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Hello Everyone!
With Christmas approaching at a ‘Mach 3’ speed I know that budgeting for gifts starts to become an issue. So I wanted to post this way before they arrived so you can start prepping for them now – and not break the bank later!
There are a few things that I personally do to help my family prep for the Christmas Season along with a few new ideas that I’m going to be trying out!
Claim any Freebies that are out there!
I always post deals about Free trials and Free items in general (You can find them here or under the coupons tab). Why not cash in on these FREE items where you might only have to pay shipping. This can allow you to end up with nice gifts and you would have only paid the shipping cost!
Cash in Your Rewards!
- Cash in your Swagbucks: I already wrote about how to earn Swagbucks here but it truly helps us out come Christmas time. I know I easily end up with $25 in Amazon gift cards each month. Now – I don’t save each and every one of my giftcards for Christmas but even if I just started saving them this month I would have at least $50 in gift cards. That means its $50 that never even came out of my pocket! Also if you sign up for an account before 11/14 be sure to sign up here and use my code “COMESAVEAWAY” you will earn a 70 swagbucks bonus right off the bat!
- Pampers Gifts to Grow: This is a new one for me – so we will see how it pans out. There are often times free pampers gifts to grow points that are released throughout the year. I’ve been saving up some of them (and if you click here and sign up for Pampers you will get 100 Free points after sign up) You can cash the points in for giftcards as well!
- Recycle Bank: I haven’t mentioned this site before – you can sign up here – in a nutshell you earn points for doing simple activities and you can cash them in for Free stuff. I actually Cashed in my points last year for 4 different year long magazine subscriptions! There are other things you can cash your points in for as well.
Coupon to get Freebies! (or cheepies)
Last year I made sure to stock up on all of the freebies that the drugstores have (be sure to check out the weekly match ups to see what is free this week!). I then took the items and made them into gift baskets – you could even use them for stocking stuffers if you really wanted! You can have fun with it and your friends & family will still end up with a nice, useful gift!
OR you can go here to look through coupons – there have been a lot of toy coupons lately that work wonderfully with some stores (for example target) and result in super cheap toys!
Shop on Black Friday or Cyber Monday
This is one I do all the time! Last year I went on the biggest extreme couponing trips I had ever done! If your going couponing on these days you can save BIG on everyday items. Last year I was able to come home with enough shampoo/conditioner, pony tails, toothpaste, dish detergent, laundry detergent and so much more to last me a very long time! I still have the laundry detergent (and it’s almost a year later)!
Be sure to check out all the Black Friday Deals Here and the Cyber Monday deals here. I will post them as I see them. Below is a video of my top 6 tips for shopping on Black Friday.
Clean out Your Clutter
Sell items you have – but no longer need – and are just taking up space – because you don’t know what else to do with them. Start a pile of the items, clean them up, take a nice picture and post them online. There are so many sites to sell items like this on – ebay, amazon, local facebook groups, and craigslist. Just be sure to go about selling them in a safe way if you are using a site that requires an in-person exchange.
Monatize your skills
So you have to be good at something – You can take whatever hobby you have and turn it into a business. For example start a shop on Etsy or post an add to Fiverr. These two sites are different – Etsy seems to be craft and handmade items while Fiverr is almost like a workplace. I’ve used both sites before. Fiverr lets you sell a skill (maybe your good at proofreading, or translating, or setting up a resume) these are all things that you can post to fiverr. If you really want to get serious, turn it into a full blown business! I started a photography company in 2012, I do lifestyle photos as well as landscapes and it all started because I just loved taking pictures!
Shop from a discount site
A great example of this is Groupon or Zulily or even Tradesy! These sites always have items that are at least 50% off! OR you can shop at nice consignments shops with High End clothing like Jennifer’s Collection (this is my FAVORITE online consignment store!)
Make Your Own Gifts
This one is easy! If you really like to make those ‘recipes in a jar’ here is where you can excel! Maybe your a really good baker? I have never heard of anyone who was like “no – I despise this cupcake you have made me” – personally I LOVE baked goods! Or if you knit- make a blanket – not only is it a homemade gift from the heart, it is useful!
My husband and I have made gift-baskets of the items we have made/canned as gifts before! My sister and her Fiance are AMAZING at flipping furniture. They made us our breakfast table out of a wine rack they found at a salvation army! (It looks like it cam from Pier 1 or something!). My Grandma painted a picture of my beloved Tanky – it literally made me cry because I absolutely love my dogs!
These are the kinds of gifts that can save you money – but still be some of the best gifts you could ever give anyone!
….Well there you go… There are some ideas to help you not break the bank come Christmas time!
Amanda Grimm says
All good ideas! I am also in full blown Christmas mode. I want to get this thing done so I can enjoy December!