Buying Gifts Within Your Budget

• Expendable gifts can be inexpensive, but are appreciated. Instead of buying gift baskets of cheeses or gourmet coffees, put your own together. Stamps and film are other good ideas.
• Consider adding parts to a toy that a child already has. All kids like adding to their Barbie clothes or “Lego” collection.
• Believe it or not, used gifts can go over very well. If someone on your list is a collector, search junk shops and garage sales for something unique for their collection.
• Making a “This is Your Life” video can be a lot of fun, especially for a milestone birthday or anniversary. Include interviews with family and friends and go visit the places where they grew up or used to “hang out”.
• Buy magazines from antique stores from the month and the year the person was born. You can usually find these for around $5.
• If you know someone with a fireplace, make firestarter cones. Dip pinecones in hot wax and package attractively in a garage sale basket. These work really well to start a fire and the basket makes it nice to look at.
• Buy a pretty calendar (or get one from a bank) and write down your family’s special dates. Include birthdays, and anniversaries.
• Children love to play dress up. Make a dress up box. Get a sturdy box and cover with contact paper, then fill it with garage sale finds—old shoes, jewelry, and fancy clothes.
• Children might like a “tinker box”. Again, from garage sales include gears, nuts and bolts so they can “invent”. You might even include and old clock or radio to take apart.
• Play food is really popular, but expensive to buy. It’s really easy to make on your own. Save small containers like spice tins or plastic bottles. Small boxes can be filled with Styrofoam and then covered with clear contact paper. You might even be able to get fake fruit at garage sales. Try to avoid plastic grapes, as these can be a swallowing hazard.
• Get copies of a special photograph made or enlarged and give in a frame that you bought on sale.
• Make cassette recordings of you reading a favorite bedtime story for a special child.
• Homemade cookies or candy can be made to look really special when packaged in pretty containers from garage sales.
• Write to a celebrity the person admires and ask for an autograph. Then give it nicely framed.
• Many cookbooks offer non-food recipes such as modeling clay, sidewalk chalk, play dough, and bubble blowing soap.

Accredited by the Council on Accreditation for Children and Family Services.
A member of National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC).
A HUD approved Housing Counseling Agency.

© Lutheran Social Services.
All Rights Reserved.