Guess what – it’s day two of blogmas and we’re getting down to business. Today I want to talk about my top tips for Christmas shopping, my number one tip is to do it all online but I, as much as anyone else, love the atmosphere of the shops at Christmas and the hustle and bustle of everyone out for the same purpose. With that in mind, here’s my tips for getting the most out of your Christmas shopping.
- Make sure that you give yourself plenty of time – The shops will be busier, the queues will be longer and if you try and go in your lunch break it will only be stressful! Free up a day in your weekend (or a week day is better if your work schedule allows it) and head into the local town or to a shopping center.
- Write a list of people who you need to buy for and keep it with you – I usually do this on my phone as it’s easy to delete names once you’ve bought for them and still see clearly who you have left to buy for.
- Before you walk into a shop think about your list and who you might be able to buy for inside – If you have ideas of what to get that’s great but if not think about your list before you go into any shop, if you walk into Top shop without a recipient in mind you’ll soon be the proud owner of a whole new outfit for yourself, an empty bank account and still no presents!
- Go shopping with someone who knows your friends and family – I’m a big fan of shopping with a friend in any case but at Christmas it’s great to go with someone who knows your friends and family so that they can give you a second opinion on your gift ideas. I recently went shopping with my boyfriend and found the nicest dress to buy for my sister in law, luckily my boyfriend was on hand to remind me that it was the perfect dress for me and not so much for her!
- If you’re on a budget, take cash – If you go shopping with your card you will keep tapping it all day long without a clue in the world as to how much your spending. You might get the most amazing presents but you’ll come home to a shock at how much you’ve spent! If you’re super organised take out the cash to match your budget and sort it into named envelopes for each of the people on your list so you can’t go over.
- If you spot anything you’re not sure about, take a photo – It’ll be so much easier when you get home to find that pair of shoes online if you took a photo and one of the tag so you can search exactly what you are looking for. Trust me it will take all day if all you have to go on is ‘silver shoes.’
What’s your top tip for braving the shops at Christmas time?
Love, Alice x
Adventuring as Alice 