WITH households set to spend hundreds of pounds on Christmas this year, everyone is thinking about how to save money.
But as one savvy mum knows very well, planning ahead can make all the difference.
Betsy Benn, who lives in Cheltenham with her husband, Andy, 52, and son, Ben, 17, had almost all her Christmas gifts bought – and wrapped – by the end of September this year.
She’d also made and filled two advent calendars – one for her son, and one for her best friend in the US.
The 49-year-old told The Sun: “December is a notoriously expensive month and we have definitely felt the pressure of higher food and energy bills this year.
“Being organised helps make the festive season that little bit more manageable,” she added.
“This is another big reason why it makes sense for me to buy all my gifts for friends and family – well in advance. I just don’t have time to think in the weeks leading up to Christmas.”
Betsy is a busy entrepreneur, running her own online gift business BetsyBenn.com, and needs to fulfil a huge number of orders before Christmas – so shopping early means she isn’t swamped in the run up to the festive season.
But the biggest benefit for her is that it saves her a huge amount of money.
“Getting organised also helps me avoid the panic – and often the higher costs – of last-minute spending, and stops me making impulse buys,” she explained.
Getting ready months ahead also allows her the most of deals and opportunities available throughout the year.
“I start my Christmas shopping in the January sales,” she said. “I go bargain-hunting at the start of the year, and then make the most of ‘three-for-two’ and ‘buy-one-get-one-free’ deals all through the spring and summer.
In total, Betsy reckons she has spent around £200 on presents for her husband and son in the months leading up to September.
“I think the total would have been a lot higher if I’d left it until the last minute,” she said. “By starting early, it means I can spread the cost.”
She managed to bag fluffy jogging bottoms, fidget spinner toys, and longer-dated drinks and chocolates for the kids, while for her partner she got jumpers, socks and his favourite coffee on sale.
“The few things I’ll buy spontaneously are things like Christmas-themed socks which you can only really pick up in November or December,” she added.
She is now already thinking ahead to next year.
“Once I was more or less done on gifts for 2024, I started thinking about the presents I could buy for Christmas 2025,” she said.
When it comes to the wrapping, Betsy has a few nifty money-saving tips.
“I make things easier by either using paper I’ve bought in the January sales, or by using plain recyclable Kraft paper which is strong and doesn’t tear very easily,” she said.
“I then embellish this with glitter and stickers to make them prettier.”
One of the key things for Betsy is labelling everything carefully.
“Being organised only works if I’m diligent about making sure I know which gift is which,” she said.
“After that, it’s a case of trying to remember where I’ve hidden stuff.”
Not only did Betsy have all her Christmas gifts ready back in September – she also had all the veg for her Christmas dinner prepped and frozen by early November.
“I bought all my veggies a few weeks ago,” she said.
“I then made cauliflower cheese and froze it, and parboiled the roast potatoes and froze them, too.”
She’s also made and frozen both her pigs-in-blankets and her gravy.
“And I made some extra batter the last time I made Yorkshire puddings for a family Sunday roast,” she added.
On Christmas Day this year, Betsy will have her own family, plus extended family and a few friends – and prepping early means she can spend more time with them instead of in the kitchen.
“Thanks to all my forward planning, December 25 will hopefully be a lot less stressful than it might otherwise have been,” she said.
Here are Betsy's tips for saving money during the festive season:
