Have you been shopping for children’s toys recently? Out are the days of a $5 tin of tinker toys that could keep a child entertained for days on end. In are high-tech gadgets costing hundreds of dollars apiece. With Christmas coming up, fitting several toys into your budget can be a struggle, especially if you have children who are inundated with television advertisements! To keep your Christmas budget under control, follow these tips when shopping for toys:

Host a toy exchange.
Chances are, if you have children, you know the parents of their friends. You also stand a better than average chance of having friends and family with children. Toy exchanges are all the rage right now. Invite moms and dads to your home and ask them to bring along any toys their children have outgrown or are bored with. Put out some snack foods, play games and exchange toys. By the time the party is over, you’ll have a brand new set of toys; for free!

Shop with coupons.
There are tons of great coupon sites on the web. If you know the gifts you want to purchase, search coupon sites and see if there are any special offers for money off your purchase. With Christmas coming, many toy stores are sending out coupon books in the mail. Don’t throw them away! Flip through them and see if there are any coupons you can use. You can often save $5 or $10 which can add up if you are buying gifts for several children.

Shop at garage sales.
Get up early on Saturday or Sunday and head out to some local garage sales. Toys are one of the most popular items at garage sales and can often be had for a couple bucks. As long as the toys are safe and in good condition, your child won’t know the difference.

Utilize Craigslist and eBay.
Both sites are popular among bargain shoppers. Many people will post a toy for sale or auction rather than returning it to the store. Take advantage of these listings! Please do follow this tip: decide what you want to spend and enter that number as your maximum bid. Don’t get caught up in the excitement of a bidding war. Remember, you’re trying to save money, not blow it.

Put together a craft box.
Young children can make a toy out of virtually anything. Buy them one or two special toys and use the rest of your money to create a craft box. Fill a box full or papers, glue, beads, glitter, markers, safety scissors and other embellishments. Allow your children to add to the box throughout the year. Any time you hear the words ‘I’m bored’ simply pull out the box and let them get creative.

Photo credits: Daytona Pepsi 400 at the Lego Store in Downtown Disney by sylvar/flickr

Children’s toys are expensive and you can easily blow through your entire Christmas budget buying just a few high-tech toys. Make a list, stick to it and follow these five tips. You’ll be sure to spend less money than you thought possible.

Where do you find the best deals on toys for your kids?  Mary Blanchard provides tips and advice on the best deals on the web.  She recommends the Coupon Croc of the UK for the best deals on your everyday purchases, including that must-have gadget for junior.

We all love Christmas. Even deep down, those that claim they don’t like it, secretly love it too! There’s nothing quite like the anticipation of Christmas day, knowing you’re going to be surrounded by friends and family without a care in the world. It’s the one time of the year that we really get to show people how much we care by giving our loved ones thoughtful and silly presents. However, it’s unfortunately a time of the year where we all begin to start worrying about money. Now it’s important to remember that Christmas does not have to be expensive. It’s like any other time of the year, shop smart and find those bargains. The person you are buying for will not care about the price of a present; it’s all about the thought! However price will affect you if you pay over the odds, so take a look at 10 of the best ways to shop smart and save money this Christmas.

1: Shop Online Early

Let’s face it, we should all know by now that for the majority of gifts can be bought online at far cheaper prices than the high street stores. So why wait? Get online now before the best gifts the Christmas go up in price. Also, if you go shopping online to find your gifts now, you won’t have to worry about the busy Christmas delivery period.

2: Look for Discount Codes

When shopping online, ALWAYS look for discount codes before making a purchase. Not only will you get a great price online, you’ll then be able to get additional money off. There are plenty of discount voucher websites out there and some websites also offer discounts for new customers.  Don’t make a purchase without finding one. You can even find a discount coupon to make your own website.

3: Agree Budgets

I’m sure plenty of you have tried this one already, and if you haven’t, why not?! You’ll find that the majority of your friends and family are in a similar financial position to you around Christmas time, so agreeing a budget spend on presents for each other is the sensible thing to do. It can also be quite fun as you then have to shop within a budget and find the best value for your money. Get creative!

