7 Fancy Yet Frugal Last Minute Gift Ideas

This day and age, money is hard to come by so we do our best to save in some areas as possible as we can. Gift giving is one aspect where we can save money. If you have the creativity to think outside the box as well as time to spend, you can create chic looking gifts that won’t cost you too much money. Those gifts can also have personal touches that you can add in order to give your receiver something to remember you by. Giving someone special doesn’t have to be expensive. Here are a few great DIY gift ideas for adults that are both fancy and frugal at the same time.

• COTTON CUP HOLDERS

If you’ve ever accidentally burnt your hands on a steaming hot cup of coffee then you’ll understand how amazing the cotton cup holder can be. This easy arts and crafts idea for adults is simple and fun to do. Just cut up some of your old sweaters then stitch them up together to form a cup holder, which you can give with a tumbler. Add some decorative patches and maybe stitch up the name of your intended gift receiver on the cotton cup holder to add a personal touch to your gift. This gift idea won’t cost you a lot of money to make and your friend or loved one will surely love the effort you put into it.

• JARS WITH THEMED CONTENTS

Mason jars are all the rage nowadays. It may be due to the rustic style that people have been emulating. A great way to take advantage of this trend is to create customised contents for the mason jars then label them with cute fonts and greetings. The jar itself will serve as the wrapper of the gift and the contents can be as simple as travelling toiletry essentials or a bunch of candies. You can be as creative as you’d like to be because eventually, your gift receivers will use the jar again as a mug or maybe a plant jar. A great crafty idea for adults would be to add the first letter of the gift receiver’s name on the jar using elmer’s glue and glitters. This is a great way to add a little personality to your gift to make it look fancier and more thought of.

• TEA BOUQUET

If you’re like me, then surely you have a friend who just loves tea! You can do this cute and simple tea bouquet for them with a matching tumbler set where you can put the tea inside. You can even use this as a party giveaway by getting cheap paper cups then adding decorative japanese paper and nets with the bags of different teas in the cup. You can print out cute labels and paste them on the cup to add a little design on your gifts. Make this a simple DIY home project for your party in order to save money on giveaways.

• HOMEMADE CARAMEL SAUCE

You can’t go wrong with food. Everyone will eat it, and even if they’re not a fan of the taste, they’ll give it to someone who is because they wouldn’t want to waste food. Giving away homemade sauces, especially caramel sauce is simple and practical because it won’t spoil anytime soon. This simple recipe from Thrifty North West Moms is a great gift idea if you’re good in the kitchen. Put them in some mason jars then tie a cute little bow on it with a cute card and you have a gift good to go.

• BATH SALTS

A great crafts idea for your next gift would be to give away homemade bath salts as your next DIY present. If you’ve been feeling stressed, wouldn’t you just want to soak yourself in your tub with some bath salt mixed in the water? If you want that, so will your friends because being stressed is a universal trait. The Idea Room has this great DIY bath salt guide for you to make so you can give them away to your friends and family. Designing the packaging can also be an easy arts and crafts activity you can do to add a little pizazz to your gift.

• COASTERS

I never paid too much attention on coasters. I just thought restaurants used them as little decorations. It’s not until I lived by myself that I realized how important coasters really are. They are the little protectors of your furniture against the heat of the hot mug or the dew of the cold glass, which can cause irreversible damage to your wooden furniture. Give a set of homemade coasters to your friends or family with their own home and they’ll use them for sure. Use some old clothes or quilts as the base material for your homemade coasters or you can choose to crochet some together. You can even use old cork boards you don’t use anymore and glue some cute patterns or pictures on them printed on waterproof paper.

• DIY TERRARIUM

Plants add a sense of calm to a space. Greens add tranquility and a sense of vitality in a room. However, in a world nowadays where people live in condos, it’s hard to add plants because there’s a scarcity of space in condos. However, if you have loved ones that live in apartments and condos, you can choose to give them terrariums made from small cacti and other small plants you buy in the market, then just place all of that in a jar of fishbowl. This gift idea is great for your friends living in small spaces or your loved ones who love plants.

Here are just some of the easy, last minute gift ideas you can prepare if you’re on a budget. If done right, with style and effort, your gift will look like they’re worth more than what they actually cost. Also, with your added touch, you can add something more personal than just the usual gifts you buy from the store. If you have other cheap, DIY gift ideas, feel free to share it in the comments section below.