Christmas on the Cheap

 

Christmas is now just a few days away, and many of us who celebrate it are finding ourselves strapped for cash. Perhaps you have overspent lavishly on yourself and have little money left to buy gifts for family and friends.

 

Don't fret! You don't have to take back your new faux fur jacket or that adorable silk chiffon dress. In fact, you can even make a profit on holiday giving and entertaining with these few simple tips:

 

 

 

Eliminate gratuitous giving by giving gifts and sending Christmas cards only to people who give or send to you.

 

 

 

Don't waste your money on expensive wrapping paper and tags. Use grocery bags for wrapping, decorated with pictures drawn by your children.

 

Cut out tags from last year's Christmas cards. Bring home a few rolls of tape from the office, or secure presents with rustic twine or festive duct tape. Make clever bows with pieces of yarn unraveled from stray mittens.

 

 

 

Do gift recycling, giving gifts you didn't care for to others. If caught in the act, say something like, "I love that potato dicer you gave me so much, I got you the same thing!"

 

 

 

As you receive gifts, open them immediately. If they're not something you like, reseal and give away, or take back to the store for credit or cash.

 

 

 

Encourage anonymous gift exchanges at the office, so you can put in any old chintzy thing without anyone knowing. Or offer to go around and collect cash for a present for your boss. That way, you can contribute nothing-and even take a little out!

 

 

 

Do you have some earrings you're tired of or never liked in the first place? Just put them in a box and wrap with care. Be sure to take off any ear goo first.

 

 

 

Suppose you have some excellent wine in the refrigerator, of which you've drunk half the bottle. Wouldn't it be simply terrific of you to share it with someone? Wrap in tissue paper, top with a festive ribbon, and present with a flourish.

 

 

 

Here's a lovely craft project for your kids: Have them take a coffee can or oatmeal container, glue construction paper to it, and decorate with buttons and rickrack. Cut a slot in the lid and send them around the neighborhood to collect for a charity. Then keep the money for yourself.

 

 

 

Your friends and family will appreciate inexpensive, practical gifts that show an awareness of their preferences and needs. Perhaps a bag of rags and cleaning supplies for that neighbor whose house is always untidy. How about a pair of tweezers for your older sister with the unfortunate chin hair problem? And, of course, carpet remnants make such a delightful gift!

 

 

 

Are there children on your list? Take that old nightgown you were going to donate to charity. Cut out cat- or bear-shaped pieces. Fill with eco-friendly dryer lint; then sew. A cuddly stuffed animal every child will love!

 

 

 

Go through donation bins for toys at stores and books at a library. Ignore the stares of passersby or, if you cannot, say, "I simply can't believe I put Junior's favorite toy (or book) in here by mistake!"

 

Gifts from Your Kitchen

 

No one has time to cook anymore. That's why a savory gift from your kitchen will be so very welcome.

 

 

Cheese sauce makes such a thoughtful present. How often do we need cheese sauce and not want to go to the trouble of making it ourselves? Empty the refrigerator of cheeses that are too hard or old to eat, cutting off the moldy parts. Don't forget those packaged cheese spreads left over from gift sets you received the last two holiday seasons.

 

As you melt the cheeses in a saucepan, get in a little bonus playtime with your toddler by allowing her/him to "discover" various items in the pantry and stir them in. Food coloring, unflavored gelatin, bay seasoning, lemonade mix, you name it! Yummy-yum-yum!

 

 

 

Choose cookie recipes that do not require expensive ingredients. In fact, you can plan your holiday baking around whatever you need to get rid of. The hot pink spray-on frosting you purchased for Valentine's Day cupcakes. The vegetable shortening that's caked, cracked, and turning a sickly yellow.

 

 

 

Party mix is great to have on hand for unexpected guests. Empty all your old stale cereal into a bowl. Mix with melted margarine and seasonings, dump in a roasting pan, and bake for an hour at 250 degrees.

 

 

 

Who can resist the warm appeal of a gift basket? Dig out those old baskets you've had in the basement for years. If they were Easter baskets, you can reuse the grass; otherwise, shred up some newspaper in the food processor.

 

Fill with items from your pantry. The gourmet sauces your significant other bought last year and never used. Canned goods you were planning to contribute to a food drive. Tea bags banded together with twist ties. Don't forget the leftover Halloween candy that nobody ate and, of course, some paper clips and Post-it Notes from work.

 

 

 

Entertaining

 

Entertaining for the holidays need not be time-consuming or expensive:

 

 

 

Plan your party for a time between meals, so people will not expect a lunch or dinner. Or ask your guests to bring their own food.

 

 

 

If you did not start cleaning in midsummer, invite only short people who will not be able to see the filth on top of your refrigerator or cackle over the fact that you haven't dusted your upper cabinet shelves in ten years. To further reduce the chance that guests will observe how dirty your house really is, entertain by candlelight.

 

Cleaning can be a terrific ice-breaker at parties. Put all your cleaning supplies by the front door. As you greet your guests, hand them a squeegee, Handi Wipe, toilet bowl cleaner, and so on.

 

 

 

For party favors, fill Ziploc bags with little bottles of lotion and shampoo that you've taken from hotels or that people have given you over the years.

 

Add some packets of condiments and dental floss. What a useful gift!

 

 

 

For additional savings, turn off the furnace. The accumulated body heat and esprit of your guests will lend a warmth that mere fossil fuels cannot provide.

 

 

 

The Christmas holiday is truly about giving. So, in these last few days before the 25th, open your heart, fire your imagination, and let the people around you know just how much you really care.

 

© 2002 Elaine Langlois