DUers any ideas on how to stretch the holiday gift buck this year.

[redirish28]

My wife has asked me to post this:


Unfortunately we have a certain amount of money for presents this year. My wife is trying to figure out how to get the most bang for the buck when she buys gifts. Any ideas?

[rbnyc]

1. For my neice...

...I'm drawing a coloring book.

For my husband, I'm writing some porn. (kid you not)

I'm baking cookies and putting them in boxes I decorate with my son.

I got some deep discount clothes with my old navy card with free shipping.

We made a general agreement, we're not buying presents for adults. We'll get a few toys and stocking stuffers for the kids.

I think handmade gifts are really meaningful.

Also, framed photos are pretty economical.

[Haole Girl]

2. Some ideas I've used:

Buy your gifts *after* Christmas (though I know it won't help you this year). Last year I got a lot of stuff for 75% off.

There are some good online deals. Just got an email about this one today ($9.99 turtlenecks)...

check it out: http://www.eddiebauer.com/EB/12-Days-of-Gifts/index.cat

If you can't make or buy anything, then write out "coupons" for things. It sounds corny, I know. I promised my husband, one year, that I'd cook 5 homemade meals a week for a year! Man, did I ever regret That one! Actually, my cooking was so bad at the time, about 3 months into the "offer" my husband called it off. lol

[kimmerspixelated]

3. Wow! I'd be happy with 5 meals out a year! Where I didn't have to cook!

Okay I exaggerated. But I cook dinner almost every night!!!!

[BrendaBrick]

4. Might sound a bit corny....

...but I would suggest writing something from your heart on how you feel about that special person(s) and why you are glad and grateful to have them in your life.

Like, if they were to die tomorrow.....what would you have wished you could have told them?

[Kali]

5. don't fall for the scam? ok here are a few simple items

bird seed and cheap feeder; garden seeds and a trowel or some other inexpensive tool like a watering can; a houseplant or some potted flowers; a small fruit tree

a selection of local or otherwise "themed" postcards and stamps; or a package of thankyou cards or writing paper and envelopes, stamps and a pen; assortment of gift bags and bows; blank journal and nice pen

night at the movies - cheap dvd, popcorn, bottle of good soda

hot chocolate kit - mug, assortment of single hot chocolate envelopes (can also buy in bulk and do your own packaging with baggies and ribbons if doing for a crowd - then add marshmallows too)

home made music mixes or videos if you have the skills/time

[La Lioness Priyanka]

6. i am telling people honestly that i am grad student and cant afford shit

so i will buy them something small and useful, but for the next 5 years aside from my brothers, no one can expect anything nice from me.

lisa and i dont give each other gifts for christmas, since we know we are both tapped out. we wait for valentines day to give gifts. basically i pretty much dont gift my family and gift lisa's family. my fam has to love me regardless, so for christmas they are outta luck! :) aside from my brothers. they get gifts

[elleng]

7. Try 2nd-hand shops, clothing, housewares, etc. available, good prices, nice people around.

[grasswire]

8. magazine subscriptions

You don't have to pay for them until you get a bill. Buy the current copy of the magazine and tuck a note in it saying you have subscribed for the recipient.

Then don't forget to do it.

[redirish28]

9. Thanks for the ideas.

[applegrove]

10. Bake christmas cookies!

[MiddleFingerMom]

11. I've posted this before -- after my bad motorcycle accident in the 80's...

.
.
.
...I had PLENTY of time on my hands laid up in bed... mostly reading and watching TV.
.
.
.
And ZIP for money (out of work for two months).
.
.
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A time-consuming, but mindlessly-made gift (easy to do while watching TV)... that
virtually everybody absolutely LOVES?
.
.
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Get a needle and strong thread and string popcorn and cranberries 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2, etc.
.
.
.
It surprised the heck out of me how well those went over -- I kept doing it most seasons
even when I did have money -- those garlands were appreciated much more than most gifts
that would have been in my budget would have been.
.
.
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When I didn't have boundless time to spare, I usually made one for just one special person
each year.
.
.
.

[jotsy]

12. Our policies are it's about the kids and it's about the kids.

I cut corners when I can with siblings, by a 'smaller' gift for each and one 'major' gift to share. Decorate other gifts with accessories, you can buy things like that in quantities for less and disperse them among a group. An entertainment themed approach could yield as much as three gifts for less than $20 total with a movie and a bag of popcorn in a spiffy bowl. Consider activity based gifts, like a couple of passes to the local indoor pool or tickets to some other event. Too many variables here to list, it really depends on how many you got at what age and what they like.

If grown ups and the 'big gig' family party is what's challenging, I've found this fun and affordable: Everyone brings just one gift. All men bring a gift for a man, all women bring a lady's gift. Separate the gifts and guests by gender, and draw numbers. This is where it gets interesting. If person two likes the gift that person one has opened, he or she may pass on opening a package and appropriate the gift, sending person one back to the stack for a fresh package. So the advantage here is going last, as you have your pick of the proverbial litter or decide you like a surprise.

I do a good bit of baking and can tell you that many prefer a plate of my cookies to most else. For young adults just venturing out in their own kitchens, I've considered doing recipe boxes and include a few basics and a few favorites. There's kits you can find, but it's got to be a time sucker.

Good luck and enjoy one another, a gift in its own right.

[marzipanni]

13. We live in an area where produce is grown,

and DH made wine and olive oil, so one year we made baskets for adult family members/couples. A bottle of wine, a bottle of olive oil, walnuts, almonds, popping corn, dried fruit, etc. For a while we had two bee hives so we gave jars of honey along with homeade cookies.

If your area has local specialty food products that aren't as available in other places they make good gifts.

[csziggy]

14. It won't help this year, but suggest drawing names for gifts in the future

My family long ago decided that all the adults do not need gifts, so we only give if we've happened on something special for a particular person. One of my sisters loves to go to thrift shops and garage sales and she tends to have big packages of odds and ends for each of us. We enjoy the weird stuff she finds more than we would shiny new things.

Hubby's family draws names so each adult only has to buy one present for whoever they've drawn. None of us need a ton of presents every year - or the hassle of hunting for mass quantities of consumer products to give away.

Baked goods are popular and the idea of promising home cooked meals sounds great.

[NV Whino]

15. Netflix certificates

I think you can do one to three months or so. You don't have to do an entire year. It's a nice gift that lasts for a while.