Personalize money gifts & fold banknotes

Cash gifts sometimes have the reputation of being impersonal – but they are often the exact opposite: They show that you are giving the recipient the freedom to fulfill their heart's desire.

Occasions for cash gifts: When is money the right gift?

There are many situations where money is the appropriate gift. Here are the most important occasions:

• Weddings: Cash is the classic wedding gift. Newlyweds often have big plans, from their honeymoon to furnishing their home together. With a cash gift, you give the couple the flexibility to realize their wishes.
• Birthdays: Especially for adults or teenagers who "don't want anything," a cash gift is often the best solution. This allows the birthday child to choose something special for themselves or save up for a bigger wish.
• Youth dedication, confirmation, and communion: These celebrations mark an important step into adulthood. Many young people are happy to receive money that they can use for leisure activities, technology, or their first personal purchase.
• School and university qualifications: Whether it's a high school diploma, a journeyman's certificate, or a university degree, a cash gift is a valuable support for starting a new phase of life, for example for travel, moving, or the first apartment.

Births and baptisms: Many guests also give money as gifts for the birth or baptism of a child, for example as start-up capital for the baby, for the first piggy bank or for larger purchases such as a trampoline or an expensive toy.

How much money is appropriate? Guidance for different occasions

The question of how much money to give as a gift is a concern for many: It shouldn't seem too little or excessive, but simply appropriate. The right amount depends on the occasion, your budget, and your relationship with the recipient. Here you'll find some guidelines for the most common occasions – which you can, of course, adapt to your individual needs.

Occasion	Close family	relatives, friends	Acquaintance
Wedding	100-250€	50-100€	40-50€
Birthday	Children: 10-30€ depending on age Youths: 20-50€ Adults: 50-100€	Children: 10-20€ Youths: 20-50€ Adults: 20-50€	Children: 5-10€ Teenagers: 10-20€ Adults: 20-30€
Youth consecration, communion, confirmation	50-100€	20-50€	10-25€
School and university qualifications	50-100€	20-50€	10-25€
Births and baptisms	50-100€	20-50€	10-25€

Wrapping cash gifts

Cash gifts don't have to be boring or unimaginative. With a little creativity and skill, a simple banknote can become a real highlight that's guaranteed to be memorable for the recipient. Here are some original packaging ideas to help you make your cash gift particularly appealing and personalized:

1. Money in a picture frame
Create a beautiful picture frame by arranging the banknotes in a motif—for example, a heart, flower, butterfly, or even a small work of art (you'll find instructions below). Add a suitable saying, photos, or decorative elements to create a personalized gift that can be reused after it's unwrapped.

2. Money in a jar
Fill a pretty mason jar or jam jar with folded banknotes, small notes with good wishes, and some confetti. Decorate the jar with a label ("Wish Granter," "Travel Fund," etc.) and a ribbon. A particularly lovely idea for weddings or birthdays.

3. Money balloon
Place the banknotes and some confetti in a clear balloon and inflate it. Have the recipient pop the balloon to open it—this adds a sense of surprise and fun!

4. Cash gift in a treasure chest
Hide the money in a small treasure chest or box filled with sand, shells, or chocolate coins. It's especially suitable as a gift for vacations or as a wedding "treasure."

5. Money as a bouquet of flowers
Incorporate folded banknotes (e.g., as blossoms or leaves) into a real or artificial bouquet. Alternatively, you can also craft an entire bouquet out of banknotes and colored paper.

Folding banknotes – How to do it right

Cash gifts are practical and popular on many occasions – but they often lack that certain something. If you want to give your cash gifts a personal and original touch, folded banknotes are the perfect choice. With a few simple steps, you can transform banknotes into small works of art that are not only pleasing to the eye but also demonstrate the extra effort you put into them. Whether a heart, butterfly, or flower – folded banknotes transform a simple bill into a thoughtful gift that's guaranteed to delight. Get inspired and discover the most beautiful folding ideas for every occasion!

Fold a banknote into a heart

You need: a banknote

1. Fold the bill once in the middle along the vertical axis. It's best to fold the left side backward. This way, the hologram stripe will later be visible on the front of the heart.
2. Unfold the bill again. The first fold is just a guideline. Here you can see how the bill should now be in front of you. Let's continue. Fold the left side toward the middle.
3. Do the same with the right side. Work as precisely as possible.
4. Now rotate the bill once around its own axis. Fold the bottom corners diagonally to the center line, creating a 90° angle.
5. Now take the top end and fold it once toward the top edge of the two triangles. This crease serves as preparation for the subsequent folds.
6. The following technique requires a bit of attention. Raise the top part slightly so you can push it apart with your finger.
7. This allows you to press the side in with your left finger, creating a new triangle on the left side. This works well once you've gotten the hang of it. Now stroke along both edges of the triangle.
8. And we repeat this step again with the right side.
9. This brings us a lot closer to our heart shape. Now fold the corner diagonally inward from the center.
10. Tip : Don't use the center of the tip as the folding axis; instead, place the fold so that it meets an existing crease. This makes the heart shape much more stylish! Do the same for the right side. In my photo, you can see exactly how far the small corners are folded. You're almost there. Now fold the two tips downwards slightly. To optimize the heart shape, the fold shouldn't be in the exact center, but a little further down.

Now? Turn it over! Done! Using adhesive tape, you can now attach the money heart to a gift set—for example, our VANDINI HYDRO Trio Set with the scent of magnolia blossoms.

Fold a banknote into a butterfly

You need: two banknotes, preferably of different sizes, and a thread to tie them together.

First, we'll focus on the butterfly's upper wings. If you have different banknote sizes available, it's recommended to use the larger one for this step. First, lay the banknote flat on the table in front of you.

1. 1. Fold the bill lengthwise in half and then open it again. For a neat finish, you can fold the short sides slightly inward. Then fold the bottom corner toward the center line to form a small triangle.
   2. Repeat this step with the top corner and fold it toward the center line as well, so that both triangles merge into a larger one. Make sure to keep the fold as straight as possible.
   3. Now do the same on the other side of the bill: Fold the two corners towards the middle to create more small triangles.
   4. Now fold the long sides inward a few millimeters at the top and bottom edges. If you're familiar with the accordion technique, you'll probably already know how to proceed.
   5. Now turn the banknote over so that the side with the folded triangles is facing down.
   6. Follow the resulting fold lines and fold the long sides of the bill further towards the middle.
   7. Continue folding accordion-style until you reach the center of the bill.
   8. Finally, turn the bill over again and fold it in the middle. It should now look like a small fan or accordion.
   9. To form a butterfly wing, fold the folded bill in half. Take your time to make sure both sides are even.
   10. Finally, carefully pull the two sides apart so that the butterfly's wings are visible. Hold the center firmly so the fold doesn't come undone. Now, for the lower wings of your butterfly, take the smaller bill.
   11. This time, fold the bill along the short side like an accordion—that is, alternate small folds forward and backward until the entire bill is folded. The procedure is identical to the first bill.
   12. Once the bill is completely folded, crease it in the middle. You've now prepared both pairs of wings for your butterfly.

In the next step, you connect the two folded bills to form a butterfly:

Lay a thread or thin string on the table and place the two wing halves on top so that the folded middle sections overlap. The larger wings should face up, the smaller ones face down – just like a real butterfly. Tie the middle together with thread or wire.

With an adhesive strip, you can attach the butterfly to a card or gift. We think the banknote butterfly looks great with our floral NUTRI set.  with the scent of peony – even a real butterfly would definitely feel at home here! 😉