Christmas Day is not all about huge presents
When it comes to Christmas, I like to consider myself pretty MoneySaving.
I build up a steady stockpile of presents throughout the year, so I don’t have to buy too much in December, and I set myself a budget. Shopping around for the cheapest prices is easy thanks to the MegaShopBot, and I always check for discount codes before buying to see if I can get even bigger savings.
Very disciplined, I’m sure you’d agree.
However, for ultimate Christmas MoneySaving, my mum sets an even bigger, tinsel-covered, shining example.
Mum’s the word
Last Christmas, she wanted to buy my two brothers and I a special big present each. But come Christmas Day, there were no big presents under the tree.
Instead, she individually wrapped up three pieces of A4 paper, each inside a plastic wallet, showing a picture of what she was going to buy us for Christmas… but in the sales:
- Me, a pine dresser for my living room.
- Brother 1, a laptop.
- Brother 2, a games console.
As grown-up children, we understood why she’d done it, and didn’t mind that we didn’t have anything big to unwrap.
We all went out on the day after Boxing Day, and brother 1 chose a laptop from PC World that had a 20% saving.
Brother 2 got his Sony PlayStation3 from Currys, which was bundled with six games for £60 off. And then we ordered my pine dresser from Argos, at £100 off.
Though her purse was empty, my mum had saved about £250 and had three very happy children.
What do you think of her Christmas present cost-cutting idea? Have you ever done the same, or something similar? Join in the forum discussion or comment in the box below.
