Low Cost, Homemade Holiday Gift Ideas

As you look over the list of gifts you need this holiday season, an unsettling feeling starts. How will I pay for all these gifts? Gift-giving is meant to be a time for sharing how much you appreciate others, but rising prices and tight budgets take the feel-good vibes right out of gift-giving traditions.

Take the money stress out of the holidays by turning to homemade gifts. Homemade gifts are a great way to show you appreciate someone while also adding a personal touch. Gifts don’t need to be expensive to be special.

Let’s explore the homemade holidays in hopes that you will find something to inspire you to enjoy the season more.

Healthy options: Pack energy in a jar with healthy snacks like energy bars, dark chocolate, and tea. Make homemade gourmet granola, homemade vanilla extract or a homemade chicken noodle soup mix.

Ornaments: Paint your own Christmas bulbs. Turn old light bulbs into ornaments with glitter. Simple white candles get pizzazz with a ring of cinnamon sticks and ribbon. Thumbprint ornaments are adorable. The ideas are endless.

Lip-smacking gifts: Apple pie, banana bread, cookies, dark chocolate truffles, ... Need I say more?

Inspiring photo gifts: Collage picture frames, letter photo art, personalized photo jars, photo wreaths, photo bookmarks. Pinterest and the Internet are loaded with ideas.

Drink mixes: Create hot chocolate and vanilla chai mixes, coffee mixes, candy-flavored vodka. The possibilities are endless.

Artwork: Turn your kids’ artwork into tea towels. All you need is a flour sack towel and permanent marker. Or cut your children’s artwork into shapes, glue to blank cards and create unique stationary sets. With only a scanner, photo-editing software, heavy white cardstock and magnets, you can create a slew of refrigerator magnets featuring your family’s artwork.

Youth gifts: Homemade shaped crayons, headbands, finger paint, dream pillow, boo boo bag, build-a-fort kit, homemade soap, marble run made from plastic bottles and colorful duct tape, coffee can stilts, personalized I-Spy bottles.

Spa packages with homemade ingredients: Create a spa package by making your own bath bombs, salts and fizzies. Many Internet sites feature step-by-step tutorials.

Need some more ideas? Head to the Maple Grove Library to check out the dozens of books on homemade gifts or other low-cost gift giving ideas.

Follow us on Twitter | Like us on Facebook | Sign up for our daily newsletter