Ways to save money on Christmas presents
The consumer champion Which? revealed that one in four people received an unwanted Christmas present last year. With this in mind, and living through a cost of living crisis, why not talk with friends and family about reducing the number of presents and the amount you spend? This may be a difficult conversation but most people would probably welcome the opportunity.
Start to reduce present giving. Suggest buying only for children or run Secret Santa. It doesn’t have to be just for work colleagues, it’s also good for friends and family. Secret Santa Generator does all the hard work for you. It is free and you just put people’s names into the site, the budget and you can even put in a Wish List and let it select who gives to whom.
@thecomplainingcow How to save money when buying Christmas presents #MoneySavingTipsAndTricks #MoneySaving #ChristmasPresents #ChristmasSavings #ChristmasBook
Reduce the number of presents
Christmas is about being with people, not about the amount of money you spend, so why not gift your time and skills for Christmas presents? If you have green fingers or are handy with a hammer, offer to help with a home improvement project. Pledge to clear out an attic, give a hand to someone moving home or support someone starting up their new business. Make some vouchers. These work well for children to give too: “I will clean the house”, “I will do the ironing” etc!
Buy secondhand
Buy second-hand. Check out Facebook and Gumtree for bargains and “collection only” on eBay. With more people selling belongings to make money, there is plenty of choice. Bryony Lewis’ daughter was desperate for the Leapfrog (RRP £55) ice cream cart. She picked up one in perfect condition for £17 from Facebook. Charity finds are also sought after! Gill Bearskine’s son had “a digger from Oxfam” written on his Christmas list last year. He saw it there months before and hadn’t forgotten. Normally around £45 new, she bought it for £1.99.Buy things from charity shops and add your own personal touches. For example, take a Kilner jar in pottery or glass and a glittery glue stick, decorate and write the person’s name on it. Hand sew a motif onto a scarf. Jo Blood buys her sister piles of books second-hand and then finds a special pin or bookmark to go with them.
Buy cheaply
Use your pound shop. Although much of it is cheap plastic rubbish, you can still put lots of things together to make a fun Christmas stocking. For example, lots of different chocolate bars in a recycled hamper box/tin. Keep your eyes peeled for loss leaders, those under-priced items which entice you to spend more.
Digital presents
If you normally buy for children whom you don’t see very often, film yourself reading a story. Personalise it by using the child’s name throughout. Upload to a platform like YouTube and set it to private. Send the child that link. You could, of course, also write your own story which would be even better!
My storytelling channel will give you some ideas. Here’s one where I involved children from different families.
Father Christmas Needs a Wee
And one for Alexander
Guess How Much I Love you read by Helen Dewdney
Buy cheaply
Get free stuff! Use sites such as FreeStuffUK and Latest Deals for no-cost and low-cost items. Enter competitions, sign up to test products or do surveys to get free goodies from a wide range of retailers.
Use cashback sites and apps. JamDoughnut offers prepayment gift cards to use online, in-store or on the phone, and earn reward points. Take out cash after you have received £10 worth in points. TopCashback, Quidco* are the main ones and for your child’s nominated child’s bank account, consider Kidstart. Sign up for free and use whichever one gives the biggest cashback. Download Honey, which searches for active discount codes on Internet sites you visit.
Check end of line items on eBay stores hub and if you’re in no rush, leave items in your shopping basket. Sometimes you’ll get an email giving you a discount code.
Make things
Get crafty. Print photos of friends and family that you have taken throughout the year and turn them into home-made scrapbooks, photo
books, or calendars. If you are good at sewing, baking or dried flower arranging, put your skills to good use and make your presents. Create your own bath bombs, lip balms and bath salts really easily, following one of the many recipes on the Internet. Involve children in making their own presents too, the list is endless here!
Pinterest and Instagram are great for providing ideas for home-made presents and money-saving, too.
Give an IOU! If you want to treat someone but can’t afford what you know they would really like, make an “IOU” card with a message promising it from the January sales. This will help to spread the cost and works well with friends as a fun game on the theme of who can save the most!
Be careful with your spending, put time and thought into present giving and have a Happy Christmas!
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