Finances can get seriously out of hand at Christmas.
It's so easy to buy into the idea that the more we spend, the better Christmas will be.
But so many of the best Christmas memories are made of family traditions that don't cost a penny.
My almost four year old is completely over excited about Stir Up Sunday when the family gets together to make our own Christmas cakes, puddings and mince meat.
And last Sunday she spent a wonderful morning with my dad collecting fir cones & twigs to make decorations.
These times really are priceless.
And there are lots of easy ways to keep on top of the spend and save money at Christmas ...
Tips for Saving Money at Christmas
- Work out your maximum budget & stick to it!
- Split budget between main areas of spend e.g. food, presents, decorations
- Define a maximum spend for main items in each area
- Keep tally of your spend & constantly calculate how much you've got left to spend
- Go through each item in your shopping list & find cheaper alternatives
- Agree gift opt out with other adults
- Agree with adults to make a charity donation rather than exchange gifts
- If can't arrange opt out, agree present price cap with everyone else in family
- Get a cash back credit card but DON'T use card to increase budget!
- Cut daily spend in run up to Christmas e.g. coffee, newspapers, meal planning
- Write a food shopping list & look for offers & coupons on everything on it
- Look for new or gently used items on e.g. eBay, Freecycle or CraigsList
- Skype the family on Christmas day rather than calling them!
- Recycle gift tags from last year's cards
- Make your own Christmas cards
- Send electronic Christmas cards
- Only wrap a few of kids presents ... put rest in a gift sack made from pillow case
- Make gift bags from scraps of fabrics
- Use cheap alternatives to wrapping paper e.g. brown paper, newspaper, kids pictures, butcher's paper, wrapping paper scraps
- Create gift boxes from painted cardboard boxes, food tins
- Make your own lovely stocking stuffers
- Make beautiful handmade decorations
- Collect pine cones to make decorations, garlands and wreaths
- Forage for holly and pine for wreaths, mantels, window sills and picture frames
- Make your own preserves, cookies, candies or drinks as gifts
- Even if you're not a great crafter there are hundreds of lovely home made gifts that you can make yourself
- Organise your own santa's grotto with neighbours rather than forking out for each child
- Go to free Christmas carol concerts rather than expensive shows
- Buy a Christmas tree with roots so it can be used again next year
- Sell unused clothes and toys on e.g. eBay, consignment ships to generate cash
If you're looking for more ways to save money over Christmas check out Zero Budget Christmas from James Anderson and Celebrate Simply by Nancy Twigg ...
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