The hardest time of the year for saving money and generally spending less of it has to be the winter holidays. It’s the time of year when consumerism gets the best of us and we go wild when it comes to shopping! But it doesn’t have to be this way, there are ways to save money even during the holidays, without making any compromise. You can still buy nice gifts for your friends and get a nice Christmas tree, all you have to do is to be smart about it. Today, we’re going to show you 10 ways to save money during the holiday season without making any compromises.
10. Downsize Everything
Downsize absolutely everything this holiday season! Your closet, your shopping, your invite list, your food and wine list, absolutely everything. Learn to live with less, because material things don’t bring happiness… or so most people are saying. Whether you believe that or not, minimalism is the key to saving money.
9. Hold on to Things
A simple, but very useful tip for saving money is to hold on to things for just a little longer. So you feel like you need to trade in your car? Don’t do it during the holiday season! Wait a little longer until everything is taken care of and the last of your worries is your car. Naturally, this can be applied to a lot of other things!
8. Make Lists
Making lists will not only help you be more organized, but it will help you save money. Keeping everything in perspective will help you know what you need and what you don’t. We also recommend getting an app for note-taking. There are so many out there that are free and incredibly helpful.
7. Use Vouchers
Whenever you’re out shopping for groceries or presents, make sure you’ve got some vouchers with you, so that you can save money, while shopping. These days, there is a voucher craze, so you’re most definitely going to find them, all you need to do is search for them! What was your biggest voucher discount?
6. Have a BYOB Christmas Party
We know that BYOB doesn’t really spell Christmas party, but college student party, but when the budget is tight, you make it work. Instead of simply cutting booze off your list, you could just ask people who are coming over to bring some bottles of wine. It’s nothing to be ashamed of! Everybody’s doing it!
5. DYI Christmas Tree Decorations
When on a budget, it’s time to make your own Christmas tree decorations. The easiest way to do this is to cut a couple of lemons and oranges in thin slices and put them somewhere sunny and dry for a few days until they’re dry. Attach some string to them and you’ve got yourselves some great Christmas tree decorations.
4. My Beerdrunk Soul is Sadder than All the Dead Christmas Trees in the World
Or in other words, don’t buy live Christmas trees. A tree doesn’t have to die for your entertainment. We get it, it’s nice to have your house smell of pine, but that can happen without a poor little tree dying. If you get a plastic tree, you’ll get to recycle every year for eternity (almost) and you get to save a ton of cash! Everyone’s happy, right?!
3. Buy Food Wisely
When buying groceries, you need to be wise! The USA throws away tons of food each day. And it’s not even rotten, it’s completely edible. To avoid having to throw away good food or have good food go bad in your fridge, simply think about what you’re going to cook and how many people are coming over. Don’t waste food!
2. Keep Presents Simple
You love your friends and they love you, but this doesn’t mean that you have to buy them each a Mont Blanc pen. Good friends can appreciate a gift that’s made from the heart and not from your wallet! So, take our your pen and paper, make a list of all your friends to whom you would like to give presents and spend some time thinking about what affordable presents to get them. Easy!
1. Buy What You Need, Not What You Want
In order to save money during the holiday season, you need to learn how to do smart shopping. It does take a little bit more time from your part, but it’s well worth it. All you need to do is do some research about what places are having sales, what vouchers you need to get and so on and so forth. Another very important thing is to only buy what you need and not what you want. We know it’s hard, but you can do it!
Are you going to try any of our tips on how to save money during the holiday season?
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