Save money on Christmas presents

Everyone these days is feeling the pinch and family finance is uppermost on the minds of many. We all want to be generous at Christmas but it is not worth getting into debt just to do your Christmas shopping.

Even if you are a fan of money off coupons for doing your supermarket shop you may not have realised that coupons are also a great way of saving on Christmas presents. Many of the coupons that are available for supermarket shopping can be useful for buying Christmas presents too. Bottles of wine (or champagne if you�re feeling flush), nice jams such as the Duchy range, smellies, posh chocolates, books and DVDs are all available in the supermarket and make good gifts.

If you look on the internet you will find all sorts of discounts and there are even websites that do the hard work for you and group together all the Christmas gift related vouchers to save you from spending hours trawling through all the relevant sites. Stores such as Argos, Boots, Comet, Austin Reed and Carphone Warehouse all offer generous discounts.

If you not only want to save money on your Christmas shopping but also add a personal touch why not make truffles, chutneys, jams or even Christmas themed cupcakes as gifts? If you are time rich but cash poor make a voucher for everyone in your family entitling them to say an evening�s babysitting, a home baked cake, a lift to the airport, ironing twenty shirts or three hours� gardening.

If everyone is hard up why not opt for a Secret Santa instead of buying a present for everyone? That way you can concentrate your imagination and money on buying for one person. Alternatively set a cash limit for gifts and get everyone to agree to stick to it.

Finally once Christmas is over don�t sit back and relax! Instead hit the sales and start stocking up on bargains for next Christmas.