6 Tips For Frugal Gift Giving

With the holidays fast approaching I thought it would be a good time to look at gift giving in a financially smart way. Many people spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars on Christmas gifts. Once you buy for the family, your friends, your coworkers, and your boss you’re probably about broke. Well here are my top 6 ideas to help you save some cash over the next couple of months.

1. Recycle gifts – Have several ‘Dirty Santa’ parties to go to? Take the gift that you received at one to the next party.
2. Draw names – Instead of buying for all 44 of your relatives, try getting the family to draw names. Instead of buying for dozens of people, you only have to buy for a few.
3. Hit the sales – This is sort of a ‘no brainer’ but look for Christmas sales. If you don’t mind getting up at 4am, there are always incredible sales the day after Thanksgiving. Or, for the smaller presents, you can usually find Christmas baskets and other small gifts on sale somewhere as December 25th draws near.
4. Be creative – It’s the thought that counts right? Be creative and make your present. Instead of buying Aunt May an expensive picture frame, buy a cheap frame and decorate it yourself. There are craft ideas all over the internet. Be creative!
5. Don’t do it – If you are the kind that hosts a Christmas party every year, skip the gift giving. Simply exclude the exchanging of gifts.
6. Pay cash – Finally, pay cash for everything that you buy this holiday season. It hurts a lot more to plop down a few Benjamins than to put it on plastic. When you pay cash for items, you really see how much you’re spending and you’ll probably be less inclined to spend more than you can afford.

Now take a look at my Top 10 Dirty Santa Gift Ideas Under $5.

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