No matter how hard you try, every holiday season there’s someone on your shopping list that you wait until the last minute to find the perfect gift for. As stores get busier and deadlines approach quickly, you may be thinking about giving the gift of cash. Money makes for a great last minute gift, especially for those people who are difficult to shop for. Who isn’t excited to receive a little extra spending money? However, giving cash as a gift can feel a little…well…unthoughtful or lazy. That’s why we wanted to give you some creative ideas to help make giving money as a gift a lot more exciting.

Money Making Machine

Wouldn’t it be incredible if this gift was a literal money making machine? Alas, it is just a creative illusion that makes giving cash a little more exciting. The real fun comes from the slow reveal of the denomination.

Make a Money Notepad

Are you crafty? This idea will take a couple of tools, but once completed it is a really fun way to give a stack of bills. You can get crisp bills by either going to a local community financial institutions or by taking an iron to them. If you do iron your bills, make sure you spray them with water first and use the lowest setting on your iron.

Make a “Crappy” Gift

There is always “that gift.” The one that makes you pause and wonder “Why would they get me this? Do they even know me?”. This gift might look pretty crappy on the surface, but we’re betting that whoever gets it is going to like it once they realize what’s hidden inside. Also, this is incredibly fun at a white elephant.

Disguise the Money in Something They Hate

Don’t you love that feeling of watching someone open a present you know they hate and then witnessing them struggle through trying to fake happiness? Just me?

If you want to take someone on an emotional rollercoaster, try hiding the money in something you know they won’t like. Does your sister hate licorice? Fold the money and hide it in the middle of a jar of the candy. Know someone who always gets a ton of socks for Christmas? Tuck some bills in the sock fold.

Sweet Money Holder

On the other hand, you can always hide money in something they actually like. At first they’ll think you have given them a mason jar filled with their favorite candy. But wait – there’s a cardboard tube inside with a roll of bills! Chocolate boxes work too. Simply replace a few nuggets with rolled-up bills. This way they’ll get two things they really want.

Be Blunt

Let’s face it; every time we get a card, no matter how old we are, part of us is hoping that there is cash inside. Why not own it? You can go the classic route of putting money in a card, but spicing things up by adding some humor to the messaging.

Cold Hard Cash

If someone asks for “cold, hard cash” then give it to them in the most literal sense. Freeze the money in a block of ice. To do this, you will want to take a container and fill it halfway with water. Put it in the freezer. Once frozen, put the bill on top and cover with a little bit of water and return it to the freezer. Once this layer has frozen, you can fill the rest of the container with water and complete your ice block.