1. experience gifts

I wonder whether I know different people to everyone else. I’m not sure that I know anyone who would appreciate season passes to the zoo. Museums and such like are often free. Most people I know are not blessed with excess time to take advantage of National Trust membership, and I’m wary of booking theatre tickets when I’m not privy to their schedules. Vouchers are ok, but you need people to take advantage of them.

I’ve had two experience gifts in the recent past, one was a voucher for a Red Letter Day experience of my choice, the other was a Spa Day. I never got round to using the voucher because there was nothing that I was particularly sold on doing, and I didn’t have anyone to share the experience with. The Spa Day was more successful because my sister also got one, and we went together - I could receive this again, but would only want to give in similar circumstances, and I don’t have a pair of people to give to in this way.

2. crafts

I’m not a crafty person, so it would actually be a ridiculously large investment of my time if I was to make a gift. I probably fall under the same category as my recipients - I don’t actually have more time available than I have money. I have a friend who knits - she’s making a baby’s cardigan and something for her mother for a few months (on and off) and they’re coming along very nicely.

I haven’t received a homemade gift for a long time, and it’s something for which I’m thankful. Traditional crafts, whilst I appreciate the amount of time and care that goes into them, are just not my style. For example, I know that quilts take forever to make and are really beautiful, but I have a chrome and glass aesthetic going on. I would really rather not have them, and that people gave things like that to those that appreciate them.

3. gift of the month

This is a truly nice idea. You wrap up say a plate of Christmas cookies, and include a voucher for 11 new plates of cookie, one for each month. However, the only way to do this frugally is to do it yourself and therein lies the problem. I live more than 100 miles from my closest family, so this is just not a practical gift for me to give, however great it is otherwise.

4. holiday themed gifts

I don’t give these, in case other people have the same reaction to them that I do, which is “beautiful, but when am I going to use this?”. Seriously, there’s some nice Christmas stuff on the shelves at this time of year. But how many turkey platters / tea towels / aprons does one person need? And are people into traditional red and green, or Scandinavian style, or jewel toned elegance? Do they entertain at Christmas? Where will they store it for the rest of the year? Will people still be using cranberry soap in July? Most importantly, do they already have this stuff?

5. goats and heifers

A really, really lovely gift for the people that have everything is to buy a goat for a family in Africa in their name. I honestly think that this is a nice thing to do. But, my aunt did this once, and whilst she’s otherwise not known for her great presents this wasn’t appreciated as it could have been. I’ll admit it because it’s true, my family are not the major charity donating type, and it felt slightly *holier than thou*. Although I like it, it’s not something I’m planning on doing as a gift as I just don’t know people who would appreciate it. I’ll just make a private Christmas donation instead.

Of course, all of this sounds a little ungrateful. But really I’m not - when I receive a gift it really is the thought that counts and I appreciate the love that goes into all the un-useful gifts I’ve received just as much as the useful ones. It’s simply that not all gifts work for me.

There’s nothing I can really do about gifts people give me, but more importantly, I need gift ideas that take into account the recipients lifestyle and tastes, as well as taking into account my lifestyle and budget. Not every great gift idea that you find will work for your friends and family.

However, going *home* for Christmas means travelling - which is never free. I don’t have a car, so I go by train. The standard open return fare for my trip home is over £100. Buying in advance, with a non-flexible Advance Purchase ticket, it cost £10. That’s like a 90% saving.

book in advance

Travel in general is cheapest booked well in advance. Plane tickets need to be bought more than six months in advance to get the cheapest deals, and rail tickets probably a month in advance - depending on the popularity of the route/time.

planes

If you need to fly somewhere at Xmas you probably should have bought your tickets already, although you may still be able to snap up a relative bargain if you’re willing to travel on either Christmas Day or (possibly) Boxing Day.

The following screenscrapers, metasearchers and brokers are reputed to give good results:

• kayak
• skyscanner
• expedia
• travelocity

trains

If you need to get the train, now is the time to pin down the exact details of your journey(s) so you can try and bag one of the remaining advance purchase tickets.

thetrainline.com sent me an email telling me about a new farefinder tool that they have. If your journey is on one of their top 100 routes (generally between major cities), then it will tell you the lowest available ticket prices in four time categories in the week around a date you specify.

