Gift Baskets

Gift baskets are a great way to give a personalized gift and they can be frugal too. I pick up baskets or fun containers at garage sales to hold all of the goodies. You can be creative too and hold the items in something other than a basket such as a hat box, trash can, or sand pail. By shopping all year long, you can put together a great gift basket for pennies. These make great gifts for Christmas and other holidays. Here are a few of my favorite baskets I've put together:

Family Night: For this one, I put in an age appropriate game, DVD, and snacks. It gives the family an excuse to spend time together and it saves you money by buying one gift for the family instead of a gift for each person.

Movie Basket: If you know a movie the recipient would like, go ahead and buy it when you see it on sale. If you do not know their taste, put in a gift card for movie rentals. I also add bags of microwave popcorn and movie theater boxes of candy (you can buy these at the dollar store). My favorite way to tie it all together is to put it in a popcorn bowl. Last year, I found some great bowls in the dollar section at Target.

Food: This is great for college students and foodies alike. For college students, put in basic cooking utensils and packages of muffin, cookie, and/or cake mixes. Easy things to eat are great too such as Chex Mix, granola bars, or small packages of candy. One of my friends knows I love to cook so last year she put together the ingredients for chocolate pretzel candy, a sample she made, and the recipe card in a nice Christmas container. It was a great gift for me and I'm thinking of doing something similar this year for my foodie friends.

For the bride: A practical gift for the new couple just starting out is a laundry basket full of cleaning supplies. By shopping sales, you can pick these up for cheap and it will greatly help out the new couple.

What are some fun gift baskets you have put together or received? Feel free to leave a comment letting my readers now.