Christmas on a budget

Christmas can sometimes be challenging when you don’t have a lot of money. All those ads telling you to spend big bucks on gifts and meals. Here’s how I do Christmas without getting into debt.



Make a list of people you want to give a gift to. Don’t give gifts because you feel you have to.

Make your own gifts. I know a lot of people enjoyed things I made way more than store-bought items. Edibles is always a win and won’t clutter.

Experience gifts can be fun, un-expensive and won’t leave clutter behind. It doesn’t mean it has to be (expensive) sky diving. It can be going skating, going out for a drink/coffee/tea or sharing a skill (show hot to knit, bake, paint, etc.)

Plan your gifts in advance. I usually think about mine in the summer. It gives me time to spread my spending or time to make the gift.

Remember that setting a limit doesn’t mean you don’t care about the person. More money spent doesn’t mean more love.

If you can, buy your wrapping supplies the year before. Wrapping paper after Christmas is often at a ridiculous price.

If you need wrapping paper or gift bags, get them for cheap at Dollarama is your friend.

If you want to update your Christmas décor, you might check the thrift store to get some cool finds.

You can make your own decoration. There are lots of suggestions you can find on the internet to make your own Christmas décor.

This is what I do at Christmas time. I'm not saying I'm always perfect at it either. I do feel bad when ads show adult children giving their parents a TV, I know I can't do that. Also check my post on what to buy after Christmas.