Creative Christmas Gifts & Gift Ideas

Part 2: More Free Gifts

A few months ago, I got pretty sick (like requiring a doctor sick).  Lacking proper insurance (like any good blogger should), I got stuck with the x-ray bills and the doctor fee.   As I sat there eating ramen with chopped up hot dogs and thinking about how to earn some extra dough (blogger wet t-shirt contest anybody?), it dawned on me that my girlfriend’s birthday was only a week away – and 4 days before payday. I needed to come up with a creative and thoughtful gift idea, and fast.  So I pulled out my pirated copy of Half Baked and skipped straight to the scene where Dave Chappelle takes Mary Jane on the date.  I had issues with taking money from homeless people, but I did appreciate his thriftiness, which gave me a few unique gift ideas:

Cheap Gift Idea #9: The Hand-Me-Down

This gift idea is very similar to the ReGift, except in this case, you just grab something off your shelf and wrap it up make it look new.  For most items (shoes, your old cell phone, the eggs that expired last week), it’s pretty obvious if you’re giving someone a hand-me-down.  However, there are a few cases in which you can convince someone that they’re receiving a brand new gift which you personally selected after hours of deliberation in Walmart.  Some ideas:

1. Unread Books. They might require a bit of dusting off, but as long as the cover isn’t faded or the spine wrinkled, you’re good to go.  Textbooks don’t count, college students.  Neither does The Scarlet Letter, high schoolers.
2. Unused Fancy Pens. I got a bunch of these from my great aunt when I was a kid, but I was never sure what to do with them.  They’re just pens, right?  Wrong.  Once you get into the business world, having an impressive pen can get you a long way – from starting a conversation with your boss to convincing people at work that you’re not lying when you tell them that you write books on calligraphy.  Actually, that’s a lie.  But it will be a nice way of explaining the thoughtful gift to the person you’re giving it to.
3. That Box of Chocolate That Your Old Girlfriend Gave You But You Were Too Sad to Eat When She Dumped You. Is that just me?
4. Leftover Arcade Tokens. “It’s hip it’s cool it’s Noah’s arcade.”   This would totally work for a younger brother who doesn’t understand the value of money yet.  I’m not sure what age they discover the value of money, but whenever it is, it is truly a black day for gift ideas.

More Questionable and Cheap Gift Ideas

Cheap Gift Idea #10: The Bouquet

This thoughtful gift will warm your wife or girlfriend’s heart and might pay dividends for you later.  Just make sure you step up your game and pick some serious flowers.  I’m no gardener, but I do know that 4 limp daisies won’t win her affection.  Think of cunning ways to find bigger game like tulips or roses, such as poaching from that cranky old lady’s garden down the street.  You could also try to lift a few flowers from a public garden (Seriously, who cares if you take flowers from a median?  Why do cities even plant flowers in medians?  Aren’t there better things to spend money on, like free flowers for every deadbeat boyfriend to give his girlfriend?)  In any case, the worst that could happen in either situation would be a cranky old lady berating you.   The thought of being verbally abused by a cranky old lady is pretty terrifying, actually, but I guarantee you’re faster than her.

Cheap Gift Idea #11: Shells

You can create some unique gifts out of shells.  For instance, you could make a necklace or bracelet of shells.  Or, you could put a bunch of shells in a jar with some flowers and call it art (for hippies only).  You could also make a Calder-like thing that hangs from the ceiling out of shells.  Whatever, be creative.  The best part about shells is, of course, they’re free!  If you live close to the ocean, ramble over to the beach on a Sunday with your sweetheart and go hunting for shells.

Cheap Gift Idea #12: The Song

For those of you overflowing with creativity, you could always write a song dedicated to a person.  Just describe them: Jenny, you have big brown eyes And weird yellow hair ties You knock my socks off With your artsy artist’s loft Please forgive me that I am a broke fool Maybe this song will make you think I’m not such a tool. I didn’t mean to run over your cat Even though he was a little brat Ahhhh Jenny. (Repeat until she tells you to stop) In case you're wondering, we're not together anymore.

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Cheap Christmas Gift Ideas, Free Christmas Gift Ideas by admin