“It’s the moooooost expensive timeeee oooofff the yeaaaarrrr!”
Lol I thought that was pretty funny.
Also, sadly, it’s the truth! The holidays will suck you dry of your sanity and savings faster than you can say “yes I’d like that gift-wrapped“. With all of the travel, gifts, parties and extra indulgences, these out of the ordinary expenses can add up quickly.
So, what’s a girl to do? Plan. Strategize. And pick a fight with your entire family so you don’t have to buy them anything.
Kidding (also definitely stole that joke from a meme I saw). Kind of…
We all want to save during the holidays but it can be tricky. So here are my best tips for giving your bank account a break this holiday season!
MAKE YOUR LIST EARLY
Early Christmas gift shopping is where it’s at you guys. We overspend when we wait until the last minute and panic. If you plan ahead, keep an eye out for good deals and stick to your budget you’ll be in business!
If you already missed Black Friday deals then keep an eye on your inbox for new sales/discounts. I like to create a list in my notes app for everyone I’m buying gifts for and set a price limit for each person. Obviously I’m going to try to spend less on a gift for a co-worker than I am for my grandma. I would keep an overall budget in mind as well and if you add up your list and realize you’re over, make adjustments.
I think another thing to keep in mind is that you don’t have to get everyone a gift. I’m the type of person who loves to get people things (I’m just an angel like that) but there’s definitely been times when I realize that a gift wasn’t totally necessary. Sometimes just a nice card is enough for the people in our lives who lean more on the “acquaintance” side of things, ya know?
If you know what you’re looking for then it’ll be easier for you to buy gifts without overdoing it.
BECOME EVERYONE’S FAVORITE HOSTESS
The holidays mean that family and friends are back in town, you’re back in town and there is a lot of eating to do. Living in San Francisco means there are so many delicious restaurants to try but those last-minute “catch up” dinners can really add up.
A great solution is to have your friends and family over for dinner instead! I have been really enjoying making dinner for friends and find it to be such a money saver. I find a great recipe online, buy the ingredients and ask my friend to bring a bottle of wine. It’s cozy and fun and we get to spend quality time together without spending $50 three nights a week on dinner.
If you need some dinner recipe inspo check out my most recent recipe recap post here!
PLAN OUT YOUR HOLIDAY DECOR
I was so excited to decorate for the holidays this year but I knew that if I didn’t set a budget I would go crazy and seriously overspend.
I made a list of the non-negotiable decor items (a tree, duh) and then went on amazon to look for good deals for the major stuff. Then I went to Ross and Homegoods to get some smaller items that wouldn’t be expensive. I know that each year I’ll add more and more decorations to my collection so I tried my best not to go overboard.
Here are some reasonably priced holiday decor items that will make a big impact and save you some dollas:
TRACK YOUR SPENDING
This is habit I started a few years ago when I really wanted to buckle down and get my finances in order. I started keeping a list in my notes app on my phone where I detailed every purchase I made daily.
This really held me accountable to the smaller purchases that can add up quickly. Do I really need this overpriced pack of Christmas cards? Nah. I really don’t!
Each day I would take a look at my total spending and see if I was keeping in line with my budget. I found myself getting so excited when I didn’t spend very much or anything at all and it motivated me to keep going.
I’m already feeling the holiday expenses adding up so I’m going to get back into the habit of money tracking so I know exactly where my dollars are going.
CREATE A BUDGET FOR NEXT YEAR
What better way to motivate yourself to save than by seeing what you have to look forward to in the future?
I love to set a yearly budget every new year so I can plan ahead for trips, large annual expenses (taxes, bleh!) and other important aspects of my life. It’s actually really fun and it sets me up for success the following year. Of course, you can’t predict the future (although you can totally save for it) so there will always need to be adjustments but it’s a great start.
Think about what trips you have/want to have planned, larger purchases you’d like to save for and fun events you’d like to attend. Also of course consider emergency savings and how good it will feel to pay off any debt you have. Focus on how much future you will appreciate you saving the money you have now to use later for something you enjoy or that will set you up for success in the long run.
What are you saving for this year? Tell me in the comments below!
Xo,
She
