3.) Tea/Cocoa/Coffee

If I do gift boxes for people, I always include a pack of one of these. You can buy a hot cocoa pack for $5 at Target and distribute packs between gifts or you can buy induvial packs for about $1 each! Again, if you'd like to shop small, your local coffeeshops normally sell packs of their coffee beans and sometimes loose tea as well!

4.) Card Games/Puzzles

While many board games tend to be over the $30 bracket, you can still buy some card games or puzzles for $25 and under! We have a local board game store in my city that I tend to buy all my games from so if you have the option, I'd recommend checking out your own local shops! Otherwise, the usual places like Target, Barns & Noble, and Amazon have a pretty good collection.

5.) Snacks & Candy

You can always make a snack box/bag and fill it with their favorite candy, chips, and soda!

6.) Spa Day at Home

I like to call these "Spa Day" items. Basically, they're face masks, lotion, soap, bath bombs, candles, etc. Now I'm a Bath & Body Works girl so I like to buy their single wick candles and travel size lotions for when I'm making gift bags for people. These are all well under $20 and around this time of the year, they normally have good sales going on too! Ulta sells TonyMoly I'm Real face masks that are under $4. You could probably buy a handful of these spa items and not go over $25 on your gift.

7.) Cozy Items

Blankets, pillows, fuzzy socks, mittens, hats, pajama bottoms, fairy lights, etc. I'm always happy when I get these type of items as a gift because I can never have enough quite frankly. Some of these items can run on the more expensive side, but if you do your research you'll be able to find quality items at a good price! If you have gift & accessory type stores in your town, you'll definitely find a lot of these items there. Again, Target has a wide variety of cozy items and most clothing stores do too. Five Below is also an option for socks and blankets.

8.) Homemade

You can always go the homemade route! You can paint or draw something. If you aren't feel confident on your art skills, there are some great Paint with Me tutorials on YouTube that you can follow along with! You can also do hot cocoa mix in a mason jar or put together a smores or sundae kit.

I hope these ideas help and, as always, I do encourage you to shop local as much as you can. I understand that's not possible for everyone so I hope the links I provided in the article help a bit too. Remember that the holidays are a time to spend with those you love whether it's friends, family, or pets. Don't get too caught up in gifts or put pressure on yourself to get something expensive and impressive. Most people I know (including me) like small, meaningful gifts that just show you care and that you're thinking of them!