photo by takfoto
I can’t believe that November is in a WEEK. And you know what that means – Thanksgiving, traveling, parties, and Christmas are all just a few calendar blocks away. In our corner of the world, we’re a single-income family which means that things are tight year-round and most especially during the holidays. I’ve talked to a few friends who anticipate the season with nail-biting anxiety and embarrassment at having a humble budget, but fear not! Here are some tips and tricks I practice religiously, all learned from Veteran Penny Pinchers for Food and Gift Shopping, as well as Travel. I welcome any that you have, too – these tips are not exhaustive!
Tip no. 1 – PRAY. Pray and consecrate your finances and will to Christ. The income we have is a gift from God and we’re called to be excellent stewards of this gift by using it wisely. I have a tendency to buy now and hesitate later after I have the thing in-hand, and after it’s in-hand it’s not likely to go back to the store. Keep a level head when you’re shopping for food or gifts and consult with your spouse and your budget before you swipe your card at the register (way before then would be wise!).
Food:
Make your list – check it twice: Retailers are sneaky sneaky with their ploys to get you to impulsively buy at the store. Make a list before you go and run it by your spouse to make sure you’ve got your bases covered. When you get to the store, stick to your list and get nothing else (unless of course you and your spouse forgot you’re on your last roll of T.P. – in which case, deviating from the list might be a good idea).
Get it on sale: Bacon, roasts, cheese, bread, etc. There are a million products that can be purchased in advance and frozen in preparation for your family get-togethers. Check the weekly ads for a few grocery stores and THEN, if you have the determination, take the ads to Walmart where they’ll match the ads if their in-store prices are higher. This saves you the time of going from store to store, though you may spend all that time waiting in line at the checkout if you hit up my local Walmart.
Think for yourself: Just because they say it’s a deal, doesn’t mean it is. This goes for non-grocery retail, too. You’ll see a million signs for “NEW LOW PRICE” or “SAME GREAT DEAL” and you’ll know, that’s just not the case. For example, at Sam’s a few weeks ago I saw a “sale” advertising two bags of chips for $6. I guess it depends on where you live, but around here, that’s no sale. Two bags for $4? That would be a deal, or even a Buy One Get One would be nice. My mama told me, “You better shop around…” and that’s the truth wherever you’re spend your dollars.
Gifts:
I LOVE Christmas shopping; I thrill in starting early and really studying my friends/family members to find the ideal gift, and I’m hoping to draw names on both sides of the family soon to determine who gets a gift for whom. Which brings me to my first point…
Draw Names! Our family is ever-expanding and with all those kids and in-laws, we’d be out of house and home by New Year’s if we purchased for everyone. We draw names to keep things less expensive AND we set a $20-$30 limit per gift. If you’re familiar with setting an amount limit, then you know too that you don’t necessarily have to spend that much; spend $10! Shoot, spend $5 if you can swing it.
Get Crafty: I’m hooked on Pinterest, especially for gift ideas for others (and myself!). There you can find recipes for homemade sugar scrub, sewing creations, and even plans for building bunk beds. Last year I referred to Pinterest for creative decorating, wrapping, and found some great ideas that yielded gifts on a dime! Homemade gifts shouldn’t bring about shame, but pride. I love looking at home decor or homemade presents knowing that I made them, put painstaking detail into them, and worked on them JUST for the recipient. I’d like to see Pottery Barn do so well 😉
Check your list twice…again: Just because you find a deal, doesn’t mean you have to buy – if you don’t need an Easy Bake Oven because all you have are sons or nephews, finding one for $3.99 shouldn’t be tempting; it’s pretty easy to over-spend this way because we slip into the mentality of “I could use this someday” instead of “This will work now.” Evaluate your needs and stick to them.
