Gift-giving is always a costly expense and one that doesn’t let up as you get older. As a child, you were able to stick your name on the end of a card and not need to worry about giving gifts to anyone because most kids don’t have the money to make a purchase.
However, as you get older, gifting something to a family member or friend becomes an annual routine and one that can quickly become very costly.
With that being said, if you’re looking to make it more budget-friendly, or you’ve found recently that your gifts aren’t that meaningful, here are some tips to change that.
Save little and often to help acquire a good budget
When it comes to acquiring a good budget for gift-giving, it’s better to start earlier when it comes to saving. If you’re saving little and often, then chances are you’re going to have saved a sizeable budget when it comes around to people’s birthdays, weddings, and other celebratory occasions.
Many people will save for Christmas at the beginning of the year, setting aside a little bit of money each month in order to cater for the expense that comes with it.
Saving little and often doesn’t have much of a financial impact on your bank account and it’s something that you could just see as another expense and bill that comes out of your earnings each month.
Make something with your own hands
If you’re creative, then you might want to consider giving a gift that you can make with your own hands. Gift giving can often be something that you give from the heart and what better way than to make something yourself instead of buying something already made?
For example, you could make your own birthday cake for your family member or friend. This is particularly meaningful for little ones who are growing up and perhaps want something that they can remember with photos and the friendships they’re nurturing around them.
You could always look to make a doll’s house or something that is DIY-friendly when it comes to children’s toys. For adults, there are lots of different gifts that you could make yourself, so explore the internet for inspiration and get cracking.
Consider their favourite sports or hobbies
What are some of their favorite sports or hobbies? When trying to buy a gift for others, it can be hard to think of something on the spot. That’s why it’s always worthwhile looking into their hobbies, what they enjoy doing in their downtime and perhaps getting a present that resonates with them on a deeper and personal level.
You could always look at golf gifts if the recipient is a keen golf player for example. You might want to get them a book or a collection of books if they’re an avid bookworm.
These types of gifts are more meaningful than others because they take into consideration something that’s more personal to the person receiving it. They are also likely to get more joy out of the gift than they would if you just gave them a gift voucher.
Think about practical gifts
Practical gifts are useful because they’re often the type of gifts that can be used on a regular basis. They don’t always make for the most exciting gifts but they can tend to be the most valuable when it comes to getting plenty of use out of them.
If the birthday boy or girl is lacking some clothes in their wardrobe, then perhaps some new clothes or a gift voucher to their favourite clothes store might be helpful.
If they broke a number of wine glasses recently and you’ve noticed they’re lacking them, then a set of four might be something they appreciate moreso than anything else.
Practical gifts are always desired and they often become a stocking filler at Christmas – like a pair of socks or underwear in general.
Gift an experience
An experience is something that can really elevate your gift-giving when it comes to spoiling your friends and family.
These gifts tend to be a little more expensive to purchase but can still be worthwhile if you’re able to make the purchase.
Gifting an experience like a race-car driving session or a pottery class can be great for those who like getting out and doing something different for a change.
With experiences, they’re more than just a gift they unwrap. It’s going to take them elsewhere and often enough, they can make a full day or weekend out of the experience you give them as a result.
Combine gift-giving with other family members or friends
If you’re struggling to gift to loved ones because of your finances, then you could always consider combining gifts with other family members or friends. This can be a great way of still gifting something to a loved one and reducing its expense.
Family members might like to do this for birthdays of other family members that are big milestones, such as a 21st birthday or a 60th.
By combining your funds, you might also be able to get something that would have been financially out of reach for you. That means the person in question will likely get a gift that offers more value or meaning.
Offer services owed
When it comes to offering services owed, this is usually a service that they’ll really want to cash in. Whether it’s being able to do nothing for the day to getting to spend X amount at their favourite store. These services are a unique and creative way of giving them something that they can redeem whenever they want to.
It also helps to extend their birthday celebrations and to have another time at some point in the year, when they can relive their birthday in a different way.
Gift-giving can be more meaningful and budget-friendly with these tips. Make the art of gift-giving easier for you this year and every year that a special someone’s birthday, weddin, or celebratory event comes around.
