How I Plan to Cut our Gift Budget by 75% This Year

I have a somewhat large family. Each year, we celebrate no less than 15 birthdays. Then there are other gift-giving holidays that we celebrate like Mother's Day, Father's Day, Valentine's Day, and Easter. And then, of course, there's Christmas. Also, as my oldest son is now school-age, we are being invited to more parties for his classmates. Needless to say, our gift expenses are quite large.

Over the past year, I have been trying to be more vigilant with our finances and, as part of that quest, have been looking for ways to greatly reduce how much we spend on gifts. I still want to provide the recipient with a thoughtful, quality gift, I just do not want to pay full price for it (or pay for it at all)!

So, here is my plan:

Take Surveys

I have discovered several wonderful survey sites you earn points for completing surveys. Once you earn a certain number of points, you can redeem these points for gift cards (such as Amazon) as well as having cash sent to your PayPal account. I began about a year ago and so far I have earned roughly $500 just from taking surveys. Some of these surveys also ask that you complete tasks for them for additional incentives. For instance, this past Christmas I just had to log my shopping habits for a month to earn an additional $30. I have even had some send me products to try for additional incentives. I will admit, taking surveys does take a little bit of time, but the good thing is that you can devote as much or as little time as you want (after all, every little bit helps). I have found that if you can devote about an hour or two a few days per week, you can earn some decent rewards.


Here is a list of all of the survey sites that I have used that have the best pay out:

• SwagBucks
• I-Say
• My Survey
• Opinion Outpost
• Inbox Dollars

Scan Grocery Receipts

There are several apps for smartphones that allow you to earn money by buying certain products (that you would typical already purchase each week, such as milk, bread, bananas, cereals, etc.) and scanning your grocery receipts. Some items are brand specific while others are not. Since I began using these apps, I have earned a total of $150! Just for buying groceries and scanning the receipt! Some of these will send you a check once you reach a certain amount and others will let you redeem for gift cards (like Amazon and Starbucks) or have the money deposited in your PayPal account.

These are the apps that I use:

• Ibotta
• Checkout51
• Saving Star - this one is actually linked to your loyalty cards, so when you purchase a qualifying product and scan your card it automatically credits your account.

Handmade Gifts

This year I have also decided that I would attempt to make some of the gifts myself. I have never been delusional enough to think of myself as being crafty or creative, but with the help of Pinterest and my unhealthy addiction to craft stores (not exactly sure how that works since, you know, the creative ineptitude mentioned earlier!), I have actually been able to pull off some pretty simple, pretty inexpensive gifts that actually look good.

For instance, I made this wreath for my mother and grandmother last Christmas

I purchased a couple of grapevine wreaths, printed out some black and white photos, and used some 2x3 silver frames that I have collected over the years and attached them to the wreath using floral wire. Full disclosure: I bought a premade burlap bow rather than trying to tie one myself. Although it would have been cheaper to do so, the time, effort, and frustration it saved me was priceless! I found the idea for the wreath and the instructions here.

The entire project was actually quite inexpensive but does not look as such. Also, the fact that it is personalized (I used photos taken with my grandmother in her wreath and photos taken with my mother in hers) and sentimental, it was the perfect gift.

I have a ton of DIY gift ideas saved to Pinterest. I would love to have you stop by and check them out.

Shop Early and Shop the Sales

It is the beginning of March and I have already started shopping for Christmas! I keep an eye out for clearances and sales and make gift purchases all year long. For instance, now is a great time to find winter items on clearance as stores are making way for spring and summer items. I just recently purchased a few fleece pullovers from The Children's Place for $10 total. These will make great gifts for Christmas or for birthdays that occur later in the year. I also make a run through the toy aisles at Target occasionally to browse the clearance items that I then stockpile for birthday party gifts for my son's classmates.

I have done this for a couple of years now and have learned a few things. First, this is a great way to get awesome prices on things like clothes and toys. Second, this is A LOT better than making a run to Target on the way to a child's birthday party and paying full price for the first toy you can grab! Third, this can get out of hand if you are not careful and at least somewhat organized! I cannot tell you how many times I have lost track of what I have bought and ended up with way too many gifts. The upside is that you can always put them back for future gifts but this can get tricky if you have toys that are very age-specific or children's clothing that is a certain size.

For this reason, I have created a monthly event tracker on which I write down every gift-giving occasion. This helps me know who I need to buy for and when they will be receiving a gift.

Here is what I use (I like having the full pages to help me really visualize the events):

Jan-Apr

May-Aug

Sept-Dec

Then, once I purchase a gift, I log it into my Gift Inventory spreadsheet that I created in Excel to keep track of them. This prevents me from overdoing it and helps me remember what I have purchased (because keeping track of a small gift you bought in March for a Christmas gift is practically impossible!).

This is my Gift Inventory:

So hopefully with all of these resources combined, I can drastically reduce the amount of money I spend each year on gifts.

Also, I would like to know what you do to reduce your gift budget.