Saving Money At Christmas
In today’s society, many people get chills at the thought of going through another Christmas. You might be one of them. Heck, I might be one of them. It’s not that we don’t like Christmas. But where is the money going to come from?
Money worry often takes much of the fun away from Christmas.
Christmas is supposed to be fun! So how do you get your groove back?
It seems our ancestors were brilliant at this. They knew a thing or two about doing it tough. Back before Christmas became so commercialized, all decorations were home made.
Not only does this save money, but it can also be an immense amount of fun. You can get the whole family to join in too, making it more personal for everyone.
How To Save Money At Christmas
You may need to buy some of the basic supplies, but the cost of this should be small. You probably already have scissors and tape, ribbon, string, and hopefully glue. Read some of the suggestions below for ideas. You might need to buy glitter, thick paper or thin cardboard, a hole punch, some gold thread, maybe some spray paint. Let your imagination run wild.
Always think about what items you might have lying around the house before rushing out to buy supplies. Buying is not always the best solution.
If you have no option but to buy, take a look at online craft stores or discount warehouses. There is a chain of craft stores in my state, and I live very close to their discount store for damaged stock that doesn’t meet their “store standard”. I manage to pick up things at a fraction of the cost. Quite often the item itself is in perfect condition, it is just the packaging that is damaged.
So do some online searches and see if you have anything like that near you. The only problem with the store I go to is they have limited opening hours so I have to plan ahead and take time off work to get there. But it’s worth it.
Homemade Ornaments
Here’s where you can let your imagination loose. There are no limits. Copy ideas you see in magazines and in stores, or make up your own ideas.
Get started with some of these ideas…
Christmas Tree Decorations Ideas:
- Save used Christmas cards to cut out the pictures and hang them on the tree. Cut them out, punch a hole, and add some gold thread.
- Garden debris (leaves, twigs, pine cones, etc) can be painted gold or silver to decorate your tree.
- Bake some gingerbread shapes, dust with icing sugar and hang them around the tree for an edible treat.
- A string of popcorn is a popular Christmas tree decoration.
- Remember that Christmas tree lights can be hot, so be careful what you place close to the lights.
Streamers & chains:
- Chains can be made from strips of crepe paper, old wrapping paper, colored drawings, magazine pages.
- Don’t forget the old popcorn chain. This is good for anywhere in the home.
Easy Hanging Decorations:
- Use two wire or plastic coat hangers (one pushed through the other to form a cross) as the base for a mobile. cover it with paper or tinsel, then hang whatever you like – Christmas card cut-outs, gingerbread men, painted pine cones, cut out shapes.
Easy Christmas Crafts
Decorating for Christmas can be cheap and easy. It doesn’t have to cost a fortune, as you can see from the suggestions above. Plan early and start collecting bits and pieces throughout the year.
Keep it simple. Your kids will enjoy the activities in the weeks and days leading up to Christmas. If you work on something each week for a few weeks, you’ll have loads of decorations before you know it.
And don’t forget, you can also make your own wrapping paper. Butcher’s paper is large and fairly cheap, and it’s a blank canvas for your unleashed imagination.
Most of all… enjoy!
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[...] some good ideas… and some that I will be using myself. Take a look at the article “No Money Christmas” for some ideas to help you out this holidays. Visit Vintage Christmas Decorations for [...]