Don't Over-Spend this Holiday Season

Ah the holidays. The smell of money is in the air. This week, I present to you the best gift of the season: money saving tips!

1) COUPONS: You know those little pieces of paper you get in the mail sometimes from stores and you just happen to toss them...This holiday season USE the coupons! Various stores have been offering great holiday sales this season. Just today, I went to Lord & Taylor in search for a new winter coat (and gifts for others of course), and I came across a 50% off coat sale. Yes readers, 50% off. For a shopaholic like me, this was the jackpot. I remembered I also had a coupon for 25% off sale items. Using my coupon, I only paid $84.55 for a coat that was originally in the hundreds! Help yourself and save those coupons. Believe me you will be saving a lot more green than you think.

2) Be online Savvy: In one of my older posts, I mentioned how Amazon.com often has products for much cheaper than what they might be at the store. This holiday season I advise you to be online say. If you find something you wish to buy for someone, look everywhere and compare prices. The price at the store may not necessarily be the cheapest one out there. Popular places to look are Amazon and Ebay!

3) It's a Wrap: This holiday season I recommend you save that 4$ extra for wrapping at the store and just wrap the presents yourself. I know store wrapped gifts look great, but your family and close friends will not hate you for your poor wrapping skills! That little extra wrapping money you are saving will add up.

4) Be Bulk: For those who like to receive practical gifts such as socks or sponges, buying in bulk for Christmas can help you save. Buying in bulk has many benefits. The cost is often cheaper than buying the item separately, and you have multiple gifts that can go to multiple people. You are able to knock out two birds with one stone. Who doesn't love that during the holidays?

5) The best come small: You know that old saying "The best gifts come in the smallest packages"? Well that saying is so true! We often get caught up in buying that one very expensive thing for our loved one. Instead of spending so much money on just one gift, you should buy smaller less expensive items instead. This will give the illusion that you spent a lot of money, but in reality, you just bought many little things.

Happy Shopping Everyone!!