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 Marco Paköeningrat

If you are still looking for last minute festive gifts, you should get people gift cards. You can save a lot of money by buying gift cards, rather than presents. Sometimes, people feel as though they have to spend a lot on a gift and so buy something expensive that looks cheap. Instead, you should focus on getting people something that they will adore. With a gift card, you pay a one-off fee for each present, and so you don’t have to keep buying little extras. Here are some awesome gift card deals that you should know about!

Starbucks gift card– If you know someone who loves coffee, a Starbucks gift card is an ideal present for them. Starbucks is currently running a deal where you can get $10 extra by paying for your card on Visa. That means that you get a $20 gift card for just $10. We all know that drinking coffee out can be expensive, and so a gift card is the perfect present for someone who is always in the mood for a latte. Few people think about getting drinks vouchers as gifts, but they can be super handy for your friend. In January, when nobody has any money, your friend will still be able to get some coffee.

Star certificate – Some gifts are worth more than money or gold. If there is someone special in your life, give them the stars. The Online Star Register allows people to buy and name stars. There is a promotion running at the moment so that you pay $54 for a star, rather than $70. If you know someone who deserves a priceless gift, you should consider getting them a star. Every time that they look up at the sky, they will remember your gift to them.

Visa ecards – If you have friends in other countries, posting gifts to them can be a little expensive. Don’t worry, there are still plenty of gifts you can send via email that make wonderful Christmas presents. For example, you can now send Visa ecards to your friends via email. Choose from a wide range of cards to send to your friend via email. Your friend can redeem the card at a whole host of international stores. If you are unsure of what to get someone for Christmas, I suggest this idea as it gives people the freedom to buy their gifts themselves.

iTunes gift cards – Music lovers will adore an iTunes gift card this year. We all know that music can be expensive, and so a gift card could be a huge help. When you know someone who loves music, it can be hard to know what they are listening to at the moment. If you don’t share their interest in a certain genre of music, you are unlikely to know about the bands and artists that they like right now. By giving someone a music gift card, you feed their passion, and you can’t go wrong. If your friend has a Google phone, you can also get a Google Play gift card online, which will allow them to get music for their phone.

Book vouchers – Everyone has that one friend who can never get their head out of a book. If you know someone who loves to read, you should buy them a book voucher. Unless you have an insight into their world of books, avoid trying to guess what book they would enjoy. There are thousands of authors out there, and not every book lover likes every book. If your friend has a Kindle or an e-reader, you can get him or her a voucher for an e-book.

 (All posts may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy)

Source: Pixabay

So, you’ve managed to save some money. In this hostile environment that’s no small feat. With shrinking wages, increasing property prices and a slowly creeping general cost of living it can be hard to keep any money in your account. Like anyone with any assets, you should be guarding them carefully. That means finding a basic account that will reliably keep them from harm, making sure that they’re safe above all else.

But this concern for safety, whether legitimate or not, can often mean that other vital concerns are neglected. Think about what those savings could be doing for you. You can use your established assets as leverage in order to secure greater gains for your future. You should also be more open about these savings, as you will then be capable of soliciting advice on how to best keep them secure.

Whether you’re looking to simply save or want to make your money work for you. You can be sure to find some advice to suit your particular needs. In any case it can be hard to know exactly when and how to seek advice on your savings.

To give you some ideas, we’ve come up with some general guidelines:

Mortgaging – Mortgaging is one of the occasions on which it is very important to seek advice. Taking out home loans is a very financially strenuous task, and your vendor should be offering you copious amounts of advice. But it is also worth asking around for more independent advice in this field. You should think about contacting your solicitor and your private financial advisor before you sign. A mortgage will be a way of borrowing against your future, and this includes your savings, so it’s worth thinking through.

Regular Savings – At some point it simply becomes unviable to have one huge savings account. When they become considerably large, you should be thinking about diversifying your savings. You should seek advice from your bank, but it will also be worth looking for independent advice. Ask your parents and friends how they have invested their capital for their future, but always be conscious that everyone’s situation is different. You will not be able to just copy what someone else has done, hoping for the same results. You should be thinking about what risks you are willing to take in this regard.

