Never Too Early To Start

By Lisa Greer
Published January 24th, 2010

I’ve already purchased my first Christmas gift for the 2010 holiday season. That’s right. January 3rd, I saw something on clearance that my niece would love, so I bought it. For years, I’ve made a practice of picking up items here and there throughout the year, so when the Christmas season rolls around, I have less to buy in that short amount of time, and less shopping to do. This works well for my busy life and my tight budget.

For those of you who have difficulty putting money aside in a savings for gift purchases, this method may work better for you. Now, some of you may be saying, “That’s great. If I can get something ½ price after Christmas, then I can spend more on that person, right.”  Wrong. The goal is to benefit your budget, and with gift giving, it truly is the thought that counts. The key to making the gift special is your creativity. For example, there’s an e-book by one of our Sensible Life contributors, Marlene Alexander, and is featured in our Review section this issue. I could simply purchase the e-book and give it to someone, but wouldn’t it be more special if I downloaded it on a flash drive or SD card and wrap that up to give my friend or family member. Not only do they have a great book, but also a useable flash drive for their techie gadget collection.

It’s even more crucial to plan ahead when you’re making something from a craft such as knitted scarves or crocheted mittens, or even a poinsettia wreath for someone’s door. I remembering going to a local hobby store one year in January, and they had bundles of silk poinsettia’s 90% off. Each bundle cost me 10 cents apiece. When these flowers are hot-glued onto a wreath, it makes a really pretty Christmas display, and to add a special feature, use some white lights to add warmth to this holiday decoration.

Also take advantage of marked down craft books that are Christmas theme focused, so you’ll have them for the next year. Some hobby stores have free patterns on jewelry making, yarn crafts and the like. These are provided by the manufactures of such products to entice you into purchasing their brand. I always take advantage of these and keep them in a file at home. I may not need it at the time, but throughout the year, I may hear my daughter say she’d like a crocheted afghan, or some special earrings, and I’ll look through my patterns to see what I have.

One caveat that I would offer to anyone shopping early –have one special place to put any gifts you’ve collected over the year. There have been times when I’ve been doing spring cleaning and ran across a gift that I had forgotten about.

Not only does this practice help ease the strain on your budget, it also helps keep the Christmas spirit alive all year long.

Merry Christmas 2010!

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