10 Tips for Simplifying Holiday Shopping

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The holidays are such a magical time of year with family and friends, but it can also be really stressful to manage everyone’s expectations and not break the bank on gifting. It’s already started to give me a headache! I reached out to friends that I thought would have great advice for us all in this challenge, and found out so many brilliant methods to manage holiday gifting madness! I partnered with HP to share some of these inspiring tips with you today on making holiday gifting more simple. Hooray!

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HP and HSN are offering a super discounted deal on a new laptop for this week only through November 5th. Keep reading for more details on the deal and the 10 tips for simplifying holiday shopping…

1. Get it done early. “I hate when mid December comes around and I’m still shopping. I like to get it done early and actually enjoy the holiday!” –Stephanie

“I try and foresee any hot trends early.  This generally applies to kid toys that are popular and will likely sell out by the time Christmas rolls around. –Gaby

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In the spirit of getting things done early, HP and HSN (Home Shopping Network) have partnered together this holiday season for an amazing deal on the HP 15” Touch Intel Laptop with 8GB RAM, and 1 TB hard drive. At $399 it’s half of the regular price. Here’s the catch: it’s only available this week through November 5th (that’s tomorrow!) right here on HSN.

This laptop is the perfect place to do your online shopping (which is mostly the type of shopping I do for holiday gifts), organize your lists, check them twice, and keep updated on what your family loves. I’ve found myself stalking my sister’s instagram to see what products she’s into that could possibly be good gift ideas. Right now you can grab this great laptop at the lowest price of the year and the perfect gift for a student or sibling. Awesome, right? Check it out right here. And don’t forget, deal ends after November 5th!

http://bit.ly/2fongaZ

 

Here are 8 more ideas on simplifying your holiday shopping:

2. Go with a fun theme. “Last year was pretty fun, I bought each kid a costume. I thought it would be so fun and special for all the cousins to dress up together on. I managed to kill all birds with one stone and only needed to make one store visit!” – Sandra

3. One big shared gift. “For santa gifts, I like to have a few small things for the kids and one bigger thing that’s already set up and ready to play with that they can share. Maybe a marble maze, a race track, or a shiny new bike with a bow! Makes for a perfectly magical Christmas morning. ” –Liz

4. Just tell me what you really want.“We started a secret pinterest board with our extended family for gift ideas. It’s great when you live far apart and don’t have as many opportunities to pick up on subtle clues of what people would like to receive.” – Kendra

5. Make a plan with your extended family. “There are six kids in my family growing up so we are each assigned one family member that we gift each year. Otherwise, gifts for everyone will really break the bank. Now that my siblings are growing up and having families of their own, you’re assigned one family to gift and can either do one big gift or little ones for everyone. It’s fun and feels special. I always love sibling gifts the best since they’re the most personal (santa doesn’t totally get me sometimes).” -Liz

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6. Keep a budget for each person. “I like coming up with a budget for each person on my list, then I shop for items within that budget for each person. That way things don’t spin out of control financially.” – Gaby

7. Keep it simple. “In an attempt to reign in my shopping, early in our marriage I adopted my sister-in-law’s policy. At our house, Santa brings each child something to wear, something to read, and something to play with. And that’s it. There are other gifts from siblings and grandparents, but Santa just brings three. This has been a really helpful guide for me. I’m able to stay within budget and concentrate on finding something my child would really love.” – Gabrielle

“I also try and get a variety of items: something to read, a toy or something to play with (like an art kit for my anti-toy 9 yr old), and some clothing items they need anyway.” – Michelle

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8. Set expectations early on. “We celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas, and we try to not have Christmas totally overshadow Hanukkah so I like to keep things simple…I buy t-shirts for everyone. My family likes it and expects it! I have mostly men in my immediate family– 2 brothers, my dad, my husband.  –Lena

9. Keep lists. “I keep a list on my phone. I list their “Santa” request separately and then the possible items each would want, then I move the item to a separate category when it is purchased. I have four children, so without a list, I would forget!” –Michelle

10. Stick to one type of toy. “Small random gifts from family members are an organizing disaster for parents. What do you do with a million little lego sets?! In the past, I’ve asked family to buy the same type of blocks for legos just to create a larger collection, which is always more satisfying to play with!” –Etienne

What do you think? My head is spinning with all this great advice. Any tips for ways you simplify gifting during the holidays?

Photography by Liz Stanley. Assisted by Stephanie Gardner. Thanks to HP for sponsoring this post. Remember: Right now you can grab this great laptop at the lowest price of the year, $399. Check it out right here.  Deal ends after November 5th!

Comments

Where is your daybed/couch from? It’s exactly what I have been looking for!

Hi Christine! It’s a vintage midcentury daybed. It’s been a bit of a labor of love but excited to finally have it in our living room!

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