‘Tis the season of giving, but let’s face it- times are tough right now!

Food and gas are at an all-time high, mortgage rates keep on climbing, and Christmas is fast approaching. Don’t stress!
In this guide, we’re about to embark on a festive journey of discovery, where we’ll explore the art of thoughtful gifting without breaking the bank. The mission: to find Christmas gifts for the entire family, all under the delightful threshold of $100 using DIY gifts, utilizing talents, repurposing objects, finding deals and steals, etc. So, as the snow begins to fall and the carolers sing, let’s embark on a holiday shopping adventure, shall we? It’s time to make this season a little brighter for the whole fam jam without emptying your wallet.

In This Article
The Immediate Family
The In-Laws
The Men In Your Life
The Women In Your Life
The Kiddos
Other Gift Ideas
Gifts Under $25

Mom: Homemade Perfume

Dad: Acts of Service

Sister: DIY Candle

Brother-In-Law: Store Bought Gift

Niece & Nephew: Snowman In A Box!

Dog & Cat

Check out these awesome posts for affordable and adorable Pet Toys!

Mother In-Law & Father In-Law: Homemade Baileys

Brother In-Law, Sister In-Law, Niece & Nephew: Lawn Game

Husband/ Boyfriend: Sentimental Gift

Whether you’re living together or separate, photo’s of the two of you can go anywhere. Give him his Initial filled with adorable pictures of you together that he can hang on his bedroom wall, or make a collage to hang above your bed. I used CANVA to make these and then just had them printed off at my local Staples. Font for the letter ‘J’ on Canva: ‘JA Jayagiri Sans Outline’
Printing Costs – $7.00
Frame: Local thrift store- $6.00
Total Cost: $13.00

Not the right gift? Try these Gifts Under $25

Brother/ Uncle / Grandfather: Homemade Baileys

Remember those 3 extra bottles of Baileys we made? Now’s there time to shine! Gift them to the other special dudes in your life.

Total Cost: Already Made!* ($40.50)

OR, and this one needs a little pre-planning… but grow and gift some..um..ya know..ganja. I know an uncle or two who wouldn’t be all that offended by this gift.. I’m talking about YOU Uncle Carl. (Before you judge- It’s Legal here in Canada!)

Wife/ Girlfriend: Use Your Talents (Not like THAT! :P)

Get your mind out of the gutter! Everyone has a talent, and I do mean something other than what you may THINK is your talent. Get romantic here.

• Are you an artist?: Draw her a sexy photo and have it blown up and framed. ( Photo 1: My sister’s bedroom decor is very sexy, art inspired women, so I drew something risqué for her one year. She STILL shows it off to everyone 7 years later!)
  Total Cost- $17.00 for photo enlarging and frame
• Are you a Musician?: Write her a song! Bonus: You can frame the sheet paper and gift to her as well.
  Total Cost- FREE
• Knack For Knitting?: Make her a chunky-knit throw blanket! YouTube Video Tutorial
  Total Cost: $15.00 for yarn
• Good With Your Hands?: Make her something crafty out of wood.

Sister/Aunt/Grandmother: Loving Leftovers

I don’t mean this literally. Do not, and I repeat DO NOT give these lovely ladies spaghetti stained Tupperware filled with food. What I mean by leftovers is, well, we’ve already got the materials to make some amazing hand crafted candles or perfumes so feel free to make more for the ladies in your life.
You can also utilize the essential oils and other materials to make:

• Handmade Soap: YouTube Tutorial by HGTV Handmade
• Creams and Lotions: YouTube Tutorial by Bottega Zero Waste
• Bath Bombs: YouTube Tutorial by What’sUpMoms
• Homemade Room Diffuser: YouTube Tutorial by What’sUpMoms

Or try these Gifts In a Jar ideas:

• ‘Twinkle Toes’ DIY Nail Kit: Nail clippers, cotton balls, emery board and nail polish in a jar. Check out this Article for some great polish colours ’25 Christmas Colours For Your Toes’
• Recipe In a Jar: Layer the ingredients in a jar for Cookies, Muffins, Brownies, etc. Make sure to add cooking instructions on a label.
• Homemade Sauce : Have you mastered the skill of making incredible BBQ Sauce? Jar it and Gift it!
• Hot Chocolate Jar: Hot Chocolate Mix, Mini Marshmallows, candy canes. Bonus Tip: Gift in a mug instead of a jar
  

The Kiddo’s

If you’re like me, the real stress comes when you start shopping for the kids. Mine still believe in Santa, so there’s that little extra pressure to make Christmas morning as magical as ever. We need to give ourselves a bit of a break though mama’s and pop’s. I’m here to tell you you’re doing a great job and they WILL have a fantastic day- because they’re with you. Give yourself a little hug, and read ahead for my tips and tricks for covering the kiddo’s this Christmas.

