10 Awesome Father’s Day Ideas - Part 1 of 5

Welcome 16th Carnival of Money Hacks goers (hosted by Daily Money Hack)! Since you have found yourself here, I'm guessing you'd like to get some Father's Day ideas--you have lucked up because the entire series is now posted! Have fun looking around and make yourself at home! If you like what you see, feel free to subscribe (right margin) and you are welcome to comment anywhere you feel inspired! Have a great time!

Father’s Day is quickly approaching and with the success of my Mother’s Day series for gift ideas, I didn’t want to leave those hard-working dads out. Thus the birth of this Father’s Day Gift Series.

I must admit that this series was more challenging than the Mother’s Day series because many of the categories that I discovered overlapped. Is fishing a sport or a hobby? Or is it considered “Outdoor?” So, I have done my best to categorize these. Yes, some will overlap, but just ignore that and keep reading…

So, without further ado, in no particular order, I present to you, 10 Awesome Father’s Day Ideas:

1.) Automobile Stuff:
Many men really love their cars. I don’t mean appreciate their car as a mode of transportation—I mean that their car might hold their attention more than their wives (yeah…stop that, guys). For your auto enthusiasts, let me offer these ideas:

--High End: A car. Yep. Some people get a CAR for Father’s Day. Even a nice new stereo system or some great add-ons can cost more than I can personally spend on a single gift. For the man that really WANTS a car and a wife that cannot afford such a gift, try these alternatives…

--Inexpensive: Floor mats, a steering wheel cover, a bucket full of cleaning products for his love, those much needed wiper blades, a gift card to his favorite auto accessory store.

--Frugal: Book of coupons for free wash, free wax, free vacuum (via you or the kids). Put together a travel kit. Make some great gifts from the kids like this Mechanic’s Pencil Holder, this Car Nut Frame, or a personalized “license plate.”


2.) Hobby:
Dads love a number of different things (cars are just one of them) and you can easily feed his hobby. The danger here is to make the gift sincere and not one of those regular fall-back gifts (does EVERYONE give golf balls to that golfer in your family?)


--High End: A hunting or fishing trip, Cloud 9 Living experiences, and racing extravaganzas are some of the high end activities that you guy would enjoy.

--More fun for less: Gift cards to favorite stores (like Bass Pro Shops?), subscriptions to magazines or books about his hobby, or have that home-movie buff's previous videos put on DVD for him. If he is an avid movie watcher, a collection of DVDs and some popcorn accessories might make him happy (and make for a fun family night). Fill a new tackle box with lures if you know what he likes. How about hunting and/or fishing licenses (he’ll need them, you know)?

--Fun with even LESS invested: Set up a camping or fishing trip for the family or just between child and dad. Let him teach them how to build a camp fire and pack goodies for them like smores ingredients. Make a bamboo fishing pole for your fisherman or some photo bookmarks for your reader. Make this Gone Fishin’ chalkboard from the kids. Does he loves puzzles? Try out these mazes, crosswords, or word searches. You can even create your own!


Come again tomorrow for Part 2!

Photo credit: Ginae, krayker