I always tell my husband a gift is extra special when there is thought and planning behind it. You don’t have to buy expensive gifts to make someone feel special. A little effort can go a long way to make someone feel valued and my Budget Gift ideas do just that. 

Gift buying is a very subjective thing. When selecting a gift, I always think about what the recipient likes/dislikes, what their hobbies are and any hints they’ve dropped or things they’ve mentioned.

Information is key. Think of gift buying as a research project. The more you know the better equipped you are at buying an awesome gift to a budget that suits you. 

The following are 10 budget gift ideas that can be made or bought easily and don’t cost the earth.

Personalised Sweets Jar

1 Personalised Sweets Jar

An inexpensive gift that you can either buy or make. Select a nice jar, personalise it by getting a label printed on it, or get it etched, and then fill it with the recipient’s favourite sweets/chocolates/macaroons – a tailored mixture of sweet treats for that special someone!

Photo Album

2 Photo gifts 

there are lots of companies out there that provide you with the means to put your photos on practically anything. So, think about the person you are buying for and if there is a particular photo of a pleasant memory/experience they would like. You can also make photo gifts yourself. For example, you can go into plenty of shops and print photos out and make an album for someone – somewhat of a special keepsake in this digital age. The possibilities are endless. Cost wise, there are always codes flying about online for discounts. I have bought a few presents from online print shops and never paid full price. 

Budget Smart Watch

3 Smart Watches 

Smart watches are all the rage at the moment. There are lots on the market and they all have plenty of different functions. But you don’t necessarily have to pay sky high prices. A perfect example is the Xiaomi AMAZFIT A1608 Bip; It does everything a high end product would do. Look online for the best deals on smart watches and make comparisons to ensure you are getting the features you want at the best price.

Hot Air Balloon Experience

4 Experiences

Afternoon tea, racing car driving or spa retreats. You can find almost any activity and give it to someone as a gift. A lot of discounts for experiences can be found on places like Wowcher or groupon, or you can look directly on websites like Red Letter days, where you can purchase experiences (sometimes discounted). This is a really good idea for an anniversary present as it’s something you can do together. 

Perfume

5 Toiletries

This one is self-explanatory. Buy someone’s favourite perfume/ aftershave or bath and body products. You can however save yourself money by accessing various discount codes online and save money. An example of this would be if you were buying something from Boots. Boots have numerous discounts going on all the time and it is always helpful to check their app for special offers or codes. They also sometimes send vouchers through the post. There are lots of savings to be had.

Gift Hamper

6 Food/Gift Hamper

Gorgeous gift hampers make great budget gift ideas. John Lewis, Debenhams and Amazon all do hampers that are beautifully presented. Sometimes, these can be discounted and you can apply discount codes to them. However they are also very easy to make. You can buy hamper baskets from lots of places or maybe buy a beautiful keepsake box and then add the items of your choice. I really like this idea as you can handpick the items you want to put in there and present them exactly as you want them. I always find TKMaxx as being a brilliant place to fill hampers. They have so many cute and nicely presented things in-store. I like going out choosing an array of things and putting them together. And you can customise them to anything you want. (If anyone would like me to put an example hamper together, let me know in the comments section. If I get enough comments, I’ll put up a step by step guide up).

Subscription Box

7 Subscription boxes

Subscription boxes are fantastic budget gift ideas and there are so many out there. Beauty, Literature, food, fitness etc. Pick something you like and gift a box to someone. You can cater a subscription plan to your budget. So if you can afford a one off box or want to provide a longer subscription to someone you can do this. I would also suggest finding discount codes online before you make a purchase (yes, i’m sure by now you’ve noticed that i’m a huge fan of the online discount code!) You may get money off your subscription. Try Glossybox as a beauty subscription or Papergang as a stationery subscription. 

Make your own Gift Kit

8 Make your own kits

These are good for those creative individuals who enjoy making things. If someone has a hobby or interest, you could probably buy one of these kits for them. I received one of these kits recently. My kit was a make your own diffuser scent kit. I like perfumes and smellies in general, so this was a great gift and something that will be used lots. 

Lounge Wear

9 Loungewear

Lots of places do comfy loungewear at very reasonable prices. You could get someone a nice bathrobe and team it up with a cute hot water bottle or get some PJ’s and put them together with a pair of slippers. Everyone loves comfort and this will make a truly lovely gift. 

Pick out a nice gift box/basket, add your PJ’s/bathrobe/slippers etc and add flower petals or nice smelling bath bombs.  This will elevate your ordinary gift into something luxurious. 

Make your own Gift

10 – Make your own gift 

If you’re really on a tight budget then I suggest making your own present. Make some ‘coupons’ to give to your loved one and promise to do things for them. Have a coupon for making someone breakfast in bed or making them dinner, or taking them out for a movie and meal. Cater the coupon to the person receiving it. My husband did something similar for me a few years back and I thought it was one of the best gifts ever.  He actually designed a booklet and made the coupons look like real ones. It took a lot of thought and effort and I loved it. I still remember it today so the gift left an impact. A word of advice with this gift, I would suggest you know the person really well to give them a gift like this and also ensure that you can actually fulfill what you put on the coupons.  There’s no point putting something which you can’t deliver on  at a later date or cant afford to do. Make it simple but thoughtful. 

There you have it, 10 budget gifts all around or under the £50.00 mark.  Leave your comments and let me know what you think. Add some of your own suggestions and ideas. Also like I said earlier, if I get enough requests, I will put together a TKMaxx gift basket, so let me know if that is something you’d like to see. 

I’ll leave you to your gift shopping now. The Gift Goonie is over and out.