With jewelry commercials advertising sales for already-overpriced jewelry and bouquet arrangements emptying your wallet when you could buy a dozen roses in the city for $5, it’s hard for broke college students to come up with the perfect gift for Valentine’s Day. If you’re trying to stay on a budget, we’ve got some suggestions for you.

1. A piece of your heart

If you’re on the crafty side, all you need is a poster, some pictures, scissors, tape and a pen. Tape pictures of you and your significant other to one side of the poster as a collage. On the other side, write a meaningful message or poem to express how you feel. Take a picture of both sides of the poster before cutting it up into puzzle pieces. Your valentine will have to put the puzzle together to read your love note.

2. Serenading

You don’t need to have a good voice or even know how to play the guitar. When he or she sees you attempting to sing a favorite song, it will melt hearts.

3. Love for sale

A popular option is crafting a romantic coupon book. There can be cute things like “I’ll watch the movie you want to watch” or “I’ll cook you dinner.” You may want to get more creative and add freebees such as, “One free massage,” or something a little more physical. Have fun with it. Your significant other will be so excited to use those coupons, he or she won’t even think about the fact that it cost you $0 to steal paper from the Glenn G. Bartle Library to write them out.

4. Playlist of the soul

A classic gift is burning a mixed CD or making a playlist. Putting together songs that remind you of your significant other is a very meaningful, priceless present.

Ruben Martinez, a junior double-majoring in economics and philosophy, politics and law, has crafted a similar gift in the past.

“I made a mixtape, and I wrote out a long letter breaking down why I chose each song, whether it was because it was meaningful to me, meaningful to our relationship, reminded me of something important we went through, etc.,” Martinez said.

This kind of gift is perfect because it doesn’t cost a thing but shows attention to detail and can use inside jokes.

5. Montage of memories

Make a video slideshow of pictures set to music. There are Mac labs on campus where you can use iMovie to make a montage of your relationship. The program is super simple to use. But if you’re having trouble, you can view countless tutorials on YouTube to help make a video for that someone special.

6. Sweetheart search

A cute idea that’s not only free but actually doubles as a date is a good ol’ scavenger hunt. You can go on the hunt with your significant other, with clues leading to the places that hold meaning for both of you. Examples would be where you met or where you had your first date — sappy things like that are always romantic and priceless.

7. Target their tummy

There is a popular saying that the best way to your lover’s heart is through their stomach. In the past, Melanie McCullough, a sophomore majoring in English, has come up with multiple cute ways to show she cares about the person she is with by using food.

“Pizza was his favorite food,” McCullough said. “So I went to our local pizza place and asked them to cut a cheese pizza into a heart and deliver the card I got for him with it.”

The entire pizza plus delivery cost her only $13 and was a great way to surprise her former boyfriend. She used food another year since it was such a hit the first time.

“I bought a football for maybe $10, then cut open a little part of it so I could fill it with his favorite candy and a note,” McCullough said. “Then taped it up.”

Both gift ideas were personal and fun without breaking the piggy bank.

8. A memorable game

Most are familiar with the memory matching games you play as a kid where you lift up two cards to see if the pictures on the other side make a match, and if they don’t, you need to remember where they were so you can find them later.

For a special Valentine’s Day gift, take squares of paper and tape or glue the same picture of you and your significant other on one side of each square. On the other side of the squares write down the same memory between you on two squares. They’ll have to match your memories together just like a memory game but with actual memories. It is a cute way to reminisce about your favorite times and a non-expensive gift that’s guaranteed to be appreciate.

This Valentine’s Day, get creative and do something to show your significant other you care. A handmade or personal present can be so much more meaningful than expensive, over-the-top gifts to express how you feel. They’ll understand it’s hard to afford extravagant gifts as a student and appreciate the time and effort you put into making their day special.