Can you believe Thanksgiving was last week! For many of us, it meant that we and/or a loved one may have a little extra time off work. 
But Thanksgiving day, while wonderful, gave way to Black Friday and the commercial Christmas season. Is that something you dread? Do you watch your coworkers or people from your church go about their seasonal buying and you cringe? Are things a bit tighter than you wished they were?
You can still have Christmas! Maybe it’s not billowing out from under your tree. We’ve talked about Financial Preparedness. It’s so important to keep finances in check. If we can’t do that now, how will we tighten our belts when things get harder? Maybe you decided to try out some new ways to bring in income so that you would have a little bit of money to invest in Christmas.
Maybe you have a group of people that you want to be able to bless with Christmas gifts, but you can’t afford to spend 
a lot of money on everyone. Don’t stress! Today, I’m sharing with you 20 inexpensive yet fun Christmas gifts that you can share with those around you.
Hey guys – I mean men – don’t tune me out! I have some projects geared toward you in here too. Make sure you read through them before you close the webpage.
1.) Messy Bun/Ponytail Hat
I have a daughter who loves to wear ponytails. In winter, though, when she wears a hat, the ponytail doesn’t allow the hat to sit right on her head. It really looks lumpy. My solution? Last year, I crocheted her a messy bun/ponytail hat. She loved it and wore it a lot last winter. I expect to see a lot of it this winter too.
2.) Hot Chocolate Mixes
Who doesn’t like to warm their insides with something warm and decadent when it’s cold outside? I know I certainly love to. Our family loves to snuggle by the fire sipping hot chocolate. It’s a special time we take together each winter. Bless someone else by providing them with an amazing hot chocolate mix for Christmas.
3.) Southwestern Dip Mix
I don’t know about you, but I am always looking for simple and easy things that I can whip up if I have a group coming over. By keeping crackers and a couple of other of staple ingredients, I can easily pull together a dip. Giving the gift of a dry spice portion of an easy dip would be a wonderful way to bless someone.
4.) Apple Butter 
I have made apple butter for years. This year my daughter wants to take over the tradition. We have an apple farm that closes the last week in November. We always like to go that last week and snatch up apples at really good prices. One of the things we do with these apples is make apple butter that we can eat on for the following year. It’s simple and SO delicious.
5.) Salsa
Do you have some Mexican lovers on your gift list? Here’s a simple gift that you can do up in batches and give them the gift of YUM for Christmas.
6.) Homemade caramel sauce
CARE-ah-mel or CAR-mul no matter which way you say it, you should spell it “d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s”! Homemade caramel is incredibly simple to make and delicious to gift with a couple of apples to dip in the gooey treat.
7.) Cinnamon Candy Almonds
Nuts are always delicious, and unlike some other foodie gifts are oftentimes consumed very quickly. You have to wait for the right occasion to use salsa someone gifts you, but candied nuts are always handy to munch on.
8.) Dish Cloths/Washcloths 
I have been making dishcloths for more years than I can count! Well, not really, but sometimes it feels like it. These are the basic instructions that I follow for all of my dishcloths. The one change that I make (for those of you who know what I’m talking about – for the rest of you – there’s nothing to see here. Move along) it says to continue until you have 47 stitches on your knitting needles. I only go until I have 40 stitches on my knitting needles. It gives me a more manageable size of dishcloth to use. You can package this up very pretty with a bar of homemade or handmade soap.
9.) Moisturizing Salt Body Scrub
The combination of Epsom salts and coconut oil is such a moisturizing mixture. Add to that some lavender essential oil. Put it in a decorative jar that has a spoon holder on its side like this one.
10.) Bath Bombs
Do you know someone who likes to pamper themselves from time to time in their deep tub? These are a perfect addition to their soaking time. They are so simple to create and fun to use.
11.) String Art
When I was growing up, I had an uncle who was amazing at the pictures that he could create with a block of wood, some small nails, and string. It was absolutely beautiful, but it’s SO EASY to do!
12.) Homemade Candles 
Candles are simple to make and beautiful to gift. I love candles and keep them all over my house during the Christmas season. I think it’s because it’s so dark at night by the time my husband gets home, that I like to greet him with the warm glow of candles.
13.) Clock with a picture of your (your friend’s, extended family’s) family
Of all the gifts on this page, this one is hands down my favorite! It is so simple, beautiful, sentimental, and exquisite. While it looks like it could take a lot of doing. The steps are so simple. These can be made in almost any shape with almost any picture. It’s the perfect way of personalizing a gift!
14.) Picture frame picture/message boards made with chicken wire
If the last gift was my favorite, this is my second favorite! The only thing that I would add to this is that once you have your chicken wire attached to your picture frame, make sure that if you are gifting this, you attach mini wooden clothespins so that your friend can add pictures of her friends and family or reminders or quotes or anything that strikes her fancy.
15.) Rolo and Hug Pretzels
These are a great gift for co-workers. They can be kept on a desk and eaten at work if they don’t take them home to their ravenous hoards at home. The sweet, salty, chocolate, and caramel work amazingly together.
16.) Homemade iPad case
Or this could be a Kindle case. This is a great way to protect an iPad from getting scratched in transport, and it’s cheaper than buying an actual cover.
17.) Grandma’s Brag Board 
One of the things that I love about going over to my mother’s house is seeing the pictures of my kids as they were growing up. If you have a grandmother in your life, this might be a wonderful gift to make her for Christmas.
18.) Erasable Menu Board
Personal choice #3 of these gifts. My kids are ALWAYS asking, “Mom, what’s for dinner?” Right now, I have a paper attached to the front of our refrigerator with a magnet which lays out what meals we’re having for the next week (or two depending on circumstances). But something like this erasable message board would be so beautiful to use instead.
19.) Stovetop Potpourri
I’m sure we’ve all heard of potpourri, but the idea of stovetop potpourri was a new one to me, but I love the concept. Put some aromatic spices and fragrant foods to boil on a stove and they will absolutely FILL your house with amazing smells!
20.) Dark Chocolate Pecan Toffee
If you have a nut and chocolate lover in your circle of friends, this may be the way to go to let them know that you’ve thought about them during this festive season. Simple and inexpensive to make (depending on how many nuts you use) this gift will melt in their mouth.
What About You?
Are you making any gifts for friend and family this Christmas? Would you share any of your ideas (and links if you have them) with the rest of us? We’d love to hear some more fun and inexpensive gifts to share this Christmas season.
Together lets Love, Learn, Practice, and Overcome
There are links in this post. Some of the links may be affiliate links. Some of the links may not be. My promise to you is that I will only recommend the most economical version of the best quality of items to serve you. These are the items that I have bought for my own family. You can feel free to use my affiliate links, of which I will get a small amount in compensation, or you can choose to search out your products on your own.
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