Birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine’s Day and Christmas are just few of the occasions when you just can’t do without giving gifts. More importantly, if these gifts are meant for someone whom you love and cherish, they certainly have to be something special and exclusive. The major retailers go all out to get you to open your wallet and spend, spend, spend, but in these difficult economic times, these presents become a drain on your already-stretched budget. So, if you wish to gift something to that special person you need to make sure you put in great thought into it. That does not necessarily mean the gifts need to cost a fortune.
The time has therefore come to be creative – and your creativity will be so much more appreciated than a store-bought gift.
Help at your fingertips:
You will need a computer and (in most cases) a printer for many of the ideas set out in this article, but almost everyone nowadays has the use of one, so it should not pose a problem. Bear in mind that quite a few of the ideas which are computer-related take a bit of time to organise or make, so start looking at websites well in advance of the date of the special occasion.
Internet Freebies:
· The top tip is to look on the internet for sites which offer free products. There are many such sites and, in most cases, all you have to do is fill in a questionnaire and/or give your opinion of the product. There really are very good freebies to be had, as these sites are paid for by advertisers whose products then reach a wide target audience. This option clearly takes some time, as the items have to be sent to you. These sites offer all manner of goods, from cosmetics and hair styling products to computer gizmos and even cash deposited into Paypal accounts – then your loved one can have lots of fun spending that money online. An added bonus is that your partner will know how much time and trouble you have gone to – and that gesture, in itself, will be very much appreciated.
· Many sites offer free cards, wrapping paper and gift tags, all themed for Christmas, Valentine’s Day and birthdays. Search for the perfect card, then personalise it with a loving message at no charge and print it. If you choose to make a gift for your loved one – using one of the ideas below – and it does not look 100% professional, at least the presentation part will look wonderful and, once again, your time and trouble will be rewarded. Also available on these sites are free graphics for Christmas and Valentine’s Day, so load them into you partner’s computer or mobile phone, so that he/she will have a themed screensaver and icons.
· There is a site which offers free love credit cards (although you may have to pay for postage and packing). These plastic ‘credit’ cards use plays on words of the names of well-known credit cards, such as American Express or Visa Gold, and have slogans such as ‘frequent kisser rewards’ and ‘good for a hug anytime’ printed on them.
Clean Love, Anyone?
A very cheap and cheerful gift to make is a personalised bar of soap. All you need is some glycerine (very cheaply bought from a pharmacy) which you melt in the microwave and then pour half the amount into a mould – preferably heart-shaped – but if not, any shape will do. Once this part has set, you get down to the decoration. Buy some lettering from a craft shop and use it to write a love note on the soap. Next, melt the other half of the glycerine and very carefully pour it to cover your message and leave to set. Take your bar of soap out of the mould and wrap it in some cellophane for a very personal and useful gift. Note that you can add a tiny bit of food colouring to tint the soap and/or a few drops of an essential oil to perfume it.
I Heart you:
Strawberries are (almost) heart shaped and make a delicious and romantic gift. Try soaking them in your partner’s favourite liqueur and then dipping them in melted chocolate. Let them set on a silicone mat or greaseproof paper and then pack them into a heart-shaped box, which is very easily found at all gift shops and stationers. Share and enjoy!
Creative Craft:
This is a simple idea which is more sentimental – less of an actual gift. You can just hop over to nearby toy shop and get one of those plastic rockets (or you can make one yourself out of a small plastic water bottle and some paper and glue). You can stick some small pics of yourself and your spouse(preferably in astronaut gear – knowing some photoshop may help here). On the rocket, just write a slogan “Your love sends me to the moon”. That ought to do it.
There are hundreds and thousands of such creative little gifts that you can make yourself and surprise your loved ones. Just get creative and get original. A great site for getting creative is Zazzle, where you can make your own creations and post them on mugs, shirts and more. Use a zazzle promo code for additional savings.
