Ask Lemmy

I've been in your situation, and had friends in your situation. So here's my advice.

Get them nothing.

Others have suggested baked goods or something which is fine if you can bake but they know exactly where your life is right now.

Instead, write them a letter, a physical letter in ink, on a nice card or something, expressing how grateful you are for their help and you're so happy to spend the holidays with them. It's what I did, it's what others did when I helped them out. It's all that should be needed. I'm still extremely close with all of them and we now shower each other with gifts to make up for then.

Just my 5¢ (adjusted for inflation)

Any sort of festive food: for example, chocolate, mince pies, etc. Lindor truffles are nice and a small box is affordable, or perhaps some Guylian chocolate seashells. If you know she's into something specific (a posh marmalade or jam, for example) you could go with that instead. It demonstrates you chose something whilst thinking of them.

Such gifts are relatively affordable, easy to share and almost always appreciated.

Bake something super easy.

Fudge and/or peppermint bark make great gifts and are both pretty easy to make for any skill level. Dress it up with a dollar store Christmas tin and bow for extra appeal.

three ingredient peppermint bark

fudge

As someone who is well off and helps a lot of people. A heartfelt note/letter.cost ya nothing.

A nice Christmas card with a handwritten personal note just saying how much you really have appreciated their kindness this past year. It doesn't need to be detailed, just an honest and simple recognition and appreciation means a lot.

Cookies are cheap and easy

Bake her a loaf of bread:

Here's the simplest recipe possible, absolutely no kneading, 4 ingredients (I add 1 tbs of oil, softer crust, which makes 5 ingredients)...you just have to leave it to rise for 15-24 hrs, so it ain't quick. If you want a cheese bread, add a cup of shredded cheese plus another tsp salt.

Four Ingredient Artisan Bread

Sorry, but are you British? It doesn't fully make sense for your aunt to be some hardcore MAGA person and you're all "shite" and "tonne."

Edit: Where is your aunt? That has an impact on possible responses.

If your aunt has a garden, some native flower seeds could make a nice gift— at my local garden center they run about $1-2 per packet. Tie up a few packets with some rustic twine, and you’re good to go. If it’s in your budget, add a small hand trowel or pair of gardening gloves. Note: take a look at what gardening zone she lives in and check the seed packets to determine how the plants would fair in that area.

Invite them to do something with you, bonus if it's something that's best to do in spring or summer because that gives you time to save.

For example:

• A picnic in a beautiful outdoor space near you e.g. park, botanical gardens, etc.
• A game where you solve clues together to get to the next destination. Where I live we have a few different ones that take you around different parts of the city. (I was gifted this and really enjoyed it.)

I'd lean toward making something. What depends on what youre good at/interested in.

For example, we've been making Christmas cards. Its just random designs on watercolor paper. Then you cut that paper out into shapes, and take some cardboard to go underneath, and glue it onto cardstock. This particular idea comes from Andrea Nelson, simple watercolor tags and cards.

The results are great, and a personally written, handmade card... Well to me that beats out most cheap gifts because it has thought and intention behind it.

You can also make ornaments (there are some great ones like a marbling paint bath for cheap wooden ornaments from craft stores, taking cheap ornaments and repainting them with more details, cheap craft ornaments and doing a chalky finish, felt and glitter, whatever) or whatever else. We do a lot of crafting and repurposing here, in case you couldn't guess.

Maybe you could bake some bread, make cookies, a pie, etc.

You mentioned a plant - what about a cheap planter with some custom work on it?

Maybe some dining room placemats if youre good at sewing?

Mugs with the mixings for hot chocolate?

Diy air freshener with some essential oils?

It doesnt have to be a lot of money, complicated, etc to be a great gift. One year I printed up an old map of an area my parents lived in, and traced specific roads and important spots I knew about in twine on the map (with a decent bit of glue obviously, then mod podged the whole damn thing).

So, what things are you into creating? How could that be related to a gift that shows your appreciation?

I would say bring the gift of food, like appetizers or special chocolates for everyone.

Maybe a fun party game would be cool too. This is a good game to play because the wrong ones are the best ones: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telestrations (no affiliation). Cards Against Humanity can be fun, but it can also be awkward.

