Christmas Gifts | Volume 1

Thursday 15 October 2015

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Taken at the Distillery District Christmas Market 2013

There are only seven more Fridays until Christmas!  Where did the year go?  Wasn't it *just* Christmas?  Funny how as a kid you can't wait to see what you get for Christmas, but as an adult you can't wait to give?  Well clearly I am adulting hardcore this year because currently my gift list is pretty short (more on that later) but my list of gifts to give is always growing!

This year is all about budgeting for me.  I'm working full time and living at home, with the goal to move out in April.  I want to save as much money as I can over the next few months so I can take the next big step in my life, move out, decorate my apartment nicely, and adopt two cats.  The cats are key to this plan.

I've currently got my gift list pretty narrow:  My boyfriend, my parents, my three grandparents, his parents, my brother and his brother.  I may participate in a few secret Santas, but that is always way more affordable than giving a gift to every single friend.

I'm planning to keep my gift for my boyfriend at $125, and gifts for everybody else at about $25 for a total budget of $350.

I am going to order my grandma and grandpa two hand painted mugs with a custom painting of their dog on them.  I am going to find two different photos of Echo so that way each mug matches but is unique.  Taxes and shipping in this will come to $50, so right on budget!

My dad is an actual Blue Jays fan.  As in, he was a fan before the bandwagon was a thing.  Once he gets home from work he loves to put on more comfortable clothes, and usually this includes one of his many blue Jays shirts.  With a trip to Cuba coming up over New Years I thought this Jose Bautista shirt would be the perfect gift for him!  Can you say bat flip for the ages?  Between the exchange rate and shipping this $23 USD shirt came to $30 CAD.  I also ordered one for myself because I can.

I always stress about what to get my boyfriend's parents.  Last year I got them a pretty ceramic cookie jar.  I'm on the look for another classic gift that they will enjoy.  I typically get them a joint gift for their home.

As for everybody else?  As I shop I am sure I will slowly but surely find them each the perfect gift.  I'm totally open to suggestions for my mom, my nanny, my brother, and my boyfriend's brother.  My boyfriend is usually pretty good about letting me know what is on his list, and there is a chance we might put our money together and buy something nice for our place-to-be.

In terms of what's on my list?  Well I already know that my mom Santa's elves are making this fantastic set for me (Beauty Blender, Tarte Brush, Nars Eyeshadow!).  Other than that I guess some HBC gift cards to the Bay would be nice...or cash.  I'm lucky that my boyfriend and I will be able to mostly furnish our apartment with extra stuff at each of our parents places, but all of the little décor items that make a house a home will add up fast.  Art work, rugs, new blankets...let's just say I am thankful for my Winners gift card right now.  I will be holding onto that for a bit.

Normally I would be asking for Sephora, but I just feel so overwhelmed with how much make-up I have at the moment.  I feel like I need to use up a bunch before I buy any more.  And besides, I am so  so excited about the next chapter in my life that I would rather save my money for that than spend it on another eyeshadow palette.  As move out time gets closer expect to see lots of home décor on this blog!  But of course, there will still be plenty of make-up to go around.

3 comments:

  1. This was a really interesting post! Great job planning and budgeting :) I admit I don't really budget on gifts so much because it's something I'd rather spend my money on even if it means being a little more conservative elsewhere, but when I was doing my undergrad my siblings and i didn't do gifts for each other because it would have added up so fast (technically i had 6 siblings...) and buying for 4 parents was already a lot, although often my siblings and i would go in on joint gifts. I definitely understand what you mean about saving for bigger things than makeup though. Last year I went on a trip to Peru and it was really easy to be more frugal with my money because I was so excited to put it towards that, it's always great to have a goal to save for! :) I'd be interested if you did another update in the future on how the whole process is going for you!

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    1. Actually, that's a lie, we did secret Santa type gifts usually, so you only had to buy for one person. My family often still does that :)

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    2. Thank you! I don't think I can get myself to budget every single penny (kind of like a diet where you count every single calorie) but I think I can get myself to a broader budget goal. 6 siblings can get expensive! Thankfully I only have one haha. But I always include a gift for my boyfriend's brother because he is a great guy, and I would feel so awkward coming over for Christmas gifts for everybody in the house except for 1. Loved reading about your big trip and looking at the photos! I took a look through Ikea and The Bay for things I liked, and man does everything you need for a home add up fast! Even with my boyfriend and I splitting all of that down the middle...I'm going to do a few follow up posts as I begin this transition. Still lots of make-up, but between my extensive personal collection, and PR I don't think the blog will suffer. I'm just so excited about the decision we made that I am pretty sure I can cut back on the Sephora front.

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