THE run-up to Christmas day can be a stressful time for many, with increased energy bills, the cost of Christmas food and stretching the cash for presents.
This year, a report by The Money Charity found that the average UK household will spend £1,811.70 on the Christmas period.
This equates to 80% of the average monthly UK income.
So what can we do to keep the costs of gifts down?
One financially-savvy mum took to Facebook to show the incredible savings she made by shopping frugally.
Stephanie Pim shared a post on Facebook group, ‘Extreme Couponing And Bargains UK’ , showing off an incredible haul of presents for her children.
She wrote: “Kids Christmas presents all bought from Vinted, market place, charity shops and a couple bits from Aldi.
“Oh and Play-Doh was 36 tubs from Amazon. Total £150.
“And included in that is still a pair of Boggs wellies to come and a hot wheels set both from Vinted.
“Christmas doesn’t have to get you into debt!”
The money-minded shopper had managed to put together a gigantic haul of gifts for her kids by purchasing items second-hand, hunting in cheaper stores and looking for deals online.
And the comments were flooded with praise from like-minded parents.
One user commented: “This year mostly everything we have is free on Facebook market place, charity shop bargains and free on Olio.
“Second-hand is sometimes the best.
“Most is new, unused or very good condition and i’m OK with that, I know my son and family will appreciate it, even managed a few ‘from me to me’ gifts, as you do.”
Another person wrote: “Love this wish more people like u would post this, makes it become the norm!
“Second-hand toys can be like new and why pay double?!”
While another bargain-hunter wrote: “I did loads of vinted & cheap bits this year.
“Managed to only spend £200 on 3 adults & 1 kid and I’ve done absolutely amazing considering I’d usually spend £500+.
“Everyone’s got loads considering, I just managed to be very savvy this year.”
And someone else chimed in: “I’ve had a lot from Vinted this year, all new, still got tags on.”
Top charity shop tips for bagging a bargain
Ross Dutton has been a manager for Crisis’s charity shops for four years and currently runs the charity’s Finsbury Park shop in London.
Choose your area – As a rule of thumb, the posher the area, the better quality the clothes that are donated.
Don’t hang around – If you see something you like, buy it, as it’ll likely be gone when you come back
Look out for cut-off labels – Some of your favourite high street stores will have deals with local charity shops to donate stock that isn’t sold during their own sales. Often part of the deal is that they need to cut the labels off the clothes.
Stay at home – While some charities have their own site, like Oxfam and Crisis. many also sell from dedicated eBay stores, such as British Heart Foundation and Scope. You won’t get the range of bargains that you would get in a physical store, but if you’re looking for something specific it may be worth checking online too.
