My Christmas Shopping Tips
Hi Friends!
It's the most wonderful time of the year, which means it is also Christmas shopping time! I know that some people don't start until right before Christmas, and some people started right after last Christmas. It can be a daunting task and at times a financial burden. For me personally, I struggle with the desire to give amazing gifts (kind of like Leslie Knope, though I never actually reach 'amazing'). I also struggle with limiting how many people actually get gifts. I want to give something to everyone! Because I personally struggle with Christmas shopping, I wanted to share some tips with you that have helped me in the past but more specifically this season. This will *hopefully* make you Christmas shopping season a little easier and more enjoyable.
ONE // Remember the Why
Before you even begin you should remind yourself of a couple things. First, what the season is really about. Family, friends, togetherness, and celebrating our Savior! Secondly, remind yourself that gifts aren't everything, and that you don't have to go into debt to get something for a friend. If you simply can't afford to buy gifts for everyone in your family, know that they will understand. The Christmas season shouldn't overwhelm you and stress you financially, it should bring your family together in love and happiness. Gifts are just a small part of what the Christmas season is all about.
TWO // Make Lists
Now we get into the serious tips! Why do you think Santa makes a list and checks it twice?! It makes life so much easier! I am a huge list maker, I make lists for anything and everything. I find list-making to be soothing and stress relieving, but it also helps in organizing my thoughts. For Christmas shopping, I actually make more than one list. The first list I make is a category list, who am I buying gifts for? Friends, my family, my husband's family, my husband, my "employers" and their kids, etc... The second list I make is one of every person who falls within those categories. So, my mom and dad, my brothers, my sister, my best friends + their S/O, my mother in law, etc. I write everyone's name and then I rewrite it! The third list I make is the gifts that everyone on those two lists gets So underneath the names of each person I list each of their gift ideas. I write more than one gift and as I shop and think, I decide on the best gift from there. The last list I make is the Supreme Christmas Gift List! I combine all three of the lists I made into one big list to guide me through my shopping! I have the categories, the people within in those categories, and the (final) gifts for those people, including their prices so I can properly spread out the buying. This is the list I go off of and mark off, and I may change it later, but it is the main list!
THREE // Limit Your List!
Okay, so I love Christmas and giving gifts to everyone. It makes me so happy to give gifts! But I can't give a gift to every single person even though I want to. To be budget friendly, you HAVE to limit who all you purchase a gift for! Immediate family only, or friends and immediate family only. Make sure that if you can't afford to buy everyone a gift, you set that limit so that you don't get stressed out and spend more money than you can afford. Make a plan and stick to it.
FOUR // Set A Budget
As I said before, I want to be the best gift giver there is, but financially that isn't possible and THAT'S OKAY! It is important to set a budget for those in your list. Make sure that you only spend what you can afford on the people you love, because if they truly love you, they won't want you to spend a lot of money anyway. I usually set a limit for certain categories. This isn't rating how much you value that person, but it is prioritizing. The price of the gift does not equal your love for that person.
FIVE // Shop Over Time
I have found that it is easier when I spread out my shopping instead of buying everything on one day (like Black Friday). So I kind of spread it out over a few weeks so that it isn't one big chunk of money.
SIX // You Don't Have to BUY All Gifts!
A good reminder is that you don't have to buy gifts for everyone! If you don't want to spend a lot of money on something material, you can do some other things instead. For instance, you can bake some goodies for distant family members and mail it to them! For some friends, you can offer to babysit for a date night by giving them a cute Christmas card. For grandparents, you can send updated pictures of your family in frames (super inexpensive and grandparents love photos!). You can make a quilt or a beanie for people as well. Hand made gifts are awesome and more meaningful at times. For some of my gifts I am crocheting up some things to give to them.
These are my tips for Christmas shopping! I hope they are helpful to you in some way and make this season a little easier. Just remember that Christmas can be wonderful and fun without spending a ton of money on gifts. Enjoy the season and don't stress yourself over the gifts! Do you have any tips for Christmas shopping? Any gift ideas? Please share with me! I love learning new things!
