How to Have a Cheap Christmas
by Christmas can be a very expensive time of year and you don’t want to still be paying for this Christmas next year. Just being a little bit more careful can save you a lot of money without turning yourself into Scrooge!
First of all have you got anything to sell? Research has shown that the average family in Britain has about £3,000 of stuff lying around the house that they don’t actually need or use. So go round the house, garage, shed, attic, cellar this weekend and ruthlessly search out what you could sell on ebay. This time next week you could have £3,000 to spend on Christmas.
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These days you don’t need to traipse round the shops trying to find the best deals this Christmas. The online “shopbots” will search out the best prices for you to buy your gifts on the web. You could try www.kelkoo.co.uk, www.pricerunner.co.uk or www.shopping.com.
Whilst you are selling your things on ebay, you could buy your Christmas presents on there at the same time. You can get some great deals on new and nearly new gifts, save carrying heavy bags round town and braving the crowds.
www.vouchercodes.com is a site that lists discount codes for over 300 top retailers. All you do is copy and paste the relevant code into the website ordering page to claim huge savings.
Why not go on a Booze Cruise? If you’re having a big Christmas party or just want good wine for your Christmas dinner, it is still cost effective to cross the channel to France and get your booze there. Try www.boozecruise.com to get a cheap ferry deal and get details of the hypermarkets in Calais.
If you buy your presents online you can avoid those Christmassy shop displays and keep from impulse buying. Another way to avoid impulse buying is to price up you gifts online and only take the amount of cash that you need with you, don’t take your cards with you!
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You have to be really disciplined so that you don’t overspend at the supermarket. Your food bills can triple if you aren’t careful. Make a list and set a budget and only take cash with you. Try to forget the fact that it’s Christmas.
Spread the cost of your Christmas food by buying a few non-perishable items each week from now until Christmas. Check up online at www.MySupermarket.co.uk where to buy the cheapest Christmas food. The site provides an instant price comparison for all the supermarkets in your area that deliver, listing all the savings you can make if you substitute items on your list with cheaper alternatives.
Supporting your local traders and you can save lots of money. The veggies from your local market will be cheaper and fresher than from the supermarket. If you order your turkey now, before the Christmas rush you can haggle for a discount. Cheaper than the supermarket and tastier too!
The Secret Santa game could save you a fortune. Don’t buy presents for all your relatives, put everybody’s name into a hat and each person picks out just one name to buy a present for. The game makes sure that everybody gets a present and you all spend the same amount on each other. Save money and have less shopping to do.
Save money on your Christmas tree. You don’t really need a 7 foot Scotch Pine in your sitting room when a cheap artificial one from Argos will look just as good when it is decorated. You won’t be picking pine needles from your carpet in March either and you’ll have it for next year.
I know everybody spends more at Christmas than any other time of year. After all, ‘tis the season to be jolly, etc but you don’t have to bankrupt yourself even if it is Christmas but neither do you have to go “Bah, Humbug” Scrooge style to cut the expenditure down a little bit. A little forward planning goes a long way. Merry Christmas!
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