Last Minute Christmas Gifts: Avoiding Panic The Week Before Christmas

Last minute Christmas shopping sends us all into a panic. We rush downtown or to the nearest shopping center, or go on a credit card backed spree online, just to make sure there’s something under the tree come Christmas day. And for a lot of families, this is an expensive thing to have to deal with! All in all, it’s a time and money limited situation, and that can send you into a real panic. 

Of course, planning your Christmas gifts well in advance is the best way to go about things. However, there’s always someone you leave off the list, or you suddenly find out that someone else has got them the same thing. Even when you’ve tried to prepare, something can go wrong! It happens to us all, and it’s why last minute shopping is so popular – even when it’s a complete panic that sends a stressful chill down your spine! 

But panicking over one day out of the full 365 is no way to live. Christmas should be a time of festive cheer, good eating, and being surrounded by your loved ones. As such, we’ve collected together some last minute tips to help you find and snatch that elusive gift without taking too much out of you. Check them out below. 

Photo by Negative Space: https://www.pexels.com/photo/3-red-covered-present-box-190931/

Try to Buy In-Store, Rather Than Online

If you head out now to buy something in store, you’ll have a much better chance of bringing something home with you. You won’t have to wait around for it to arrive in the mail, and that means you won’t have to worry about there being nothing to open on the big day. If you buy online, there’s no guarantee that the item will get to you in time, especially if you need time to open it, check it over, and then wrap it again for the intended recipient. 

Of course, some online retailers allow you to send it straight the way, but once again there’s no guarantee here. So it’s best to go out in person in search of a new gift; you’re here to get something at the last minute, not wait until Christmas is over for it to even turn up! Eliminate this portion of your worry immediately by wrapping up warm and venturing into the weather yourself. 

Get the Recipient to Make a Wish List

It might not feel quite right, but now is not the time for subtlety! You need to know what else they might want, and that might take some direct questions to find out. Get them to make a wish list you can follow, and don’t find the need to be coy here. It’s nearly Christmas now and you need to know as soon as possible. 

You don’t need to say what you have or haven’t got, or that someone else has bought your gift for them. Just ask what things they want in general and have them text the list over. And you can still surprise them by picking from the five or six items they’ve listed, it just won’t be a complete surprise. And while it might not be quite in the spirit of Christmas, it’ll ensure there are no tears or disappointment on the day itself! 

Put Together a Hamper

They’re not just for handing out as prizes at fairs! Hampers are great for providing a selection of gifts during the Christmas period too, especially if you’ve handmade them. And this way you can cram lots of little items in together. Indeed, if you feel such a gift doesn’t provide much value, you’ve got plenty of room to work with! 

If you like to bake, preparing a hamper with at least four different things to dig into will really impress anyone you give it to. If you make your own jewellery, you can put a full set of accessories into a hamper alongside items to take care of them. It’s a super special way to gift, and it can all be done at home, so you won’t even need to go outside. And you can get to work right now, as long as you’ve got a box big enough to put all your creations in! 

Go for a ‘Safe’ Gift Option

When we say safe, we simply mean something anyone will like. Items like charm bracelets with beads for people who love wearing accessories, or new scarves and hats for the same reason. You could also invest in a box of fancy chocolates for a partner, alongside a romantic teddy bear or photo book of the two of you. None of these things is out of this world, but they have a lot of sentimental meaning to them and are easy to get a hold of as well. 

So when you head out shopping, keep these safe zone gifts in mind. You won’t have to go far to find them, but they will make sure you have something nice to give a loved one on Christmas morning. They should be quite reasonably priced as well, thanks to how popular they are as a stocked item, so you can get two or three items to wrap up. Easy and simple! 

Gift Cards Always Work

If you’re really pushed for ideas, this is the one to go for. Don’t rush into a guessing game over what gift might work – just grab a gift card and call it a day. Gift cards are a great way to give people money when they don’t really want anything else, but in a way that doesn’t feel rude or like it’s not enough. You can simply load $20 onto a card for their favourite store and then slip that into a Christmas card. 

It makes a quick and easy present, but it’s still a practical choice that’ll go a long way to making them happy during the festive period. And remember, those boxing day sales will look pretty good when they’ve got a gift card to use! Make it easy for them to spend on the things they love and they’ll be very grateful for at least the next 6 months. 

Whatever You Do, Don’t Overspend!

This is the key to all last-minute shopping. When you’re out of gift ideas and don’t have much time to find a good one, you’re more likely to reach for the big brand names and those top-shelf items. But stop yourself before you go this far. 

Overspending is the best way to sink yourself into credit card debt during one of the most expensive times of the year, and that’s not something you want to deal with in the new year. So keep it lowkey and find something affordable to buy for them. Small purchases on credit cards can be good, but try to keep it below $100. No recipient would be happy to hear you’ve spent beyond your means! 

Last-minute Christmas shopping is one of the worst things to have to do during the holidays. However, even as unpleasant as it is, we all fall to it at some point! But if the week before Christmas needs to be as relaxed as possible for you, let us help you out. If you have a plan to follow before you hit the shops, you can stop that panic from taking over. And when you’re not panicked, you won’t throw just anything into the basket! Take it slow and easy, keep these tips in mind, and then have a good Christmas day regardless.