Awesome gifts under ten dollars? Yes! It’s possible, and here is how: make them yourself! You can make gifts so beautiful, they’ll look artisan-made. They can be personalized for an extra special touch or made in bulk to cross everyone off your gift list this holiday season.
Making your own homemade gifts is always my go-to for the holidays. With so much heart, time, and personality poured into them, you simply cannot get these items from the store.
There is one catch, though. Homemade gift-giving can often be as expensive or more than store-bought gifts if you’re not careful. I know I have walked out of a craft shop, looking at my receipt, wondering how I spent so much on just the supplies.
There is just so much to make and so many cool supplies to stock up on, right? But really, if you follow my tips, you can make all 20 of these gifts under ten dollars each.
Here’s what we’ll be making!
Tips for Keeping Homemade Gifts Affordable
If you are smart and savvy, you can create some pretty sensational gifts with just a few inexpensive supplies. There are plenty of crafty treasures you can create for a fraction of the price of store-bought. The best part is that they look much more expensive and will put a huge grin on the face of your recipient.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when you are making handmade gifts on a budget:
- There are many frugal gift ideas that don’t come from the dollar store. If you have a longer list than your bank account will allow, make some of these in bulk, and the savings will pour in.
- Stick to projects with supplies you have on hand, can find for free, or can buy for cheap.
- Watch out for specialized equipment. If you don’t have a sewing machine or a double boiler, don’t buy one just to start the project. There are ways you can work around the equipment (borrow a sewing machine, make a double boiler) or choose another project.
- Don’t rush. If you have a project in mind but don’t need the materials “like-yesterday,” then you can keep your eyes peeled for a sale when you are out shopping. I pick up silicone candy moulds whenever I see them on sale because of the many ways I can and want to use them (bath melts, chocolates, homemade crayons, etc.)
- Hold a handcrafted gift swap with some friends. Arrange a few talented folks to each make a large batch of one gift, then have a party to trade with your pals. A party with friends swapping handmade gifts is much more appealing than shopping for gifts!
20 Homemade Gifts Under Ten Dollars
Now let’s get onto the ideas! Here are some fabulous DIY gifts under ten dollars, and the steps to make them.
1. Monogrammed Herbal Drawer Fresheners
These monogrammed drawer fresheners work for nearly everyone on your list, especially a fashionista or someone who pays extra special attention to their clothes. Made of scrap fabric, these drawer fresheners help to keep away that musty smell and add some fresh herbal scent to stored clothes.
2. Evergreen Pressed Herb Candles
Making your own candles is such a fun activity to do. I’ve made all kinds of candles, but these rosemary pressed herb candles are some of my favourites. You can do this with any pressed flowers, herbs, or foliage from your garden or neighbourhood. To keep them cost-friendly, opt for 16-oz pint jars or smaller. Use recycled or secondhand vessels!
3. Rainbow Beaded Wind Chime
This beaded wind chime was originally designed as garden art, but it makes stunning decor hanging in a window as well. This project is ideal for someone who already has beads on hand or can get beads in bulk. Beads can be on the pricey end of things, so opt to buy a bulk bead set or get them on sale from a craft store.
4. Lavender and Cocoa Butter Bath Melts
If someone in your life likes luxuriating in the bath, I highly recommend making a batch of these lavender and cocoa butter bath melts. They’re super easy to make by melting the ingredients together on the stovetop and pouring them into a silicone mould. Whoever gets them can easily pop one in the bath and experience the luxury of soothed, moisturized skin.
5. Modern Macrame Plant Hangers
Spend one afternoon learning the art of macrame, and you might get hooked on the craft. Pair this macrame plant hanger with a plant propagation from your own houseplant collection to make it super affordable and personal.
6. Hammered Flower Print Cards
If you’d like a low-cost card to add to your gift or perhaps as a way to personalize a gift card, these hammered flower print cards take the beauty of what’s growing in your garden to gift. Make them out of any fresh flowers, whether that’s a blooming houseplant or a bouquet from the grocery store.
