Gift Ideas

Gift Ideas – Ways to Save Money

 

There is no avoiding that we are in a very difficult time. Many of us are having to rethink how we do things and what we want to spend out money on. If you are trying to make savings then read on – this article is for you.

I gave up work when my kids were born and immediately realised that economising was essential – my husband had his own company, but the income was often unpredictable. I didn’t really want people to know that I had no money, I guess it was a sort of denial on my part, but now I realise that most people feel like this at the moment. Here are a couple of ways I saved money without having to feel that I was struggling.

Make Your Own Cards
Cards can get expensive, you may not realise it at the time, but cards and wrapping paper can increase the cost of a gift quite significantly. The first thing I did was to not give cards if I was giving a present. I would instead make a tag and tape it to the gift (instant saving of $3). Then for people who I was sending a card to I make them. The first thing to do is to avoid the card kits – these are expensive and unnecessary. I always look for cheap paper and envelopes. If you can find a little stationary shop you will probably find a box where they have cheap envelopes (often where they are slightly bent) or simply end of stock – when you see these buy them – don’t worry about the size. Do the same for paper. Try to always get colored paper, but just pick up any that you see for a bargain.

Make Your Own Gifts
For me this came after making my own cards – initially I did not have the confidence to make my own gifts, but I quickly realised how easy it could be. You don’t have to be an artist to do this. My first project was t-shirts. I saw a guy at a stall selling a load of kids t-shirts really cheap – it turned out that he had closed his shop and was selling off the stock. I picked up 10 t-shirt in each of the sizes or my kids. Then when they had friends birthdays I would iron on a personalised transfer. The key to successful t-shirts is to keep the design as small as possible (that way you don’t have to worry about the design wrinkling or not sticking properly). I have boys – so I would ask what the kids favourite thing was (usually it would be cars or robots or something like that) then I would find a picture and add the first letter of the kids name and their age to the design. I would usually place this on this on the top left of the t-shirt. After a while I started to add a little logo on the back, just below the neck of the t-shirt. My kids got known for giving these and after a while the birthday child would get really excited, wanting to know what design they had got. I could fit about 8 designs on each piece of transfer paper (make sure that you place your picture in the top corner of the paper so that you minimise wastage). This means that the transfers were costing me about $0.20 each t-shirt. And since I got my t-shirts for just of a dollar each – I could give really cool gifts to kids for sub $1.30!!! Bargain. (Avery T-shirt Transfers for Inkjet Printers)

What You Need
Firstly – keep everything! I have two boxes, one for fabric and one for paper. I never throw anything away.

Secondly, always buy something if you think it is a bargain.

Thirdly, and this is probably the most useful piece of advice I can give you – get inspiration for others. I met someone who designed for the big fashion houses, she created the textile designs and she said that everyone needs inspiration and to look for digital collage. At first I didn’t understand – but now I love them. A friend of mine has just set up a shop – she is really cheap and the ideas are perfect for people like you and me trying to save some money. I have looked at lots of other suppliers, but they seem too complicated. The reason I like Loulou’s prints are because the backgrounds are simple, so they are really easy to cut out and use. (You also get value for money, there are some sheets going for just $3 which have 88 pictures on them.) I use the images for two things, basis for my t-shirts and also for my cards. I cut them out, paint over them, collage them, put them in frames on cards – you name it I use them. The way it works is that you buy the item for $3 and then she sends you a link – you use the link to down load a high quality page full of images, which you can then use over and over again! A great $3 dollar investment. (Here is the link to her shop)  The birds and flowers make great birthday cards.

 

So saving money doesn’t mean compromising – it is just a different way of thinking.  Good luck and keep checking back for more updates.