How to Stretch Your Holiday Shopping Dollars

November 19, 2007 By Debbie Dragon

Do you start every season of holiday shopping like this? “This is the last year I do it this way… next year will be different. I’m going to start shopping for Christmas on January 1st… I’m going to open a Christmas Club at the local bank so I’m not stressing over how I’m going to get all the gifts I need to buy…”

Sound familiar?

If so, you’ll be interested in some tips for stretching your holiday spending budget- and how to prepare more effectively for the holidays next year to avoid the anxiety tradition you’ve created for yourself!

For last minute shopping this year, on a tight budget, the first thing you want to do is make a list of all of the people you plan to buy for.  With list in hand, is there anyone on that list that you could give baked goods too?  Neighbors, co-workers, grab bags, your children’s teachers- while they’re all people you’d like to recognize and appreciate around the holiday season, it’s not necessary that the gift be from the store.  Often, baked goods are welcomed and the recipient appreciates the time you spent making the goods.  Get some empty cookie tins or gift bags from your dollar store, and package up a few different types of cookies or candies that you’ve made in each container and you’ve got several, ready-to-give gifts.

With the remaining family and friends on your list, it’s always better to have some thoughts about what you’re planning to buy them before heading out to the stores.  Get out the Sunday sale papers and try to determine what gifts you want to get for each of the people on your list- and watch the flyers to see which retailers are offering the items on sale.  This is one of the easiest ways to save money on gift purchases- know where the items are priced the lowest and buy them there!

If you prefer to shop online and have the items delivered, look for coupon codes or free shipping offers to save even more on everything that you buy.  If they’re not advertised directly on the site, just take the time to do a general search with your favorite search engine, or use fatwallet.com, couponbug.com, or similar sites to find discount and coupon codes.

To avoid feeling pressed for cash again next year during the holidays, set yourself up with a high interest savings account.  Figure out how much money you generally need around the holidays, and determine how much you need to set aside each week in order to get it in time to do your holiday shopping.  Then, set it up so the money is automatically deposited each week- if you don’t see it, you won’t miss it! 

Posted in holidays, online savings, shopping

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