Hip2Save This Holiday: Frugal Stocking Stuffers
Hip2Save This Holiday Guest Post Submitted By Reader Claire…
Just like all the other Hip2Save shoppers I buy stocking stuffers throughout the year. Every time I would get something for the stockings I would hide the bag in my closet. Plus all the samples and free things that I get in the mail would get thrown into a bag. The last few years I felt like I was digging through bags and bags of stuff trying to fill all the stockings on Christmas Eve. We have a family of 5, with one on the way, plus the stockings that we do at grandmas house, it was getting overwhelming.
This year I bought a box of gallon zip lock bags and labeled one for each person. I hide the bags in a diaper box in the garage, and trust me no one is looking in there. 😉 Now as soon as I get something for a stocking it goes directly into that persons bag. I can easily see how much stuff each person has and make sure all the kids have equal amounts. As soon as I find a deal on Christmas candy I will buy it and divide it between the bags. Now when it is time to fill stockings all I will have to do is empty the gallons bags into the stockings!
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I LOVE THIS IDEA! Thank you so much Claire and Collin!
Too funny. I was thinking and going to comment exactly the same thing.
Thanks!
Love this idea. I too always stock up on musc items throughout the year and by the time Christmas comes around I drive myself crazy trying to round up everything. I am so doing this starting today. I am also going to do this for all the items I collect for birthday party goody bags. Thanks for the great idea. Congrats on your pending arrival.
great idea! I will have to remember to do this for next year! 🙂
What a helpful tip! Love it!
I always stick post-its on each item with a name and the occasion that I’m going to give it to them for. Then I just try to keep their items in a stack or close to it.
great idea!! thanks for sharing!
Excellent idea! I keep my stockings in a cardboard box and fill each stocking as I get things, that way I know when the stocking is stuffed to the max. Of course, using clear bags helps to eliminate duplicate items ending up in the stocking!!
Love that idea! I always end up buying waaaay too much because I panic at the last minute that I didn’t buy enough.
Genius! I WILL be doing this next year.
I do this only it goes in grocery bags. I almost always purchase the small Christmas toys after Christmas and put them away for the next year.
What a great idea! Thanks for sharing!
What a wonderful idea! Thanks!
Thanks for sharing your wonderful idea – I was just sorting and wrapping gifts last night and was so overwhelmed by the amount of stocking stuffers I have. Your idea will really help me in the years to come!
Great idea!
Ur expecting??
(it’s a guest post by reader Claire)
Wow.
Also this idea is awesome if you tend to over buy for certain people, because there it is, easy to see what you have. Love this idea, doing something similiar here 🙂 I use a book bag for each kid. 😉 And start wrapping early, I hate Christmas eve due to my lack of prep, NOT THIS YEAR!!!
I know right?! I started wrapping presents today. Need to make a list of what sized batteries we need though… 😀
That is a great idea! Much better than the avalanche in my closet. It’s seriously dangerous!
lol…that would be my closet too!
I always buy candy for Halloween when its on clearance really cheap-that is not packaged with halloween pics-and use that for Christmas. Those bags from Halloween don’t expire for a year or two normally.
Great idea! I’m definitely doing this next year!
Love this idea – brilliant! Thanks for sharing!
So many of these posted so far are things I already do or have done. This one is definitely new to me, and quite the fantastic idea! Perfect! I need to do this from now on… starting tonight after my kids go to bed and I go through the loot I have so far!
A few years ago, I forgot to get stocking stuffers for my sister (we’re in our twenties)…so instead of giving her nothing, I wrapped up some stuff from my stockpile – brand name razor, shampoo, etc. To my surprise, she was stoked! The past two years, at the end of her Christmas list, she’s added a stocking stuffer list with a note saying “stuff you can buy me coupons.” Boy does she know me well! This year she’s getting a stack of things from Walgreens Black Friday FARR sale – hair ties, Carmex, Almay Makeup, and yes, she even said she wanted Crest 3D White toothpaste! I know it’s goofy, but it definitely gets her more gifts under the tree with the stocking stuffer money I saved!
That’s great! I think people prefer getting items they can use everyday! So cool!!
I made my mom a stocking last year with a bunch of free coupon items. That was her favorite gift! I’ve heard her telling several people about it over the year. I’m definitely going to do it again this year!
I have given my siblings big bags of toiletries for birthday and Christmas gifts. I told them I was not trying to send them a “hint” or anything about their hygiene, I just wanted to give them something they could use that they probably hate paying for. They all loved it.
Absolutly love this idea! I’ll definitly be doing this for next year, thanks for the wonderful idea!
Thanks for sharing! Awesome idea!
