With rising prices biting, perhaps you might like to consider a Cheap Christmas. This style of Christmas has to be agreed to by everyone, because it only works if everyone participates!
Makle sure you set a limit, and tell everyone to stick to it. You can kindly consider who might have the least amount of money to spend, and suggest an appropriate figure accordingly, without mentioning anyone. This sense of community means you can all share advice if you find specials at the big stores. Or you can go to local markets, especially local art and craft markets. Or have fun going to second hand stores.
You can add an Effort factor, by making the presents yourself. Baked goods, like Christmas cookies or home-made chocolates, are always welcome. Drying rose petals to make a pot pourri can be lovely. Home-made vouchers for help with tasks, a meal cooked by you or a special outing are also lovely – think a swim or walk with a flask of tea/coffee and biscuits afterwards, or browsing a bookshop or garden nursery together. You can put together a calendar! Photos of you with them, or of the family or friendship group, for each month. There are templates on the internet for this, and you can bind them yourself or get inexpensive professional binding at your local stationery store. A small handmade photo album can be great, too.
If Christmas is in summer, you might like to take cuttings of plants from your garden, or plant seeds you already have. You can also get seeds out of organic fruit and veg sold in grocery stores and supermarkets. Tomato seeds are great for this, and pumpkin and capsicums are good too. Plant them soon in small pots, to be ready for the big day. Special plants like chilli bushes or herbs are really good presents. Grow more than you need, to account for the inevitable failures. If you have organic or self-pollinated plants in your garden, you can also collect seeds and pop them in home-made paper packets. Decorating these is probably nicer than dragging yourself from shop to shop looking for inspiration.
If Christmas is in winter, you might want to consider knitting or crocheting. Scarves, beanies, shawls, ponchos and small lap rugs are good presents to receive. Writing is great, too – you can write letters about the wonderful impact a person has had on your life, or a stroll down memory lane, recounting funny or wonderful things you’ve done with them, or just the reasons you love them or are proud of them. Or you can write fiction stories or poems, or provide fact sheets on something they’ve consulted you about. Photos or little drawings can liven these up.
The thing is to have fun with it!
Note: I used a similar idea for a birthday party of mine, with great results. You can read about it here
Joni Page 