Well, now that all the Christmas shopping is done, I can safely write some advice on how to do the Christmas shopping without spending too much (without being overly tacky either).

I entered a bunch of competitions from various websites and won a few things like stationery, haircare products

I also frequented a forum called www.phorums.com.au and they have a cool freebie thread that people post all the places they can get free stuff from. From the links posted there:

1. I managed to get a nice dinosaur poster and some stickers for a young boy.
2. Pair of thongs for an adult female.
3. Lavender shower gel for an adult female.
4. Various online gift vouchers which I redeemed for things for an infant and an adult female.

Now, if you have a lot of children to buy presents for, sign up to the Toys'R'Us online newsletter, virtually every day in December, they have some sort of special offer where you get at least 50% off their promotional toys for the day (I've seen a few at 70% off). www.toysrus.com.au

Most importantly read your catalogues from all the department stores. Often they'll advertise stuff you already want to get your friends and family. By reading them, you can compare prices and get some ideas for those random people that you just can't figure out what to buy.

As for gift tags, don't spend a fortune buying heaps, just print some out from www.neopets.com (head to explore, then terror mountain, happy valley and click on gift tags). They're gorgeous and cheap and the kids love them.

With wrapping, don't bother getting the expensive stuff for your family, they're not going to really care... It all gets ripped off anyway, so buy in bulk (10m rolls are great) and that way you can wrap everything! The same goes for Christmas cards. Just buy the cheap but ok looking ones, they all end up in the trash anyway... If you want your card to be appreciated, write a letter too with an update on how your lives are going, eg, how the kids are going at school, new jobs etc. Expensive beautiful cards are appreciated as a decoration for a while but inevitably get thrown out at the end of the holiday season so why bother spending $4+ on a card when you can spend just 10c?

Now, remember if you can't think of anything really nice for anyone, opt for something useful like a cd holder, mugs and chocolate. It's the thought that counts right?

With the smaller kids that love pressies, get them lots of cheaper toys and wrap them all up - it's often not what they get, it's the thrill of "this is for me, and look! that one is too!!!". With the adults the bigger the better so even a stockpot will look impressive.