As the season of gift giving has arrived, so has the anxiousness of finding and buying gifts.
There are some people who like to exchange presents, but for others, it is a long and stressful search to figure out a gift. It is even harder to find a good gift that doesn’t break the bank.
To make it easy this year, I propose that everybody goes cheap and makes their gifts.
A lot of students are considered broke because they are unable to work during the semester, or they work a part-time job. Even while working, most part-time jobs pay barely enough for students to get the necessities that they need.
Audrey Couch, a junior art and art history major, said that she will try to make many of her gifts. "My mom likes when I make her something," said Couch. "She'd rather that than me spend $90 on a hoodie she might wear three times in a year."
One of the easiest ways not to break the bank is to create a DIY gift. While it is not uncommon knowledge that this is an option, the art of creating a gift from scratch has been lost.
If you're good with your hands, an option could be what junior Lina Spiropoulos did by making something with fabric. “I sometimes gift DIY stuff, like this one time I made an embroidered blanket," said Spiropoulos.
Things such as creating a custom ornament, themed calendar, or custom journal work as great gifts for anybody.
Cheap gifts are versatile because they can also be edible. Let's be honest, most people would love some baked goods during the holidays.
Being a senior, I have become used to giving out cheap presents to my family for Christmas, and nobody has said anything about it.
The best tip is to get ahead early if you are planning to do a DIY gift; have a plan of action.
The year I made a calendar for my uncle, I started in November. The following year, I made my cousin a themed sign of his favorite sports team, which I started in September.
Giving a cheap or DIY gift is not something that college students should be ashamed of doing. After all the work and nonsense that happens in a semester, I think the last thing students should be worried about is finding and paying for an expensive gift.
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