Don’t let Christmas sneak up on you, especially if you have friends and family in other parts of the world. Technology has advanced a lot, so even if your best friend since childhood now lives in London you can spend the holidays together via Zoom, Skype, or Google Meets. Unfortunately, there’s no way to digitally send your thoughtful gifts. That means you’ll have to do your shopping early and make sure your gifts are in the mail by these shipping dates. Follow these tips to get everything done on time.
Holiday Shopping For Your Kids
Most American families spend the highest amount of money on gifts for their little ones during the holidays. That makes sense. Everyone wants their children to wake up to a picturesque Christmas morning with an overflowing pile of gifts under the tree. Unfortunately, that often means the gifts purchased for Christmas are forgotten in a drawer on already in a landfill by new year. If you’re on a budget this Christmas you can save money and the environment by following the “Rule of Four” when you’re shopping for your children. The rule of four states that each child gets four gifts:
- Something they want
- Something they need
- Something to wear
- Something to read
Holiday Shopping For Friends and Extended Family
The second biggest expense is gifts for extended family members and friends. You don’t want anyone to feel left out but that doesn’t mean you have to buy a big gift for everyone. Instead, purchase something small and universal for all the ladies and gentlemen on your list that aren’t in your inner circle. For example you could make hot chocolate sticks. This type of gift will let them know that you thought of them but it won’t cost you a lot of money.
Holiday Shopping For Your Inner Circle
Shopping for your inner circle is a lot different. When you’re shopping for your inner circle, start by writing down all of the people you need to purchase gifts for. Next, add what you would like to buy them beside their name. For example, a unicorn necklace for your niece, a high-end kitchen knife set for your father, etc. Finally, research and compare prices for each gift, the same way you would if you were shopping for a new car (Genesis Northwest has amazing prices by the way). When you’ve found the best deal go ahead and make the purchase and scratch them off of your list.
You might also like: Car Shopping Terms You Should Know
Holiday Shipping Deadlines
Once you’ve ordered your gift use this list of shipping deadlines to make sure they get to the recipient on time.
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