It’s a little convoluted to get to the ticket booking page, but it’s a nice idea. There’s similar functionality at Find Cheaper Rail Fares @ Transport Direct, which also has its limitations.

Wherever you buy your train tickets, watch out for booking fees, and don’t pay them. You can always get the exact same ticket without paying a booking fee as generally all the train operators can book tickets from anywhere to anywhere.

automobiles

If you’re going to be driving, don’t forget to allow plenty of time - you can work out the best route and see anticipated congestion using the Transport Direct car journey planner - it also calculates the likely fuel costs of your journey.

The thing to remember about gift baskets is that lots of little things can add up to a larger than expected price tag.

1. s’mores kit

Mini Marshmallows, Animals biscuits/mini chocolate chip cookies, skewers, candle jar.

Approximate cost £12+

Make s’mores by toasting the marshmallows over the candle and then squashing between two biscuits. Include directions. I gave this to my sister one year, I’m not sure how much she enjoyed it, but my brother thought it was awesome and still enjoys making s’mores over a candle.

2. pasta kit

Pasta bowl, fancy pasta, olive oil, pasta sauce, cheese grater, dried tomatoes, cookbook.

Approximate cost £20

Stick everything in the pasta bowl, and wrap up. You could also include wine, Parmesan cheese, tongs, herbs, etc. I’ve given this, and received it in different years. The one I received was ready packaged from a department store, the one I gave I made myself. On balance, I’m not a big fan of this one. It’s hard to make it look expensive without spending a lot of money on really fancy things. But if you know someone that really loves pasta, it may still be a good idea.

3. manicure basket

Nail polish (a couple of shades), base coat, top coat, emery boards, cuticle trimmer, nail clippers, little bottle of bubble bath, nail polish remover, cotton wool balls / sticks, quick dry top coat

Approximate cost £15-£20

Add more by having different shades of nail polish, cut costs by getting sample sizes or using discount cosmetics stores. This may or may not be cheaper than a ready made kit and it helps to know that what colour nail varnish the recipient normally wears. I’ve received something similar and appreciated it.

4. death by chocolate

Plain, milk and white chocolate in bars, chocolate truffles, hot chocolate, chocolate chip cookies,…. You get the idea.

Approximate cost £10+

Key to making this look nice is having quite fancy stuff (i.e. not Hersheys/Cadburys). Or, making things yourself. I have given this before, as an alternative to just giving a box of chocolates. It took more effort, but looked better for the same cost.

5. travel toiletries kit

A 1 quart clear zipped bag filled with travel size (under 100ml) shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, tooth paste, deoderant, shaving oil, hair gel, etc.

Approximate cost £5 for the bag, plus £2 per item so easily £15-£20

This I would appreciate receiving. It’s surprisingly expensive to do, you’d need to keep your eyes out for some bargains on some of the items. This sort of thing can be adapted for baby travel toiletries, and tailored nicely for the recipient.

6. kid’s bath basket

Kids bubble bath, flannels, bath toys/books, crayon soap, plastic bath basket

Approximate cost £12+

Some of this stuff you can get at a bargain price if you shop carefully. I don’t think I’ve actually given this gift, but I’d definitely consider it for a child of between the ages of say 2 and 6. If you wanted to spend more, you could add in cartoon character towels, robes and pyjamas.

7. wine tasters basket

Bottles of wine (3+), corkscrew, wine glasses (2+), wine charms, bottle stoppers, snacks

Approximate cost £20-£100

You can cut costs by using less expensive wine, getting glasses and such like in Ikea, and inexpensive corkscrews and so on. Or you could splash out with decent wine, a cool fish corkscrew, crystal glasses, etc, etc. This can be adapted to other drinks - beer would probably be cheaper, and spirits or champagne more expensive. I might do something like this for my dad this year.

8. coffee lovers basket

Selection of coffee beans, chocolate covered espresso beans, cups/mugs, coffee grinder, cafetiere

Approximate cost £30

Cut back by using pre-ground coffee, mugs, and coffee spoons etc. Or scale it up with a coffee maker, fine china espresso or cappucino cups and very, very expensive coffee. I’ve received this (coffee grinder, espresso cups, coffee beans) and thought it was a very nice gift. Sadly, I don’t know anyone else who likes coffee as much as me.

final thoughts

The only other thing to remember about gift baskets is that it’s all in the presentation. One year, I found it hard to find actual gift baskets, and shredded paper very cheaply, and so the gifts ended up costing more than I expected.

