Welcome back to the next part in the 2017 Holiday Planning Series, Tips For Christmas Gift Shopping. If you’re new here, you might want to go back here and read the Holiday Planning Checklist 2017. After you’ve made your plan for the entire season, you’re ready to start on the gift shopping.

Today, I’m going to tell you my system for getting this part of the season organized and ready. This part of our plan is usually the most stressful and time-consuming. Honestly, it is for me too. That’s why I’ve come up with a plan to make it easier and more fun. So, put on some Christmas music, read through the tips for Christmas gift shopping, and let’s get organized!

TIPS FOR CHRISTMAS GIFT SHOPPING

1) Set a gift budget. Set your amount on what you can realistically afford without going into debt. If you haven’t learned to save up for Christmas throughout the year, make that part of your new year’s plan. Next year, you’ll be ready with cash in hand.

2) Make a list of everyone you need to shop for. Buy a small notebook for this. Start with a list of everyone to buy for. Next, have a page for each person to list gift ideas.

3) Plan out your shopping schedule. My strategy is to start with this week and hopefully get it done by Saturday, December 9th. That gives me four weeks to get my shopping done. Then, if my schedule gets really busy, I still have another week to finish, if needed.To get my shopping done, I divide the list up and try to get a fourth of it done each week. By doing this, I’m not left with a ton of last minute shopping.

4) Shop the sales with a strategy. There are tons of sales this time of year, so to keep track, you need a system. I use a folder, add dividers with pockets, and whenever I get sales flyers or coupons, I put them in the folder. I keep them separated by category such as clothing, electronics, home decor, and things like that. Within each category, I try to keep them in order of the date. Also, whenever I get a sale flyer or coupon, I make a note of when it needs to be used on my calendar. Then on that day, I look at my gift list, see who I could buy for at that particular sale, and make a point to go there and pick it up.

Black Friday Christmas Gift Shopping Strategy:

Get all sales flyers or look online for sales.
Make a list of the stores that will have sale items you need to buy.
Beside each store, write the times of the best sales.
Beside each store, write what specific gifts you want to look for.
Make a game plan for what stores you will go to and in what order. If you can’t get to all the sales, go to the ones where you get the most gifts and the best deals.
Organize your coupons according to the order you’ll be using them. Remember to take your small notebook with your gift list.
Decide what time you’re leaving in the morning, put on comfy shoes, take snacks and water, and go out there and get shopping!

How To Get Gift Ideas:

Try to get specific ideas for family members, but for others, you sometimes just need to get creative and do your best. Here are some ideas for people such as co-workers, neighbors, friends, and teachers.

Homemade food items
Gift cards, especially for coffee houses and restaurants
Gift baskets with an assortment of items
For women: lotions, scarves, jewelry
For men: tools, hats, t-shirts
Books, notebooks, stationary
Christmas tree ornaments or other small decorations
Classic movie DVDs
Tickets for local events

For gifts that are more personalized, think about what that person likes, and then surprise them with something that would be unique or something they probably wouldn’t buy for themselves. If you know their hobby, a gift basket with items pertaining to their hobby is always fun.

christmas gift shopping That’s the plan for the Christmas gift shopping. Try to start on your shopping this week. If you really don’t have time, at least get started on a gift list and mark on your calendar when you’ll start your shopping. Do whatever works for your busy schedule.

Next, we’ll focus on our Thanksgiving week. For those of you who have out-of-town guests, I’ll have tips for getting ready. Also, I’ll have a post to help you stay organized through Thanksgiving week.

Till next time, have a wonderful day!