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Christmas is a busy time of year for everyone. I have found the easiest way to ease Christmas stress is to begin preparations December 26th! There are so many ways to save money and the environment after all of the presents have been opened. Here are a few:
- Buy wrapping supplies for the upcoming year– Target puts all of it’s wrapping and Christmas supplies on 50% clearance the day after Christmas. I purchase wrapping paper, bags, curling ribbon, and scotch tape. I fill any “holes” in my Christmas supplies and also make sure to stock up on silver wrapping paper. It can be used for birthdays, baby showers, weddings- any occasion just by changing the color of the ribbon!
- Re-purpose your Christmas Cards– I use my Christmas cards to decorate during the holiday season. Because many Christmas cards cannot be recycled I re-purpose them for next year when it’s time to take them down. I use pinking shears and a hole punch to cut them into gift tags for next year’s gifts. I also know people who cut off the design (front part) and make Christmas post cards for the next year. These are good for people on a budget since they are cheaper to mail.
- Hit the sales for gifts for the upcoming year- I take advantage of after Christmas sales not only for next year’s Christmas gifts but also birthdays and other holidays like Father’s Day. I keep an inventory of what I have purchased for each holiday and who the gift is for. I have a bag that I keep all gifts in so I don’t lose what I buy.
- Wait for CVS and Walgreens to mark greeting cards to at least 70% off– I like to purchase my Christmas cards for next year at CVS because I can use extra bucks when they mark them down so they end up being free.
- Stock up on baking supplies- after Christmas a lot of the baking supplies go on clearance. I pick up things like sprinkles in different colors and flour that I will use all year long.
I hope this give you some ideas on how to prepare for the upcoming year and save money. I look forward to hearing what other people do post Christmas.