If these ideas don’t look that exciting to you, peruse your local department store for ideas as they always have plenty of gift baskets. Then think carefully about whether you could actually do it for less. Although the shop ones often look like a lot of money for not a lot of stuff, they also have economies of scale so I’d advise pricing the complete gift before you start buying.

In real life (as opposed to work life) I’m not that organised, nor do I have a particular need to be fair or impartial. Generally, at most, I read around on a service or product that I want to buy, and get a gut feel for the best. Or, if there is no *best* I pick the cheapest one that has the features I’m looking for. The following three examples show how I normally work.

the fridge

About 18 months ago, I bought a new fridge. I decided that it had to:

• be white - to go with the kitchen
• have an icebox - I have no other freezer
• have glass shelves - easier to clean
• be A rated for energy - eco-friendly and cheaper to run
• be 55cm wide - to fit in the fridge space

All of these requirements were non-negotiable and nothing else was of interest. I simply picked the cheapest fridge from Argos (reputable supplier) that fit the bill.

the netbook

When I bought my netbook, I just read some reviews (something like 10 best netbooks) on the internet, found which two or three where in my budget, went to the local big box computer store and picked the one they had in stock. I ended up with a navy blue Acer Inspire One which is perfectly ok except the wireless network card (or whatever it is) is prone to overheating and the battery only lasts 2 hours.

the house

When I bought my house, I only looked at places that were feasible - in my price range, with enough room, and not requiring complete gutting - and bought the one that I fell in love with.

being methodical

Part of the reason that we try to be fair and impartial on tender scoring at work is so that we get the best deal. And the spreadsheets and scores do help keep a track of which feature goes with which item and you can get a better idea of where you want to make a trade-off between features, or between features and cost.

I’m permanently on the look out for new luggage. What I want is a bag that can be carried as a backpack, opens out as fully as a suitcase does, with at least 2 compartments (one for clothes, one for laptop/work), will last for a while, comes in a colour other than black, with a bright/light coloured interior, that’s large enough to fit all the business clothes I need for a 3 day trip, or the casual clothes I need for a week, but definitely small enough to fit as carry on without hassle.

I’m willing to spend a couple of hundred pounds, and I’m expecting that I might have to compromise on some of the features. So, I’m going to set up a spreadsheet with all the criteria listed, plus room for any features that I either like or dislike. Then as I search for the perfect(-ish) luggage I can make sure I make the best choice.

Do you shop objectively? Or do you go for gut feel?

You’d think given this, and that I love to give gifts, that I’d have no problem picking out Christmas gifts for my family. Indeed, at work, I’m considered the gift shopper extraordinaire for leaving gifts, baby gifts, wedding gifts,…

The problem is that I’m very good at generic gifts. Leaving gifts are easy - think office-y but nice, so it tends to be coffee mugs, business card holders, pens, filofax, cufflinks, etc plus a gift card if there’s any remaining money. Baby gifts are also ridiculously easy - a nice complete outfit for the child (when I’m picking it invariably includes either jeans or a denim jacket, because I think it’s amusing), flowers/chocolates for the mother, and a giftcard for any remaining money. The default wedding gift is something from the registry, or if that doesn’t exist, a bottle of wine/champagne and a couple of glasses, or giftcard/cash, if that seems more appropriate.

women

I can think of a whole heap of reasonable generic gifts for women:

• toiletries
• jewellery
• perfume
• scarves
• bags
• picture frames
• candles
• chocolates

most of these would suit most women.

men

Men, I find harder to buy for, and but generically, it’s normally:

• ties
• cufflinks
• aftershave
• books
• dvds
• cds
• wine/beer
• chocolates

there’s usually something in there that would suit most men.

not generic, but personal!

As I said, generic gifts, fine. I can even pick out generic gifts for children and teenagers. But actual gifts for my family, not so much. Gift giving is important to me, and I’d like to get them something that they really like. The thing that I have to admit to myself, is that I just don’t know them all that well. And if I’m sticking to my modest budget, it gets even harder.

