by K. Bella

Created on: October 08, 2008   Last Updated: October 20, 2008

Tis the season for giving! Tis the season to be broke.

We all want to be that one family member who everyone anticipates receiving a gift from. We want to impress our loved ones with our knowledge of who they are and what they like, while seemingly unaware of any price tags. Unfortunately, such adoration doesn't come for free.

Here are a few ideas that will allow you to maintain your reputation as the best gift-giver, without becoming the poorest.

Tip #1: Put yourself on a budget. It is absolutely vital to preface your holiday shopping with a budget that is within your means. Give yourself a reasonable total dollar amount that you plan to spend on holiday shopping, including gift wrap and greeting cards. Then, create a list of each individual and/or family you will be buying gifts for and estimate the amount you plan to spend. If the total dollar amount of purchases is higher than the total dollar amount you have allotted for holiday shopping, revisit each gift and scale back $5 here or $10 there wherever possible. You will be surprised at how much you will save by this simple measure across the board.

Tip #2: Stick to your plan. Once your budget is in place and your plan for gifts has been settled, do your best to stick to it! This is quite possibly the most difficult part of the process because little Jacob would just love that teddy and even though you already bought that blender for Mom, this sweater would look so great on her. These additional purchases will not only put you over your budget, but can cause your once balanced and equal gift-giving strategy to crash and burn. The sweater can wait.

Tip #3: Wrap responsibly. With all of the shiny, tantalizing gift wrap that is out there, it is tough to go for the cheap stuff. But remember, within days that beautifully wrapped gift with the perfectly tied bow will be ripped to shreds. Of course we want our gifts to look gorgeous both before and after they are unwrapped, but force yourself to remember the utter disregard that will be shown for your ribbon-tying efforts. There is plenty of very pretty and cost-effective wrapping paper that will look just as nice as the expensive stuff, and it will go equally unnoticed.

While there are a number of ways to cut corners and save a little extra cash during the holiday season, these three tips will hopefully help give you a good start on your holiday shopping while providing a little perspective. Remember, it's not how much you spend, it's what you give. Oh yeah, and the though counts too! Cutting corners does not have to mean clipping coupons to fill a shopping bag, or spending hours on the Internet to find the cheapest price. And although those are great ways to save a buck or two, the best ways to maintain your sanity and still buy those perfect gifts is to spend more time planning than digging for pennies.

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