You don’t need to bust your budget in order to enjoy a wonderful Christmas with your family and friends. Here are our top tips for getting organised and saving cash during the festive season!
Gift Hacks
- Give a gift of food – If you’re creative in the kitchen, why not make something to give and create a personal, tasty gift.
- Create a coupon – Give the gift of breakfast in bed, a free car wash, a picnic in the park, or a homemade dinner date. The possibilities are endless and many people will appreciate your services more than a store-bought gift.
- DIY it – Get crafty and make a personalised gift using stuff you already have or buying a few cheap supplies to get you started. There are heaps of ideas on websites such as Pinterest.
- Set a present price limit – Suggest to your family or friends that you all set a limit on how much you will spend on gifts for each other to keep your gift budget at the same level.
- Re-think your Christmas card – Rather than spending money on buying and posting Christmas cards, record a family Christmas e-card or video greeting with your phone and email it to your friends and loved ones. It will be much cheaper, more fun and adds a personal touch.
- Take the “Secret Santa” Approach – Instead of buying gifts for all your friends and family, draw names out of a hat and become someone’s Secret Santa. Place a dollar limit on how much you spend. Instead of shopping for lots of little presents, you can focus on giving a great gift to one person.
Christmas Shopping Hacks
- Shop like you’re Santa- Make a list and check it twice! Make note of who you want to buy for, what you plan to give them and how much you’re willing to spend on each person.
- Be a scrooge online – There is no denying that you can find whatever you’re shopping for, cheaper online. Before you start shopping, do a web search for discount or coupon codes.
- Set a time limit on your shopping. Get in, get it done and get out so you aren’t tempted to spend more than you wanted to.
- Shop at odd hours – Take advantage of extended Christmas trading hours and go when it’s less crowded. You can choose carefully without having to fight for space with every other man and his dog.
- Pre-pay – If you buy online, check if there’s an option to pick up in-store. You’ll save on freight, skip any lines, and there will be less temptation to buy more.
- Don’t overbuy food – Whilst you might love a ham sandwich on Boxing Day, there is such a thing as buying too much Christmas food. Check out “Love Food Hate Waste”. It will help you get perfect portion sizes for Christmas lunch and not waste so much food. Not only is this good for your pocket, but for the environment too!
Entertaining Hacks
- Share the Christmas Catering – Even if you’re hosting Christmas Day lunch or dinner, there’s no need to do all the work yourself. Ask others to bring nibbles, drinks, salads or desserts
- Start early to beat the Christmas crunch. Everything you need for the perfect family Christmas Day is already in the shops. So why wait? Just make a list of everything you need and start buying the household items and any food items that won’t spoil. Adding just a couple of items to your regular shop each week is a great way to spread the cost of Christmas too!