Shopping and Shipping for a
Budget-Friendly Christmas

With only one week until Christmas Eve, I know I need to buckle down and find meaningful gifts that won’t break my budget. I’ve always found it best to give a few trinkets that are useful and unique, along with a special note to remind friends and family how much I care.
Visit your favorite local stores and pick a variety of scented soaps and small candles in your friend or family member’s favorite color. You can wrap them in colorful tissue paper leftover from stuffing gift bags to make the present pop! Remember to include a handwritten holiday note reminding your loved ones why they mean so much to you.
And in keeping with my budget-friendly holiday ideas - remember, today is the last day to ship your gifts by FedEx Ground to ensure they arrive on time for Christmas. Remembering the important shipping deadlines is just another great way to cut costs this season and keep your holiday budget on track. But if you need more time, there’s always FedEx Express – it’ll just cost you a few more bucks to get your gifts there before Christmas!
Related FedEx Office Solutions: Packing Service, Pack and Ship, Shipping Supplies, Shipping Services
Comments
Bath Salts
I like to make bath salts for presents. I use bulk sea salt from Vitamin Cottage, epson salts, borax and essential oils. I get the gift bags from the Dollar store (25 for $1). Quick, easy and well received by the people I give them to.
visiting from momcentral
Great blog with some fun ideas. I'd love to learn more about shipping via fedex, I tend to assume that USPS is the cheapest way to go but that probably isn't always true.
Shipping via FedEx
Thanks for your response! We are happy to share more information about FedEx shipping with you. Many people don't know that our FedEx Ground service specializes in cost-effective, small-package shipping and is 10 percent less than UPS Ground. FedEx Ground now delivers more than 50 percent of packages in two business days or less. Packages can be dropped off at any FedEx Office location. If you'd like more information, please visit http://www.fedex.com or call 1-800-GO-FEDEX.
Thrift Stores
One of my favorite places to shop is thrift stores. You can find unusual and practical gifts for not much money. I got some great books for my friends and grandkids.
I love the soap idea! With
I love the soap idea! With such a large family, I'm always looking for chaep and cute gift ideas...Thanks!
Thanks Mom Central
Thanks Mom Central for pointing me to this blog! Great ideas!
What I've decided to do is if I don't get gifts ordered in plenty of time for early holiday delivery, I have been putting the recipient's address for delivery instead of my own. That way I know they will get the gift because I can track it! And it saves me sevcral steps by having the gift go directly to the person.
Pretty smart
Clever idea! Some companies will gift wrap and include gift reciepts, too.
Great Tips
I love candles and giving a candle gift is a great last minute gift idea that doesn't break the bank. You can also pair it with a bottle of wine or a great CD to set a mood!
This looks great!
This blog is filled with great ideas! Thank you Fed Ex!
Budget Friendly is a Big Plus
Especially this year, when finances seem to be so tight for everyone, ideas for smaller gifts that still express your sentiments are a great idea. I have even gotten into this with respect to my children - I bought one "set" of video games from a popular genre they like. One is getting the guitar, one is getting one game, and the other is getting the second game. This makes things much cheaper, they have no clue, they get presents they all will love, and buying one thing from an online vendor definitely saved me some moolah in the shipping dept!
I'm so glad you mentioned today is the last day - I need to get it together...and your reminder was just the kick in the pants I needed!
(Oh - and FYI, I'm over from Mom Central as well. You guys have a great start - keep it up and you'll have tons of visitors flocking to see your posts!)
Congrats!
Love the idea of this new blog!
I stopped by after Mom Central gave me the heads up that this was here. Loving the site so far.
~Kristie
I love to use fedex because
I love to use fedex because you really make it simple and inexpensive to ship fast!
Homemade Gifts
I am trying to make some more homemade gifts this year like cookies, soaps, ornaments to save money and sometimes gifts seem more personal. Also, I am sending out the gifts with Fedex because they make it so easy to ship your items on time. I came over from Mom Central and love all these helpful tips.
Great Ideas!