• Christmas Morning Scavenger Hunt: It’s all about the experience here. Whether you’re having a small and intimate morning with your own littles, or getting together with all your family and their kids, this one is my favourite go-to. Hit up your local dollar store and grab 5 little gifts per child, (Young ones: crayons, colouring book, stickers, stuffed animal, treat. Teens: Toothbrush, deodorant, razor, hair accessories, diary, etc) and stash them around the room, one by one, with a little note leading them to the next gift. When they wake up, hand them a Christmas card with the first clue inside and then sit back and enjoy the chaos! Total Cost: $5-$10/child
• Mom Swap: Not every gift is a hit with your child- but that doesn’t mean it isn’t for another! Just last week I did the annual fall bedroom cleanup and ended up with 3 brand-new unopened gifts from Christmases past! Talk to your mom friends and see if they have the same issue and swap! My boys are also famous for begging for lego kits only to set up and then never touch again- so I started saving the boxes and instructions somewhere along the way and after awhile, I rebag the lego and swap em out to other moms. Total Cost: FREE (well, THIS year it is. Last year..not so much)
• Repurposed Gifts: Check out your local second-hand stores and look beyond the obvious. One year I found a wall-mounted wooden coat and umbrella hanger and had a brilliant idea. My nephew, Archer, is a huge sports fan and was playing baseball at the time so I painted a baseball on the wooden plaque, with a bit letter ‘A’ on it. The coat hanger worked perfectly to hang his baseball glove, and the umbrella slot fit his baseball bat perfectly! Archer is 15 now and still holds onto this ‘keepsake’ item that his Auntie Candy made for him.
• Get Crafty: For my son Cash, I wanted something special for him to hang on his wall so he could display his artwork and photos of his friends. I found a piece of wood in my garage, picked up some wooden clothes pins, wooden letters, and ribbon from the dollar sign and made him an adorable name sign. *Bonus: All those superhero masks? They were all found at thrift stores. ALL of them!

• Get Thrifty! As I mentioned above, all of the superhero masks in the photo above were found at thrift stores. Not to mention, the board game on his shelf ‘Hulabaloo’ was also thrifted. The trick is to finding items that are in gently used or like new condition, making sure all pieces are there, or giving things a little cleanup (the ‘Bumble Bee’ helmet had sticker residue that I scraped off and then I just added some some fresh batteries). Clothing can be washed and then folded and boxed in Dollar Store boxes, and weird shaped articles can be gift wrapped or just stick a bow to them.
• DIY Dollar Store Gift Box: Does your child love to draw comics? Get them a blank notebook, pencil crayons and other items that can can use to make their own comics. Do they want to be a YouTube star? Get them a phone holder, ring light and microphone (all items available at Dollarama). Do you have a lil diva that loves watching you do your hair and makeup? Pick up some scrunchies, lipstick and an eye shadow pallet. You get the idea. Package them together in a decorative box and call it their “Comic Making Kit”, “Next YouTube Star Kit”, or “Lil Diva Kit”.

Other Gift Ideas

• Do You Love to Bake?: Grab a decorative tin box and gift your goodies!
• Friend Service Swap: Do you and your friends offer different services? Swap gift cards (make sure the cost is comparable) and gift to the family. Your sister get’s her nails done by your friend in exchange for your friends’ husband getting their car detailed by you. Your cousin is a hairstylist? Great! Give your sister in law the gift of a trim in exchange for a personal training session that you offer. Not only are you saving some money, but you and your friends could be gaining new life-long clientele!
• Hobbies / Collectibles: For example, I collect vinyl records. I also collect board games. I LOVE receiving either of these as gifts and most of the time, they aren’t brand new. Find out what your gift receiver collects, and check out your local shops.

Not The Crafty Type?
Try These Gifts Under $25

Deep Tissue Massager

Glass Cups With Lids

Universal Socket

Burt’s Bees Hand Repair

Carhartt Beanie

Plant Terrarium

Heating Pad

Beard Kit

Bedside Lamp & Bluetooth Speaker

Sushi Making Kit

There You have it! Let me know what you think of these gift ideas and comment your own Affordable gifting ideas! Happy Holidays. xx