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30 Gifts Under 20 Dollars
Anyone can pick up a cheap gift given time but when it's a last minute thing, you might need a little help. So for you, here are THIRTY presents that are:- Easy to find (directions included!)
- Appropriate for nearly anyone
- Useful
- $20 or less
Ok, let's get to it: - Lottery Tickets.
They're easy to find (gas station or grocery store), fun and different, and you can spend exactly what you want. Especially good for hard-to-buy-for friends. Put them right in the card or wrap them with a ribbon. - Amazon.com
gift certificate. You can email it to them or print to your computer. - A Starbucks gift certificate. Kids can use it for hot chocolate and muffins.
- iTunes gift certificate
, good for music or apps. - Texting gloves. So you can text while keeping your fingers warm. (See right.)
- A colorful throw pillow.
- A good cigar.
- A Magazine Subscription.
 For as little as $8, it's a gift that says "thanks" every month! Buy a magazine related to one's area of interest, stick a bow on it and attach a note saying: "11 more on the way". Or browse magazine gifts under 20 dollars here. - Coasters.
- Mittens. I'm always losing mine.
- A bouquet of flowers. Costco has huge ones for $15 or of course you can have flowers delivered
. - Wine. There are lots of decent wines for under $20. The best selections of budget wine you can run out and get NOW are at Costco, Trader Joe's, and Cost Plus. Or just send them something via Wine.com
. - An umbrella. I'm always losing mine.
- Earrings or a cool bracelet.
- A pretty bottle topper.
 - A Baseball cap... for a favorite sports team. If it's a local team you should be able to find one just about anywhere, or else try the mall. Most have whole stores devoted to baseball caps, or else get one from a clothing store your gift subject likes such as Abercrombie or The Gap.
 - Board Games
. I like Twister or Yahtzee because they're good family and/or party games. Or a deck of cards along with a book of card games. That's like 20 fun gifts under 20 dollars. - A plant in a pretty pot.
- A stylish serving platter.
  - A cocktail set
. - A Candle. You can find them at Target, the drugstore, your grocery store, or any little boutique-y store nearby. It will probably be ready to present as-is, or else tie a ribbon around it or have the store put it in a little gift bag with tissue paper.
 - Kitchen Gadgets. Go to Bed Bath & Beyond and spend your 20 on one "big" thing like a digital cooking thermometer (I LOVE mine) or scoop up several little items with a theme like Baking: cake tester ($1), measuring spoons ($3), cookie scoop ($8), oven mitt ($3), and small cookie tin or jar or cookbook ($5).
 - A stuffed animal.
- A small but high-quality bottle of liquor.
- Beauty-related things. Go to Sephora or Ulta and ask someone there. They have tons of products, lots of ideas, and almost all of them are packaged adorably.
 - Stationery. This works for men or women, kids or adults, and can be found very last minute at a drugstore, Target, even some higher-end grocery stores.
  - Coffee. I just love gifting coffee. Assuming your target is a coffee drinker, they can use it any time of day, any time of year. Whether you give a gift card or the real deal, it's one of my favorite picks for last minute gifts under 20 dollars.
 - Candy. You must have a See's or a Fannie May nearby. Use it!
- Home-baked anything. Bread, cookies, scones, muffins... make bake it and take it. You're done.
Here is my favorite last minute cookie recipe. It has just 4 ingredients and takes like 20 minutes from start to finish. It calls for chocolate cake mix but you can use whatever flavor you have on hand.Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies- 1 package chocolate cake mix
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Mix together cake mix, butter and eggs until smooth and well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
If none of those gifts under 20 dollars did it for you, here are a couple more: - Anything listed on the Hostess Gift Ideas page on this site.
More gifts under 20 dollars to come...
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