Terrific ideas for not breaking the budget you spent all year to keep! :) I also bake cookies as gifts - I can always get the ingredients very cheaply by watching the sales - and, I can wrap them very inexpensively in decorative cellophane bags.
Thanks for the reminder . . .
Thanks for the reminder . . . luckily I"m not shipping this year (just traveling). BTW I love that piggy bank and santa hat pic. Very cute.
Thanks to MomCentral
Oh, I forgot to that MomCentral suggested I come check out the new blog- it's looking like a fun place to be
Dollar stores a big help
It's amazing what nice items can be found in the Dollar stores, often in large packs that can be broken down to help create those 'special' gifts. A big hit is always an oversized mug with single serve portions of hot chocolates or teas and a couple of treats thrown in. It's amazing how almost every gift seems just that more luxurious by wrapping it in clear cellophane and a pretty ribbon.
Good idea
Jenny Robertson actually shared a great idea too - she went to a party where the gift limit was $1. She bought a spatula from a dollar store, printed out a great cookie recipe and tied it to the handle with pretty ribbon. I loved the idea and it's great when you need to get little gifts for a big group of people, like at a swap party or folks at the office.
yeah .. this is what it looks
yeah .. this is what it looks like I have to do ... lucky I ordered the stuff off of Ebay ... hoping to get it on time ... Ebay is also a cheap place too ... and I don't even have to leave the house ... the dollar store is pretty much where I did most of my shopping though
Great idea!
Love these thoughts!
Thanks for the reminder about
Thanks for the reminder about shipping!
Great!
I agree with your point of making the presentation grand. It may be a small gift, but you can make it look fabulous anyway!
This is a great blog, I'm glad it was recommended to me!
Thanks for the reminder!
I have some last minute gifts I need to ship, thank you for reminding me that today is the day to get that done so I can save some money! Happy Holidays!
I came over from Mom Central
I came over from Mom Central ... love the look & topics so far. I used to ship FedEx all the time back in my working days. I partial to purple (over that brown color!).
So true
With budgets being tighter this year, homemade gifts that are sentimental are much more important than the bigger gifts this year.
Before you ship
Great blog--I found out about it from Mom Central. Here's a gift wrapping tip to help you before you ship: instead of traditional gift tags, use pictures of the recipients instead. It's a neat little finishing touch that's sure to make 'em smile. I discovered it a few years ago and have been using it ever since. I use pictures from throughout the year so I can see how my kids have grown. It's a hit with kids and adults alike.
Great idea!
I love the idea about using pictures of the recipient for their gift tag. That adds a nice special touch. This works especially well with kids, especially if they are too young to read. That way, they always know which gifts are theirs!
Great Blog - Love the Ideas too!
I didn't realize it was only a week until Christmas Eve. I have the tree up but nothing is wrapped and I am not sure what gifts I still need to buy. I like your suggestions. A few small trinkets...maybe I will bake cookies this weekend...along with a meaningful note. Thanks!
gifts
i try to pick little things up through out the year, whenever one of my favorite stores are having a deal on something i buy a few extras, then when christmas comes around i make gift baskets from the assorted items. you never know what your basket will have in it!
Out of Office Blog - LIke it
I really like the Out of Office blog and am a member of mom central. Sign me up for the $50 gift card giveaway!
Nice Blog
Nice new blog. Looks great with good ideas. I'm a Mom Central reader and they gave us the head up on your debut.
Last-minute gifts
I like to make a couple batches of holiday cookies early and put them in the fridge. In case you have surprise guests or need a gift in a hurry for someone you forgot to put on your list, you can wrap them up in a nice gift bag and not worry about dashing off to the store at the last minute!
Budget Friendly Holiday Ideas
As a design expert, author and craft advocate I'm all about making and sending handmade gifts throughout the year! Not only is it budget friendly---sending a handmade gift will be so much more cherished than anything store bought!
Congrats on spreading the joy of creativity Fed Ex!
I'm always looking for ways
I'm always looking for ways to save money. Thanks for the tips.
Love the ideas
I really love the budgeting ideas and how easy it is to ship from fedex. I like making gifts of small things together by purchasing stuff at the dollar store. It helps me save and stay on a budget.
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