5 money saving ideas for the holidays

Trying to hang on to more of your hard-earned money? Here are five ways you can do it during the holiday season.

During the holidays, spending on gifts and entertaining tends to escalate. Try to trim costs elsewhere by using our tips below. Phase them in one at a time instead of trying to adopt them all at once, and there’s a better chance your new ways will last.

1. Do it yourself. Instead of sending your shirts out, wash and iron them yourself. Fire the yard-care company and mow your own grass. Give the cleaning lady every other week off, and get the whole family to help with the housework on the alternate weeks. Replace the furnace filter yourself. You’ll be surprised how the savings add up.

2. Don’t shop. Of course you’ll still need groceries and clothes for growing kids. But if you cut out non-essential shopping excursions for one month, you’re likely to see a dramatic decline in impulse purchases. Multiply those savings by 12 to find out how much cash you could conserve by curtailing your shopping for a whole year, and challenge yourself to continue your thrifty ways.

3. Use the library. Borrow books, CDs and DVDs instead of buying them. Use the Internet to look through the library shelves and reserve the media you want to borrow. Visit the local branch weekly to pick up new items and return those you’ve finished. Read the latest issues of your favorite magazines while you’re there. Designate some shelf space at home for items you’ve borrowed to avoid misplacing them and running up fines.

4. Cook in batches. Buy groceries in bulk when you see a good sale, then whip up big batches of soups, spaghetti sauce, stews, cookies, bread and other foods that freeze well. Package them in meal-size containers, date them and use them instead of ordering in when you don’t have time to cook. Take them out of the freezer and leave them in the fridge overnight, then finish thawing them in the microwave. When you buy in bulk and cook in batches, you can make enough spaghetti sauce for several meals for the price of a large pizza with three toppings.

5. Trade services with the neighbors. Instead of hiring a babysitter, swap evenings off with the couple next door. Help the family across the street paint in exchange for assistance repairing your deck. Trade your tomatoes for their squash. Walk each other’s dogs; take turns raking, shoveling and mowing. You’ll make new friends and save time and money into the bargain.