Your bestie or close girl friend has a birthday coming up and you don't want to give her something unoriginal that she will most likely get from someone else, like Bath & Body products, or a pair of shoes. What do you do? Take your pick from the ideas below that will distinguish your present from the others and are guaranteed to make her smile!

1. Beauty subscription

What girl doesn't love makeup? Reputable companies like Birchbox, Ipsy, Julep, and E.L.F. offer a monthly box filled with beauty samples tailored to your preferences for a set price. They are normally $10 per month and people can cancel their subscription anytime, so you pay for what you choose!

2. Spa certificate

Whether it's for a manicure/pedicure or a skin hydrating facial, gift certificates are always a nice, relaxing present to give to someone. Girls love pampering (I know I do!) and treating them to something soothing is a gift they will definitely appreciate. You can find good deals in your local ad magazine or discount sites such as Groupon or RetailMeNot if you are on a budget.

3. Organizer

Anything from a cute planner to a jewelry stand is a creative and functional gift to give. There are so many things a girl hoards, like nail polish, scarves, shoes, etc. and having an organizer to clearly separate them can really help tidy up and make their space more visually appealing. Check out the ContainerStore and cute boutiques like Francesca's for these.

4. Beverage holder

College students tend to drink coffee religiously and if they aren't into coffee, tea is always nice to drink when studying. A coffee/tea mug, to go cup, or even a cute water bottle is an inexpensive and useful gift. I bought a shaker bottle and protein powder for my friend who works out a lot, and she uses it daily. The nice thing about mugs is that there are so many different designs that you can personalize it. My roommate sings in choir and plays the guitar, so I got her a mug with a musical score on it. If the person who you are getting this gift for has a Keurig coffee machine, I would gift the mug with K-cup pods inside. If they like tea, I would give a variety of tea bags with it, etc.

5. Photo collage

A photo album or collage is something personal and can be used to decorate your girlfriend's room. Select pictures of your favorite memories together, put them on a USB, go to your local Walmart, OfficeMax, or local pharmacy and print them out. Buy a memory board or picture frame organizer for $10-30 and all you have to do is decorate it! With a memo board, you can add little memorabilia like tickets from a movie or concert that you went to together or magazine cutouts of things that they like (favorite band, actress, food, etc.). Plus, I think they look fun and you can do much more with them.

Hopefully one of these works out for you. I have either received or given each of these, and the results were great! Let me know what you guys think :)