A plant for the aunt sounds perfect. If the partner is a woman, a different plant for her too, yes it's normative but as a woman myself I like a plant. For the guys a big bottle of fancy beer is often appreciated, unless they don't/shouldn't drink. One I'm liking these days is La Fin Du Monde because it feels like we're living in the end of the world. It's 750 ML, so wine-sized, but beer. About $12 at BevMo in my area.

Can you get your hands on a pencil and a piece of paper? If yes, that's really all you need for a well-worded letter or card. If you want to get a gift, you can try and look into second-hand markets in your area, those usually have cheap things that might be nice. You can also check online markets, because with luck, you can find stuff for free. Sometimes people give away plants as well.

Of course, if you get anything second-hand, inspect the items for stuff like dirt, holes, anything broken, etc. With a plant you should check it for pests and diseases as well.

I don't think you need to use fancy art supplies necessarily. Some plain paper and a black biro world probably be fine if you put time and effort into coming up with something nice and heartfelt for them. It sounds like they care about you deeply, in which case something as unique as custom art would mean a bit. Maybe a little flip animation book or something.

My wife and I usually send a little gift card to each of our numerous nieces and nephews when they graduate highschool. One of our nieces is a talented artist, and she sent back a nice little picture she made using my colored chalks on a scrap of paper as a way of saying thanks. It really made our week.

Any food item to contribute to appetizers/dinner. Better if it's homemade or anything that you can say "i tried this recently and thought you would like it."

Yesterday I made orange marmalade without following any specific recipe, I just went by instinct from my experience with other types of jams.

Ingredients:
2Kg of oranges
2Kg of sugar

This yielded 6 jars of 450ml

I used juice oranges because they're the cheapest available right now.

Juice the oranges and keep all the pulp and the peels. Cut the peels into thin, inch long strips.

Put the orange juice, the pulp, the peels and the sugar on top into a cooking pot. Turn on the heat and stir until it starts to boil. At first it will be rather solid but soon enough it will turn liquid. Once it starts to boil, lower the heat so it boils slowly and at this point you just have to keep stirring to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Keep at it for 45 minutes or 1 hour.

Then prepare the jars. I usually boil them for a few minutes, fill them immediately and put the lid tightly on. Then I boil the closed jars in a big pot for about 30-45 more minutes.

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I'm guessing your aunt knows you don't have a lot of money, so I don't think youbneed to worry too much about price - the thought is more important. Chocolates are a safe option, maybe a book if they like reading.

Origami bouquet of flowers or arrangement of animals? Alternately origami Christmas ornaments?

I've been on both sides of this and I absolutely hate receiving gifts that are purchased.

The gifts that make my ugly cry into a pillow are handmade. Whether it's a crocheted lap blanket, some cookies, or a card with a handwritten note, I will remember those forever.

If they know your situation, they will be riddled with guilt if you buy them anything. It sounds like you have a good person in your life and they want what's best for you with no strings attached ❤️

Something self-made is probably the way to go. Another option could be books, especially if you can come up with something that both meant a lot to you and you think would be enjoyed by the recipients. This can be quite cheap if you have secondhand bookstores nearby, and you can personalize them with a handwritten inscription.

I make homemade raspberry jam. It's Certo's freezer jam recipe, and it's so easy: mash the fruit, add the sugar, stir. Add fresh lemon to the pectin, add to the fruit, stir. Leave on counter for 24 hours, put in containers and put in either fridge or freezer.

Honestly, that's it, and it seems everyone loves raspberry jam. Or if other fruit is more within your budget, Certo has several other freezer jam recipes.

I mean honestly I don't think you can go wrong with funny socks, or just warm socks, or socks in general. I like a good sock. Maybe like festive t-shirts or something. A family set maybe. Or just you know candy and or treats of some sort. Maybe everyone's favorites.

A gift card to a local nursery! (Plant nursery)

"Fancy" spices if any of them is into cooking (penzeys is an example shop). Or a nice cookbook.

Tea or coffee if they're into it

Gift subscription to like an online publication they're interested in

Embroidery kit

Hot sauce

Flashlight/headlamp, first aid kit, weather radio

Plant, bottle of wine if cousin and partner drink, decent pocket knife. I don't know your budget so ..