With Christmas coming and the classic Holiday shopping experience that is Black Friday having recently past, it's interesting to evaluate the other options available for Holiday gift givers. While many people get wrapped up in the consumerism of the period, the Holidays can be a great time to give free gifts that come from the heart and not the wallet. Here are a few ideas for free gifts.

First, for those who are skilled with their hands, building household objects can be a great gift for people. Small coffee tables or bedroom bedside tables can be simple projects, but can be designed and built to reflect the personalities of your friends. These types of gifts can be a great contribution to friends who recently moved into a new place or just got out of school and have yet to accumulate a lot of furniture.

Next, for the more arts and craft oriented, buying base items like leather or yarn and knitting a scarf or building bracelets can be a very cheap, yet very endearing gift. These items can be as nice looking as jewelry you get at the store, yet also will hold the personal touch of a thoughtful gift from a friend.

And of course, for those with the green thumb, there are plenty of foods you can grow and give to your friends. With a garden, you might be able to build a vegetable platter for your friends. Or if you're near a lake, maybe you could buy some wild rice and work to harvest it. In this sense, you can have a fulfilling activity for yourself, as well as a great gift for your friends.

These are just a few ways you can move from the consumer driven holiday season and instead, give your friends and family a nice thoughtful gift that shows how much they mean to you.