Get creative with Christmas gift wrapping. You can really spruce up your package by applying festive patterns to make gift giving more enjoyable while adding sentimental value. Consider using cut-outs from tissue paper, construction paper, doilies, etc. This is both fun and light on the pockets when considering the expenses of purchasing wrapping paper. To "wrap" it all up, personalize each package with a note for that special person!


Christmas Gift Ideas:

Occupation Gifts - Over 800 gifts related to their Occupation!

Musician Gifts - Guitar, Drums, Piano.... gifts for Musicians!

Fireproof your Christmas Tree. Mix 1 cup ammonium sulfate, 1 half cup of boric acid and 2 tablespoons or borax into one gallon of water. Spray down the tree with this solution and pour the remainder into the basin of the tree stand.

Dodge the woes of Christmas shopping. Always avoid weekends. Although the marketing of sales are geared toward the weekends, promotional events generally extend throughout the weekdays. Don't let the hype of a "weekend" sale deceive you into a frenzy of looking for a parking spot and waiting in exhausting checkout lines. Do your Christmas shopping early and you will reap the benefits of stumbling across bargains for quality items- remember quality over quantity!

Spice up your party. Avoid the typical, bland holiday gathering by organizing your party around a theme, such as "Christmas Past" or "Twelve Days of Christmas." Plan foods around your theme and encourage guests to dress the part.

Get in the mix. Try online Christmas shopping. The benefits of shopping online often include faster service, immediate attention to "out-of-stock" merchandise, tax-free purchases, and free-shipping. Online Christmas shopping often opens up opportunities to receiving special promotion prices and products that aren't readily available to "in-store" customers. How much more convenient than shopping in the comfort of your own home get?

Send a Christmas letter. Tired of Christmas cards? Change it up by sending your friends and relatives a brief letter highlighting your year. Keep your letter light-hearted and entertaining. Those receiving the letter will appreciate a break from the Christmas card routine. This is also one of the few socially acceptable ways to boast about your own accomplishments.

Consider LED Christmas lights. In recent years, LED Christmas lights have gained popularity for several reasons. The cost efficiency of LED lights has been proven to be much more beneficial than normal lights. The amount of energy used in LED Christmas lights is much less than that of traditional lights, which will save you money on your electricity bill. Though the initial cost of LED lights is slightly higher, the lifespan of LED lights compensate for the cost- you will no longer need to worry about spending money on replacing lights every year!

Keep all receipts throughout the holiday season. Always save receipts for the conventional reason of returning items. Aside from that, there is nothing more important than keeping a budget of how much spending was done during a very costly and busy time of year. By reflecting on your purchases that range from expenses for Christmas parties, presents, cards, driving, decorations, etc., needless spending and ways to cut costs may be beneficial for the following holiday seasons.

With the economy the way it is, if you buy any gift cards for christmas gifts make sure they are from a stable company that is going to be around when its time to use the cards. Because the stores more than likely will not issue refunds for gift cards if they have closed.

Shop for Christmas gifts all year 'round!

Keep a notebook with the names of the persons for whom you are buying and buy the gifts when they're on special! Then write in the item purchased and when you bought it before you stash the gifts away. Not only do you save money all year, you can also jot down notes on what they like (and what they don't). Best of all, you can keep track of for whom you've bought--and keep from accidentally buying gifts for the same person or persons twice!

In the 1950's, a major flour and cake-mix manufacturer used the ad slogan "Nothin' says lovin' like something from the oven."

Still true!

For nearly 30 years, I have given my immediate family members (and through the years, many co-workers) homemade banana bread based on my mother's recipe (which was also my grandmother and great-grandmother's recipe!).

It takes a little time, but it costs very little to make dozens of loaves of bread, and my family still appreciates the memory of their mother/grandmother's banana bread. In fact, one family member once summed it up this way: "It just isn't Christmas without Uncle Charlie's banana bread."

Sooner or later it happens to all of us--we get a gift that we really don't like or can't use. Some of us "regift" the item--that is, pass it on as a gift for another occasion--but if you do, be careful about how you regift it.

Avoid sending the gift on to a family member--or worse yet, to the family member who gave it to you in the first place! If you know of someone outside your immediate family who can use or would like the gift, send it on to him or her instead.

Better yet, donate the unwanted gift to a charitable group or organization.

CHRISTMAS SHOPPING TIPS
1. Set a budget and make a list in advance so you don't get off track and forget what your shopping for. This will help you to save money, instead of running to the store with your credit card and impulse shopping.
2. Save your reciepts for at least 90 days after your purchase just in case you have a faulty/defective gift, missing a part, or a wrong size You can also get gift reciepts to give to the recipient as well.
3. Don't forget to remove the price tags/stickers off the items before you wrap the package.
4. Take advantage of "AFTER CHRISTMAS SALES" to get supllies and gifts for next year. You can get some nice gifts and extra christmas supplies for up to 75% for 2-3 weeks after christmas.
5. Shop online and avoid the Christmas traffic and lines. Most online retailers have discounts on shipping or other discounts to offset the shipping charges, and if the retailer doesn't have a store in your state you can avoid paying sales tax as well.
6. Shop in off-peak hours and avoid weekends. Most stores have extended hours for the Christmas holiday by opening earlier and closing later. Get up and go early in the morning or late at night. This will help avoid the long lines and busy isles.

If you are visiting family for the holidays and have issues in your life (i.e. bankruptcy, illness, filing for divorce, etc.), unless it is absolutely unavoidable, this is NOT the time to bring any of these things up for discussion! Try to find a more suitable time that you can discuss these things in better surroundings where you have more time to think and concentrate. If you must bring these subjects up, find a time and place to do it where you have as much privacy as possible.

Make sure you do your online Christmas shopping earlier than later! Like retail stores, online stores can run out of stock when it gets closer to Christmas.

If you brought home a live Christmas tree make sure you remember to water it so it stays fresh and green while you have it in your home.

Use caution when decorating your house with Christmas lights. If you are on a ladder and especially if you are on the roof, make sure you have someone spotting you in case you slip and fall, or even need an extra hand.

It's not all about the presents. The greatest gift you can give someone is the gift of unconditional "love".