I use plastic totes for each of my kids. I add stocking stuffers, toys, free cvs candy, just whatever I accumulate throughout the year. It has helped alot.
Great idea! I’m definitely going to remember this. I’m always so tired when it’s really late on Christmas Eve and don’t have the energy to sort through everything for five stockings!! 🙂 Ho! Ho! Ho!
lol, I spend the day before Christmas sorting my “messes” out and it takes FOREVER and then if I feel I’m “short” someone’s present I remind myself to do this EARLIER! So, this is a good idea, except I rarely this organized and usually have to HURRY to hid presents with my 6 children that always see me come through the door 😉
And I have to add, the “baby” (or anyone under about 18 months at Christmas time) gets wipes, diapers and some random cheap baby-type thing—-this really helps to save on money and is something they obviously need, and one less child I have to shop for yet.
That’s a good idea too. They just want to open stuff – they don’t care what it is and are probably more interested in the wrapping.
Great idea!! I’d have to remember where I had my bags! 😉 I love your post!
Love this plan – with 5 kids myself, I can use it! Mine are teenage to early 20’s, and 4 of them are girls, so I stocked up heavily on drugstore freebies throughout the year, especially Black Friday. That stuff is spilling over EVERYWHERE!
I thought Santa fills the stockings?!
Doesnt santa fill the stockings?! 😉
Lol Jolene!
Sometimes Santa, needs some help. I mean the workshop is only so big right so sometimes I think he makes early deliverys to make sure he has room for all the gifts 🙂
Just went to the closet and origanized the stocking stuff! Thanks for the tip!
Love it!!! Thanks so much, I have the same problem every year. I’m gonna set this up asap. 🙂
How have we all overlooked something so simple?! This is a wonderful idea. Yet another thing I have taken away from this site:)
And we need to never underestimate the power of a freebee!
This idea is as brilliant as Post-It Notes! Makes you wish you had the idea yourself, lol. Will definitely be adding this to next year’s resolutions. Organization is in serious need around our house! Thanks Claire and Collin 🙂
I’m soooooo doing this!! I get so unorganized with stocking stuffers bcuz they’re so small!!
This is such a great idea. Thanks for sharing.
Love it! I’m a Christmas Eve “digger” too…so using this!
Great idea!
I have a different color bin in my closet so everything I get something for one of them I put in there bin. That way I know who it is for and I just carry the bin to tree and no bag noise.
Even better!!!! Thanks!!!
Great idea….
Using the bags is a great idea. When my youngest was a baby I used to hide all the wrapped gifts in diaper boxes too, but under the crib…
The best hiding place I found was to put the presents in their room! They never look there! Especially if they are a kid that doesn’t clean their room much!
That happened when I was a kid. My sister and I used to always find our presents early and it infuriated Mom. One year, we could no longer find them, though we looked everywhere! Never found them again and couldn’t figure it out. Finally, as an adult, I asked Mom where she hid them and she said she put them in our closet in a box marked Summer Clothes. I don’t think we even looked in our room; it never would have occurred to us!
We hide our presents in the totes that held the Christmas decorations.
THanks for the idea ! I have 8 kids and pull my hair out finding unique stocking stuffers for each personality in my house ! lol
Great idea!!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
I am doing 32 stockings for my whole family this year and I have done this also! It’s SO much more organized and I know exactly what I have for each person and who I still need to buy for!
Why so many stockings? Not just in your house? Is that instead of giving each person a gift? I might steal that idea for next year…
Ugh… so my life! I still have gifts I meant to give my youngest sister for Christmas three years ago… put it away meaning to give it to her for her next birthday or the next Christmas… obviously still right where I left it! While I hope to try this idea, I’ve got to thank Claire for reminding me I ACTUALLY should find a bag to give those presents to my sister THIS Christmas! ; ) Thank you!! Luckily, she’s nine, so she hasn’t outgrown the gifts I meant to give her!
I wish I were that organized…
I love this idea! I have an excel spreadsheet with everyone’s presents on it as I buy them. I kind of write it in code lol, but it has helped a lot in figuring out what I have or don’t have 🙂
Perfect timing! I love this idea and am starting today!
I do this with the baggies but and I also take pictures of gifts with the name in black sharpie on a sign in the picture i.e. Kayla- Birthday or Hunter – Christmas. Then I put the pics on the computer and print out a “master sheet”. Delete the pics off the camera/phone and the computer then hide the paper with name and pics. I hide mine the bottom of my underwear drawer…believe me the kids NEVER go in there! It sounds involved but only takes a few minutes. I hide the bigger gifts in the attic in brown paper bags from the grocery store in the corner. Last year I wrapped as I brought the gifts home, but first I took a picture so I would know what it was.