Economic Downturns – When the economy takes a dive, whether in general or just for you, you should be taking advice from all corners. Think about how thinly spread your savings are, and think about how you are going to be affected by these changes. Be mature and measured in your response, as there is no use in panicking in any regard. But it certainly is worth contacting your broker or advisor and explaining your reason for concern. Think about your savings as a cushion for any instability that may be coming your way, and think about how comfortable you would be using your cushion in this way. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from those who can provide it.

 (All posts may contain affiliate links or sponsored content. Please see my disclosure policy)

Image Source: Flickr

Weddings are becoming increasingly expensive, as everything costs so much money. Even the cake can cost hundreds. It’s as if putting the word ‘wedding’ in front of an item automatically inflates the price. If you’re getting married, you’ll be glad to know that having a wonderful wedding on a budget can be done – you just need to get ruthless with your planning. Try these tips:

Keep Your Guest List Short and Sweet – The shorter you can keep your guest list, the cheaper and easier everything will be. Try to avoid inviting people you don’t really know because you feel obligated. Invite people you couldn’t imagine your wedding day without, and leave it at that. You can possibly invite more people to the reception, which will remain cheap providing you have an open bar.

Wedding Outfits – For your wedding outfits, consider renting them rather than buying. You’ll only wear them for one day and then never look at them again anyway! For value for money diamonds in Houston try Whiteflash. Consider buying the rest of your accessories second hand to complete your look!

Have the Ceremony Outdoors – Renting a venue to get married in can cost a fortune; probably way more than you think. If you can pick a pretty spot outdoors to get married, you’ll save a fortune. Of course this will go down well in the summer, but you could still make like Phoebe from Friends and do it in winter. Just make sure you tell your guests to wrap up warm!

Do Your Own Catering or Go Family Owned – The catering is another huge expense of weddings. If you can manage to do all of this yourself or get a family member to do it for you, you’ll save hundreds. However, you won’t always know somebody who is this way inclined. If you must get a company to do this for you, look for family owned businesses first. This kind of business will always go the extra mile to keep you happy, and you should get the service for a bargain price.

Be Sensible With Flowers – Flowers always look gorgeous in wedding decor, but you must be sensible with them if you want to save money. Keep things as small as you can to avoid spending too much on something that won’t last longer than a day. For example, you could give each bridesmaid a single flower and only have a small bouquet for yourself. Instead of centrepieces, you could decorate each place setting with a single flower. If you know somebody with a rose bush who would be kind enough to let you raid it, you could do this all on your own.

Buy Books as Gifts – It’s tradition to buy the wedding party thoughtful gifts for taking part. One of the most thoughtful and cost effective gifts you can buy is a book. Choose one specially for each person and write a message in the front to personalize it.

Create Your Own Invitations – Making great looking invitations is pretty simple, so make a few prototypes before you approach a professional company to do it for you. I bet you’ll be surprised!

Try these tips and your budget should stretch much further!

I love to help others in need, so when I was approached about helping to support this new campaign, I was only thrilled to help out! More than 250 of the independent Mom entrepreneurs who work with Touchstone Crystal Division of Swarovski have been greatly affected by Hurricane Sandy.

These women are unable to make money during the holiday season because they have lost basic necessities of life–ranging from power and heat to even losing their homes in some cases.

In order to make it possible for these women to continue to earn income during the holiday season, Touchstone Crystal has launched a campaign to assist these women to partner with other women around the country to host holiday parties online. As an added incentive of support, Touchstone Crystal is offering double jewelry reward credits for anyone volunteering to host an online holiday party with them.

If you would be interested in hosting an online party, you can head on over to http://www.touchstonecrystal.com/holidayhurricanerebound/ for more information.

What a wonderful way for us to help someone in need this holiday season as well as to be able to get some wonderful Christmas presents for family and friends along the way!

The jewelry offered by Touchstone Crystal by Swarovski is not only beautiful, but affordable as well. There are pages and pages of items to choose from. You will find the perfect gift for any jewelry lover on your gift list!

Disclaimer: I was provided with a free piece of jewelry for writing about this cause. All thughts and opinions are 100% my own.