Broke for the holidays: Ten quick ideas
Filed under: Saving Money, Simplification, Recession
Ten gift ideas for the Broke-for-the-holidays:
1. Loan of your car (or even better, pickup) for a weekend.
2. Offer to tend a grave of their choice (obviously, not one you would be expected to tend to anyway).
3. Offer to put up one of their out-of-town guests at your house, gratis.
4. Donate a day of your labor to their particular charity; Habitat for Humanity, the Susan Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, and many other organizations always need willing hands.
5. Cat/dog sit. Many animals don't travel well, especially cats, so caring for them at their home is best.
6. Research your giftee's genealogy online and at Church of the Latter Day Saints Family History Centers.
7. Take your giftee to a free workshop/presentation. Check local colleges, libraries and art organizations for freebees of interest.
8. Search book stores and eBay for a magazine printed on the week of their birth. Low cost, high interest.
9. If you're tech-savvy, give them a license that allows them to consider you as their computer help desk.
10. Give them Ten 'You're right, I'm wrong" coupons that can be redeemed to resolve arguments in their favor. Careful, though; these can cost you dearly!
The key to these is your commitment. It means nothing to give the promise for a service you are sure will never be asked for. Give something you know will be needed, and take responsibility to persist in offering until your giftee takes advantage of the offer. You'll feel better for it.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
11-05-2008 @ 11:03AM
Susan said...
Quick idea. Get with your friends and relatives right now and agree to NOT GIVE GIFTS this holiday season.
Reply
11-12-2008 @ 11:40AM
Jim said...
My family enjoys a "Yankee Swap" where we all bring a gift -- something we already have in our house, gently used -- and take turns opening and swapping. Great fun! We enjoy each other's company, we all get rid of something that is cluttering up the house, and it's FREE!!!
11-20-2008 @ 9:24AM
Bill said...
I think agreeing to not give gifts is a fantastic idea! But, how do you deal with the ones who agree not to exchange but give a gift anyway?
11-20-2008 @ 9:59AM
Jon said...
Shopping online?
Three Top Coupon Websites
http://www.curiousread.com/2008/08/three-top-coupon-websites.html
Happy Holidays!
11-05-2008 @ 5:08PM
sallydee said...
One year we all agreed all gifts had to come from yard sales or a form of second hand ect, we had the coolest gifts
Reply
11-05-2008 @ 9:37PM
laurie said...
my friend threw a gift exchange Christmas party one year, but the gift you brought could not cost anything. everyone raided their closets, attics, basements, and garages. each present was numbered as people came in, & after dinner everyone drew a number to see what they would get. i don't think i've ever laughed so much while at a party before or since! ;)
11-06-2008 @ 12:13AM
Nash said...
Hi Sally, our family is doing something similar this year. It's a swap party where people have to get one gift from the Goodwill and the goal is for people to shop at the Goodwill for what they believe is a great find! You bring it to the party for a Yankee swap, this is for all the adults and for the children we just pick name(s) from a hat based on how many kids you have (I have two kids so I pick two names out of the hat; if no kids, no name gets drawn, etc). Each child writes 3 items on their list along with their name and it's up to you which item you want to buy or if you want to buy something not on the list. We try to do variations of this every year and we're hoping this year we get it right and have fun!
I do like your party idea too Laurie! Sounds fun!
11-05-2008 @ 4:55PM
aaaaaariel said...
6. FYI, it is called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The website for genealogy is www.familysearch.org.
Reply
11-05-2008 @ 5:05PM
DION said...
Thank you for correcting them! So many people state my churchs' name incorrectly!!!
11-05-2008 @ 6:17PM
sms said...
Thanks for correcting that :)
11-20-2008 @ 9:26AM
Weston said...
Like it matters. Everyone knew what they meant.
11-05-2008 @ 4:56PM
Howard said...
Loaning someone your car for the weekend is probably not a good idea. If they get in an accident in your car, the headaches, liability and insurance issues could haunt you for years. In Washington, D.C., for instance, if you loan a car to someone, you can be held automatically liable for the negligence of the driver, even if you are sitting home watching tv at the time of the accident. And since your friend didn't have the financial resources to own a car (you had to loan them yours, remember) the victim is more likely to be looking to your insurance and personal assets. Better to drive someone around on a few errands than throw them the keys.
Reply
11-05-2008 @ 4:57PM
Connie said...
Rake leaves. Shovel snow. Chauffer for a day. Dust. Wash the car. Take the car to have the oil changed. Mow the grass. Wash windows. Take the kids to the park for the afternoon so the person can have an afternoon nap.
Reply
11-05-2008 @ 7:12PM
Annie said...
Good ideas! If someone volunteered to take my kids for the afternoon so I could take a nap, I'd be so grateful! And happy to return the favor too.
11-12-2008 @ 12:55PM
Karen said...
One year, my teenage daughter gave me a book of hand-made coupons for babysitting her younger siblings ("date nights out with Dad,") that I could "redeem" throughout the year. What a wonderful gift that was! Could be done for a relative, friend, or neighbor.
11-05-2008 @ 5:17PM
amanda said...
your almost better off just not giving anything :)
Reply
11-20-2008 @ 11:40AM
Char said...
I like Amanda's idea. Give nothing :-)
11-05-2008 @ 5:21PM
bgrue said...
Something with pictures is always good - frame a pic, make an album or a scrapbook. Coupons for a massage and you do the massaging. Itunes gift cards come in really small amounts. Things that the person needs anyway - favorite shampoo, favorite lotion, favorite snacks, etc. And if you want to make it really fun, make a scavenger hunt and hide the gifts all over your apt/house.
Reply
11-12-2008 @ 11:19AM
Kate said...
I second the pictures idea... I've been friends w/ my roommate since the end 4th grade... and when we were in 11th grade, well... we were rather poor. One of the gifts she gave me that christmas was a framed collage of various pictures of us together, various places we had traveled together and stuff... very neat. It was one of my favorite gifts, and here I am 10 years later, I STILL have that picture hanging up. (and yes, we're still friends too... LOL, as well as roommates).
11-12-2008 @ 1:58PM
Jill said...
Instead of Itunes ~ refer a friend to www.myxer.com "free music" downloads to all cellphones. Discovered this site and am saving my daughter loads of moo-lah.
Pass it along. $1.00/song ridiculous! FREE FREE FREE