Spend-savvy mum already has Christmas 2022 all wrapped up
A thrifty mum has revealed she already has Christmas 2022 all wrapped up – after saving hundreds of pounds on gifts in the sales.
Gemma Chamberlain, 37, from Leicester, says she saves a fortune buying her presents in the sales.
Not only has she already bought all her gifts, the mum-of-six is so organised she has even wrapped them ready to be placed underneath the tree in 11 months time.
“I have been sale shopping for years," the full-time carer reveals.
“It makes my life so much easier and we have saved a fortune on gifts for the kids for next year.”
As well as saving hundreds of pounds, Chamberlain says sale shopping just after Christmas means she avoids the last minute panic to buy gifts in December.
Read more: Six guilt-free ways to get rid of unwanted Christmas presents
“I love to be organised and the savings are brilliant," she explains.
“I also have two children’s birthday’s in December, so we need to be organised.
“It’s a win-win situation."
Chamberlain says sticking to buying certain presents in advance, such as clothes, toiletries and classic toys like board games means she doesn't run the risk of her children not needing them or liking them by next Christmas.
Watch: 5 easy ways to save money at the supermarket
But she stresses it is important to remember that sale shopping is only a bargain if it's something you will use.
“I don’t buy anything just because it’s on sale, I only buy stuff I know the kids will use," she explains.
“Of course the kids will ask for certain things later in the year, but I will always take advantage of the sales for things I am confident they will like,” she adds.
Another sale saving trick Chamberlain uses is buying clothes in the next size up.
“My youngest daughter will only be one next Christmas, so character clothes are perfect," she says.
For older children she tends to stick to scent sets, body sprays, bath bombs, stocking fillers and face masks.
“I’m confident that everything will be a great gift for them next Christmas,” she adds.
Chamberlain says that by being sale savvy it means she can enjoy the run up to Christmas without the seasonal stress.
“It’s one less thing to do next Christmas, which means more family time and less last minute racing around,” she adds.
Having shared her stash of deals online, Chamberlain received thousands of positive comments from parents and fellow bargain hunters impressed with her savvy bargain hunting.
Read more: How to regift like a pro to save money and time
But some people did question how the mum had the money to splurge so soon after Christmas.
“I didn’t spend much this month before Christmas," she explains.
“I’ve never got into debt for Christmas, to me, it makes perfect sense to be prepared and to take full advance of the sales.”
This year Chamberlain is particularly pleased with the bargain gift hauls she found in both Boots and Tesco.
While she spent £172 in Boots she actually saved £178 and she says she saved more than £100 in Tesco.
“I actually saved more than I spent," she explains.
“I bought mainly clothes in Tesco and games.
“Boots was half price and in Tesco everything was reduced. Some items scanned even less at the till which is always an extra bonus.”
As well as having all her gifts already purchased, this year Chamberlain has gone one stage further and has wrapped them too.
“It’s one thing to buy in advance but I have been guilty of leaving the wrapping until last minute in previous year and with six kids it can be chaos," she explains.
“I always say I will wrap as I buy, but I haven’t before, only this year the wrapping box was still out and I thought, why not. Let’s just get it started.
“I’ve wrapped maybe 35 gifts already and I keep a book of who I’ve bought for.
“I’ve also got personalised gift stickers, so they won’t get mixed up.”
Read more: Woman made redundant during pandemic becomes full-time forager (and is better off)
Chamberlain isn't the only spend savvy woman to share her Christmas money-saving tricks recently.
Victoria Billington, 31, from Oxford, revealed how she'd cracked saving cash by crafting gifts or finding second-hand bargains to upcycle – paying as little as 30p per present.
The family and community worker was first spurred on to get creative and save some cash because she had 12 nieces and nephews to buy for.
Rooting out 10p books and creating a doll’s house for £30, she has become an expert at giving generous presents while spending less, but over the years she has been increasingly keen to make Christmas eco-friendly too – so she reuses her home-made advent calendar each year, buys from charity shops and makes her own recyclable wrapping paper.
Meanwhile Amy De-Keyzer, 32, from Horsham, West Sussex, revealed how she managed to save £10,000 during the first two national lockdowns via some money saving secrets.
Some of the super saver’s tricks for putting away more money include cutting back on her spending by freezing her cinema membership card while venues were closed; switching energy providers; using supermarket coupons and cutting her weekly spend on fuel as she began working from home.
De-Keyzer also began upcycling old furniture around the house and selling it on Facebook marketplace, which brought in extra cash.
Additional reporting Caters.
