Graduation season is soon approaching and its time to start thinking of gift ideas for your beloved graduates. While every student enjoys receiving money as a gift, I have compiled a list of some unique alternatives to cash.
FOR THE COLLEGE GRAD
1. Charitable Gifts.
This year, consider giving the gift of charity to the graduate you know. There are many non profit organizations online that offer a gift in someone’s name. You pay the money to a reputable website, and they send a card to the recipient of your gift, while the money is sent to someone in the world who needs it. At Oxfam America, you can buy a Medical Kit for $35 which includes basic first aid supplies, water purification tablets, and disease prevention training information.
2. Customizable Tie.
A great gift for a male graduate going into a professional career, customizable ties make a memorable and useful gift that your graduate will love. You can choose the color, length and width of the tie as well as add patterns, photos and logos. You can create a one of a kind tie that he can wear to his new workplace.
3. Cooking Lessons.
Ramen noodles and Easy Mac are the staple diet of most college students. Many students leave college without the necessary skills to cook nutritional and delicious meals. A cooking lesson is a great way to help the graduate you know transition into the real world without having to eat the same easy college food. Many places can teach the student kitchen basics like knife skills as well as advanced lessons, like food and wine pairing. No matter what skill level the student, there are classes out there to help. Rolling Pin Kitchen Emporium in Brandon, Florida offers classes like this and more.
4. Easy Cookbook.
An easy cookbook makes an excellent gift for a graduate starting his/her life after school. After the student has learned basic cooking skills, a cookbook will come in handy for preparing fresh, nutritional, and tasty meals. From vegetarians to meat lovers, any student will love a cookbook for graduation to help make their transition into the real world easier.
FOR THE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE
5. Laptop Case.
High school students planning to attend college will usually receive a laptop computer for school work. If the student you know has a laptop already, a laptop case will keep their computer protected from cracks and scrapes. Cases also make transportation of laptops to and from class an easy task. They come in many shapes and sizes, as well as decorative patterns and styles, so you are sure to find one at an affordable price that your recipient will love.
6. Longboard.
If the student you know plans to attend college after graduation, consider buying a longboard for him/her. Longboards are long skateboards designed for cruising and are perfect for navigating through a college campus. Longboards make getting to and from class fast and fun and they are easy to learn how to ride. Just make sure you know the height and weight of the person you are buying for. They come in many styles and are an affordable and green mode of transportation.
7. Plantable Journals.
Encourage the student you know to fill a journal with their favorite memories of the past or with new stories, thoughts, ideas and poems. When the journal is full, the student can plant it in the ground and watch their writings grow into wild flowers. Most of the plantable journals I’ve found are made of recycled paper and wildflower seeds like the one here from Uncommon Goods.
8. Alarm Clock.
Alarm clocks make a great gift for a high school student planning to go to college. There are many clocks out there that are stylish and also very helpful in getting a sleepy student out of bed. Some alarm clocks have puzzles to solve before the alarm will stop. Others wake you up from slumber peacefully. Either way, I have found some interesting alarm clocks at an affordable price that would be really useful.
There’s an alarm that vibrates instead of beeping, so when it goes off, it won’t wake any roommates, and there’s an alarm that runs away when you don’t wake up.
9. USB Flash Drive.
USB flash drives are handy tools used to easily transfer files to and from computers. They can store many different types of files and are useful for students when printing or sharing files. They are removable and rewritable and are much smaller and easier to use than floppy discs. Here are some unique flash drives I found that are not only useful, but also look cool.
10. Coffee Thermos.
Many high school graduates going to college have to adjust to the different lifestyle and coffee usually helps the process. Thermoses come in a variety of sizes and designs and keep coffee warm all day, so the student you know will be energized for hours. You can purchase them at an affordable price from several places, but I found some really creative ones at this site.
