It’s the second to last Friday before Christmas! YAY! Or not … How are your emotions?
Me? Well, I’m pretty exhausted despite the fact that I haven’t really left my laptop for the vast majority of my shopping. But this will be me next week:
I want to take a quick pause and pat those of you on the back who are sitting there, drinking your latte, and shaking your head at me and the rest of us who haven’t finished their shopping already because you’ve had everything purchased and wrapped under the tree for weeks. Every summer I truly believe I’m going to be on top of my shopping ahead of time the upcoming Christmas. I even start making my lists for what I’m going to get for people. By the time November rolls around I’ve forgotten about the various post-it notes, notebooks, Evernotes, and Wunderlists that are floating around and pretty much start from scratch. Those lists will be found in mid-January when I’m cleaning desk my one day. It happens. It’s who I am now and I’ve begun to accept that fact. LOL.
On a positive note, though, I consider myself to be an excellent last-minute holiday shopper. Today I’m going to share some of my tricks for you in case you’re new to the online scramble or the post-bedtime runs to Target. And, don’t forget to check out my post about toddler gifts that parents love too.
Let’s quickly get to these tips … we only have 9 more shopping days!
Four Points Mom’s Favorite Last-Minute Holiday Shopping Tips
Know the Pros and Cons of Amazon.
If you’ve followed the blog for a few months, you know I’m a HUGE fan of Amazon. The selection of items just can’t be compared. It’s my online equivalent to Target because I often go to Amazon to purchase one small thing and then hours later have a shopping cart full of items I didn’t know I needed or wanted. In addition to having the best selection, they also can have it delivered for free (if you’re a Prime subscriber) within 2 days. That’s amazing. However, you do need to pay attention to estimated shipping times as we get closer to Christmas. I’m noticing several Prime items (toys specifically) that are now just saying “delivered by Christmas” instead of the typical two day window. So make sure you double-check the estimated shipping time before you click buy now.
Also, for many items Amazon has the best price or at least a competitive price. However, this is not always the case. Several times my husband and I blindly purchased something on Amazon that we needed for the house (recent purchases of air vents and lightbulbs come to mind). When going to Amazon, the price looked reasonable but we didn’t spend any time comparing the price to Home Depot, Target, H-E-B, etc. We later discovered that we could have saved a lot of money on these purchases by visiting local stores, but we didn’t have a frame of reference because we didn’t regularly purchase those items. Lesson learned: At least check the price online with other retailers. I’ve started doing this by searching for the item on Google and then narrowing my results within the shopping tab.
Daily Sales Are Everywhere!
Right now most sites have different specials each day. For example, Target has a special going on this week where you can either save $10 for every $50 spent on toys or, even better, $25 for every $100 spent on toys. I took advantage of this deal this week when I purchased this micro kick board mini scooter.
The price without the sale was the same on Amazon, but I could easily throw in one or two more gifts I needed into my shopping cart and reach the $100 threshold and get all items for $75. Woohoo! I do want to warn you to double-check your shopping cart before purchasing because I found that some Legos and craft items weren’t falling under the promotion.
Also, don’t forget to check out Amazon’s Daily deals. Each day they do special promotions that can allow you to get great deals on various items. A couple of today’s deals are really cool! Check out the 100 of the Best of Warner Brothers Movie Collection?
Today you can get these 100 classic movies for $64! I’m buying this for someone on my list who loves movies. (Shameless plug … if any of my family members are still searching for a great gift for me … I love movies too …). 😉
Another Daily Deal you might want to check out is the Save up to 30% on select fashion dolls and accessories. You could take advantage of this sale and get the cutest equestrian ensemble for a 14-inch doll. Love this!
And, finally, don’t forget to check out Zulily. I’ve found some great deals on small gifts and stocking stuffers for the kids there. Specifically, they had a great sale on Melissa and Doug toys this week plus you can usually find great deals on shoes from brands like TOMS and Uggs.
Search for Promo Codes
I’m shocked by how often I can find some type of promo code on RetailMeNot for my online purchases. You can literally enter in any retailer and RetailMeNot can tell you whether there’s an online or in-store coupon available for your use. I used this last night when checking out at World Market and got 10% off my purchase by spending the 60 seconds it took me to find the coupon. I’ve used this in-store at Banana Republic, Old Navy, Gap, and other clothing retailers as well. A recent purchase at Gap ended up being 40% off which was a nice surprise for me to discover in the checkout line. Plus, I do it ALL THE TIME when shopping online.
It’s Not Too Late For Custom Gifts
When I was writing this post yesterday (Thursday, December 13th) I was surprised at how many sites were still offering delivery by Christmas for monogrammed or custom photo gifts. Specifically, I found that Shutterfly and Nordstrom were still offering such services. Here’s a cute passport holder I found at Nordstrom.
(So, order those custom gifts today and you’ll look like you weren’t last-minute shopping). 😉
Shop Local, Especially For Unique Last-Minute Gifts
Here in the Four Points area you can find super cute gifts for friends and family at one of the many local shops. My personal favorite is Beau Kisses, but I’m also a big fan of Royal Monkey.
Alright, that’s it for me today. Share your favorite last-minute shopping tips in the comments below. I’d love to learn from you guys!
