|
|
Christmas ;) Hi guys, it's me again. I've decided to blog here because I've somehow exceeded my daily post limit on Tumblr.. Don't know how I actually did it, but it happened anyway. So I'm back on my blogger, and since I've not blogged for quite some time and I'm pretty much very free right now, I think I will do all my readers a favor, I'll help you think of ideas as to what to give to your friends for Christmas that don't cost much, looks pretty, and most of all, BUDGET! I think you don't want to give some photo frame for Christmas and you also definitely won't want to receive them, neither do you want just some candy cane or cookies! So here are some interesting ideas, mostly I found them all over the internet and I'm compiling them into one big blogpost here, together with some link to pinterest/websites where I got these ideas from. I'll include where to get the separate items and roughly how much each gift will cost.. Who don't want to save money and still have things looking pretty right? Anyway, here we go!! #1 Personal Spa Set This is best if your girlfriends are into making themselves look pretty ;)  Citrus Salt Scrub (this is basically a body scrub, to get rid of dead skin cells) -> 1 cup sea salt - $2.95 (1KG), from NTUC -> 1/4 cup oil (olive, almond, or coconut), - $4.95 (1L), from NTUC -> 1/2 tsp lemon juice, - $1.10 (1pc), from Cold Storage.. I believe wet markets sell at cheaper price, so you should go and check out at the market too! -> Glass Jar - $3.90 (4pcs) // $1.90, from Ikea Instruction: Mix oil a little at a time with the salt. Add the zest. Drizzle the lemon juice over the mixture, making sure not to get it watery. Store in an airtight container. Oatmeal Sugar Scrub -> 1 cup brown sugar - $.3.35 (800g), from NTUC -> 1 cup raw oatmeal - $3.90 (800g), from NTUC -> 1 cup olive oil - $4.95 (1L), from NTUC -> Glass Jar - $3.90 (4pcs) // $1.90, from Ikea Instruction: Mix the ingredients together bit by bit until all is mixed together in the same consistency. Honey & Sugar Facial Scrub  -> 3/4 jar Honey - $8.50 (1kg) // $4.50 (500g), from NTUC -> Granulated Sugar - $1.35 (1kg), from NTUC -> Glass Jar - $3.90 (4pcs) // $1.90, from Ikea Instruction: Fill the jar with 3/4 of honey, then add the sugar bit by bit till it reaches the right consistency. (as shown above in the image) #2 Cookie Mix in a Jar This is best for those that love to bake, for parents/grandparents, for those that love to eat. 
Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
-> 2 cup flour - $.2.25 (1KG), from NTUC-> 1 teaspoon baking soda - $1.05 (100g), from NTUC -> 3/4 cup brown sugar - $.3.35 (800g), from NTUC -> 3/4 cup sugar, $1.35 (1kg), from NTUC -> 1 teaspoon salt - $0.40 (1kg), from NTUC -> chocolate chip - $3.45 (200g), from NTUC -> Glass Jar - $2.90 (1L) *you will need to use a 1L jar because the ingredients add up to that amount, if you want to use a smaller jar, reduce the amount of ingredients respectively. Put a note somewhere on the jar or attached to the jar to remind the person receiving the gift to add the wet ingredients which is: 1 cup butter 1 egg How to make the batter: 1. Preheat the oven to 180 degree celsius 2. Throughly blend the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients until a smooth consistency forms. 3. Put the batter about 3cm apart on the baking sheet 4. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until light brown Instruction: Layer the ingredients in the jar as followed. You may choose to print out the instructions (as shown in the picture above) or write it out on a card and give it together with the jar. REMEMBER THE WET INGREDIENTS! More ideas for food in a jug: http://www.buzzfeed.com/emofly/diy-food-gifts-in-jar?sub=2806489_2103943 #3 Personalized Mug This gift is best for anyone and every! I mean, everyone uses a mug right? :)  To make this you will need to find plain mugs.. I was looking through the Ikea website and found out that they are actually very cheap and they come in various colours! The few available colours are: White, Brown, Black, Turquoise. And the best of all THESE MUGS ONLY COST $0.90 EACH!  