Think and Plan Ahead: Don’t wait til December 24th to frantically buy for your loved ones; get an early start thinking about and hunting down gifts. If you purchase a present, then this gives you the advantage of finding a sale; if you make your gift then you have plenty of time to put quality into it, avoiding a “thrown together” look. Start today! Even though we draw names with both my in-laws and my family, I know for sure that we’ll get something for both sets of parents, then I’ll get something for my best friend (I got her gift this past summer!), and then another friend’s birthday is just 3 days after Christmas so I prep early for her, too. Christmas comes every December so it shouldn’t take you by surprise 🙂
Shop SMART: Black Friday is the day I usually finish up my Christmas shopping, but I don’t step out of my pajamas or even out of the house to face the murderous crowds. I do it all online where you can find insane coupon codes and amazing deals on both merchandise and shipping. Retailmenot.com is awesome for searching for coupon codes and if there’s something specific you have in mind, search for it on slickdeals.net. Ebates is awesome for getting a small percentage (bigger on Black Friday) back from your online purchases AND you get a free $10 gift card for signing up. I’ve both given and received Groupons as gifts and I love it. I pay $15 but the recipient gets $30?? What a deal!
Chart Your Progress: Ok – THIS might be a liiiittle over-the-top, but I keep an Excel spreadsheet of my Christmas gifts. I love Excel. Truly. I chart the following: the recipient, the gift, the date I ordered it, the date it shipped, how much its original retail price was, how much less I paid for it, the difference between the two, and whether the gift is wrapped and ready to give. I had amount totals at the bottom of each price column so I could see that I had $X worth of merchandise purchased for $Y. It’s thrilling to see how much I don’t spend; and with a little diligence, you can save hundreds of dollars.
Travel:
Gassing Up: You can find some pretty good tips here, here, and here on maintaining excellent fuel economy; tips like maintaining your vehicle as a whole, keeping your tires inflated, getting rid of excess weight in your vehicle (that doesn’t mean your kids or your spouse), and filling your tank in the chilly morning on Wednesday versus warmer afternoon on Thursday (not kidding) will save cents and make sense in the long run.
Munchies: Pack snacks, sandwiches, bottles of water, sippy cups for the kids, etc. The food-travel industry is way, WAY overpriced and they count on weary, hungry travelers like you and your whiny toddler to fork over your arm and leg for a “fun” size cheeseburger. When we’re on the road, we pack a loaf of bread, PB, and jelly (healthy versions of each, by the way) in addition to granola, water, chips, and Cheerios for the kids. We make as few stops as possible; but when we do have to stop, we use the restrooms, top off the gas tank, clean out any trash, change diapers, let everyone stretch their legs, and then switch drivers.
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The holidays are on their way! What do you do to Penny Pinch and make sure that you can truly enjoy them without breaking the bank?
Love it. I, too, keep an excel spreadsheet for gifts, though less detailed in the financial aspects. But I keep it available all year long so if a gift idea strikes me, I can make notes of ideas on the list and hopefully avoid so much of the guesswork as the holidays get closer. I find that especially helpful for gift exchange games (the kind where people take turns unwrapping and/or stealing gifts), because I always struggle to think of great ideas for those if I put it off till the last minute.
-Staci
What a great idea! I usually don’t start my spreadsheet until October/November, but I could totally get it going in the summer. and YES – I’m the same way – if I wait last minute, my gift ideas are pretty lame.
I just delete all the gifts from my prior year’s list and resave the file under a new name (Gift List 2012 instead of 2011 or something, cause I’m crazy creative like that) and then start filling in with fresh ideas. I *heart* spreadsheets.
My siblings and I have stopped the name drawing as prices for things began to rise and family began to rapidly expand. Rather, we agree on a set amount per person/family and then discuss a charity to whom we’ll give the lump sum. No shipping costs, no crowds, and we’re spared the extra trip for a Goodwill donation when the gift has lost its purpose. Of course, the best part is helping a group that does good for the world. Many charities get the bulk of their year’s budget from holiday donations. It is the perfect gift!
And Pinterest is the best! I took a soap making class for $20 and found about a bazillion soap recipes on Pinterest, most for about $50 for ingredients. I now have about 10-15 lbs. of soap to wrap in pretty packages (again, Pinterest!) and hand out at Christmas. It’s practical, useful, it can be customized, and it’ll cost me about $50 for the entire extended family.
But your #1 piece of advice is the absolute best, and something that I honestly and shamefully forget in the frenzy of each season. God bless you and the glorious messages you post!
We have an Amazon rewards card, so when we make Amazon purchases, including Subscribe and Save items like diapers, wipes and even soap, we get rewards points that can then be turned into Amazon gift cards and FREE gifts. We save money on items via subscribe and save, save money on gas to the store and get free gift cards. Just make sure to pay it off each month!