Tips for a Frugal Christmas?

I know it's too late for this coming Christmas, but in January most of the supermarkets are practically giving away excess wrapping paper, decorations etc.

I got some nice 3 metre rolls in Tesco for 10p each.

Any money/vouchers earned from survey sites goes in the Christmas fund and I buy accordingly. I also made Advent calendars with freebies collected over the year.

I stick to a budget and think of what people want and when can I get it throughout the year on any sales or anything like that. I usually save up any extras I make from surveys throughout the year and in January/February time I as much I can in the sales.

I usually buy Christmas cards, wrap, tags etc in the new year sales when it is selling for pennies.

I am interested to know what happens to the fabric you use, so the recipients also use it again or give it back to you?

If they do not do either then I am not sure it is very environmentally friendly as paper is easily recyclable.

I start buying long life foods like pickles, stuffing, puddings, biscuits etc with my weekly shop so I really only need meat and veg come Christmas.

If money is tight explain to friends that you will only be buying for loved ones and ask them not to buy for you to avoid embarrassment.

I stick to a budget as well and I buy a lot in the sales in January to put away for Christmas, I buy through out the year to, and I save my nectar points for shopping

How about homemade gifts . With blackberries now in season, you could make jam? Biscuits and cakes are also always welcome.

Last year as an extra I made a book of vouchers for my family with fun little activities

Last year the whole family agreed from this year we would just buy a token gift £10 max. I’m glad we chatted and agreed.

My sister's and I have agreed not to buy each other gifts plus we have put a budget on what we can spend on the kids.

we have cut back on who we give presents to especially within the wider extended families. We dont bother at all with cards either. Having said that I am probably spending more on better presents for fewer people rather than saving any money!

It's September.

Stick to a budget for each of the recipients - home made all the way for someone on a tight budget. Contrary to anyone who always buys gifts, a handmade effort is always appreciated. You put more time in!

Chutneys, jams, fudge, bath salts, infused alcohol decanted into small bottles. Crackers with freebies that you've managed to pick up throughout the year. If they aren't appreciated then they clearly don't understand the word 'struggling'. Come back and tell us what you're going to try.

I make a lot of presents myself to save on money and to give the recipient something they like. I’ve made things like cookies, chutneys and jams, done portraits (pet or human), paintings, made bookmarks, sewn bags, etc. Some things can cost more to make yourself, but as you said using charity shops you can save quite a bit on the cost of materials too.

I have stopped buying presents and just have a lovely meal with the family. We still have a very enjoyable day with a lot less stress.

I only send Xmas cards to my daughters

I am thinking of parcel wrap this so it can recycled

But thinking from a post I just read I might just use the brown paper from Amazon parcel s

Also save padded envelopes you get sent I always reuse mine to send to others

But love the idea of using cloth materials but won’t get recycled as good

I don’t buy normal wrapping paper - mostly due to the wastefulness of it - and instead buy brown paper which is recyclable. I sometimes leave this plain or decorate myself (quick and easy to do with stamps or you could use paint, pens etc). You can get a roll of brown paper in Home Bargains for 59p. I also use paper tape as opposed to cello tape (again paper tape is recyclable where plastic tape isn’t). I don’t bother with cards, tags and bags - another perk of brown paper is it’s great to write on!

For presents, I buy most online and always use cash back sites (Quidco, Topcashback). Always worth shopping around and checking prices on different sites before buying anything. I prefer not to buy things for the sake of it so opt for vouchers/experiences in the place of gifts that people may not want/need. Alternatively making up a box/bag of their favourite things is a nice gift - for example filling a cardboard box with someone’s favourite sweets, chocolate, biscuits, toiletries, drinks etc is a nice gift you know will be appreciated and not go to waste

Christmas presents look nice wrapped in newspaper, or you can use any spare wallpaper.

Just add some pretty curled ribbon, wool or string, and it'll cost you almost nothing.

I recycle Christmas cards, cutting out nice images to use as Gift Tags, and use a hole punch to create a hole for the string.

cancel it hahaha. I usually have a list of who I need to buy for and then throughout the year get them bits and bobs especially on these deal type forums, then it isn't too expensive and you can give some really good presents

Around this time of year I start collecting food for hampers and buy nice little hessian bags to put them in. A lot of the food is free or cheap from cashback apps.

We only buy for family members. We set a strict budget and don't go over it. We recycle gift bags every year and we don't send Christmas cards. I save up vouchers from surveys sites and loyalty points and use them towards buying presents for our son. I only buy food that I know we will eat and there is never any waste. All of our decorations are 2nd hand from my mum, so I've never had to buy any. I don't have any Christmas lights on though as it makes the bill higher so I don't bother. I will buy my son 2nd hand items as it is cheaper and he doesn't know they aren't brand new as he will only be 3 this Christmas, plus the majority of his stuff is 2nd hand so he might as well get used to it early!

I've said it so many times, no point going into debt for one day! Spend only what you can afford.

I do wombling so I make easily at least £50 to £100 every 1 to 2 months to spend on amazon , paypal and into my bank account .We then work out what the bill is for the presents and normally I can halve the bill of what the kids want .

I buy my cards and wrapping paper in the sales for pennies, pick up bits and pieces throughout the year when I see good offers. I only buy food and drinks that I know we will use, as long as everyone's happy that's what matters most to me.

Limit who you buy for, Set a price for those you do & stick to it. Food: Buy exactly what you need. So many people overspend on food needlessly at Christmas & alit just gets wasted. Skip on things such as Christmas Eve boxes etc.

old christmas card fronts used as lables to save some money or time, sometimes charity shops have good gifts you can give and buy part of a turkey not a full one if you wont use it all