If there’s one thing my husband always tells me its that I LOVE to count …44 days til Christmas people!!
Here’s what I’m doing differently this year so that I can relax about, eating, drinking and enjoying the holiday season (at least two weeks prior to the big day!)
1. Make They List of Names Now.
How hard is it to sit on the subway, at a dr’s office or stuck in traffic (though we don’t promote texting and driving) and make the list of who you have to buy for? Bust open the notes feature on your iPhone and get typing. PS Don’t forget to add service providers who’ve done an excellent job for you this year, personal or work wise, too!
2. Set a Budget
If you’re like me you didn’t win the Powerball or the Lotto this week there is some sort of ceiling price point that will prevent you from doing the things you want to in 2016. Might be $500 or $5,000 but now is the time to put a figure to your overall budget and then divvy the total up up the names from your list above. Of course it would be logical to also make sure you actually have the hard cold cash to fulfill your budget at this point too. Fear not, having limits, as you’re about to find out, actually makes it easier!
3. Take Note
The budgets you set per person above are your MAX budget and you should, of course, do everything in your power to stay as far under that figure without sacrificing quality or thought. No one needs more useless items in their life but since you’re doing this in early November, you won’t run into that problem!
Hit Save and Close — that’s enough work for today!
4. Flush it Out
As you find yourself bored looking at your phone in the next week or so, skip Instagram or Periscope and head back to your list and jot down gift ideas for those individuals. At this point broad categories are fine. Deadlines are key to success: give yourself to the end of the week to have an idea for everyone, and if you really get stuck, you still have plenty of time to get the intel from the horse’s mouth directly.
5. Plan To Spread Out Your Purchases
If you get a few things each month, you won’t find yourself incredibly poor in December but it’s also more gratifying to scratch off your list, or mark DONE on your note, every few days (Likewise, I always like when the delivery guys comes multiple times a week anyhow!). The reality is that you won’t see everyone on your list on Christmas Day so prioritize your list by the date you need to give them the gift and work backwards.
6. Find the Card with the Most Points
Since you’re spending wouldn’t it be nice to be able to treat yourself for all your hard budget/prioritization/organizational work? Points can be acquired on both goods and shipping; either way they mean free travel for your so here’s the deal: rack them up but make a deal with yourself to pay them off immediately and definitely by the 25th. Of particular concern this year is Canadians buying from US Vendors. With the exchange rate fluctuating so rapidly as it is, you certainly wouldn’t want to be paying 2 x more in January!
Have you noticed the legwork to here has been offline? Incredibly important to be organized before you see that Google page or it’s all down hill in the time wasting department from here (unless you think being a bag lady for a hot minute is cool of course!)
7. Keep An Eye Out
If you know what you want and have access to a computer …. the online becomes REAL easy. Of course a quick google search always help filter out the noise and point you in the right direction but try adding words like bargain, sale and discount code to the end of those searched. Also worthwhile is signing up to all the newsletters of shops that you may want to buy presents in (then you don’t have to search anywhere except your inbox!); ahem, who doesn’t love decor?!
8. Check the Shipping FAQs
First thing you need to do when you land on a site is head to the shipping page and check to see whether a) they ship to your country/location and b) what the fees are. There is NOTHING worse than wasting time only to find out they don’t ship to you, or worse that the fees are more than the item itself. I always double test by putting a random item in their cart and throwing in the ship to postal/zip and seeing what happens. If there’s any funny business, audios!
9. Know Thy Shipping Dates
The biggest let down is when things don’t arrive. Every online site has a Christmas cut off and this year with Christmas Day falling on a Friday I would target wrapping your shopping at the very latest by Monday the 21st for peace of mind.
10. Get Help
Even when white sweater is on your list for Stephanie there are a million white sweaters on google and online site inventory counts should NEVER be trusted. You googling for hours on end equates to spinning wheels. If you know you’ve got $65 to spend and she wants a white sweater do 2 things
- Shop from gift guides. Online sites makes sure to check inventory levels before producing and while some items are hot and will sell out the odds are pretty good
- Hit the live chat or help features and ask someone at the site what they have in stock and is selling well. They might filter out 250 options to 5 thus making your decisions WAY easier!
Might I mention smaller furniture & decor makes for a timeless gift that many will love!
A. Get the Remote Stylist Newsletter
B. Check out the gift guides by clicking the image below
C. Get Free Sourcing Help From A Stylist (why not just copy/paste your list of ideas)
PS Have you seen my favorite Alpaca present for the holidays? Seriously worth checking out!
Leave A Comment