You want to make sure your loved ones know how much you care with a unique Christmas gift, but a year of financial instability and rising interest rates has left you struggling to cover all the extra expenses. You're not alone.
Many families and friend groups have adopted gift-free Christmas or even Secret Santa traditions in order to keep costs (and stress) low and holiday spirit high. But if your social circle isn't quite there yet, there are still many things you can do to show you care this holiday season.
Here are 12 unique Christmas gift ideas to show you care without spending a dime.
- promise to do things for them,
- promise to do things with them,
- make a video or slideshow,
- make a wildflower bouquet,
- learn their favourite song on an instrument,
- write them something,
- draw or paint them something,
- write things you love about them,
- organize their messy collection,
- have a photoshoot together,
- experience their favourite thing, and
- give them a massage or scratch their back
1. Promise to do things for them
The most common idea you’ll see in these lists is the personalized coupon book for completing certain tasks…
I won’t shy away from them here, but they can also take the form of verbal promises, contracts, and other written agreements. From here on, I will simply refer to these types of gifts as "coupons," but keep in mind they can take different forms.
These coupons can cover chores they regularly need to do around the house, like:
- cleaning,
- cooking,
- walking their dogs,
- doing the cat litter,
- babysitting, and
- doing their laundry.
Not only will it help take a load off your loved one, but it can also be used during a particularly stressful time when things like housework need to take a backseat. For example, Christmas time when all the kids and the kids’ kids are visiting.
If you know your host is dreading the constant job of cleaning, this gift could prove to be their saving grace, at least for a while.
2. Promise to do things with them
Another coupon gift, but this time offering that quality time that's so often missed out on.
Activities could include:
- going for a walk,
- playing board games, or
- simply sitting in a room together doing nothing but talking.
It’s a simple idea, but an hour of uninterrupted time together is sometimes worth a thousand store-bought Christmas presents.
3. Make a video or slideshow for them
It’s always important to take videos and photos when you’re gathered with family and friends. The problem is, these lasting memories are often stored away in a dusty box in the closet or an out-of-the-way folder on your computer.
One common solution to this is the art of scrapbooking, but that can be expensive, time-consuming, and messy.
Another way to give these beautiful memories new life is to make a video out of them. Pair home videos with family pictures and back them with a special song that never fails to bring back good memories.
Best of all, it’s free. Thanks to the expansion of video sharing sites, you have plenty of options to easily create tear-jerking, heart-warming videos for your loved ones. Some examples include:
- iMovie on Apple computers,
- Windows Video Editor on Windows computers,
- Instagram reels,
- TikTok, and
- free apps available on your phone.
Once you're done, they can watch your beautiful memories as many times as they want, whenever they want.
4. Make them a wildflower bouquet
For those of you who are lucky enough to have a green Christmas, there are plenty of beautiful flowers that stick around during what the South considers the cooler months.
Go for a walk through nature and pick a handful of beautiful flowers, tie it together with any leftover Christmas ribbon you have, and you have a beautiful gift that will be stunning – and special – as the centrepiece of Christmas dinner.
Tip: Be careful of city-owned flower beds, as they are not wild and cost the city money.
For the rest of us who are buried underneath the snow, a seasonal bouquet of evergreen, branches, and acorns can prove to be a festive gift. You could even try your hand at creating a handmade wreath for their front door.
Best of all, these bouquets can bring in that nostalgic scent of Christmas that's often much missed in houses that opt for plastic Christmas trees.
5. Learn and perform their favourite song on an instrument
If you're musically inclined to any extent, chances are you have an instrument lying around somewhere that you may or may not play regularly. There’s no better excuse than Christmas to dust it off and get practicing again.
Find one of your loved one’s favourite songs on the multitude of sites featuring free guitar tabs and other sheet music. There are also thousands of Youtube videos that are prepared to walk you through most songs you can think of – and more.
