Five Ways To Increase Your Christmas Coffers

If you're worried about the looming expense of Christmas, here are a few simple ways to make savings.

I was watching an unfortunate victim of the Farepak fiasco being interviewed on television the other day. She had been saving £25 a week for months with the Swindon-based firm which ran a savings scheme for 150,000 people for vouchers and Christmas hampers until it went into insolvency last month. Her Christmas would be ruined, she said.

Although I felt very sorry for her, I thought there were probably considerably worse things that could happen to ruin Christmas. Indeed, I felt the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Ian McCartney, went a little over the top in describing the situation as a 'national emergency'! A fund has now been established to try and help people affected by the collapse of Farepak but for those who are worrying about the looming expense of Christmas, here are a few ways to save up some money in the intervening weeks.

Get a second job

Shops, bars, restaurants and the Post Office are always clamouring for extra staff in the run up to Christmas so if you can spare a few hours you should find it relatively easy to land yourself a temporary job. It's only for a few weeks after all.

De-clutter the house and sell the pickings

Most people are going to be on the look-out for suitable presents for their loved ones over the next few weeks and you might have something to sell on Ebay that's just the ticket. My dad is fascinated by anything to do with Lawrence of Arabia and I've just found a couple of books about him that were published in the 1940s that he's going to love. Remember that one person's trash is another's treasure so just because you have no use for something doesn't mean someone else won't.

Cut out the takeaways

My husband and I spent just over £15 on a takeaway last night because neither of us could be bothered to cook. We could easily have rustled up a couple of mushroom omelettes or defrosted the homemade Bolognese sauce we had in the freezer! We paid for our laziness but if you're prepared to go without your weekly takeaways until after Christmas, you could save yourself at least £100.

Make your own sandwiches

People spend an extraordinary amount of money on buying sandwiches for lunch when they could easily make one for far less. If you're spending a fiver a day on a sandwich, a can of coke and a packet of crisps, then you're parting with at least £100 a month. A few weeks of making the effort to cobble together a sandwich in the morning will mean more dosh for your Christmas coffer.

Plan your grocery shopping

If you plan your meals for the week, and go shopping with a list, not only will you resolve your takeaway and sandwich problems, but you'll very likely save on your grocery bill too. After all, how many times have you just thrown food into the trolley willy-nilly only to find it ends up in the dustbin a week later? Make sure you eat before you shop as well - you're less likely to succumb to the goodies on the shelves if you've got a full stomach!

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