Clutter-free gift giving works for me! Check out more Works-For-Me ideas! Tired of giving stuff? You can make the move away from the "materialistic focus" of gift-giving to a "love focus" with clutter-free gift giving.
Clutter-free gift (CFG) giving is the act of gifting items that do not add more stuff (often unneeded) to the recipient's' homes. Many CFGs also let the person know you were truly thinking about their likes, passions and interests.
I offered these 5 areas to think about: Experiences, Donations, Time, Consumables, and Expressions of your love and gratitude.
Moving down the list, today I will be sharing 5 great CFG ideas related to time..
- Volunteer your time at a soup kitchen.
- Offer to help wrap presents for your family and friends.
- Surprise a busy mom by offering to watch her children so she is can have an afternoon to herself.
- Set up a day for your friends to finish their holiday shopping and preparations while you watch their children (see example below).
- Offer to provide transportation for someone who is unable to drive them self so they can do their weekly shopping, errands or appointments.
Because it's a little tricky to wrap time in a box, you can get creative with how you present such gifts. For example, letters, cards, or coupon booklets work well. Here's an example of a letter I sent to three of our dear friends just last week.
Please share your time gift ideas! More clutter-free gift ideas to come.........
13 comments:
These are all great ideas and what a helpful blog. Glad I found you!
Paula, you have the BEST ideas! Personally, I like idea #3!!! Can I drop my kids off with you too??!! I'm sure your friends are really gonna appreciate your willingness to watch their kids...you are an awesome friend!
Helene,
Sure, drop them off. Are you close to Wisconsin? One of my friends told me that this was the best gift they ever got from a friend. That alone filled my heart. It touched me because she was touched-it wasn't so much about me. That's what giving is about.
I used to do #3 for my sister when she lived here. She has 4 kids, so it was hard to do her Christmas shopping. I'd offer to spend a day with the girls so that she could go out alone. She loved it!
These are all good ideas. I thought of pretty cannisters as my clutter-free gift idea, but I'm thinking that's just going to hide clutter if not add to it... I'll have to keep thinking.
These are some great ideas. I'll have to do this for my friends this year! not only is it clutter-free but it is great financially as well!!
You know, when my kids were little, I would have LOVED this! A gift of babysitting? A few hours to myself, to do with as I please, with no "obligation" to reciprocate? I would have been all over that one!
Thanks for sharing these helpful ideas! They all sound great:)
All of these ideas are perfect. I hope that people will think about single moms this time of year especially. They have their hands full.
The babysitting gift is ALWAYS a plus for parents! :-)
Hey Paula, did you redo your main site, or was it always like that? I love it.
I am all about clutter-free gifts, giving and receiving them. I hate clutter in my house and I hate giving it to other people!
Hi Kate,
No, I didn’t redo my blog, but added new pics to promote Holiday Tips and Clutter-Free Gift Giving. As always, thanks for stopping by.
It’s funny, now that clutter-free gifts are really on my mind this year it comes up in conversation a lot. Freedom from stuff!
What great ideas! If everyone followed these tips we would be able to move away from the materialistic side of the holiday.
Post a Comment