Plan for your holiday budget now!
September 14, 2009 by Jennifer Chait
Filed under Halloween, Holiday Thrift
It’s just September I know, but in order to maximize your holiday savings for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and other autumn and winter holidays, it’s best to plan your holiday budget now. To get ready for bigger money savings this year do the following…
Take stock: Go through your holiday decor boxes, gift wrap storage, and greeting card you’ve been hanging on to, and make a list of what you already have vs. what you actually need and carry that list with you, in your purse from now on. It’s tempting to buy holiday stuff when you see it on sale (which it will be soon) but it’s a total waste of money to own three or four Halloween banners, 18 rolls of gift wrap, or six sets of holiday lights.
Communicate with family and friends: You can plan a less material based holiday season if you try, but it helps to have family and friends on board. Set limits on gift costs or decide to have a gift wheel, where one person gets a gift for someone else, but not everyone. Visit Buy Nothing Christmas for tips on how to buy less and make the holidays more meaningful this year. BND advocates note, if a Buy Nothing Christmas is too extreme, try selling your family on, “A Buy Less Christmas. Or a $100 Christmas. Or a Regifting Christmas. Or a Green Christmas. Or a Slow-Down Christmas.” You can apply the buy nothing advice to ANY holiday, not just Christmas BTW.
Make a list: Make a list of holiday gift ideas and plan on finalizing it soon. Then take said list with you shopping to avoid impulse buys. Stick to the list!
Plan to shop online for what you can: People seem to purchase more stuff in stores than online; likely because there’s more temptation involved when you can see and touch stuff for real. See how much you can get online, before heading to the stores. You can also score some sweet deals AND many online stores offer gift wrap for free (or cheap) and will ship directly to the recipient, which save you time and money.
Free up your schedule: If you can make time instead of shopping you can give the gift of time vs. gifts that cost money.
Plan for budget meals: Shopping ahead of time for goods like canned pumpkin, frozen foods, and so on can save you money and you’ll avoid the holiday shopping rush. If you’re holding lots of meals with friends and family plan for who will bring what by October, to avoid folks purchasing the same items twice over.
More holiday budgeting tips coming up soon! Now, tell me some of the ways you’re planning on saving more this holiday season?
[image via Buy Nothing Christmas - get your own free coupons!]
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