Credit Crunch Christmas Presents
When times are nice lots of people spend thousands of dollars on Christmas presents but it is the thoughtful gift that strikes a chord in the receiver's heart and is remembered forever.
* Suggest to all adult friends and relatives that presents this year should be for the children. Letting people off the hook could be the best present they get all year and will save everyone a lot of money
* Get cooking. For those who cannot get out of adult gift buying edible gifts can be cheap, personal and a stunning gift. Make chutneys, jams, pickles or cookies. For special people make a hamper of a selection of edible homemade treats and add a bottle of olive oil infused with herbs or garlic
* Babies under 5 years elderly may require every toy they see but most enjoy unwrapping presents so receive a few stockings full of $1 treats or make presents such as home made dressing up outfits
* For spouses or lovers make them a voucher book. All that is needed is a small blank notepad and a pen and the giver can writer their own vouchers for his or her partner to money throughout the year. A home cooked 3 coursework meal, a day without the children, a guilt free night out with the boys/girls, and then there's the bedroom vouchers!
* Find an elderly photo frame and make collage for grandparents
* Receive a nice notepad and some felt tip pens and write a book for a young child, complete with pics
* Make hampers. $10 worth of food or toiletries can look like $50 when presented or packaged nicely
Finance Friendly Food and Decorations
* Cancel Christmas dinner. ! Even for those who religiously have the whole relatives round for dinner on Christmas day. This is the year to start a new tradition. Instead of cooking for 12 report to the relatives that this is going to be a calm year and instead invite them round for late afternoon drinks and Christmas nibbles. This will give everyone the chance to still have a Christmas day get together but will mean that the hosts spend a tenth of the money that they would have spent
* Instead of an expensive turkey buy chicken breast fillets, hammer flat, wrap around stuffing and chestnuts and wrap in bacon. Either serve one per person or to make them go further slice them to generate smaller circles
* For those who buy new decorations every year then this is the year to realise the beauty of recycling. Enjoy the tradition and method of unpacking treasured favourites every festive season.
* For those who are already using elderly favourites add some popcorn tinsel dipped in glitter, cotton ball snowmen and elderly or broken jewellery to make new tree trinkets
* Invest in a Christmas scented air spray. That way it will feel like Christmas no matter what decorations are used
* Make crackers using toilet roll tubes and wrapping paper and insert chocolates or toys for crackers which will cost a third of the price of store bought ones.
* Make a star for the top of the tree out of carboard and silver foil or dress a Barbie doll in her best party dress for a funky fairy tree topper
* For families with children go wild with a toy themed tree. Get the babies to gather any toys smaller than their hand then tape cotton loops onto their backs and dip them in glue and glitter.
Christmas dinner can be an expensive affair. A quantity of the below may soften the above to get A Cheerful and cheap christmas decorations
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