The 12 rules of Christmas shopping
M, magazine of Britannia Building Society
Published on Friday December 1, 2006
Planning to buy your Christmas gifts in the petrol station again? You can do better than that, says Chris Alden.
1. Give time, save money.
The golden rule is that it’s the thought that counts at Christmas: most people don’t mind how much you spend on them, as long as you’ve thought about what they’d particularly like.
The trick with partners is making it look like you’ve thought a lot. Research from Bounty shows that most women would prefer their partners to take them on a weekend away than give predictable presents like underwear or perfume; similarly, if you want the latest iPod or “must-have” gadget for your man, buying it in November before stocks run out will earn you brownie points on Christmas day. Another option is to make a gift. Head to www.instructables.com for a list of fun creative projects – including pinball coffee tables, kites and make-up bags.
2. Christmas Eve shopping only happens in the movies.
Santa Claws, Christmas with the Kranks, Jingle All the Way: Hollywood has much to answer for at Christmas. But chief among its evils is the myth – swallowed by every man the day after they stopped believing in Father Christmas – that Christmas shopping is something that happens on December 24.
To many men, there is something romantic about the idea of sauntering out of work at 4pm on Christmas Eve, and arriving home two hours later with a tree over one arm and a sack of ready-wrapped goodies over the other. It’s the way the world should be – but not the way the world is.
Your first problem is the crowds: at 4pm on Christmas Eve, it will take two hours just to get from one end of the high street to the other. The second problem is more bewildering: on Christmas Eve, some shops actually close early to prepare for the sales. Every year, our high-street shop windows are littered with the pitiful sight of unfortunates whose foreheads have actually frozen to the glass as they stare at presents they are no longer able to buy. Moral: start early. Preferably March.
3. Get wired.
The internet has transformed Christmas shopping, by cutting out the high street and putting you in touch with every warehouse in the country at the click of a mouse. If you’ve a long shopping list and not much time, it’s a lifesaver.
Start at Amazon.co.uk: a couple of hours at Britain’s biggest online retailer will sort out half the people on your list. Next, head to eBay.co.uk for hard-to-buy-for types: tapping surnames, home towns or other obsessions into the search field can throw up all sorts of odd gifts. Finally, head to specialist stores for things you wouldn’t find on the high street (see box).
When buying online, always use a credit card with fraud protection – and triple-check that the delivery is coming by Christmas.
Don’t forget that if you need cash for the Christmas fund, you can use websites such as eBay or Amazon to sell last year’s unwanted pressies. But if you do this, adopt a pseudonym – or expect to get caught.
4. Spoil your mum
According to the John Lewis Christmas survey, people spend more on their mums than on their dads – to the order of about £8. Resisting this trend is liable to leave you with an extra-large plate of Brussels sprouts.
Great presents for mums include a picture frame with a family photo; a voucher for a day out with dad; a digital camera from eBay; evening classes; even lessons in how to get online. Avoid smellies – she can get those any time she wants.
5. There is no limit to the amount of tools you can buy your dad.
It doesn’t matter that your dad hates DIY; the point is men love to look manly and practical. And because men find DIY shopping almost as stressful as Christmas shopping, buying him tools will feed his ego while letting him off the worst part of the deal. Who cares if he’s got 10 identical toolkits in the cupboard, but still doesn’t know how to put up shelves? He’s Dad. He’s got a new drill.
6. If in doubt, ask
There is only one person you shouldn’t ask what they want for Christmas: your partner. Partners like surprises, because when you get it right, it proves to them that you are soulmates who are destined never to part. For everyone else, a quick phone call to check that the Dorling Kindersley book of beaded jewellery is really what they want is time well spent. Do it early enough, and they might even forget what they’re getting by the time Christmas comes around.
7. Scrimp, but don’t Scrooge
If you haven’t got much money to spend on Christmas this year, you’re not alone. Set a budget for each person you’re buying for – otherwise all those fivers and tenners will start to add up.
That said, don’t be a 21st-century Scrooge. “We’re not buying for each other this year” is a modern line that old Ebenezer might have come up with himself; and more to the point, it never works. Your partner is certain to give in at the last second, buy you “a little something”, and get upset when you’ve bought nothing in return. Humbug all round.
8. Give the kids a Christmas bonus.
There are two schools of thought on how children should buy Christmas presents. The first is to insist kids dip into their existing pocket money – this tough love teaches children to manage money, and that gift-giving is a reciprocal deal. Others say you can’t expect a child to save enough out of £6 a week to buy a present they feel proud of giving. One compromise is to give children a small bonus for gifts – encouraging them to put at least some of their regular money toward what they buy.
9. Have yourself an ethical Christmas.
There are more ways than ever before to give an ethical gift this Christmas. Most major charities now offer packages similar to Oxfam’s successful “give-a-goat” scheme, by which you buy a gift not for the recipient, but for a good cause; be aware that you might not be giving an actual goat. Eco-fashion is also popular – see www.craftscouncil.org.uk/wellfashioned for a list of outlets – and remember that you can buy fair-trade jewellery and clothes as well as coffee and bananas. Finally, plan to recycle wrapping paper and packaging.
10. Pocket the receipt.
You might think that an iPod cover with bendy arms is the height of geek chic, but your teenage son may not agree. Avoid problems later by hanging on to the receipt, so you can get a refund after Christmas. But even if you’re not sure about what you’ve bought, never admit to having kept the receipt too soon – anticipation is half the fun.
It’s almost too obvious to mention, but remember to remove the receipt before wrapping the present. It’s not a worse faux pas than leaving a big red sticker on the gift saying “Bargain bucket £2” (you know who you are), but it’s close.
11. Buy a spare present.
Failing to communicate is what families do – some say it’s what Christmas is all about. So when Uncle Algernon arrives unexpectedly on Christmas morning, you’ll need a gift in reserve: the One Present Everybody Likes.
Good examples of the reserve present include bottles of single malt, comedy wigs and glasses, Amazon vouchers, magazine subscriptions and hampers. Bad examples include pot-pourri, celebrity biographies, socks and boxes of party games – indeed anything you dislike, because when Uncle Algernon doesn’t show up, you’ll be keeping the reserve present for yourself.
12. It’s a wrap.
When wrapping presents, there are only two basic rules. First, the bag it came in is not acceptable wrapping, unless you are giving unwanted booze to your neighbours, in which case a Thresher’s bag from the kitchen drawer is de rigueur. Apart from that, simplicity is all. To distinguish your presents from others under the tree, use plain or geometric wrapping paper, and simple ribbons and bows; if it’s wonky, put it in a cardboard box wrapped with tissue paper first. For reindeer-phobes, Paperchase has for many years stocked rolls of brown paper – you can even write on it in black marker pen, saving the need for gift tags. Neat.
The best present I ever received
“My boyfriend took me to Antibes and gave me 24 presents – one for every hour of the day. A lot of them were little presents, but it was a great feeling.” – Nazy, 30, animator
“My husband gave me a black handbag – and then told me to look inside the pocket. It was a replacement wedding ring for one that had been stolen, from the same jeweller’s. It was really romantic.” – Becky Molloy, 51, teacher
“The best present was from my grandmother – it was the necklace she was given by my grandfather on her anniversary.” – Alex Pullin, 23, account executive in PR
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