Holiday Gifts That Won't Break The Bank
As we've all been hearing lately, the sputtering economy is bound to put a damper on gift giving this holiday season. If you're belt-tightening with the rest of us but would still like to give presents to those special people in your life, there are several alternatives for consideration. For instance:
* The Wall Street Journal lists gifts with a real return on investment. These ideas promise to save or make money for the recipient. Not a bad idea at all.
* Kiplinger suggests giving financial well-being. How exactly is this done? According to them, it's achieved through gifts like a paper shredder, home safe, and (of course) a subscription to their magazine. How romantic. Of course, there is some sense to these for those of you who are more practically minded.
* Bankrate offers some recession-proof holiday gifts including both 12 suggestions as well as low cost alternatives for each of these dozen.
Then again, you may be tried of the commercialization (and expense) of the holidays and are looking for alternatives. If so, you may agree with Free Money Finance's call to celebrate simply, not over-spending and leaving a huge debt for yourself in January. They offer four ways to do this: cut back your gift list, limit how much you spend, decide to be charitable, and determine which activities bring you real joy.
Whatever your plans for this holiday season, we wish you a joyful time, full of happiness and good cheer. Oh, and great deals at your favorite store too...
— FREE MONEY FINANCE (Photo: strobist)
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Comments:
you can shop handmade -- and even local if you want to keep your cash supporting not only independent artists, but ones near you -- at Etsy.com
And, yes, there are fab gifts there for guys and kids as well.
@jscott73: I second this approach. I open a free savings account for any specific big-ticket event/item I want to save for. In an actual emergency, the cash is there to spend, but otherwise it's tucked away safely, and I usually don't miss it.
I bought my Canon 40D camera this way, only took me 8 months to save. My first new car is hopefully next. (or maybe a used one made in this century...ahem)
Or you can do what I'm going to do and give everyone the super kick ass "HALL OF FAME" toy.
@magdelane: I actually did just that this year. I'd been introduced to an artist on Etsy who'd been doing some video game-related crafts, and, browsing through, found the perfect gift. Less than $20, well made, and sure to put a smile on the face of my one and only.
Everyone on my list this year is getting things I catch myself. The live trap I bought at a garage sale a few weeks ago is already paying for itself many times over.
I thought the best gifts that only increase in value (especially as our economy goes south) is SPAM, bottled water, and guns and ammo... ;)
I just buy all my gifts from DealExtreme, lead didn't kill me when I was a child.
Everyone is getting the Throwing Knives Set this year
[www.dealextreme.com]
@jscott73: I use this approach too, though I just use a piggy bank; $20 a week in it and I've got $1,000 to spend at the end of the year. I barely even notice it, and it's plenty to provide a very nice (though not extravagant) holiday without going into massive credit card debt.
I made crafts and am baking cookies like crazy. My husband and I can't afford to go nuts this year and we are trying to prop our savings up. Another thing we did was go to a "Five and Below" store and stocked up on board games.
Wool socks and cast iron cook ware, these have always been my favorite gifts.
@Canino:Holy hell, that's a great idea! I have racoons raping my garbage cans weekly; you've made me realize that I have a built-in source of exotic meat (racoon jerky = adorable protein), striking retro hats, and faux rabbits' feet.
Not to mention, protentially several gift baskets worth of Squirrel-on-a-Stick for the Fallout3 fans on my list (and the squirrels are quite fat this season, portending a long, snowy winter, so we hates them already). Thanks for the tip!!
I've asked everyone to forgo gifts for me this year and instead donate to charity on my behalf. In return, I'm giving my parents a donation to my local SPCA shelter, my boyfriends parents a donation to the local Christian Music Mission, and my Aunt & Uncle a donation to the Susan Komen fund.
My husband and I are spending less this year on 'stuff', but we're taking our kids on a weekend trip to a hotel with an indoor water park. We wanted to go with an experience and making memories, rather than more toys and stuff that will end up in the trash!
All of the adults in our family decided to forego gifts this year, and focus on the kids. It's nice not to have to go into debt to give people gifts out of obligation.
But, we will be helping out a family member who's out of a job. That's worth it!
Have you checked out the rates on good, old Savings Bonds recently? We're getting one for my 1 month old nephew.
I save up my dependent care receipts from the fall and submit them all at once. We pay cash for Christmas every year this way.
This year it's boxes of homemade caramels, truffles and nut clusters with tiny piped-on wreaths. Get the chocolate bars (for melting down) on sale and it's a very inexpensive, but very impressive and thoughtful gift.
@jscott73: Exactly. I've been doing this since, well since I started buying presents for other people when I was a kid. I just put away more now. It makes so much sense and if you're a good shopper, your "Holiday" account is a bit bigger every year without having to increase how much you put away each month.
@magdelane: Dude, Etsy is the best! I've purchased many an awesome handmade item on the cheap. And I love that my money goes directly to the person who made it. Pretty sweet.
@QuantumRiff: Don't forget crank radios, portable generators, water purification tablets, chemical toilets, why the list just goes on and on!
This year I ordered organic mixes and spices for my friends and family. Who doesn't need food? And they can make them at their own convenience rather than receiving tons of baked goods all in the same week. We bought our son a house, which he will pay the mortgage on when he graduates from college. So, I figure we're good for the next several decades with him. Oh, I guess we'll also get him a pair of Birkenstocks like we usually do. Our daughter is getting art supplies for school, a couple of books and a few items of winter clothes. DH will get what he usually gets. You married folks know what I mean. The dogs will get one day access to the litter box. Free treats and perfumed breath.
@magdelane: Their search feature is crap (top tip: use as many exact words as you can think of), but there are so many wonderful things there to see! I bought my husband's birthday present there and not only was it perfect and so well-made, but the individual customer service was far beyond anything you get in most stores these days. I like knowing my money is going to support independent artists (being one myself) instead of the CEOs of chain stores and that the gifts I give will be as special as their recipients. Usually I'm cheap as can be, but I'm willing to spend more on a handmade item than I would be on something off the shelf. You can't beat a well-made handmade item for quality and they're almost always something to treasure.
It helps to have reasonable family members. No one is asking for a $400 sweater or anything. Everyone is getting what they asked for, but it's because the items they wanted are useful and not overly expensive. I think we're spending about $15 to $40 per person, which is pretty average for us. I can't give a big batch of cookies to my mother in law, who bakes a lot, and will be making a ton of cookies anyway, but I can do that and give gourmet coffee to friends.
Use my favorite trick: tell nieces & nephews that they've been horrible, horrible children, in ways that make Santa's anger-contorted face blush beet-red, that "it" is all their fault, then drop a worn charcoal briquette into their outstretched palms. Bonus points? "And you're lucky to get that!"
Needless to say, tell them this with no adult witnesses; when confronted by angry, angry sisters/parents, deny everything. All else fails: blame the dog.
@VeeKaChu: Use it wisely, my friend.
The only problem I have with it is that I don't want my twin nephews to fight over their presents, and it's sometimes difficult to find two possums of equal size. But I started plenty early this year so I should be ok.
@Oranges w/ Cheese: Same here! No buying or giving presents for me this year on Christmas. Although my birthday is the day after Christmas :)
I also give a lot of books...they're enjoyable, educational, and with the coupons I get from Barnes & Noble, I save a lot of money.
We use this approach for holiday gifts/expenses along with any other large (or larger than normal) purchase i.e. a new car, a couch and or vacation. We put money aside each month in ING. We have several sub accounts including - 1. vacation/travel, 2. house (i.e. furniture or home projects for our historic house, could also be used if we had a house emergency like needed a new AC unit and did not want to dip into our actual emergency account), 3. fun (this is a new one and I'm putting $50 into a month, not sure what we'll do with the funds. We had a car account but we bought a nused car in Sept., we'll likely start a another car account next year for Mr. Sam's replacement truck.
Another gift idea I've found works well is coupons. I've used this on my wife and she absolutely loves it.
Just use a program like Pages or draw it yourself. For my wife, I wrote things like "Free Errand" or "Free Massage" - she loved that one :)
People that are chore or task minded will get a kick out of coupons, and it's more personal that money or a stupid gift certificate.
@Trai_Dep: Although, in my defense, I've gotten from my sisters: underwear. A box of fudge. A Gold Edition of a really lame PC game (I'm a Mac guy). And a box of coins... That year's penny, nickel, dime, quarter, fifty-cent piece and dollar, in a cardboard box. Coins.
PS: my gifts to them? A drum set. A puppy (large-breed, of course). Oprah-sized negligee (they're waifs) and cola-flavored massage oils. A handheld siren (with flashing strobe lights FREE!!). Fugly brown chamo puffed-out ski pants. A Gideon's Bible. A credit card application. A DVD version of To Catch A Predator - with bonus material!
Yeah, our living room is a passive/aggressive mine field at Christmas, with emotional WMDs set out amongst the ripped wrapping paper, rent ribbons and collateral-damaged, weeping children.
We got your Santa. Oh yeah, baybie - we got 'im right here!
@magdelane: Yup, Etsy is my first stop for anything I can't make myself.
It's a little late to start making things oneself, but that was my route this year. I'd rather do it if I really care about the person anyway...and if I don't, why the heck am I giving them something?
@VeeKaChu: Squirrel-on-a-Stick would rock so hard! Add a handful of bottlecaps and it's the best theme Christmas ever!
@GuinevereRucker: I stopped doing that when I was 12, after the novelty wore off and my parents realized I was never going to make good on the coupons.
@Meggers: I'm doing cookies, candied/spiced nuts, etc.
In addition, the hubster and I decided in lieu of gifts for each other we'd have a spiffy holiday feast (I make the universe's best beef stew, we still have a bottle mead from last Christmas, and more cookies).
I'm knitting as fast as I can (which isn't very) and I should have a few hand-made scarves for friends. I'm also going for gifts with sentimental value (rocks from a beach from my friend's home town in Maine, home made (printed) Christmas cards, photos of friends in an album, etc.).
That being said, I'm probably still going to buy my dad "Iron Man."
@kmw2:
I have a piggy bank. I'm going to do that. I just had to buy tires and of course, I really didn't have the money.
I'm planning to do cookies this year too, except for the kids. The nephew just gets money. The two girls get a toy each.
My mom gave me the cookie recipes we all like the most. I'll make some up and put them in a WalMart tin.
It's nice to know we're not alone. Started doing this way back when I owned my first car to pay for the many repairs, and have done it ever since. It's saved my bacon more than a few times - the wife and I started another one so we can vacation to the UK in two years, without incurring any debt.
I get all excited talking about saving ;).
ALCOHOL people. Nothing I'd love more than a couple bottles of hooch this xmas. At only $10-15 a pop, depending on the brand and size, you can't beat it.
My husband and I were thinking of adopting a dog from the humane society as a christmas gift to ourselves and our child. I do some volunteer work there already, and know the vet and dog trainer, so they'd help me pick out the perfect one. We've been kind of depressed since our last (very elderly) dog died this past summer. It might be just the thing to cheer everyone up, and help a dog with no home in the process. The shelters are filled to the top with great dogs, both purebred and mutts, abandoned due to foreclosures.
People might also consider adopting a cat from a shelter, if that is the type of pet they want.
Of course, it should not just be a "christmas gift" but a family decision, well thought out beforehand. The family must be extremely prepared for the life-long commitment to the dog, both emotionally and financially. And prepared to make sacrifices in your own life to accommodate the pet - both in terms of time and money. You never know when you'll be hit with a $4,000 vet bill, like my friend whose dog ate a corn cob he pulled out of the garbage can, and almost died.
@Julia789: Aww. My (above) joking aside, I think your (sensibly-qualified) suggestion is the best Christmas present of all, since it does so much good to so many (two- and four-legged) creatures. Props!
Linux on a Stick!! It's so easy!
The perfect nerd gift! Buy a cheap 2GB flash drive on Amazon (around $5) and run the install program. Write instructions for changing the BIOS and Tah effen Dah, A great gift really cheap!
I also suggest downloading PDF's of books from google books and other sources(make a whole collection), burn them to CD/DVD and you have a great gift for about 25 cents.
Great idea! I tell all my friends who are thinking about getting a dog to do the same thing, before they go out and try to buy a dog.
@IHaveAFreezeRay: same here but it wasn't my parents that stopped me. It was the kick in the nuts from my brother...
ING is giving 2.75% right now for an online checking account. Anyone reputable offering higher?
This is our first Christmas where my wife and I are actually planning to spend a bit more then usual. Last year we decided to open a Christmas savings account and put $30 a paycheck into it, never missed the money and now we have over $700 to spend.
We still plan on being practical because Christmas should be about more then just presents and we have already donated some of that money it is just nice to have the extra cash so the holidays are less stressful and debt-free.