Christmas, the time of year when everybody behaves better, when you stay with your family, when you start thinking about New Year’s resolutions … we could go on telling this Christmas tale, or be a bit more cynical – but also less hypocritical – and assert that Christmas is first of all the time of presents, of lights, of vacation … in few words of rampant consumerism. Nothing bad in this, on the contrary: sometimes making and receiving gifts can be even therapeutic.
Getting a present, no matter if it is small, no matter if it is cheap, should always be a pleasure. Making presents, too, might be pleasant, but sometimes it can be stressful, above all when you have neither many ideas nor much money. These days only few families can set money aside to make Christmas gifts, and in order to buy something to everybody without spending too much money, many people might buy things that are not the best choice, and which result in thrown away money for those who make them and useless items for those who get them. Also the lack of time makes us buy wrong presents: cast the first stone if you have never bought all your presents on the weekend before the 25th of December, giving in to the last minute buying rush, with shopping centers full of people, messy shelves, clogged streets and stressed and hectic people. This is not the ideal situation to think about the receivers of your gifts, to their tastes, desires and needs … in order to get through the matter quickly, you might buy presents at random.
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In order to make cheap, beautiful gifts that are conceived just for your family and friends, it is better to act in advance, and in your free time begin to have a look at the shop windows, then prick up your ears and pay attention to the subliminal messages that your family and friends might be sending you, compare prices, calculate the amount of money that you want to and can spend for Christmas gifts and choose the presents for your loved ones thoroughly, one by one, avoiding hasty mass purchasing. Another advantage of anticipated Christmas purchases is given by the fact that you have the time to think about personalized gifts instead of the usual ready-made items, which are all the same. If you are not afraid of getting your hands dirty, and if you know that you have manual skills that prevent you from causing too many damages, you can make something with your own hands (in this way you can also save a bit of money and show to the receiver of your gift that you are willing to “waste” a bit of your time for him/her), otherwise you can have the present done by someone who can do it. An idea? Since the year is almost over, a personalized calendar with photos and images that you know can be appreciated by the receiver might be the right present, or you can have t-shirts printed with some writings, and so on.
A bit of imagination, a bit of time, and the present is ready, without spending too much money.
