Giving gift baskets is a fun way to include a little variety in your gift giving. And, if you coupon, you probably have a lot of extra things that you got for free or very cheap that you can place in these baskets as well. Even if you don’t, doing a themed gift basket can make it easy for you to gift things this holiday season. It’s possible to create a gift basket that is so personalized, the receiver will love it! If you are stumped on what to put together, that also won’t cost you an arm and a leg, here are 7 Inexpensive Gift Basket ideas to get you started.
Movie Night Gift Basket
Give the gift of a movie night! This basket simply requires microwave popcorn, some dollar store candy, a $5 movie from the cheap bin at Walmart and some cozy socks. If you’re making this one for a teen or pre-teen, you could add a gift card for a movie ticket to the local theater.
Manicure Gift Basket
Some simple nail polish, a patterned file (can often be bought at Bath & Body Works or the dollar store for cheap!), a small bottle of hand lotion and some nice nail decals. This one is perfect for teens and tweens. You can also throw in a gift card to a beauty supply shop if desired.
Baker’s Delight Gift Basket
Do you know someone who loves to bake? Buy them some fun patterned cupcake liners, cake mix, a new oven mitt and a spatulaand you have a great gift. You could even skip the basket and just place everything in the mitt and tie off with a ribbon.
Hot Cocoa Gift Basket
Hot cocoa can be made with just a few simple ingredients and packaged nicely in a mason jar. Add in a bag of marshmallows and some dollar store mugs for a finishing touch. This basket costs less than $10 to make and in many cases, less than $5.
Sporty Gift Basket
If you have a sports fan on your gift list, try this one! Place some snacks like sunflower seeds, jerky or popcorn in a basket. Add a small trinket of their favorite sport team such as a key chain, bottle opener or lanyard and finish it off with a set of tickets to watch a minor league team in your area.
Pasta Heaven Gift Basket
Got a pasta lover in your life? Place some fancy pasta (this can often be bought at a discount at outlet stores or a store like Winners), pasta sauce (homemade or bought), shelf stable Parmesan cheese, and a pasta server into the basket for a great fast dinner.
Bookworm Gift Basket
Everyone knows someone who loves to read. This gift basket will delight them! Get a $5 Amazon Gift card or a gift card to their favorite local bookstore (to buy a book or an e-book), a cheap fleece throw blanket, a coffee mug, some tea and a low cost clip-on reading light.
I hope there were some inexpensive gift basket ideas there to help inspire your gift basket building endeavors! Do you have any other themed gift basket ideas that you could share in the comments?
Frugal Gift Ideas for Teachers, Neighbors and Friends
Do you give gifts to your kids’ teachers, your neighbors or friends? It can be a really fun way to let them know you appreciate them!
This gift guide was so much fun to put together. There are so many neat things out there and I know I rounded up some great budget-friendly ideas for you.
Without further ado, here are my Frugal Gift Ideas for Teachers, Neighbors and Friends!
Maldon Sea Salt – This flaked salt is soo good! Perfect for finishing desserts or savory recipes.
Gift Card Holder – This festive printable gift card holder is the perfect way to dress up a gift card!
Mini Silicone Spatulas – Sounds silly, but these are so great for getting the very last bit in containers!
Suncatcher Crystals – Add beautiful rainbows to your recipients home with these suncatcher crystals! This comes as a four pack, so you could even separate them so you have multiple gifts.
Small Wood Paddle Board – Perfect gift idea for the person who loves to create those fancy charcuterie platters.
Winter Headband – Ok, how cute are these? Everyone needs something to keep their ears warm!
Bubble bath – Don’t we all know at least one person that likes taking baths to relax?
Leather Wristlet Clutch bag – Perfect for when your recipient just wants to take a phone, ID and a few small things with them!
Scented Candle Set – I don’t think you could go wrong with a candle! Perfect frugal gift idea for a teacher, friend or neighbor! This is a set so you could even separate each candle to give away.
The links below may be affiliate links, meaning I earn a small compensation at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure policy here.
Frugal Gift Ideas for Tweens and Teens
Shopping for a tween or teen can have its challenges. After all, they’re not usually into toys anymore, and toys are so easy to buy!
Gift cards are great, but they’re also pretty boring to give. Why not show your tween or teen how amazing you are at gift giving with the help of these frugal gift ideas! You are sure to find some thought provoking ideas that don’t all center around technology.