So of course besides the mug, you will also need a sharpie marker which you can get it at Popular for about $1.40, or you can use a slightly more expensive Painty Marker which cost about $2.30. (I'm not sure about the price of the marker, but the range is about there..) #4 Pet Treats When the pet is happy, the owner is happy too, right? So why not help your friend to make these treats for their little furry friends! :) And of course, this gift is specially for Cat or Dog owners! Happy Dog Treat  -> 1/4 cup Wheat Germ - Get it here, $3.90 -> 1/4 cup brewer's yeast - $1.80 (50g), from NTUC -> 1 teaspoon salt - $0.40 (1kg), from NTUC -> 1 1/2 tablespoon canola oil - $3.95 (1L), from NTUC -> 1/2 cup low-sodium canned chicken stock - $1.95 (80g), from NTUC (this is chicken stock CUBE) -> Storage Container JÄMKA - $1.90 (3pcs), from Ikea Instructions: 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, wheat germ, yeast, and salt; set aside 2. Place oil in a large bowl. Add stock and flour mixture in three alternating batches, beginning and ending with stock. Mix well. 3. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to about 3/8-inch thick. Shape biscuits using a dog-bone-shaped cookie cutter or by cutting around a store-bought dog bone with a butter knife.(Make biscuits that are appropriate for your dog's size.) 4. If desired, you can spell out your dog's name or a holiday message in the dough with a toothpick (wet the toothpick first so it won't stick). 5. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough. 6. Bake biscuits 10 minutes. Brush with stock; rotate baking sheets, and bake 10 minutes more. 7. Turn off oven, leaving door closed. Let dog biscuits stand in oven to dry completely, about 1 1/2 hours. 8. Wrap as a gift, or store in an airtight container at room temperature. Homemade Kitty Chicken Cookies  -> 1 ½ cups cooked chicken, shredded - about $2.50 depending on which part of the chicken -> 1 cup whole wheat flour - $2.15 (1kg), from NTUC -> ½ cup chicken broth - $1.30 (250ml), from NTUC -> 1/3 cup cornmeal - Price unknown, from Phoon Huat -> 1 tablespoon softened margarine, $2.55 from NTUC Instructions: 1. Preheating oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (about 175 Degree celsius) 2. Combine the chicken, broth and margarine, then add the cornmeal and flour. 3. Knead the dough into a ball and then roll it out to ¼ inch. 4. Cut into one-inch pieces and bake for 20 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. #5 Santa's Christmas Surprise Bag This is for anyone and everyone! It is a personal idea which I find it pretty cool.  Like you see here, it is a canvas bag. I got it at Muji at about $2.30 only, and the best part of all of that the bag is customizable. See the words on the bag? I stamped those words myself, and what more, the bag is useful when I go out or anything. If you're planning on getting this for a guy and they won't bring this out, just get the smallest size bag for about $1.10, it is still big enough to put things inside. There's no limit as to how you can design you bag, so while stamping, let your creative juices flow! What's next? Fill the bag with lots and lots of food or candy or things that person need! Let me give you some suggestions.. Most of the items below can be bought from Daiso or almost any other shopping mall ;) For the ladies: - Chocolate & sweets / Snacks - Hair tie - Bracelets - Nail Polish - Notebook - Cup - Maybe a cute hand towel - Eye shadow - Pens/markers - Hair clip - Travel size moisturizer/deodorant/perfume - Necklaces and if you have higher budget.. - wallet - voucher For the men: - Chocolate & sweets / Snacks - Socks - Pen/Marker - Notebook - Travel size hair wax/gel/spray - Handkerchief - Keychain - Phone cover - bracelet and if you have higher budget.. - laptop casing - shirt/pants - voucher #6 One Year of Dates This of course, is for your special someone. It could be for your best friend too, I feel. Just tweak a little here and there and you'll have lots of fun! The down side of this is that it requires some planning and research.. If you're ready for that then you're ready to go!  -> Envelope, as many as you like. (I would suggest not to get those big ones like above because it would really be quite a waste of money, small white ones will do) -> Nice box/jar to put all the envelope - $1.90 // $2.90 // $3.90 (depends on shape & size), from Ikea There are different ways you can choose to present this gift, you can put them in big jars and maybe give 2 jars, one for indoor and one for outdoor. Or like the picture above, you can separate them into months, and plan different activities for different months. Especially if the place you are from has different season, the activities inside each month cannot be used in other months due to weather restrictions. But for the fun of it all, try not to open another month's date beforehand. Okay, you might think, what kind of dates can I possibly think up of? Let me give you some idea.. :) - Laser tagging, bowling, go-kart, fishing - Do some sports.. Badminton/tennis/swimming/running/basketball/hiking/ - Go to the nearest bookstore, find a book and read together. - The classic dinner and movie. - Go to a flea market - Picnic - Have a mini BBQ - Go to a farm.. There are a lot of farms in Singapore. Find the list here :) - Slumber party (with your friends) - Game night.. Board game/Wii/Computer games/etc - Paint a picture - Record a cover of your favourite song - Cooking challenge - Plan for a vacation together - Do a photoshoot for each other - Decorate eggs for easter - Bake together! - Go to an arcade - AND MANY MORE!! :) You can always google or pinterest for awesome date ideas! Another idea that is VERY SIMILAR to the one above would be date in a box :) Basically you have a box and you put the things you want to do for the date inside the box, here's an example I found online.  #7 Recipe Ring This is specially for the mommies, granny, and those that cooks!  This would be a definite favourite for people that love to cook or bake! Instead of giving only the recipe, you may also want to get a box and put a few common spices that might come in handy while trying out the recipe that you've compiled together. (eg, Cinnamon, Turmeric, Pepper..) -> Cards - $2+ at any stationary shop -> Binder ring - $2+ at any stationary shop #8 Paint-dipped spoon set Anyone and everyone could make use of these colourful spoon don't you think? 
-> Wooden spoon - $1.90 (1pcs), from Ikea
-> Glove - $2, from Daiso
-> Paint - $2 each, from Daiso
-> Paint brush - $2 one set, from Daiso
-> Masking Tape - $1+, from Value Dollar Shop
Instructions:
1. Tape the boundary at the end of the spoon at which the painting stops
2. Paint the spoon.
3. Wait for the spoon to dry.
4. Take out the tape.
5. Put the spoons in a glove and present it with a nice ribbon :)
#9 DIY Infused Olive Oil
This can be for foodies that love salad, or for people that love to cook!
 -> 2 Lemon - $1.10 (1pc), from Cold Storage.. I believe wet markets sell at cheaper price, so you should go and check out at the market too! -> Olive Oil - $4.95 (1L), from NTUC -> 3 piece oil/vinegar set - $18.90, from Ikea Instruction: 1. Using a peeler, peel off the zest of the first lemon, try to prevent yourself from peeling the bitter white pith of the lemon, you won't want your oil to be bitter ;) 2. Put the zest into the glass bottle.. 3. In a saucepan, heat up the desired amount of olive oil until bubble appears. 4. While it is heating up, peel the second lemon out the same way as the first. 5. Add the lemon zest from the second lemon into the saucepan and let it steep for about 30 minutes. 6. Pour the oil into the glass bottle. 7. Remember to use within 10-14 days! Do the same but with the different spices ;) Have fun! #10 Infused Sugar Syrup This can be used to make your beverages a little more unique with this amazing twist ;) 
-> Mint leaf/Cranberry/Vanilla Bean - Price range from $2 ~ $9, Mint leaf and Cranberry can be found at most supermarket
-> Glass Jar - $3.90 ~ $11.90, depending on the design/shape/size, from Ikea
-> Sugar - $1.35 (1kg), from NTUC
Instruction:
1. Boil 1 part sugar to 2 part water
2. Boil until sugar is completely dissolved
3. Fill the glass with the desired fruit/spice
4. Pour the sugar syrup into the bottle, leave it open for it to cool down before closing the lid.
That's all for now! These are 10 ideas that I've found over the internet, tell me when you have more interesting and unique ideas!!! Till next time, Merry Christmas :D
 |