Once you’ve learned the song, you can either record it for them on your cell phone so they can listen whenever they want, or you can perform it for them live on Christmas morning.
Just expect to be asked to play it a second time, and again that evening. And on Boxing Day.
6. Write something for them
If your creative flow tends to shy away from performance, an alternative is writing your loved one a piece of poetry, fiction, or nonfiction.
Give them the attention they deserve through a complimentary poem, or recall in creative detail a funny, or intense, memory you have together. Even just writing them a letter will serve as a beautiful gift.
If you aren’t confident in your writing skills, you can also collect quotes from poetry and prose that remind you of your relationship with your loved one. There’s a lot of beautiful writing available for free online. Handwrite your chosen creations to make them extra special, or use a site like Canva to design beautiful art prints that you can print off for only a few dollars.
$75 GeniusCash + Unlimited transactions for $0 + Ding-free non-affiliated ATM usage.
$25 GeniusCash + $50 bonus for funding a new account, and $0 commissions on stocks & ETFs
$12 GeniusCash + Access trusted news coverage 24/7 + Digital and home subscription options.
$25 GeniusCash + Delicious meal choices with fresh ingredients + Front-door delivery.7. Draw or paint something for them
For the more visually inclined, use your skills and existing art supplies to create them something special.
Draw or paint from memory a special place you both share together, such as that lake you used to visit every summer, or your childhood home.
Another idea would be to recreate their favourite artwork or even draw their pet.
8. Take an extra deck of cards and write your favourite things about them on each one
This is a fun little craft where most of the decoration is already done for you. All you have to do is write about the little things you appreciate on each of the cards in an unused deck and they'll have a lovely keepsake to flip through when they're feeling sentimental.
Get creative and do the same with the pages of a short novel or a special childhood picture book.
The possibilities are endless, but the bottom line is to show that you care.
9. Organize their messy collection for them
We collect a lot of things, even without meaning to. Every once in a while things get out of hand and we can never find the time or energy to organize these things...At least, that’s how I feel about my books right now.
Either write a coupon or secretly organize your loved one’s clothes, books, movies, makeup, tools, and other collections.
It’s productive, helpful, and will show that you know what’s important to them.
10. Have a personal photoshoot with them
Professional photoshoots are nice, but they're expensive and it’s hard to feel comfortable doing them. For a free alternative, most of our cell phones have pretty good cameras on them. Find a room with good lighting – or just go outside – and take a bunch of photos together.
This will create a fun memory for you both that will be memorable, both in your mind and in the photos. Sometimes it’s hard to get good pictures together, so take some time to really try to get that perfect shot.
11. Experience their favourite thing
When I get obsessed with something, I want to tell everyone I love all about it, but sometimes I recognize that other people are busy and aren’t always that interested.
With this coupon idea, promise them a couple of hours of your complete attention to really experience what they love. Whether it be listening to their favourite band’s album or watching their favourite TV show, let them tell you why they love it and everything they love about it.
This will truly be a bonding experience that they will appreciate, and you might even end up liking it too.
12. Give them a massage or scratch their back
Most people I know (including me) love a good massage, especially after some stressful Christmas or Boxing Day shopping. Unfortunately, I always feel bad asking for one...
Write them a coupon for a massage or back scratch so they can have a guilt-free and relaxing experience.
Make them comfortable with soothing music and let your amateur (but free!) massage take their stress away.
Bonus: Combine multiple ideas to create an extra special gift
Whether it be attaching the poem you wrote on the wildflower bouquet you made them, or making a slideshow out of the photoshoot you did together, any of these ideas can be combined to make a special gift even more special.
The most important thing is to use Christmas as a special time to appreciate the ones you love a little more...and letting them know that you do. This has never meant you need to break the bank in order to do it.
What cost-effective and unique Christmas gift ideas or traditions do you have? Leave a note in the comments below to share the frugal holiday joy!
Leave a comment
Comments