4: Hit eBay

As well as shopping online, you should always check prices for items you’re looking for on eBay. If you’ve put off using eBay until now, well now is a great time to start! You can potentially find amazing deals on eBay that you won’t find anywhere else on or offline. A great tip in finding eBay items for rock bottom prices is to search for misspelled items or items with no bids.

5: Agree To Buy After Christmas

There’s nothing worse than buying an item for Christmas day and then seeing that same item on sale for 75% the price it was when you bought it. Again, communicate with friends and family and maybe agree to only buying one small present to open on Christmas day and the rest  you can buy in the January sales. Boots for example, often offer their products at vastly marked down prices towards the end of January.

6: Organise Your Finances

If you’re worried about money in the run up to Christmas, then it’s probably a great time to start looking at your finances in more detail and set yourself up to be comfortable for the new year. See it as a positive opportunity to sit down and organise all those things you haven’t got around to doing. Fill in that credit card application form, research adverse credit cards information or call your bank and get the most of your account features. You’ll probably shop at lot more at ease and find the better deals once you’ve got your own financial position sorted.

7:  Shop For Food On Christmas Eve

This might not be for everyone, but if you want to take a big risk and save lots of money in the process, shopping for groceries on Christmas Eve is when you’ll find the best prices. This is because a lot of shops and stores close for the Christmas period and want to make the most of their stock. Yes it will be busy, but if you prepare yourself, it’ll be worth the long queues and frantic barging out of the way.

8: Use Price Comparison Online For Food Shopping

Food shopping online can also be a great way to save money, as you will be able to use several of the prices comparison websites which allow you to find the best deals. Even if you don’t want to shop online, you can still figure out which store is best to buy from and then go and visit those stores yourself. Always go for store-brand and carefully consider whether you really need to buy into things like three for two offers.

9: Send E-Cards

Sending e-cards this Christmas, particularly if you have a large social circle or family is a great way to save money. There are plenty of websites which offer the opportunity to make and send e-cards for free and offer personalisation options for just a very small cost. It’s time efficient and you won’t have to worry about anybody not receiving their card. Pretty much everyone has email now, take advantage of it!

10: Buy A Fake Christmas Tree

Fake trees are generally cheaper than real ones and can be used year after year. You should be able to find a good quality fake Christmas tree for around £20.00 and can even find some pre-prepared with decorations. It will save you a hell of a lot of time hovering up those pines as well!

Scott is a writer who would happily receive an e-card this year instead of feeling obliged to keep cards from years gone by.

Obviously it’s not good when you get a Christmas present that you don’t really want. What are you meant to do, keep it? I know this sounds terrible, and people get really guilty about this, but how long are you meant to keep an unwanted Christmas present? My husband thinks I am mean. When I go to throw a gift way or sell it he says ” oh George gave you that..you can’t throw that away!” The problem is that after two years he agrees that we can finally get rid of the unwanted Christmas presents.

My children like turning over their christmas presents also. If they are not going to use it, they sell it and buy something they want.  Unfortunately I do not see anything wrong with this. Why be fake and say the gift is great when it’s clearly not. Why not appreciate the thought and move on. 

Why not sell you unwanted Christmas gifts and turn them into cash. If they are left in storage, soon they will be worth absolutely nothing! And all this because you feel guilty.

What about giving the gift to another friend?

Am I crazy or is there other people out there that do the same thing?

We all like to spend money on our friends and family at Christmas time and there are few things as satisfying as being able to buy and give a gift you just know the recipient will love. However, if you need to tighten your belt a little this year in the Christmas gift department, or you’re just looking to curb your consumerism here are a few tips to help you save on Christmas gifts.

1. Make a list, and check it twice

Obvious? Yes. Predictable? Yes. Pointless? No. Making a list of the people you need to buy gifts for, and working out what you are going to get them before you leave the house means you are less likely to overspend on a person. How many times have you gotten carried away collecting the perfect gifts for your sister, only to realise your brother’s present now looks too small and you need to spend even more on him now too?!

