My bloglovin feed is FULL of “Gifts under $50” or “Stocking stuffers under $20” or “Gift Guide for the girl who has everything” posts. I get it. It’s a great time to affiliate link the crap out of pinable posts. I get it, 100%. and I’m not mad.
But holy crap, guys. Let’s rebel against the consumerism monster a little bit more this year, shall we? This year, my friendships have leveled up. I’ve depended on my friends more than ever, and I feel like there are more people who are on my list for gift giving than ever. Which sucks because I’m also trying to pay down my debt, right?
So here’s my gift guide for all of you this Christmas.
These are, essentially, $0. Some of them might require supplies, but you should be able to make do with what you have.
$0 Gift Guide
MAKE BREAKFAST
When I was on Whole 30, a friend of mine wanted to get breakfast. I was so nervous about ordering from a restaurant so I invited her to my house and said I’d make breakfast. While we were eating our egg scramble she said, “This is great. Nobody does this.” I started thinking about it, and it’s SO TRUE. We don’t often make breakfast with our friends. We go get breakfast with them, for sure. But there’s something really wonderful about having someone over first thing in the morning and making a big, hearty meal. Or even better – offer to do it at their place, and agree to clean up after yourself (extra plus points if you leave it cleaner than you found it)
GET YO’ CRAFT ON
Everyone think about the Pinterest board you have for DIY projects, and think about how many of them you’ve pinned for the sheer simplicity of it. You probably have SOMETHING you could embellish laying somewhere around. Give the gift of crafting together. It doesn’t have to be the same project – it could even be a bunch of random supplies and seeing what comes of it. A lot of the time those projects don’t get finished because they’re more fun to do with friends. Pick a date.
NO-PHONE DATE
How about giving someone the gift of two uninterrupted hours of your life? Get coffee with someone and leave your phone in the car. There’s getting coffee with someone and then there’s getting coffee with someone and being completely present.
PJ MOVIE NIGHT
You know that movie your friend is always telling you that you HAVE to watch? or the movie that they’re always saying they would LOVE to see? Invite them over, with the only rule that you MUST wear pajamas. Watch a movie of their choice with them. The cozier the better.
SHARE A RECIPE
Comfort food? Most questionable yet delicious combo of ingredients? Tried and true, could win awards if you entered it in a competition? Whatever you think they would be down to try, give them a recipe (or two or three or color a cover and staple them into a book).
TAKE A HIKE
You don’t have to be some sort of insane outdoorsy adventurer for this one. Just ask around for a good hike in your skill level, and make plans to go. I like hiking and it’s okay to do alone but most of what I take back from every hike I go on is the conversation; the experience; the feel of the air and how that made me see someone in a new way. Taking a hike with a friend is a gift for you as well as them.
TAKE PICTURES
Thanks to the magic of the iPhone, we’re all freaking photographers…. right?? 😉 We’re always taking pictures of others or sticking our hand out and taking pictures of ourselves… but how much do we really love when someone takes a good picture of us? Even if you only have a phone as a camera, tell them you want to take pictures of them. Find a cool location, pick out a cool outfit. Take some pictures – of them by themselves, or with their significant other, or whomever. Just free someone up from being the one who takes pictures.
Some other ideas:
- BABYSIT FOR FREE
- ACCOMPANY THEM WHEN THEY RUN ERRANDS
- SET UP A CLOTHING SWAP
- LEARN HOW TO KNIT TOGETHER & GIVE EACH OTHER YOUR PROJECTS
- PEOPLE WATCH
- INVITE PEOPLE OVER FOR COFFEE (thanks Kim!)
what else?! Add anything else you think of in the comments below and I’ll update the “some other ideas”! 🙂
i love this idea! and all of the suggestions! 🙂
yay!!! i wish i could give you some of these for christmas 🙂
CLOTHES SWAPS ARE THE BEST EVER!!!
OKAY BUT I’VE NEVER ACTUALLY DONE ONE!!!!!
Love the breakfast date! It’s so true… we always go out for food with friends. Rarely do we think about staying in 🙂 Great post, dear.
right?! and think of how much cheaper it is to make breakfast! (and if i can rock breakfast, anyone can)! thank you for the encouragement 🙂
BLESS THIS POST. I get so overwhelmed when I see all these gift guides but this is definitely for me! I’m pretty sure my love language is quality time so I’d rather get/do these things for people I love!
YAY! quality time is definitely my love language so this was an easy peasy post to write. plus the whole saving money thing, haha.
Love. This. This is an amazing post and I love all of these ideas. So perfect!! Thanks for sharing!
thank you! i’m so glad you liked it 🙂 hopefully you can use some of these ideas!
Every date, chat, meeting, whatever should be phone-free.
oh man. i completely agree, though i’m totally guilty of keeping my phone out.
LOVE! I believe in the magic in a good ol’ fashion slumber party. Celebrate the holidays by spending a night watching Christmas movies having deep 3 a.m. conversations and enjoying each other’s friendship and company!
yessss!!! nail polish and popcorn and face masks and the works!!!
So creative-I love this!
thanks for stopping by, chelsea! glad you liked it 🙂
Invite friends over for coffee instead of going out and overpaying…cozier and cheaper:)
LOVE IT! why didn’t i think of this at all!?
I LOVE THIS! Please come over so we can make breakfast. Miss you! 🙂
ugh yes please. <3
I love this post! I am especially fond of the no-phone-date, as well as the taking a hike.Thanks for sharing.
ahhh thanks for stopping by! i’m glad you liked it 🙂 hopefully it inspires you to be creative and intentional with your gift giving this christmas <3
Aaaaahhh I love all of these ideas! And thank you for sharing this post in the first place. You’re so right — I understand and I’m not offended by any other gift guides (they’re super helpful!), but yes, let’s care a little more about the meaning than we do about the money.
yay! i’m glad you liked this! i think it’s all about convenience – it’s convenient to order a few things online and stuff, but it definitely is the most bang for your buck to take time and invest in the person behind the present 🙂
I love these! I’m all for choosing experiences and people over more stuff.
hooray! me too! you are my kind of person 🙂
Yes, yes, yes!
We are also attempting to get our finances under control and be better stewards of His money. What a great list! Sharing every where, lol.
YESSS!!!!! thank you for sharing it!
the struggle of getting finances control is crazy. it’s such a beast, but it’s definitely all in our heads! i hope this new year brings you a lot of success in that area 🙂
Thank you! Hoping to be debt free by the time we leave our current station.
Such great ideas! Freebie gifts can be even better than actual gifts!