Counting the Cost Publications

Low-Cost Valentine's Day Gifts

Are you looking for some last-minute gift ideas for your sweetie? Below I’ve listed a few of my own ideas for low cost gifts that make a big impression. The suggestions are listed in two categories. Time and Talent Gifts are those that do not directly require any money, only your time and creativity and a few basic supplies you probably have lying around the house. Thrifty Gifts are those that require your time and less than $10. Use this list as a guide to help you come up with your own million dollar gifts for Valentine’s Day or any other gift giving occasion.

Time and Talent Gifts

Make your sweetie some homemade sweets. Try these Chocolate Peanut Clusters. You'll need: a 6oz bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips, a 10oz bag of peanut butter chips, and 12oz of salted cocktail peanuts. Melt the chocolate and peanut butter chips in the microwave on a medium setting for 2 - 3 minutes. Stir until completely melted and smooth. Add peanuts; mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Allow clusters to cool and set at room temperature. Present your gift in a recycled cardboard candy box or a decorative gift tin.
Make an "I Love You Because..." jar. Decorate a recycled jar and fill it with individual slips of paper, each listing something you love and appreciate about your sweetheart. If you are really ambitious, you can come up with 365 things-one for each day until next Valentine's Day.
Treat your loved one to a day or week off from duties such as housework, yard work, etc. What could be nicer for a stressed-out sweetie than a little time to relax?
Volunteer to do a major task that your beloved either doesn't like or hasn't had time to do. Do that mountain of ironing. Clean out the garage. Paint the spare bedroom.
Present your loved one with an IOU for an evening of your undivided attention. Explain that on that night, you'll be free to talk, listen, cook dinner, give a massage-whatever you sweetheart asks you to do.
Arrange for your spouse to enjoy a long, luxurious bath. Make her feel like she's visiting a day spa by drawing the water and setting out the best towels. Light candles, dim the lights and make her a cup of her favorite warm beverage. Make yourself and the kids scarce, but be available just in case she needs anything.

Thrifty Gifts

Using your computer’s desktop publishing program and scanner, write a book about the history of your relationship. Include photos along with your recollections of how the relationship has grown and changed over time. When you finish, take your masterpiece to a copy shop to have it attractively bound.
Shop at used bookstores, thrift shops or garage sales for gently used items that would make great gifts. A book by a favorite author. Old issues of a favorite magazine. A collectible to add to your spouse’s collection.
Have an enlargement made of a photo from a special time the two of you shared together. House the photograph in an inexpensive frame and present it with a handwritten note about a special memory you have from the day the photo was taken.
Give your sweetie an ordinary food gift made in an extraordinary way. With the Valentine’s Day theme in mind, whip up a heart-shaped homemade pizza, giant-sized cookie, or a decorated brownie with red and white frosting.
Is there an old song that holds special significance in your relationship? What about a movie the two of you saw together in your early years of dating? Rekindle those fond memories by giving your loved one the album containing that song or the video of that particular movie.

These creative ideas plus over 100 more can be found in Celebrate Simply: Your Guide to Simpler, More Meaningful Holidays and Special Occasions. You’ll also find page after page of practical tips for reducing holiday stress and expense and increasing spiritual significance of celebrations. To order, visit our order page or order through Amazon.com.