Tip #1 - Plan... Plan... and Stick to the Plan
Have you ever run into that person that you occasionally see and have had dinner with a couple times and they run into you just before the holidays or call you out of the blue and have these terrible 6 words for you "I Have A Gift For You" and you answer "that is great, i actually was meaning to call you because i have a gift i was meaning to give to you" We all have those unexpected people and let's face it, we are too nice. Sit down and plan out who you are going to buy for. Stick to your plan.
Tip #2 - The Envelope Plan
Cut the Credit Cards Up...lock them in a safe and forget the combination until January. I Suggest that you take a handful of envelopes as you are on Tip #1 and write peoples names or if you are buying for a whole family, their last name on the envelope and put whatever cash amount in that envelope that you PLANNED to spend on them. (Tip 1 is important, stick to the plan) Little Joe Joe's envelope has $20 in it, even though you see "Stinky the Garbage Truck" and think he must have it, stick to a Zhu Zhu pet.
Bonus Tip: If you have unexpected people that show up last minute, create an envelope called Last Minute and put a small amount of Cash in there.
Tip #3 - Deals, Coupons, Alternative's To Retailers
Take some time to search out the best deals in town. This could be simply searching store catalogues. Cut Coupons out. Think outside the box. Ebay, Groupon, Craigslist, Backpage, Amazon are great tools to finding the same great item at a huge discount. I recently purchased a deal on Craigslist that was over 70% off the retail price. I purchased a Wii with games a few months ago that was over 50% off and i have some games i can resell or gift out.
Tip #4 - Time Is the Most Valuable Gift
At the end of the day, the importance of the holidays isn't getting that new Skirt or those new shoes, but its about spending time with the people you care about. My suggestion here is rather then buy a $100 worth of gifts for that family of 4 that you are best friends with, to say, lets get together and play some boardgames. I'll bring a couple desserts and you bring some drinks. Your cost gets cut down to about $15 for the night or less(mileage may vary) and you will create a memory that will outwear that sweater.
Tip #5 - ReGift
I tread lightly on this tip because of the general stigma about Re-Gifting. Here is my thought on this though. If you are given a gift card thats been in your wallet for months and you haven't had anything to use it on, think about ReGifting it. This will save you that cash you would've spent on that person. Regift nice things. If you were given a brand new set of knives, but you already own the Miracle Knife, then think about gifting it to that guy you know that just started his cooking classes.
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At the End of the day, Plan...Plan...and Stick to your plan. Stick to your goals. If you think you need $500 for christmas gifts, then start saving back that cash in June or July on up to December so that you aren't just charging everything on the Credit card. You will be surprised how much money you've saved!
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