Christmas on a Budget

You may remember my post on Is your fridge empty?  Like a lot of people worldwide, we are all having to make sure that we are spending wisely, cutting back on the extras and budget carefully.  It's a challenging thing to do - especially during this time of the year. The pressure to get all the right decor, get those expensive gifts and that big Christmas lunch!  How do we manage during this time?

We used to be consumed with doing Christmas right - the right gifts, the right tree, the right decorations, the right food - but really if we really want to get it right - we need to be looking at Christ.  I know its not easy when you are surrounded by friends and family who seem to have more, but I know what happens if you give into the pressure - come January and February, you can't pay bills, and you have overspent - suffering in the following months with budget issues because the budget was spent over Christmas.

I have decided to run a series on how to prepare for Christmas on a Budget and have fun doing it!  (of course we do, we don't want to be miserable and be so consumed with finances that we can't celebrate!)

I decided to start with the gifts as these normally take the most time to make or find.  You also don't want to be running around looking for gifts 5 days before Christmas - by then everything is gone!

The series will include:

 * Gifts

* Decorations

* Wrapping and Bows

*  The Meal

and anything else I think of along the way

Join in on the fun, send me your ideas, share some links.... join us on this journey.  

Christmas Gifts (Part 1)

Buy Basic Craft Colours

Before you start, if you do decide to craft your gifts and decoration, get some red, green, gold/silver paint.  It helps.  Or choose a colour theme - then you only need to get one:)  But again paint isn't always necessary - go natural!  I love natural, not only because its cheaper but because I think that its important for the children to focus on beauty and not on bling.

  Recycled or Re-purposed Items from a Second Hand Store

One year I bought a number of second hand wood items for about R5 each, sanded them down, put pictures on with modge from recycled wrapping paper and then varnished them.  They were a huge hit! Again be careful don't spend a fortune on modge podge or paints. Rather do this if you already have the materials or if you know where to get this fairly cheaply.  Some of the items I used were wooden cutlery tray, condiments holder, knife holder and a salt and pepper shaker.

 Cookies in a Jar

 

 There are so many recipes online.  Choose a simple one.  If you want to make a more expensive variety then "upsize" it but just the layers with a pretty label and a cute lid will make this special.  In fact a lot of my friends have never seen this before (except the ones who enjoy reading blogs) so I know this would be a real winner.

Go Online - Gumtree/ Craiglist

I find these especially useful for gifts for children. They often want the big things which cost big bucks!  However if you look around you may find unusual gifts for them.  Be careful though that you don't pay for anything in advance.  Go and look first.  Also anything electrical is a bit suspect as it might not work when you get home because they don't tell you about a fault that exists or lose wiring.

Gift Movie/ Slideshow
This is especially a good gift for Granny's and Grandpa's or close family members (your friends might not appreciate a slide show or movie of your children).  Its so easy to do.  All you need to do is choose a selection of photos.  Choose the order you want it in, add music - and you can even make it a movie and its a wonderful keepsake. Software for this type of gift is free.  You can use a basic image program like Picasa. Get the children to make their own personalised cover and you can add words to pages as well.  It really is quite nifty and Granny and Grandpa will be very impressed.

5$ Store
There are usually a few goodies that I enjoy getting from a $5 store, and make great gifts.
Colourful nail polish - there are few teenagers who don't love fluorescent pink, crazy orange or sky blue nail polish.  With the current trends in nail art, this will be a great Christmas gift for any teenage girl or younger.  Even Ruthie (3) LOVES nail polish.(and her mother mind you)

These few ideas should keep you busy for a while. Keep a look out for the next edition of  Gifts for Christmas on a Budget

If you have a post on how you keep to a budget over Christmas time, why not pop me an email and I would love to host your article as a guest post.  Otherwise as always, leave a comment. 

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And if you have done so already go and enter our Giveaway, you have till Wednesday!