Affordable Christmas Shopping

If you are like me and you want to keep the Christmas spirit this year by giving gifts for family members, you will also probably be looking for a way that will allow you to do this without being in the red at the beginning of the New Year.  You or your spouse may be out of a job, you may have more bills than you can afford already without adding Christmas gifts to the list, or you just simply might not be able to afford anything extra this year.  Whatever the case, there are certain things you, and indeed anyone, can do to maximize the gift-giving process this year, and make it as painless as possible on your checkbook.

1. Budget.  One of the best ideas to be able to get those gifts you know all your loved ones deserve is to budget.  Ideally, of course, it would be best if you had begun budgeting for this year's Christmas immediately after last New Year ... but if you haven't, it's never too late to begin.  Do a ballpark figure on what you think you'll be spending on each individual that you will buy for, tally up the total, and start setting aside what you will need out of each paycheck.  If you see that it will be impossible to save enough, don't worry; just revise your list and get everyone just a little less than you had planned.  Not even Scrooge would hold it against you if you tried to be a little penny-pinching when you had to.

2. Compare.  If you don't want to do all the running around to compare prices in the actual stores, compare prices online instead.  Most likely many of the items on your Christmas list will be sold at multiple places.  Choose the one that is the most affordable and then make a note of it on your game plan list.

3. Plan.  Don't let yourself get sidetracked when you are out shopping.  It is alarmingly easy to get overwhelmed by all the holiday sales, displays and hype, but this is a good way as well to overspend, something you obviously don't want to do.  Make a list before you put a foot out of your door and stick to it. 

The Alternatives

There are other choices than buying new, of course, or buying for everyone.  More and more I hear about families that decide to go the simple route and put a little more thought and time into their gifts, as opposed to money.  Try homemade gifts.  If you have someone in the family who sews, knits, enjoys making crafts, works with wood, etc. you will find this is an extremely fun and meaningful alternative to spending money hand over fist for something that is store bought.

In our family, we now draw names.  If you aren't familiar with this type of gift-giving, let me explain.  Each year we put each of our names on a piece of paper in a hat and each family member draws one.  The person whose name you draw is the person who you will buy a Christmas gift for - and no one else!  Imagine the money that saves us!  Between my husband and I, we only have to buy for two people within our extended family of approximately 15.  It has been a huge money-saver over the past few years.

Re-gifting is another idea that is big.  Our small group of friends will be getting together this year to have a Christmas party and we all decided to go through our houses and find something we have either been given in the past have no need for, or something we simply don't want or need anymore.  We will wrap up these things and take them to the Christmas party and take turns picking the gifts we want.  The added benefit of this type of gift-giving is that you have no idea what you will be opening up .... and if you get something you don't want, it is likely someone will be willing to exchange their gift with yours.

The holidays tend to be stressful enough as it is; don't let gift-giving make them even more so.  Plan out a way that will be best for you to give gifts this year and you will find it will help you feel much more relaxed and able to spend the holidays as they were meant to be spent.