Thrifty Graduation Gifts

By

micksgirl

My son graduated last year and his fav of course was money, but also gift cards, to either walmart or a restaurant. He used those for he and his girlfriend to have a nice night out.

By

bina2j

When my four sons graduated from high school, they liked the cash most of all. But one gift that each of them received that they each put to good use was a laundry bag, filled with a roll of quarters, laundry detergent, fabric softener, dryer sheets, and a couple of packs of hangers. This gift was one more thing we did not have to worry about getting when sending them off to college.
Another area to think about is a gift card to Barnes & Nobles or find out where the recipient is going to college and get a gift card to their bookstore. We did this for a couple of times and the kids truly appreciated it.

By

willsmaw

Cash, cash and more cash. Teens like money, teens need money. My daughter hates gift cards, she doesn't like being limited to a particular store. Cash or a visa gift card is the way to go.

By

gdeer61

I have gotten to giving tool sets. I make sure it has a hammer, screwdrivers, pliers, and if possible hangers. Anyone (boy or girl) could use this in a dorm room or apartment. My daughter uses hers all the time and loves it. You can usually get them for about $20. Hope that helps.

By

rsrandr

My daughter graduated from high school a year ago and went away to college in the fall. She received lots of graduation gifts, mostly cash or checks. She liked the money best as she could use it for living expenses and gas money while at college. It was great for us to as she didn't need as much money from us that first semester. We too had several relatives and friends with kids graduating, we sent $25 checks to each of them.

By

Debbie52

I gave a $25 gift card to Wal-Mart in a card to my friend's son when he graduated. He seemed to like that just fine and bought some work boots he was going to need for a summer job.

By

tedsmom

Gift certificates to their favorite stores cannot be beat. God bless you.

By

Xyzzy

Well, remember that not all girls like feminine things, first -- especially since more and more people have allergies to scented stuff. On the other hand, I know several (straight) guys that do like it! :)

Anyway, I graduated back in the mid-90s, but the older teenagers I know aren't particularly different! The things that I appreciated the most tended to be useful:
-- decent headphones (oldschool puffy type) or earbuds to block out the world while working or gaming on the computer
-- gift certificates to stores that carry books/CDs/movies that are new & used (like Amazon.com) or multi-purpose stores like Target
-- pay-as-you-go cellphone or top-up card
-- gas card

What meant the most to me (or the teens I know now) was if the person asked my family members what I enjoyed spending my time doing, and if I could use anything related to it. I think that's the case for pretty much anybody over the age of 14, though! :)

Any ideas for thrifty graduation gifts?