Hi,
Ive been with my girlfriend for 3 years now and i love her loads and loads.
trouble is because of money etc we have decided to be creative and set a limit of £20 for christmas presents this year.
I am fresh out of ideas, so i turn to you my trusted friends for some advice, any advice of what to get/do to make a memorable gift on a serious buget!
thanks in advance
Buy her 20 quid’s worth of male gay porn, and tell her it’s time to open her mind. I bet you it’ll be memorable! 
Seriously, though. What kind of girl is she?
Shop Shop Shop Shop Shop!
You never when or where you may come across a great bargin. Some of my best, inexpensive gifts were found when I went out ‘just looking’ with no set idea on what to get.
Slight problem here - this is not in the male psyche (at least, it’s certainly not in mine). Men and women tend to shop in entirely different ways: females do it as a leisure activity, males like to go in with a purpose and complete the job as quickly as possible (yes, I know these are generalisations). Anyway, that’s a whole other thread; I came in because I will face the same problem as the OP shortly and would appreciate any input! So what I’m trying to say is: your approach doesn’t work for me. Nice idea if you have loads of time :).
Give service rather than product - IOW, give her a “good for” coupon, e.g. “Good for breakfast in bed on 2 mornings of your choice.” The details to be based on her preferences.
Does she cook or bake? Last year a friend of mine got me some nice pans and one of these fancy schmancy whisks for under $25. Awesome, useful, and something I probably wouldn’t have bought for myself.
I don’t like the coupons thing myself- I know some people find it sweet, but I dunno, I’d probably do those things for my SO anyway without it being a gift, and hopefully they’d do them for me.
Maybe if you tell us what kind of interests she has?
Music…the gift that keeps on giving. (Maybe you can purchase the song you were listening to when you met or something.)
A book with an incredibly romantic inscription from you.
You could write a poem or something and frame it for her.
Take a look in an antique store. You can pick up really cool things on the cheap if you know where to look.
I’ve seen someone give the favor coupons, and the response was the same as amaranta. “Why do I need this paper to get you to to something for me?” It’s not the reaction you want to risk getting on Christmas. I don’t think that guy was happy for a couple months after that present.
Nice earrings or necklaces are nice.
Foot lotion–include foot massage coupons.
A cute wind-up toy or something she can have on her desk.
A picture frame with the 2 of you in it.
Small but interesting pieces of chocolates.
A special ornament for the tree…and then give her one every year.
£20 - so I assume you don’t live in Detroit.
And assuming those are British Pounds, that = US$ 34.72400
Not a bad price for a gift. No flights to Hawaii, but a start.
For about $35 in the States you could buy any one (or mabye combination of two) of the following:
Bath and body lotions
Scented candles
DVD of her favorite movie
Bottle of wine and some take out from a favorite restaurant
Tickets for two to a movie
Tickets for a concert (at smaller, cheaper venues)
Ask her mother if there was a doll or toy in her childhood that either they couldn’t afford, or that she cherished and lost - then go to eBay and see if you can find one.
You could look into these two sites to see if there is anything there you might like to get her. (I believe both places have international shipping too.) The first is The Museum Store Company. I like Claude Monet’s Palm tree brooch. It costs $34. IIRC, this is the company that Mr. Clawbane got a green amber and silver ring from for a Christmas gift for me one year. (It was forty dollars, which he earned mowing lawns and doing yardwork for elderly neighbors.) Their shipping is reliable. The other store is The Museum Shop. I’m not certain how reliable the shipping for this company is. I likeSalt Dyed Silk Scarf for $24.95, Amber Teardrop Pendant $14.95, Murano Glass Gold Leaf Bracelet $19.95, and Amber Flower Pendant $18.95. For romantic gifts I think Two Drop Pearl Necklace $19.95, or Green Amber Claddagh Ring $19.95 are nice. Good luck, I hope my suggestions are a bit helpful.
Buy one of the those picture frames that holds a dozen or so photos. Have your mom put photos of you as a child in half the slots. Let her put her pictures in the other half.
Also, offer to marry her. Girls like that.
Wow!
Thank you all for your advise!
I like all the ideas.
I was kinda thinking along the lines of making something for her, something special, yet silly.
she would much prefer something cheap that i had put some time into than something that cost £1000 i bought at the last minute.
Not that kinda girl!!
That would prob end our relationship!
Shes a nice girl who likes simple things. Doesnt really go for designer labels etc.
If you want to give better gifts, the time you put into thinking about it and selecting it will greatly improve the quaitly.
Men do shop. They shop for TV and computers, and for stereo equipment and cars. So when a man is interested in something, he will find the time for it. Are you interested in your girlfriend? Then put in the same ammount of time you would put into buying a tv and your gifts will become much better. (and cheaper)
Another thing – maybe you could do this in addition to candles, lotion, etc. – is make a memory jar. Go buy an inexpensive but nice big jar (here I’d go to Cost Plus or Pier One, but I don’t know about where you are – ideally, you want an artsy sort of jar, not just a mason jar), and write or type up all your good memories and inside jokes on little bits of paper, maybe in different colors. Maybe all the things you love about her, too. Whatever – and then put them in the jar. It’ll take some time, but it shouldn’t be too expensive, and you can keep adding to it.
Maybe, if you do all one color paper this year, you can sneak additional memories in on different colored paper, in the future. Ooh, and if you get there, you could even use that to propose! 
Oh My Gawd. That is the coolest thing ever. If I thought my husband would prefer this over a new radiator, I’d have so much fun doing it. I suppose this could be adjusted for children, parents, and best friends. I’m going to have to do this for SOMEONE.
Some kinds of candy are extemely easy to make – for example crunchy toffee (here we call it “English” or “Butter” toffee) which only has 2 required ingredients and doesn’t even need a candy thermometer to come out right. If you find the perfect thing for 22GBP you can spend your last 3 on a batch of homemade candy, such as sells in fancy stores for upwards of $25/lb around here.
Butter Toffee with or without nuts (almonds and pecans are most popular.)
Does your lady have a car? One of my favorite gifts when my SO was broke is that he would thoroughly clean my car for me. Vacuum, wipe down all the surfaces, clear out the trash, wash the exterior, etc. This can be a several-hours-long job (I’m kind of hard on cars) that can cost at least $80 and up to $300 if you have it professionally done, so its not like the “breakfast in bed” type service gift.
I think we have a winner!
This has to be the perfect gift. Im sure she will love it!
Thank you for a fantastic idea!
I knew you wouldnt let me down
