You can’t help but do Christmas shopping at the last minute. This will still happen despite your years of preparation as there are factors which you cannot control. For example, some employees will only receive their financial windfall at the last minute also. In some cases, other people do not have the luxury of time to shop and it is only during the legal and approved national holidays (December 24 and 25) when everyone can freely shop around for gifts for family members and important friends or relatives. And unfortunately, these are the days when shops and malls are full of people. So instead of enjoying shopping, you end up embracing lots of negative emotions when you shop during holiday rush hours.
Actually, you do not have
to suffer such issues and possible untoward experiences as there are still
initiatives that you can do to complete your shopping lists. Here are some suggestions:
1.
First, be open for possibilities as your
list might undergo a lot of changes since convenience is the order of the day and no
longer about finding the right gifts for everyone. Accept the reality that
malls and department stores should be avoided and instead look somewhere else.
2.
Your first alternative is to look for gifts
in your nearby public market. You might
not realize that there are several specialty stores inside the market such as
arts and crafts items for example. You can also walk along the sidewalk and check
on slippers and RTW items in many sidewalk stores and stalls. Always remember that the malls do not have
exclusivity when it comes to style and design.
3.
Consider pharmacy and hardware as another
alternative source for gifts or presents.
Some people might appreciate it when you give them a box of
multi-vitamins with iron or three pieces of door locks as they will treat the
gift a manifestation that you really care for them. Indeed, there are other places to do last
minute shopping aside from the usual malls and departments stores.
4.
If you cannot help and insist that the
mall is just the only place for gift shopping, why do the shopping when the
receiver can shop for himself? Thus, why not give them gift certificates or gift cards instead? This suggestion answers a lot of problems
when it comes to rush gift shopping such as falling in line at the cashier’s
booth and at the gift wrapping counter.
5.
If you have a credit card, online shopping
is one of the best ways to beat holiday shopping and only shop in online stores
that offer free gift wrapping. Not only
is this option very convenient, you also save money on gift wrapping. Of course, you need to specifically put the
receivers name on the “deliver to” portion of your online transaction.
6.
One of the perils of last minute shopping
is going over the budget. With that, you
have to check your holiday shopping list twice.
And to do this, you have to resist the urge to buy the perfect
gifts. In the first place, there is no
such thing as one and many people will always find faults with the gifts that
they receive. When you don’t have the urge to find the ideal gift, you become
open to possibilities and you end up considering alternative establishments
to do last minute gift shopping.
7.
Instead of helping people accumulate
clutter through useless gifts, why not consider movie passes, concert tickets,
beauty and spa certificates, prepaid cellular loads, and amusement park tickets
for example. You give family or friends
something to look forward to with your gifts.
8.
Do your shopping two weeks after the
holiday instead. It will still have the
same meaning and offer excitement to the receiver. Gift giving is an all year round tradition and you
will be in for big savings when you avoid the holiday rush and defer your gift
giving activity weeks after the holiday.
9.
Consider giving home-made foods as Christmas
gifts. Food never fails and it is one of
the things that people need most during the holidays. It is also a good sight when your holiday
dinner or table is loaded with delicious food.
10. They
say that talent wins in many instances; thus, you can go personal by giving them
artworks coming from you or create handicrafts especially for your family and
friends. You do not have to do last
minute shopping with this strategy as you can begin doing it months before the
holidays and hide it away until you are ready to give these things to people
very dear to you.
Indeed, you can say goodbye to stress and unwarranted
pressure brought about by last minute shopping with these tips!
image credit: michel's photostream/Flickr
image credit: michel's photostream/Flickr
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