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Welcome To Day 3 of Our Challenge!
How to Save Money with DIY Gifts
Now that your shopping list is full and you’ve got a good ideas of places you can go to grab your top gifts this year, let’s talk about the last way to save money during the holidays — DIY gifts.
Now I know what you’re thinking… what if I’m not crafty at all? Shouldn’t I just save my time and spend a little extra buying gifts?
No Way!
I am definitely not the most “Pinterest Mom” out there but I can follow directions and put together some simple gifts that will make family members ohhhh and ahhhh when they open them!
One of my favorite DIY gifts that doesn’t require too much creativity are photo gifts! You can take family pictures or kid’s school photos and create photo albums, frames with that person and your children, or even calendars!
I use the Freeprints app where you can order 80 free pictures a month (and just pay shipping). They also have another app where you can get a free photo book a month (again, just paying shipping)
My top tips to maximize free prints is to order your 80 prints starting in September. Once you get started, you’ll find you want to order more than 80 (since we never actually do print them out, you’ll start printing pictures from when your kids were born just to have) and this gives you the time to get them. I make a photo album each year for my kids and since my daughter’s birthday is in December, I order her pictures in September and the ones I want to use for Christmas gifts in October and November.
These are super easy to make and very thoughtful. You can get each of the grandparents an album, personalized frame, or take the pictures to Target and put them on a calendar for less than $10 a gift!
A photo calendar is also a great gift. We do this for grandparents so I’m super intentional throughout the year to remember to take a picture for that monthly holiday to use. On the months that there is no official holiday, I take a themed picture for the calendar. I add all of these photos into an album on my phone so they are easy to find when it’s time to order it.
Again, search Ebates for discount codes before you buy! Photo books are so expensive if you don’t get a coupon code!
Teacher or neighbor gifts are another great place to DIY gifts. You can get a small thing of cookie mix, cute spatula and holiday pot holder and put together a teacher gift for less than $3. Don’t underestimate how fabulous the dollar tree can be for DIY gifts. Did you know that you can order stuff from the dollar tree’s website and they’ll ship it to you in store? I know not every store carries the same thing and my Dollar Tree is AMAZING but, I’ve been to some that don’t have the same selection. If you know you are making a lot of teacher gifts or need something for a holiday party, preorder your stuff to pick up in store and save time!
If you have a tween in your life that loves crafts, you can also easily put together kids to make their own lip balm or bath bombs. My niece loves to decorate cakes so this year I am making her a little basket with cake decorating supplies from the Dollar Tree. AC Moore also is having a great Black Friday sale, so I plan to go there first to see what I can get that’s good quality at a low price.
A final DIY gift, albeit a little cheesy, are coupons for your spouse or kids. I used to make coupon books all the time as a kid and now, as a parent of little kids, I LOVE homemade gifts from them. (now from the 12 year old, I’d love a coffee mug haha though he can totally make it!) A coupon book is such a fun way to encourage you and your spouse to date each other or have romantic nights without breaking the bank at all!
There are so many things you can DIY for the loved ones in your life. But remember, DIY doesn’t always save you money and often you’re trading the time and convenience of buying it at the store for the money you save making it on your own. To me, if it’s a 30 minute or less gift, I will do my best to DIY and save money!
Today’s Assignment
- Refer back to the gift list that you made on day one. Add any new ideas or check off where you can DIY something.
- Sign up for mailing lists for craft stores or even the dollar tree so you can see when they have sales and get coupons in the mail.
- Head to Pinterest and add to your Christmas Shopping board things you might want to DIY.
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Want to Read More in The Holiday Planning Series?
The Complete Guide to a Christmas Budget
Minimize Gift Giving with the 4 Gift Plan
Top Subscription Boxes for the Family
10 Awesome Gifts for Coffee Loving Moms
5 Ways to Make An Extra $500 for Christmas
10+ Homemade Christmas Cards to Save Money
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