Tips for Creating a Gift Closet
Have you ever wanted to be one of those very put-together people, one of the people that always has the perfect gift for every occasion. Well, idyllic gift-giving does not come by chance. It comes from strategic and carefully organized planning. With a few pointers, you can put together a stock closet of gifts to ensure you are prepared for any event life throws your way.
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Never Show Up Empty-Handed
Cue the gift closet. A gift closet is a closet or space filled with goodies perfect for any and every occasion. Did you get invited to an impromptu housewarming gathering? Did your child forget to tell you about a birthday party coming up? Or maybe a friend just got engaged? Finding a last-minute gift can turn into a multi-store fiasco. But it doesn’t have to be so stressful. With a gift closet, there will be no last-minute, full-priced panic buying pre-event, ever again. Having a well-stocked gift closet will save you tons of money and time.
Is it Impersonal?
Some of you may be thinking a Gift Closet takes the sentiment out of gift-giving, but that isn’t true at all! You can plan particular items for certain people, and make sure to only choose gifts you are proud of purchasing. That way, when a special event comes up, you will be more than prepared. Not many things will make you feel more like you have your life together than a gift closet.
Shop Seasonal
Temperatures are quickly rising, and do you know what that means? So are the prices of bikinis, inflatable pools, and coolers! Price fluctuations are no accident. Stores know precisely when to raise prices in anticipation of poorly planned shopping habits from eager shoppers. There is a reason wedding presents never go on sale in the summer or gloves in the winter. So make sure you are never buying seasonal items at the peak of the season. Stock up on your wrapping paper in July and your pool floaties in the winter to ensure you are getting the most bang for your buck.
Shop Holidays
Don’t let Holiday Sales slip by. Holiday weekends like Memorial Day, Black Friday, Super Saturday, Fourth of July, and Labor Day are a predictable way to find heavily discounted prices on plenty of products. Most stores use these holiday weekends as an opportunity to mark down items that they wouldn’t typically put on sale. However, these sales come as no surprise to the average shopper. Companies make sure to blast Holiday Sales on commercials, billboards, and into customer email inboxes. So snagging markdowns on the season’s hottest items before the sales vultures pick through everything might require a dreaded Thanksgiving night mall stakeout or a Target run at dawn. This warning is by no means saying these sales are not worth the effort. But it is saying you should be prepared to put in the effort to get the best deals. There may potentially be some bin digging or perhaps a minor scuffle. The Holiday Sale is unpredictable territory.
Shop Rebaid
If you’re not a big fan of the bin digging life, rebate sites like Rebaid.com might be a bit more your speed. Rebaid is for the calm, cool, and collected shopper. The shopper who is happy to check off their list from the comfort of their home. Or like that Bruno Mars song says, “while sipping wine, in a robe.” Sites like Rebaid let you shop products from Amazon, Etsy, and Walmart but at prices way below retail. You can buy almost anything on Rebaid with options ranging from a vegetable chopper to kid’s clothing or even power tools. Just pick an item, buy it, enter your order number and receive a rebate check in the mail. You can even use an amazon gift card to pay for your items and still redeem your rebate and receive cash. The platform additionally gives users $10 when they sign up a friend who makes a qualifying purchase. That $10 can go towards the gift closet or even a personal present. Who doesn’t love free money?
Buy For Others What You Are Buying For You.
Did you recently find a perfect product? Maybe it was a top-notch loofa, a super snuggly, soft blanket, or an artistic masterpiece of a plate? This may be exciting to hear, but you should buy ten. The hardest part about gift shopping is finding things you love, then wanting to keep the gifts for yourself, and completely losing sight of your mission. So learn to positively channel that distraction by shopping for others while you shop for yourself. Chances are, if you love something, other people will too. Did you recently buy yourself a cozy and comfy pair of bed slippers? Do you have a cousin who might love those bed slippers too? Buy four pairs. Do you have a bottle of wine you love? Buy a case at a time. Many stores and websites offer discounts for buying multiples, so why not take advantage of those discounts. Shopping for yourself is easy, so pretend you’re shopping for yourself, even when you’re not.
Shop in Bulk.
Coming in as one of America’s greatest inventions rivaled only by the computer, we have the buy-in-bulk store. Plenty of stores have geared themselves to benefit the bulk shopper. There are membership-based bulk stores like Costco, Sam’s Club, and BJ’s Wholesale Club, which offer everything from porch chairs, olive oil, and sweatshirts. Then there are other Bulk stores like Boxed, which provides a similar service without a membership commitment. These stores are great for functional gifts. For a wider selection of items, there are sites like Alibaba, as long as you don’t mind waiting a few weeks for delivery. These stores allow shoppers to buy in bulk at wholesale prices. The Oriental trading company is excellent for crafts, DIY, and personalized gifts- think hats with names sewn into them or initial bags. These stores typically have huge selections of children’s presents too. You can buy blocks, activity sets, and all sorts of games and gear in bulk. Buying in bulk generally gives shoppers the benefit of wholesale pricing, along with the added ease of having your home fully stocked.
Shop Deals of the Day.
Make use of single-day sales. If you have a prime membership, or even if you don’t, make sure to make use of the Amazon deal of the day. Each and every day, Amazon has a unique deal item, marked way down from its original price for their shoppers. Make a note on your calendar to remember to check for that deal of the day. To locate the deal of the day on the site, just type deal of the day into your amazon search bar. Multiple discounted items will come up on the site. Depending on what holiday is approaching, there is also a section for holiday-themed items. For example, a “Fathers Day Finds” section might have deals on boxing gloves, massage guns, or sunglasses. Don’t miss a great deal because you weren’t paying attention. Shop the deals of the day!
Shop With Databases on Your Side.
Make sure you’re getting the best price on all of the shopping you do by installing the Honey and Invisible Hand browser extensions for chrome. If you find a really stellar gift, but it is full price, these chrome extensions work to find better prices. Honey can apply promo codes from a massive promo code database and knock off some money for you. The Invisible hand will search the web and make sure the same item is not listed at another site or store for cheaper. The honey browser will alert you on promo codes that work on sites you are already using. If there is a promo code available, Honey will find it for you. If you have an item in your cart at one site, and it is available for 20% off on another site, the Invisible Hand will find the product and pass the savings on to you. These two extensions can save you plenty of time and money when shopping for gifts.
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About the Author
Elizabeth Matthews
Elizabeth Matthews is a New York City-based freelance writer who covers a wide range of topics, including business, personal finance, SEO, and life hacks. Her work has appeared in Money, SavingGuru, Forbes, ABCNews, and Coupons.com.