How To Shop For Christmas Gifts
. Christmas is coming, fast. It's time to panic. After all, you don't want to relive last Christmas Eve. There you were, at ten to five in the evening, standing in a large department store, with two gifts still to buy and a distinct shortage of cash. 'Never again!' you said at the time. Remember?

Here is a rough guide on how to shop for Christmas gifts:
1. Decide how much you can really afford to spend. Now, take 10% off that figure for extras, like wrapping paper, ribbon, bows, tags etc. Then, divide the sum remaining by the number of people you will probably buy gifts for. Redistribute the money, so that you allocate more to close friends and relatives and less to distant ones. You now have a rough budget.

2. Identify whom, exactly, you are going to exchange gifts with. There are few things worse in life than receiving a Christmas gift from someone when you have not bought anything for them in return. The slight embarrassment of determining this important fact early on is much better than the bigger embarrassment later. Refine your budget accordingly.

3. You may agree with some friends and relatives that a gift exchange is not necessary. This might help both of you significantly. Perhaps they are less well-off than you are, or less mobile. Where such agreements are possible, refine your budget accordingly.

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