I know that my brothers and sisters would quite like giftcards to clothes shops, for example. But, I try and shop for bargains, so that it looks like I spent more than I actually did - giftcards would proclaim loud and clear that I only spend £20 per head. Probably less than everyone else (and I earn more), and not enough to get something really great.

I think everyone has this problem to some extent. Either you aren’t very good at picking up hints from your loved ones, or you don’t know them that well, or you struggle for ideas in general, or you don’t have enough money to find something good, or…

Never mind. Whilst I’m probably not going to give the worlds greatest gifts this Christmas, I can share some ideas that I’ve had over the years that might work for you, or and maybe, in doing so we I can think of some things that would suit my family .

Look for some frugal Christmas gift ideas coming up over the next few weeks.

One of the biggest problems with extended journeys, especially on the way home is that it’s often slightly boring, and you end up spending money for something to do. I didn’t do too badly, I picked up some sweets for work at the airport, where I also had a slice of cake and a Sprite. Then on possibly the most circuitous route from Heathrow to my house, I bought a cookie at one of the places I had to change.

I wasn’t really being good, I was just too tired, otherwise I might have bought a magazine or a book to read, plus ideally I’d have had a chance to get some actual lunch (Lufthansa gave out a snack, but I don’t like salami sandwiches - fussy I know).

With flights, now that you can’t bring your own drinks in, I just put up with the fact that I’m going to buy an overpriced coke or something there. I did hear a pretty cool suggestion of taking in a collapsible water bottle and filling that up, although I don’t know if it’s against the rules.

Most of my fun travel is actually by train in any case so I pick up a bottle of something sweet on the way, and some food if needed. It’s generally cheaper to buy neither in the station nor on the train. I’m never sure what to do about entertaining myself on a trip which is why there have been many emergency magazine and book purchases. I guess a newspaper would work out cheaper.

How do you cope with incidental expenses whilst travelling? Do you just suck them up? Go without? Or any other great ideas?

the problem

For my day job, I’m presenting a paper at a professional conference. It’s a 3 day event and it’s far enough away that I need to fly, I’ll be checking in to the conference hotel the night before. The programme is seminars all day every day, plus there’s a fun quiz(!) on the checking in evening, and a drinks reception and 3 course with wine dinner on the last evening.

I’m a naturally light traveller - in an ideal world I could do this as carry on only but I’m not wedded to this. The biggest technical problem that I’m having at the moment is that I’m not sure what to take to wear. I strongly suspect that most of the other conference delegates will be men. The last conference I went to it was at least 80% men and they wore suits, shirts and ties.

clothes that I already have

These are the work-related clothes that I currently own:

• 2 suits, one herringbone, one very tiny houndstooth, both black and white that looks like grey. Not interchangeable.
• 6 solid colour long sleeve or 3/4 sleeve tops (colours like soft blue, green, lilac, pink, red etc)
• 6 solid colour short sleeve tops (similar colours as above)
• 6 solid colour fine knit sweaters (similar colours as above)
• 1 navy cord jacket
• 1 black cotton a-line knee length skirt. Lightweight, goes with at most 1 of the suit jackets but I’ve never actually worn the two together.
• 1 jeans (not really work related, but maybe to travel in?)

and the shoes/boots:

• purple Doc Marten boots (they are slightly smarter than they sound, I wear these to work normally)
• black Court shoes with pointy heel (very pretty/smart, but not great for walking)
• flat black shoes (quite pretty/smart, ok for walking)
• purple ballerina shoes (pretty but not leather)

I’m not sure what to take, or even, what to wear. The weather is likely to be 10C-14C (low 50s in Fahrenheit?) and probably rainy, but I will be indoors nearly all the time. Three days is a longer business trip than I normally do and I don’t know whether it’s ok to wear 1 suit for 3 days or is that skanky? Should I take both suits and wear one twice? I also have no idea what to wear for the dinner.

ideas and solutions?

I could buy a couple of things, but what? I’ve considered buying any or all of:

• another suit but plain - black or charcoal
• plain black trousers (or navy if I can find any?)
• plain black (or charcoal?) fine knit cardigan
• pretty/patterned top for dinner

Normally, I try and avoid black as it doesn’t really suit me as well as other colours (like navy). But when I perused the internet last night, for petite clothes it was all black. This is an improvement on the time that it was all brown. I don’t want to spend too much money on new things, but am willing to buy stuff that I’ll use repeatedly.

