– Are your lights bad from last year? Don’t throw them away! Check the fuses first! It could be just as simple as a fuse needing to be replaced. Most light-makers have a baggie of spare bulbs and fuses taped to the strand, so check your strand or visit your local store to pick them up, and save yourself the money of buying more! If not, then try LED Lights
. They use less energy, last way longer, and look pretty cool! Big money-saver!
– Not wanting to spend a ton on gift wrap? Visit your dollar store for inexpensive gift bags, or your local craft store for inexpensive fabric! You could also opt to give reusable bags along with the present you need wrapped, making it eco-friendly in many ways by doing it that way! Other ideas? Paper grocery bags (good way to reuse it) or the ever-popular newspaper, which was going to be recycled anyway!
– Not wanting to spend a ton on your holiday dinner? Shop ahead of time and store it for later, cashing in when the sales are hot! Often times you can get a great deal well before the season kicks off, or, if you’re expecting a lot of people, buy in bulk and save! Don’t forget coupons online! Brands like Betty Crocker and Pillsbury offer coupons and money-saving recipes online!
– Give the gift of an Entertainment Book (or invest in one yourself!), filled with money saving coupons and ways for the recipient to save on their purchases for a year, specifically targeted to their area of residence!
– If you have children, then you definitely have broken crayons. Don’t throw them away, break out your mini-muffin pan and make Crayon Nibbles (remember this post of mine last year?)
– Have some old pictures from family portraits, school pictures, sports pictures, etc? Break out some construction paper and make some handprint angel ornaments with your child’s face on it! By using their handprint, angle the fingers down, use 2 more of their hands as wings, and their face glued on a circle for the head, tape or glue on a hook and you’re set! (will try to get a picture of ours later).
– Planning ahead is another huge money-saver. Buying over the course of the year to give gifts, as well as saving money for the holiday ahead of time helps. Another great planning ahead tip – shop the after-holiday sales and stock up for next season! Pre-buy teacher gifts the year before, when they go on sale after the holiday; buy all your decor for next to nothing after the holiday is over; even get future Christmas crafts for next year!
Do you have some great money-saving Christmas tips? Tell me about them!
