Christmas Gifts for 12 for $68.12
Husband and I have a teeny tiny gift budget and so it’s important for me to get creative when Christmas rolls around. We narrowed down our list to the least amount of people I felt comfortable buying gifts for (there are few things worse than receiving a nice gift from someone you didn’t buy one for!), and I went to town coming up with ideas that wouldn’t break the bank. Here’s what I came up with. (And yes I take all credit, I dreamed up and created/purchased every single one of these.)
Our Texas friends? A free photo session with me. We came up with three couples that we are closest with and contacted them several weeks before Christmas to set up photo sessions in case they wanted to use the pictures for Christmas cards. Two session down, one more to go. I really love working with my friends in this way!
His sister (who lives in Poland)? She’s getting a cute set of hair pins from Etsy seller Hot Pink Chick. We’ve only met a few times, and there is a bit of a language barrier, but her hair is curly and I think these will work with her outdoorsy/earthy personality.
Cost to me? $12 because they were purchased on Black Friday when a discount and free shipping were being offered.
My Sister? She’s getting a 1 year subscription to Real Simple magazine. Have you ever been gifted a magazine subscription? It’s like getting a new gift in your mailbox every single week!
Cost to me? $5. It’s a subscription that auto-renews so I need to be careful or she’ll be getting the same thing next year as well. :) I put a notice that updates weekly in my Google Calendar starting next October to remind me to call and cancel the subscription.The information I need to cancel is stored in my inbox with my confirmation email so I think my plan should work.
My parents & his parents? Last year for our wedding I made my husband a Blurb book chronicling our first year together.
This year when I was working on the book for our second year I realized, “Why not gift this book to our parents each year as well?” Kill three birds with one stone, build them a collection of memories revolving around their favorite kids, etc. You can preview it here if you would like to see what I came up with.
Cost to me? $25.56/copy including shipping, making the total for the gift’s for our parents $51.12.
How are you getting creative with your Christmas gifts this year?
I love the picture book idea. I gave one to my grandmother for mother’s day (she raised me) one year and it moved her to tears. Parents LOVE that kind of stuff!
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Oooh – love the hair pins!
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i love the back cover of your book! You are so clever with your photographs.
I have to admit that I’m not as careful on my Christmas budget as I should be. But I am getting creative when it comes to my mom. Through etsy I found a lingerie maker and she is actual from the town I live in. My mom has breast cancer, going through chemo, had part of her breast removed and won’t have reconstructive surgery for a year. So I’m getting her a bra made with custom sizes just for her to wear this year.
Good job Jenna! yeah, my parents are getting a photo book too — of our trip to Hawaii. It is a nice, sentimental gift.
Our budget is about the same — try to spend less than $20 a person, and group the parent gifts together. Our list is small, but because Christmas really isn’t about the presents, it is about giving yourself.
I plan to buy a mini loaf pan and bake bread for all my pals this year.
I got the Real Simple subscription too! :) But I got the one that doesn’t autorenew b/c I know I’ll forget to cancel! :P
I gave my mother in law a subscription to Real Simple the year I met my husband (2007) and renewed it for her last year as her Christmas present. I am doing the same this year! I know she loves it and it really is the gift that keeps on giving!
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I totally go overboard on Christmas gifts for my family, but the problem is that my parents aren’t particularly sentimental – a picture book isn’t really a good option for them, because they would be like, “why did you just print all the Picasa pictures you sent us the albums for?” I think it will be great when we have kids to get them small books so they can show off their grandkids to their friends, but for now it would just be a waste of money – my parents don’t even have a coffee table to put them on.
I do shop the Black Friday sales, so I saved $20 on my Dad’s gift, $60 on my Mom’s, and $16 on my FI’s gifts.
I am also planning on making gifts for the holidays this year – I really want to make aprons for a bunch of people. But I tend to budget a large amount for Christmas gifts, because I do believe in reciprocity in gift giving. At least we are finally in the phase where we can give his folks gifts, instead of it being him and me giving them gifts.
Last year I did manage to spend a total of $2 on my mom because I used old gift cards I had gotten for returning stuff I was given that I didn’t like to pay for all of her gifts, which was nice, but felt a little too regifting.
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Jenna that book is so cute, I love it!
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I think that Blurb books are the perfect xmas gifts. The in-laws are getting a book with all the trips we’ve taken with them, my parents are finally getting a wedding book, and the hubby gets a year-in-review. Unfortunately I am neither as good at taking photos or arranging photos as Jenna is – but it’s the thought that counts :)
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Cecy-Beautiful idea for a gift! Those are the kind of gifts I believe are worth splurging on. So thoughtful.
Zoe-I actually think I got the one that doesn’t auto-renew as well, but I couldn’t find the right link and I never trust those companies so I’m going to call and make sure a year from now anyway. :)
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i love those little flower pins!
I think i will add them to my list for Santa.
Thank you for your sharing! If you do care about budget and don’t know like Christmas rush, shopping online and DIY gifts are great ways to choose gifts and save your money. This year, I prepare to give my BF an Olympus digital camera. It’s 10MP, but only for $20. When I found this from a deal site named http://followsales.com, I was shocked for its unbelievable price! I also plan to write him a love letter. Both of the two gifts aren’t expensive at all, but I do think they’re unique and perfect gifts. Setting your budget, or else Christmas spending could kill your wallet!
