I love giving gifts, but I love receiving them, too! Not anything fancy, a coffee from Starbucks will put a smile on my face. Gifts don’t have to be expensive. I’m such a bargain shopper, I hope you are too, because gift giving doesn’t need to cost an arm and a leg. By keeping a reserve of gifts on hand you will save time and money, and you’ll never show up empty handed.
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, but there are other reasons to give gifts. I like to give gifts to friends who have helped me out as a way to say “thank you.” If possible, I like to make a gift personal, but that’s not always the case. You know when you’re invited last minute to a birthday dinner for a friend of a friend and you don’t want to show up with nothing?
In that case, I go to my gift “reserve” and I pick something appropriate. Each item in the reserve is something I too would like to receive. It comes in very handy and you don’t need to keep a lot of inventory on hand, just a few small items for those times you need a gift.
I typically buy items on clearance after Christmas and I look out for things such as:
- Jewelry {earrings or necklaces}
- Candles
- Picture Frames
- Knick Knacks or home décor {anything with an owl on it will brighten anyone’s day}
- Gourmet Food Items and Candy {best not purchased on clearance}
- Wine {stock up during a sale}
- Books {Celebrity books, or books on famous places are good choices}
Think of your friends and what they like so when their birthday rolls around and you haven’t had time to get to the store, you already have something on hand. Keeping a small stash of gifts also comes in handy for Teacher Appreciation Week {it comes around faster each year,} just to say “I appreciate you,” or as a hostess gift.
If all else fails, head to the closest convenience store and put together a gift bag of goodies including scratchers, candy, beef jerky and a can of PBR.
