The holidays are hard enough just trying to get to grandma’s house, then to your aunt’s house then if your parents are divorced it’s a whole new hassle. Then you have to figure out what all of your family and friends would like for Christmas. Then after that you have to raise enough money to invest in the gifts which pretty much costs you both arms and both legs. But getting to the sales to attempt to save money is a near death experience. So the real question is how do you save money and feel less stressed during the holiday season?

First of all, Black Friday shopping is not always the best thing to do, it is outrageously busy and can cause so much stress right after Thanksgiving. Most the time stores will have semi-annul or annul sale that lasts like a week, so you could easily get gifts then and keep them hidden away for Christmas. Also shopping for winter apparel during the summer is very smart, you can get crazy discounts. It sounds crazy to go shopping for Christmas  in the summer or spring but you can save more money than if you rush to get sales on Black Friday, which also doesn’t really have that great of sales.

Another great thing to do is when you go on vacation throughout the year make sure to hit the outlet malls. Some places that have lots of great outlet malls to go to like

• New York City
• Chicago
• San Francisco
• Minneapolis
• Los Angeles
• Boston
• Houston
• Honolulu

So if you go on vacation make sure to pick some stuff up at their shopping centers.

The time of the year and what you want to buy also comes into play.

• January:  Winter attire on clearance, old inventory furniture, motorcycles, fitness gear
• February: More winter attire on clearance, flat screen TV’s, cameras
• March: Luggage, winter sports gear on clearance, frozen foods
• April: Last-minute deals on tax software, tires, beauty products, sneakers
• May: Lawn and garden products, mattresses, camping gear, spring clothing
• June: Lingerie, home décor, Caribbean vacations
• July: Swimwear and outdoor furniture on clearance, start of back-to-school sales
• August: Office and school supplies, laptops
• September: Grills, older-model appliances
• October: Denim, back-to-school clothing on clearance, older-model appliances, cars
• November: Halloween candy and costumes on clearance, cookware, electronics
• December: Winter apparel on clearance

Also the stores you shop at can play a huge part in the shopping experience. Some great stores to shop at are…

• Kohl’s
• JcPenny’s
• Macy’s
• Target
• Victoria’s Secret Pink
• Walmart
• Staples
• Best Buy
• Famous Footwear
• Home Depot
• Amazon

These stores are constantly sending out sales.

So these are a few ideas on how to shop for Christmas. I hope it helps you.