2. Make a budget and stick to it

This should be done when you make your gift list because it allows you to see just how much you are spending on the festive season and chances are you’ll be inspired to curb your spending and set a limit. Setting a limit also stops you from over spending because when you reach the budgeted price ceiling, you know you need to stop shopping. If you are struggling for csah and are going to use your credit card, consider applying for a 0% purchases card before you spend. Its going to save you some serious interest.

3. Do not wait the last minute

Shopping earlier than December can save you money on your Christmas gifts. Firstly, there is more demand for all kinds of gifts and their prices increase and their availability decreases leading shop assistants to say things like ‘I can get it in before Christmas but you’ll have to pay the extra rushed shipping costs…’ Secondly, shopping in the Christmas rush is expensive for parking, petrol and incidentals like coffee and lunch breaks in your shopping marathon, but if you pace yourself, you can save on your entire gift buying experience.

4. Shop for Christmas bonuses

If you are shopping in the Christmas rush you can still save on gifts by seeking out those great seasonal bonuses. Around Christmas time many retailers will package up products and gifts to offer gifts with purchase. While you may be tempted to boost the original recipient’s gift, you can instead use this gift with purchase as a gift for someone else on your list.

5. Make and bake

Making gifts is a sure fire way to save money so if you are handy with a sewing machine why not whip up some Christmas stockings for your nieces and nephews, or if you want to give out hampers, bake the cookies and make the jam yourself, there are hundreds and thousands of free festive recipes online.

6. Secret Santa gifts

Instead of buying gifts for all of your friends and family, why not set up a Secret Santa draw within your gift buying groups. This is as simple as putting everyone’s names in a hat, and each person draws out one name, and buys one gift, with a budget set for the gifts by the group.

7. Shop online

This is another way to save on the parking, petrol and snack costs of Christmas gift buying because you don’t have to leave the house. Plus, you can often find the same products from the stores in the mall, in online stores for much cheaper because online stores have lower overheads and staffing costs – savings they can pass onto you.

8. To wrap up…

Skip the expensive wrapping paper. Glossy Christmas patterned paper can add hundreds of dollars to your final gift budget but simple brown or white paper with coloured ribbon can make an equally impressive gift – the paper will just be ripped and recycled anyway. Or you can use non-traditional gift wrapping tools as part of the gift – why not wrap gifts in tea towels or bath towels, or make a ‘Santa Sack’ from a pillow case?

Written by Fred Schebesta. Fred writes at Savings Account Finders. He offers advice on how to compare savings  accounts and make the most of term deposit accounts

Most people presume that having fun at christmas time involves having money, however it does not. In the good old days, fun was for free and you didn’t need to be rich to have a good time at christmas.

Here are some of my ideas on what to do:

1. Get the kids to make xmas decorations. Colored paper at the local newsagaent is still cheap enough. I pay about 80 cents a sheet for a huge piece of cardboard. You can also use bits and pieces you usually keep for recycling. Also buy some glue, sticky tape, and some glitter…It isn’t xmas without the glitter. If you don’t know how to make anything, Google it…There are loads of free ideas out there.
2. Instead of buying gifts, make some. People appreciated anything you give them, well they should, and especially something you have hand crafted. What about baking some xmas cookies, very cheap to make and look great when wrapped in clear cellofane paper. Photos are an easy gift. You can put a photo into an old frame, decorate it, stick a photo on a magnet, and more.
3. Print out xmas activities for the kids. There are heaps of free printable sheets on christmas and it keeps the children in the spirit of christmas just when you need a well deserved break.
4. Print out christmas songs and have a singing competition and give out small prizes for the winners. This can be very funny.
5. Make your own christmas bon bons, you know the things you pull or tug on to get gifts. This is a great way to have a laugh. You can put a message in there, a joke, or even a dare for the person to do.
6. Play christmas trivia, and let the person who answers a question pick a prize from a lucky dip. Prizes can be anthing you like…Could be a christams message, a small toy, or maybe a chocolate. People do not care what they get because it is fun. You can even find prizes at the $2 shop.

Of course there are so many others things you can do to make christmas fun, and asve money at the same time.