David Bach was on Regis and Kelly this morning, and he gave some good tips for ways to save money this holiday season. Here they are:
- Start with a detailed list for gift giving: Write down all of the people that you want to buy a gift for, and then write down an amount you want to spend on them. Stick to that amount, but don’t go crazy over it. If you go over a few dollars, it’s not a big deal.
- Home Made Gifts: Make something for a loved one, and they will cherish it forever. But, don’t make something that looks like a three year old did it. If you’re not crafty, ask someone who is crafty to help you.
- Give magazine subscriptions: I love magazine subscriptions, but I hardly ever buy them for myself. They are cheap, and they make a great gift.
- Buy books as gifts: You can pick up a lot of classic fiction and non-fiction books for less than $10.00, and they make great gifts for people that you have a hard time buying a gift for.
- Buy in Bulk: Buy a box of wine, books, and gourmet candy for gifts for people like bosses, co-workers, hair dresser, landscaper, or trusted professional in your life.
- Secret Santa: If you and your spouse have a bunch of siblings, then ask them to participate in a Secret Santa game. Each couple will pick another couple secretly, and you can set a gift limit. Then, every sibling gets one nice gift, and you spend less by not buying for every family member.
- Re-use the bags: Re-use the bags you get at a department store for gift wrapping.
- Recycle newspaper, magazines, and wallpaper for gift wrapping.
- Christmas Cards: I’m not a big fan of online greeting cards, but there is another good way to save money on greeting cards. Take a digital picture of you and your family, then go online to Target, Wal-Mart, Kinkos, or any other store with photo printing. Upload the image and choose a holiday design. Last year, we got 25 online greeting cards for $12.00, and the envelopes were included.
- Cash in your reward points: Do you have a ton of credit card points saved up? Cash them in to buy items that you can give away as a gift.
There’s no excuse for not saving money this holiday season!
