- It is crucial to plan your food shopping before hand. Make sure that you know what it is you need and what you already have ten of at home in the cupboard.
- Have a budget and stick to it. It's easy to become side-tracked by offers which appear to be (and often are) too good to be true.
- Be realistic, do you really need everything that goes in to your trolley?
- Shop around for the best deals. (Asda offer a price checker - so if your shopping is cheaper elsewhere, they'll refund you the difference.)
- Why not try swapping fresh, pre-packed fruit and veg for a frozen alternative. (If not, get loose items - why waste money on fancy packaging.)
- Do you really want to worry about cooking a meal for the family on Boxing Day? Swap the A la carte menu for leftovers.
- Make the most of your turkey. Use the left over meat to make sandwiches, curries, soups and stews. Freeze to make quick and easy meals.
- Instead of buying things like mince pies and cakes make them at home. Not only will they taste a lot better but they'll save you money too.
Fed up of spending lots on Christmas cards and presents?
- Plan what presents you are going to buy everyone.
- Set a strict budget - this makes it harder to overspend.
- Keep a list in your handbag of what presents you have already bought, and what you still need to get- this way it is easier to keep track of what you have got.
- Buy next years Christmas presents in the sales. Everyone has money worries at Christmas - but if you plan ahead and buy things in the sales it will ease the strain on your purse strings! Look out for half-price and 75% off sales in January.
- Recycle your Christmas cards and make some gift tags and cards for next year.To make a gift tag simply cut out the pictures that you want, stick to a piece of card, make a small hole and thread some ribbon through. For a Christmas card, buy some good quality card and decorate with pictures. It's as easy as that.
- Re-use gift bags and bottle bags - it will save you a fortune.
- If you get an unwanted gift save it for next year and pass on to someone else- just make sure that you don't give it back to the person that gave it to you in the first place!
If you have any tips or hints on how to make Christmas run smoothly comment below.
