Christmas is coming and it's fair to say I'm pretty excited. However, this time of year tends to cost a lot of money. From decorations to food, from parties to alcohol. And of course, presents. So I have set myself a challenge to do Christmas on a budget... without losing any of the fun.
In this post I will be focusing on a biggie, presents.
I have come up with three ways that I am going to do my presents on the cheap this year and am planning on spending £0 and 0p. Impossible I hear you cry, but maybe not:
1) Survey Sites: I have been using survey sites for a few months now and have quickly fallen in love, particularly with SwagBucks (sign up with this link www.swagbucks.com/refer/LoLoBT). For just a few minutes a day, I can be earning around £50 a month in amazon vouchers, which just so happens to be a perfect place to source Christmas Presents! If you're quick and invest enough time, you should be able to at least save some money on your online shopping. I have been saving up, and now have almost £100 to spend, which means I can still get my family some great, big item, gifts.
For the best survey sites, check out my more in depth post here :)
2) Comping: Comping has been an interest of mine since I discovered it a few years ago. However, in the last few months, its become a real hobby and something I really love to do! The main portal I use, is Twitter. It's something I can do on the go and, to be perfectly honest, I'd probably be on social media anyway, so may as well be winning some prizes! There's something about that alert going on your phone and seeing the word #congratulations that really makes me happy! I have learnt lots of tips and tricks to help you in your mission competition, which will be coming soon in its very own post!
One thing I have learnt through comping, is only to enter if you want to win. For starters, I don't have space in my small student flat to squeeze in lots of unwanted goods and secondly, I don't want to take that joy away from someone else who might really, really want that prize. Since beginning my 'Christmas on a budget' challenge though, I have not only been looking out for what I want, but things I think my friends and family would want too! By typing into the search bar 'makeup win' or 'makeup giveaway' it means I can see all the girly makeup goodies up for grabs and go through and enter them all! By doing this, I recently won a benefit make up set that I know my bestie will just love, making her happy, without costing me the expensive price tag!
3) Homemade gifts: remember the days when all your parents wanted for Christmas was a handmade scribble of the family on a wiggle of green grass to display on the fridge? Although, at the age of 20, I might not be able to get away with this (although my drawing skills haven't improved much) there are still plenty of gifts that can be homemade. But, to cost nothing, it had to be from things already in my house. A while ago, I went through a jewelry making phase, and so I have a few basics - earring backs, superglue and cord. But I needed beads. By going through my old jewelry box, I managed to find some broken/unwanted/old bracelets which still had potential. I cannibalised them and used the beads to make new, pretty bracelets. Also, with the superglue and earring backs, I got some old buttons (everyone has a random tub full of buttons, right?) and made some really cute button earrings. To add a bit of personal touch, I have decorated and personalised some old boxes to display these gifts in.
If this still seems too 'primary school' for you, what about some baking? If you are a dab hand in the kitchen, some homemade toffees, jam, or mini muffins can make the perfect extra to finish off a gift. Using some ribbon and a cute tub, these can look so classy and people will really appreciate the extra effort you put in!
And finally, the essential thing to go with every present? The card! I am a bit of a hoarder, and still have hundreds of old birthday, Christmas and thank you cards in bags in my room. So this year, I decided to finally put them to good use. I went through each one and, whenever I found something glitzy or funny that reminded me of someone in particular, I would cut out the picture to later be used as an embellishment on another card. A great personal touch is to use photos on these cards, without paying the hefty price of the online photo card websites! Everyone I have made cards for before (it's a great money saver at birthdays too) has loved the personal touch and extra effort made. To find some good ideas for your cards, check out Pintrest or Google images. for inspiration!
So that's part one done for my Christmas on a budget! Stay tuned for more tips and ideas and, as always, feel free to leave comments below or tweet me @LaurieBeat to send through ideas or just say hello!
Happy December, and good luck!
I have come up with three ways that I am going to do my presents on the cheap this year and am planning on spending £0 and 0p. Impossible I hear you cry, but maybe not:
1) Survey Sites: I have been using survey sites for a few months now and have quickly fallen in love, particularly with SwagBucks (sign up with this link www.swagbucks.com/refer/LoLoBT). For just a few minutes a day, I can be earning around £50 a month in amazon vouchers, which just so happens to be a perfect place to source Christmas Presents! If you're quick and invest enough time, you should be able to at least save some money on your online shopping. I have been saving up, and now have almost £100 to spend, which means I can still get my family some great, big item, gifts.
For the best survey sites, check out my more in depth post here :)
2) Comping: Comping has been an interest of mine since I discovered it a few years ago. However, in the last few months, its become a real hobby and something I really love to do! The main portal I use, is Twitter. It's something I can do on the go and, to be perfectly honest, I'd probably be on social media anyway, so may as well be winning some prizes! There's something about that alert going on your phone and seeing the word #congratulations that really makes me happy! I have learnt lots of tips and tricks to help you in your mission competition, which will be coming soon in its very own post!
One thing I have learnt through comping, is only to enter if you want to win. For starters, I don't have space in my small student flat to squeeze in lots of unwanted goods and secondly, I don't want to take that joy away from someone else who might really, really want that prize. Since beginning my 'Christmas on a budget' challenge though, I have not only been looking out for what I want, but things I think my friends and family would want too! By typing into the search bar 'makeup win' or 'makeup giveaway' it means I can see all the girly makeup goodies up for grabs and go through and enter them all! By doing this, I recently won a benefit make up set that I know my bestie will just love, making her happy, without costing me the expensive price tag!
3) Homemade gifts: remember the days when all your parents wanted for Christmas was a handmade scribble of the family on a wiggle of green grass to display on the fridge? Although, at the age of 20, I might not be able to get away with this (although my drawing skills haven't improved much) there are still plenty of gifts that can be homemade. But, to cost nothing, it had to be from things already in my house. A while ago, I went through a jewelry making phase, and so I have a few basics - earring backs, superglue and cord. But I needed beads. By going through my old jewelry box, I managed to find some broken/unwanted/old bracelets which still had potential. I cannibalised them and used the beads to make new, pretty bracelets. Also, with the superglue and earring backs, I got some old buttons (everyone has a random tub full of buttons, right?) and made some really cute button earrings. To add a bit of personal touch, I have decorated and personalised some old boxes to display these gifts in.
If this still seems too 'primary school' for you, what about some baking? If you are a dab hand in the kitchen, some homemade toffees, jam, or mini muffins can make the perfect extra to finish off a gift. Using some ribbon and a cute tub, these can look so classy and people will really appreciate the extra effort you put in!
And finally, the essential thing to go with every present? The card! I am a bit of a hoarder, and still have hundreds of old birthday, Christmas and thank you cards in bags in my room. So this year, I decided to finally put them to good use. I went through each one and, whenever I found something glitzy or funny that reminded me of someone in particular, I would cut out the picture to later be used as an embellishment on another card. A great personal touch is to use photos on these cards, without paying the hefty price of the online photo card websites! Everyone I have made cards for before (it's a great money saver at birthdays too) has loved the personal touch and extra effort made. To find some good ideas for your cards, check out Pintrest or Google images. for inspiration!
So that's part one done for my Christmas on a budget! Stay tuned for more tips and ideas and, as always, feel free to leave comments below or tweet me @LaurieBeat to send through ideas or just say hello!
Happy December, and good luck!
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