Category Archives: Save Money

Shop Wisely Over Christmas

It’s been more than 5 years that we’ve lived with the notion of credit crunch in our minds. “Save, be thrifty, be careful, don’t overspend…” – such pieces of advice come from anywhere and everywhere. And we can sense the financial situation all the more pressing during holidays, when we feel like spending a lot more than usual. There is a way to enjoy great Yuletide and still buy all the things you need (pay attention, ‘the thing you need’) as long as you are wise and prudent and plan well ahead. So, how can this be the case in any case?

Time is Money
Indeed, finding ample time for your Christmas shopping over the holiday spell can seem like mission impossible when you try to squeeze all the tasks into your tight schedule. This is how online shopping can help you. Saving your time it saves you money, because it is on the Internet that you can find great deals. At the same time you can stay at home or in the office and earn some more money. As most entrepreneurs suggest: something is worth the time only if it brings you more that you can earn working for the same period of time.

Luring you at Christmas
Over Christmas stores apply all sorts of measures to draw customers and save their own turnovers. In fact, Christmas is just the right time for shops to change their balance at the end of the year. Believe it or not, Christmas shopping sometimes provides for about 40% of their annual revenue. That is why, you can find seemingly huge Christmas discounts. But you better steer clear of them as you are very likely to spend more on things you don’t really need thinking that you’ve saved money for them. Truth is, Christmas discounts can be misleading.

Plan well ahead
Planning well ahead is a great choice for a number of reasons. You can benefit from summer / seasonal sales, you can diversify your budget and last but not least, you save time. When you shop ahead online, you can use saver or free delivery, which usually take longer. So if you purchase gifts early enough, you can afford to wait a little longer. Also, don’t forget that over Christmas post offices and the mail service can be insanely busy so it is not worth taking any risks. So, don’t wait till the very last moment.

Buy 2 get one free
Found something great that you can give to more than one person? Don’t turn a blind eye to offers such as these because they can save you a lot of money. For example, should you need Christmas presents for several men who won’t be present at the same Christmas dinner (a work mate, a long-distance friend, and your dad for that matter), and you find a tempting offer that will suit the purpose, go ahead and use it.

Regifts
Some people would say that regifts are the worst possible idea for a Christmas gift that can occur to you. Truth is that we tend to buy things that we never use, store provigil online
them in a chest of drawers that we never open. Check your long forgotten stuff ? there might be little treasures among them.

Packaging, etc.
Can you figure out how much you spend on packaging every Christmas? Try not to open your gifts like a reckless spoilt child and keep the packaging of gifts you’ve been given earlier to reuse it for your Christmas presents. This might sound a little cheap. Should any of your friends recognize their packaging coming back to them, don’t hesitate and tell them you’re trying to be a little more environmental friendly.

Shop and Save on Halloween Costumes

With Halloween knocking on the door and the difficult times we live in, we often come to think – “How on earth can I have a great party, dress up in a lovely costume but still cope with the expenses”. We all want to party, meet with friends, drink good wine, tour the city and most of all – dress to impress…

Here we will give you several ideas on how to save money on the Halloween fancy dress and still have a great time and look amazing. At the end of this article you might want to jump for joy, as you will have found a fresh way to spend a great evening with mates without incurring tremendous extra costs.

The unsuspected power of discounts
There is hardly a person who doesn’t want to shop at discounts. The Web offers myriad of ways to find special offers and buy a cute and cheap fancy dress, hot nurse outfit, ladybird costume or some other crazy Halloween attire for peanuts. Just go ahead and find yours.

Vouchers, Coupons, Promotional Codes and Collective shopping
The best deals take place online. Online users are constantly on the lookout for sales and lucrative deals. You only need a mobile phone or a computer to find in a flick of a moment thousands of regular and last-minute offers for a Halloween costume. You can search for promo codes, discount voucher codes and so on that give you access to a wide range of great deals.

Facebook – the cornucopia of freebies
Lots of brands use Facebook as their major channel of promotion. That is why they often hold sweepstakes, competitions and promotions with prizes right on their Facebook pages. If you spend a great deal of your time browsing around your friends’ profiles, search for ‘fancy dresses’, ‘Halloween costumes’ and so on on Facebook and you might well get a free gift for being a brand’s fan. Enjoy the game.

You are crafty? Why not DIY?
Many people are skilful enough to sew, embroider or knit their own Halloween costumes. It might sound as a challenging task, but check out some DIY websites for ideas and you might well turn up with a lovely costume compiled by your old clothes, recycled materials, cardboard boxes or paint. All you need is some imagination.

Fancy vintage?
If you plan to take a walk down memory lane, burrow into granny’s old wardrobe for vintage ideas of Halloween costumes. You can easily dress up like an ABBA member, a member of the landed gentry, flapper with a short skirt and bobbed hair, as Bonnie and Clyde or any other character. There are plenty of ideas, and you just need to do some research and then combine the available clothes in a creative manner. By the way, you will be amazed at the fact that years ago clothes used to last for much longer compared to today’s fast fashion.

Second-hand – always an option
If it is vital for you to wear a fresh Halloween attire every year but you can’t afford a new one right at this moment, second hand is always an option. Try refreshing your Halloween wardrobe by picking up a nice offer in your local second-hand store or, even more easily – on eBay. The only thing you have to take in mind when ordering online is the time necessary for delivery and the reliability of the source.

You’ve just been fed with 6 great ideas on how to shop and save on Halloween costumes. Which one looks the easiest to apply in your lifestyle?