Cheap Christmas Ideas!

I have been scanning for new cheap christmas gift ideas and here are some links:

Gifts under ten dollars

Cheap Christmas Gift Giving Ideas

Of course, the expense of Christmas doesn't end with the gifts. There is all that decorating and baking to do!

My advice on the baking, is to look for sales and stock up. The only time this is a problem for me, is when I try and stock up on chocolate chips. Then I just find myself making chocolate chip cookies several times a week. I can whip up a batch in a couple of minutes. In fact, it's the only real recipe I have memorized. But it's also the BEST. We love cookies.

One major expense is the tree. The most frugal idea is the artificial tree, but I just love a fresh tree. I can't smell them anymore. I don't know if it is my nose or if trees have been genetically engineered to smell less, but I still love the look and feel. I have yet to see an artificial tree than can stand up to a real tree.
Of course, here in Springfield, Mo, a seven foot tree runs between 50 and 60 at the lot I visit. It's worth it, though. Even going and getting a tree becomes a memory. Even more memories are created if a three has a crooked trunk which has to be compensated for when you try and stand it. I don't think I will ever forget the year when dear Karl had forks and a cup saucer, among other items, stuck in the tree stand, trying to get the thing to stand straight. It was a bad tree. I had bought it for half price. When he finally got it standing, we went out into the dark of the December's night, to admire it in the window. As we stood watching...it fell over. Priceless.
Another benefit of a real tree is that you can cut branches off to decorate the mantel or bookshelves.
A lot of cute decorations end up in thrift stores for a dollar or so. Check them out first!
Decorating is cheaper if you have a cool place to save candles from the previous year. When I was little, my mom would burn them on Christmas Eve night. Now that I am older, I have found that limited their burning time to "special" nights, means you can use them a few years in a row. Just dust them off when you pull them out and they are ready to go! Doing something infrequently makes it more special. I think we forget that our in our modern world. A candy bar once a week tastes a lot better than one once a day.Just remember to keep them (the candles, not candy bars, though if you are stocking up on candy bars, the same advice goes) somewhere cool, like a basement. You don't want them to melt. It might be wiser to keep them in their own small container, so you don't find melted wax hardened onto your precious ornaments.

Ornaments are a little more personal. Some people prefer the manicured look of matching balls perfectly set in the tree. I love a cozier, more homemade look. Paper snowflakes are my favorite! Just make sure you have a place to save your glass balls. Sure they are fairly cheap, but really, nothing "disappears", it just sits in a landfill. Take care rather than replacing. Of course, if you have cats, you might find a large amount of ball disappearing. Don't ask me!
I don't  have time for crafts,but if you run a search (Cheap Christmas crafts) you are bound to find some goodies!