This is the first time I’ve presented at a conference, and according to my boss, I’m quite junior to have had a paper accepted. I’d like to make a good impression, and need to be well-dressed in order to do so (partially as a confidence thing). On the other hand, I am not made of money and want to get the most bang for my buck so to speak.

Help me please - leave your suggestions in the comments. Comments by men would be appreciated as much as comments by women.

If helping me with my fashion sense is not quite your cup of tea, I’ve got a post planned which will go with my comparison of taxes in the UK and US to compare expenses - hopefully you’ll find that more interesting.

The only trouble is that in my experience there are all sorts of sundry expenses with travelling, and they’ve just started - I’ve split my jeans.

I don’t have a huge wardrobe of clothes and tend to wear a sort of uniform outfit almost all the time. On work days I wear a suit and a v-neck or scoop neck top. On casual days I wear jeans, a fitted t-shirt and normally a fitted lightweight fleece. I have few other days, but have a black tie outfit, a funeral outfit and a couple of skirts and things to fill in any gaps.

I know I’ve said it before, but I find it extremely difficult to find certain types of clothes. I’m 5 foot tall, and wear about a British size 12-14. (My, now dead, Gap jeans were US size 10). I have normal length legs for my height, but of course I’m so short, that my legs are too short even for *short people’s clothes*. This makes it hard to find trousers - including jeans – so I only ever have one or two pairs at a time, leaving me with no non-split jeans.

My jeans are dead and I definitely need to replace them. Ideally, by dress down Friday, but definitely before I go to Oktoberfest (bizarrely at the end of September). Which means that I need to go shopping.

This is the beginning of a slippery slope. If I’m going to go shopping, I’m thinking that I may as well work out what else I need to buy. And then there’s the clothes and shoes that ask you to buy them as you walk past. Not to mention the horrors of shopping for jeans.

To add insult to injury, Gap, my former staple jeans shop no longer does really short jeans. I had a quick scout around last night on the way home from work and found that River Island have a vast selection of shorter length jeans at £40 a pair (~$75-$80). Those might well do – short people can’t be too choosy when it comes to clothes that fit.

I will plough onwards and upwards undaunted, and definitely either go shopping on Thursday night and only buy jeans, or go on the weekend, make a short list, and stick to it.

For other people that struggle with clothes shopping – either with temptation, or the difficulty of it or, like me, both – have you got any hints, tips or tricks? Let me know in the comments.

I guess that they’ll want to see tourist-y things, and she’s not into personal finance, but loves clothes. With the $:£ still being in our favour, she’ll be able to stock up without racking up credit card debt.

But, what about food and drink? I know that New York is expensive, is there anywhere in particular they should head to or avoid? Or transport - I guess the subway is the frugal choice? Anything else you can think of?

All ideas, tips, tricks, and suggestions are warmly welcomed, just add them to the comments.

I’m currently avoiding the shops in an attempt to avoid spending money, so I don’t know if the Christmas things are up yet as they seem to be in the US. But, we’ve had the last bank holiday for four months now, and I once again feel that this is the homeward stretch towards the end of the year.

As a sensible personal finance sort of person, I like to have a sensible Christmas. I make a list of people I need to buy for, budget an amount per person, and set up a total list. I also have autumn / winter birthdays to buy for - starting in mid-October. This all falls into the same shopping pile, mentally at least. I prefer to get my shopping completed before the end of November, because I don’t like shopping when it’s busy.

All of this means that I like to get a grip on Christmas hideously early. I don’t start celebrating until the end of December, but I know that it’s coming. I hate rushing around, and gift buying is really important to me, so I’ve started thinking about it already. I’m not the only one, the Houseworks Holiday Plan begins next week. I don’t have nearly enough to do to make that worthwhile - I hate cleaning, and I don’t entertain, but it’s nice to know that I’m not alone in my forward planning.

If you’re the sort of person that can do Christmas quickly, easily and on budget by starting on the 1st of December, more power to you. I’m not. If I’m going to get things done and enjoy myself, I need to leave plenty of time. I’m not ashamed of sorting myself out now (pretty much got a budget for everything decided) and neither should anyone else be. After all, if you’re running round the shops at the end of the year, you can’t complain that you didn’t have enough warning.