7. Clay Leaf Dishes
These clay leaf dishes are made using the real imprint of a leaf on air-dry clay. Aren’t they gorgeous? They can be used as soap dishes, to hold jewelry, for trinkets, or to display all on their own.
8. Camping Fire Starters
If you have an outdoorsy person on your gift list, these fire starters are a great gift to make. Anyone who has an indoor fireplace or an outdoor fire pit would appreciate these. Use cupcake moulds to make a ton of these wax fire starters and top them off with all kinds of craft scraps and foraged materials.
9. Vintage Silver Planters
This ten dollar gift idea is for all my thrifters out there! I love the look of succulents in vintage silver, pewter, and china. I used a milk and sugar set to make my own set. They work great as centrepieces or to add to an existing houseplant collection.
10. Hand-Stamped Fabric Napkins
These hand-stamped fabric napkins are one of my favourites for a hostess gift. All you need to make them are a set of fabric napkins, fabric paint, a roller brush, and a stamp of your choice. I went with trees for a holiday theme, but you can stamp any design that feels on theme for your recipient.
11. Lavender and Oatmeal Tub Teas
I make a ton of bath salts with many dried ingredients, but sometimes I hate the cleanup afterward. Especially after you’ve been relaxing! Tub teas solve the issue of your bath getting messy by keeping all the herbal goodness in a single large tea bag. Again, you can really customize this one based on what ingredients you choose to fill your tub tea with.
12. Natural Branch Coasters
Working with wood can be intimidating, but these natural branch coasters are a great place to start. The key is to find the perfect branch that is neither too big nor too small to make coasters with. Once you have that, all you need are a hand saw, sandpaper, and clear varnish.
Note: the wood does take a long time to dry. Months in fact! To speed things up, buy pre-cut wood slices.
13. Sand Art Terrarium
This may be one of my easiest gifts under ten dollars on this list. Sand art terrariums feature a small potted plant amongst layers of coloured art sand.
The key to keeping this project inexpensive is to choose a cheap glass container (reuse one or buy one secondhand) and only choose a couple of sand colours for layering.
14. Sweet Acorn Nest Necklace
If you squirrel away things like I do, then you just might have a few acorn caps in your collection. The “eggs” in this acorn nest necklace are made of small beads. Of course, the chain itself can be as expensive or affordable as you’d like. I’d recommend buying secondhand to get a decent quality chain for under ten dollars.
15. Dried Flower Embroidery Suncatcher
If you’ve ever wanted to try embroidery, these dried flower hoops are a fun spin on it. Embroidery hoops are fairly inexpensive to buy, as is the tulle used as the background. On top, you can glue or sew in dried flowers from your garden or inexpensively found online.
16. Wooden Flower Press
If there’s a flower lover in your life, or someone who loves to craft as much as you do, a wooden flower press is the perfect gift. You do need a drill and saw to complete this project, so it’s best for someone who already has these tools on hand or can easily borrow. If you do, it’s fairly inexpensive to make but super cute.
17. Seashell Beeswax Tealights
I made these seashell beeswax tealights years ago, and they remain one of my most fun projects. If you live near the ocean, then chances are you know a good spot where you can find plenty of shells for this project. Because they’re so small, they don’t use up much wax or wicks. Create a bundle of them and they’re the perfect gift.
18. Peppermint and Coconut Foot Scrub
Everyone in your life could use a little pampering. This peppermint and coconut foot scrub does three things: scrubs and exfoliates tired feet, moisturizes with coconut oil, and leaves a pleasant cooling sensation thanks to the peppermint.
19. Herb-Scented Tea Trivet
Are you good with a sewing machine? I love making little projects like this, as I can use up my scrap fabric. This hot pad (or tea trivet) is filled with spices and dried herbs to provide a delicious scent once something warm is placed on it. It serves two purposes!
20. Air Plant Holder
Last but certainly not least is my air plant holder. One of my most popular Pinterest projects, air plants are super cool plants that can flourish in the smallest of spaces. Rather than glue them down, make an air plant holder to go alongside the plant as a gift.
More Homemade Gift Ideas!
A city girl who learned to garden and it changed everything. Author, artist, Master Gardener. Better living through plants.
