Savvy Ideas for Choosing Gifts on a Budget

Given a bottomless bank account, you could probably come up with plenty of ideas for what to buy friends and family members for their birthdays and at Christmas. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have bottomless bank accounts, and indeed, many people are on very tight budgets. You want to show how much you love and care for someone, but how do you find gifts that convey this message when you have very little to spend? It isn’t as easy as being able to splash the cash, but with a bit of thought, you can give gifts that show your feelings without breaking the bank.

Personalized gifts

You might not be able to buy your loved one a new iPhone or Galaxy Note, but you could get them a new case for their phone. There are thousands of different designs available; you just need to know which model of phone your friend has before ordering to ensure it fits correctly. To make the gift extra special, you could order from a supplier of custom cases, who will print your unique photograph or illustration onto the phone case. There are many other ways to personalize gifts, including having clothing printed to your specification, engraving metallic gifts, and adding a name or message to any number of items such as stationary, mugs, mouse mats, and key rings. That means there will be a gift item within your range, however, low your budget.

Say it with food

You know your loved one enjoys food and dining out, but you can’t stretch to paying for a meal at a restaurant. Not to worry, just transform your home into a restaurant for the night. If you’re a good cook or know someone who could help you, you can prepare a delicious three-course meal with candlelight, wine, and all the pleasures of the eating out experience at a fraction of the cost. Alternatively, there are many home-baked goods, jams and preserves, and confectionary items that you can make yourself and present in hand-decorated jars or boxes.

Use your talents

If you aren’t a confident or enthusiastic cook, then the same principle can be applied to make your loved one a gift based around the talents you do have. For instance, you could compose a haiku poem and match it to a good quality photograph that will mean something to your friend, to make a framed print for their wall. If you’re an artist, paint them a picture of something that is important to them, like their home, garden, or pet. You could write them a song and gather some friends together to sing it on the day or make them a feature piece for their house like a hand-carved wooden lamp. Wherever your talents lay, you should be able to come up with the idea that will make your loved one feel special.

Gifts with meaning aren’t necessarily the expensive ones. Thoughtfulness and genuine caring count for far more, so if your funds are low, remember that a gift given with love is the best gift of all.