Easy DIY Hamper Ideas For Gifts Under $30

Looking for some DIY hamper ideas? Hampers make great gifts. Save money and personalise the hamper to your recipient by making your own.

DIY gift hampers make great frugal gifts because you can put together a lot of little inexpensive items, present them nicely and give a gift that will be appreciated.

Below are ten gift hamper ideas that you can put together yourself. But before we get to the list, I’ve shared some tips on how to make awesome gift hampers on a tight budget.

How to Save Money On DIY Gift Hampers

There are a few tricks to saving money on gift hampers while still putting together something nice.

Some of the gift hampers below look like they cost a lot more than $30. But a little planning and savvy shopping can mean a lovely hamper for very little.

(Hint: a few of the hampers pictured cost less than $10.)

Here are six strategies for saving money on gift hampers that impress.

1. Think about what your recipient will like

For a gift that is really appreciated, you don’t want to throw any old things in your gift hamper.

Instead, you want to think about the things your recipient would like to receive.

If you’re going to give a gift, you don’t want to give something that’s going to be wasted. So start with a list of potential things you can put in your gift hamper.

2. Plan your gift hamper in advance so you can buy items on sale

One of the best ways to save money on the items in your gift hamper is to buy everything on sale – preferably at 50% off.

If your budget is $20, then you can put together a basket worth $40 if you buy everything at half price.

When you have an idea of what you want to put in your hamper, and you’ve got plenty of time, you can watch catalogue sales and pick up items as they are reduced.

3. Include second-hand items in your hamper

Some well chosen second-hand items can turn an average hamper to something special.

Some of the hampers below include second-hand items: a vintage teacup, a preowned video game, and pre-loved books and magazines.

It doesn’t matter that someone else has played the game or read the book. If it’s in good nick and you’ve chosen well, then a second-hand item will be just as appreciated as a new one.

Besides second-hand stores online sites like Gumtree, another option is to strategically re-gift items you aren’t going to use yourself. Just make sure you’re not re-gifting to the person who gave you the item!

For more ideas on what things make great second-hand gifts, check out the article: Second-hand Gift Ideas.

4. Build a gift stash from carefully curated clearance items

You have a list of people you need to give gifts to throughout the year as well as ideas on what they will like.

So when you’re out shopping, keep an eye on clearance shelves to snag exceptional bargains. You can buy stuff on clearance for a tiny fraction of its original retail price.

Then keep a box of stuff in the cupboard that you can draw from when putting together your gifts.

When shopping clearance items, check used-by dates to make sure there’s plenty of time for your recipient to use the product before it goes out of date.

Also, don’t shy away from items that have bits missing. You can always un-package it and combine it with other things to make up your hamper.

Places to look for clearance items include:

the supermarket
discount stores
chemists
makeup stores
newsagents
homewares stores

For more information on gift stashes, check out the article: Save Time, Money and Sanity with a Gift Stash.

5. DIY hamper ideas

You don’t need to buy the items in your gift hamper, you can make them yourself.

Some of the best gift hampers I’ve ever received have been full of homemade goodies that I love to eat but don’t always get time to make.

Items that you can include in your hamper include:

baking, jams, chutneys, spice mix, cordial and other food items
DIY spa items like bath salts, foot scrubs and body butter
knitted or crocheted items like knitted face washers or a scarf
simple sewn items like bags or a mug rug

6. Use reward points

If you’re wondering how I made up hampers for almost nothing, this is how – I purchased half-price items then used supermarket reward points to take the cost down to nearly nothing.

I don’t do anything special to accrue points – like getting sucked into promotions, but when they add up, they can come in handy.

Some people like to keep these rewards until the end of the year to help reduce the cost of Christmas, so if you’re making gift hampers for Christmas, this is something to keep in mind.

Those are the six ways to save money on a DIY gift hamper. Below are some themed hamper ideas for inspiration. If you click through to the article I’ve included a whole load more ideas that are not in the photo for each hamper.

For more information on how to put together the perfect personalised hamper, check out the article: How to Make a Personalised Gift Hamper For any Occasion.