Take a look at these Frugal Gift Ideas for Tweens and Teens:
Mud Masks – These types of masks are a huge hit with my 11 year old.
Eyeshadow – A new eyeshadow is always a good idea.
Gum – I really like PUR Gum because it uses xylitol to sweeten it. My dentist said that xylitol can help in preventing cavities! Lots of different flavors too.
Sketchbook – For the one who loves to doodle or wants to refine their skills.
Platform Mini Boots – If you don’t have a pair of knock-off Tasman Ugg’s, are you even on TikTok?
2 Piece Makeup Bag Set – These bags with the fun chenille embroidery letters all all the rage right now.
Joggers – Some good ol’ joggers will work for any teen.
Letter Board – See what kind of creative and witty things they can come up with,
Wet Brush– Every girl or guy with long hair needs a really good brush.
Personalized Notepad – Anything personalized to so fun to receive! Especially if the recipient has a more unusual name.
Fairy Lights – Most teens like to spend a lot of time in their rooms, so making it feel extra cozy with some fun lights would be appreciated. These LED Strip Lights are another alternative.
Puma Duffle Bag – A duffel bag is a must have for any road trip or athlete.
Ukulele – We gave our oldest daughter a Ukulele and it has been used so much! She’s always making up songs. A great gift that will grow with the recipient.
Every year, I like to purchase one gift that will be fun for the whole family. Usually it’s a board game of some sort. We like to try it out right away on Christmas day for some extra quality family time!
However, there are sooo many different things out there that would make fantastic gifts for families.
This gift guide has fun, frugal gift ideas for families that any family would love. Happy gifting!
Make some delicious theatre style popcorn in three minutes with the classic Whirley-Pop Stovetop Popcorn Popper. Create some fun memories on movie nights!
This is neat! It’s a portable projector that you can plug in or use with the included power bank to watch a movie anywhere! Be sure to clip the $30.00 off coupon.
This could be such a fun family gift idea! Have fun as a family ripping down the toboggan hill with this cute plaid, lightweight toboggan. Currently on sale!
I love the idea of matching monogram mugs for each member of the family! You could even stick some hot chocolate or a gift card inside each mug. Here is a less expensive option from Indigo.ca.
If you are a family who really appreciates traditions and preserving memories, this is a gorgeous keepsake book to help you. This will be a family treasure for years and generations to come.
Alright, this one is not very frugal, but if you have an outdoorsy family this might just be the gift that keeps on giving year after year. These Solo Stoves are 5 stars and so, so good. Uses real logs, but is smokeless! Shop around for sales!
Another great puzzle, but this one has 1000 pieces so perfect for a family with older children or one that enjoys doing a puzzle during the entire duration of the holidays.
Kids Against Maturity combines the tried and tested fill-in-the- blank game-play, a perfect enjoyable hilarious way to bring your family together. You will be sure to be laughing so much when you play this favourite!
Get to know friends and family better – When the fastest answer wins, but you never know what they’ll let slip! Great group game for those aged 10 and up.
Inspired by the popular digital version, Wordle: The Party Game features the same gameplay fans love, but players compete in real life to solve the Wordle
My parents discovered this game while they were camping this summer. My dad, loves wood working, so he promptly crafted this game in his shop. Fortunately, you can actually purchase this game too! We had so much fun playing it this year and enjoyed the friendly competition.
How FUN is it to all have matching pajamas for the holidays? In this post, I have a huge assortment of matching family Christmas pajamas from Canadian retailers.
Shopping for gifts for kids can be tricky. While there is no shortage of ideas out there, it can be tough finding quality, engaging toys. So my goal with this gift guide was to find ideas that inspire creativity, teaches a skill, is practical or gets them up and moving!
Bonus, nearly all the frugal gift ideas for kids are $50 or less! If it’s not less than $50, it comes highly vetted by me!
The links below may be affiliate links, meaning I earn a small compensation at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure policy here.
Frugal Gift Ideas for Men
Men are so hard to shop for! Am I right? It can be tricky to come up with thoughtful and unique gift ideas for the dads, brothers and husbands on our lists. They either have everything already or don’t want anything. (At least in my case!)
I think what I have here in this gift guide for men, is a great variety of different ideas. I’m positive you will find something for that hard to shop for person. So sit down, cozy up with this gift guide and get the inspiration flowing with these frugal gift ideas for men!
Lifestraw Portable Water Filter – The outdoorsy type will love getting this so they can have safe drinking water where ever their adventures lead them!