Do You Pre-Shop For Gift Giving Occasions?
By Nykkee
@Nykkee (2522)
Canada
September 25, 2007 10:34am CST
I try to pre-shop as much as possible. I haven't been doing all that well this year what with buying our first house and all I have been a little too busy to do it properly. I have however been trying to get back on track. Normally what I try to do is keep my eyes open all year round for things that anyone in my family or any of my friends would really like for Christmas or for thier birthdays when it is on sale, or on clearance, and I'll pick it up then, when it's affordable and just hold onto it until the gift giving occasion. I find this works especially well with the things that are specific to holidays and that usualyl run you up alot if you buy them right at the time, or that can be hard to find if you wait too late. For example, I have several boxes of Christmas cards put away that I got last year when they were cheap (well actually I got them for free but no one receieveing them needs to know that) and I also bought a gift for my father for Father's Day the other day, World's Best Dad mug, very hard to find right around father's day, or over priced then, but I got it for $1 because I bought it when no one is looking for them. Doing this saves not only money but alot of stress too. I love being able to look at the calender and say "Oh look it's whoever's birthday." and be able to just turn around to my storage closet and pull out a gift and a card instead of having to go shopping in a panic.
1 person likes this
5 responses
@gmakesmoney (2923)
• United States
1 Oct 07
I try and pre-shop when I can. If I see something someone might like and I know their birthday is within the next couple of months or a holiday then I'll get it. I try not to pre-shop too far in advance though because I tend to put stuff away so well that I forget that I've bought it until I accidently find it a year later, lol.
1 person likes this
@Nykkee (2522)
• Canada
2 Oct 07
Haha. You will have to dedicate a shelf or cupboard just for pre-bought gifts and tag on them who they were intended for and then always make sure you check your cupboard or whatever before you go buy anything right before an occasion. That's basically what i do. I love to stock pile everything. Then I never have to worry about not haveing something i need.
@gmakesmoney (2923)
• United States
3 Oct 07
OMG that's brilliant! You know, I never thought of that, usually things just get lost in a box somewhere or in my room and don't surface until Spring Cleaning time, lol. We're looking at organizing the spare/cat/office/storage room and putting in shelves so we can keep our sewing and craft projects organized and finish them, I should dedicate a shelf for gifts. Thanks for the idea!
@wondericequeen (7876)
• Hong Kong
2 Oct 07
Oh yes I do that very often too because sometimes when the time is close, I couldn't think of anything to give to my friends, and I hate buying something not useful for them out of convenience sake. Therefore, I would think about the gifts and try to look for them whenever I go shopping, if I found something I think is good for them, I would buy them first and save them till their birthdays or special occassions to give to them.
1 person likes this
@CatsandDogs (13963)
• United States
30 Sep 07
That is a terrific idea! I like it quite a bit and maybe I'll adopt it as well because I hate to shop. Yes I'm a gal but nonetheless I hate to shop and having a gift on hand when those days come is a great idea! Thanks for passing it on!
1 person likes this
@Nykkee (2522)
• Canada
1 Oct 07
Well thanks for saying my idea is terrific. I find it helps out alot. Probably the most cost efficient thing I do is buy bulk of all the brand name products that show up in the shampoo/etc. aisle at the Dollar store and then I put them into gift baskets. The result is a gift basket that appears as if it cost like $50 but in reality it cost more like $7.
@gradyslady (4054)
• United States
25 Sep 07
I actually started finding things to give to people for christmas. I already got one friend's gifts out of the way. Now I just have 13 more people to go! Haha, but my mom and I always try to pre-shop, it helps out a lot.
1 person likes this
@Midwesternnights (35)
• United States
25 Sep 07
I wish I pre-shopped for gifts. I always wait until it's too late (mainly because I never have any money).
@Nykkee (2522)
• Canada
1 Oct 07
You can actually save alot of money if you just buy things when they are on cheap and put them away. It saves you from spending alot at the last moment. Even making up a bunch of crafts and sitting them aside will give you gifts on had for emergency occasions. In fact crafts would save you even more $.
