I love celebrating Christmas with my friends and family members, but sometimes the burden of gift buying can put a famous damper on the holiday spirit, especially if your budget is tight top begin with. Here are a few strategies to hope you stay within your holiday budget without offending anyone.
Limit Who You Give Gifts To
We all have long list of people who we feel obligated to give gifts to. The truth is, many people will feel that way about us. Having a heart-to-heart with close friends and family members, I have found that most of us just want to minimize the stress of gift giving altogether. Therefore, we have agreed not to exchange gifts or to exchange gifts with a small price tag instead. While it may be awkward to have this talk, I think it really has helped in many situations.
Cash Out Your Credit Card Rewards
If you have been using a credit card offers reward points, now’s the time to cash them in for gift cards. I know most credit card companies give better deals for redeeming reward points for travel, but for me, travel is not an easy option because I still have young children.
I like that I can redeem my points for small gift cards, which make it easy for gift giving and for having last minute gifts on hand. I know many people feel like a gift card is impersonal, but when you boil it down, most people will use a Starbucks gift card rather than a perfume set or pair of slippers they didn’t ask for.
Buy Discounted Gift Cards
Shop discounted gift card websites for the best deals on gift cards. Usually the store credit gift cards will be discounted the most. Pick a store where you can do most of your shopping, as well as a store where you can pair coupons and clearance deals with your gift card. I am a big fan of Kohls, JCPenney, and Target, since you can usually find something for everyone there.
Give To Charity
Again, this is not going to be a popular idea for many families. I just really would rather spend money buying gifts for people who need them. One year, I told friends I didn’t want to receive or give any gifts, because I wanted to donate the money to a specific charity instead. It didn’t go over exactly how I wanted it to, since many friends were confused. I think in the future, I will use a site like Samaritan’s Purse, which has a gift catalog. Then I will tell people what I am buying, like a farm animal for a family in need so they can join in if they want to be a part of the cause.
In the end, you always have family members and friends who make the holiday season difficult. It is always worth trying these strategies to see if they work for you or your family.
How do you save money on gifts without offending anyone?
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Do you have reputable, trustworthy discount gift card sites that you recommend? I’m always wary of them…
I’ve used quite a few but raise.com is one I use often. You can try that one.