Christmas Shopping on a Budget: Where to Go for Those Deals

With the Christmas Holiday shopping season set to begin in less than one month, many people's thoughts turn to long lines in malls and department stores, finding just the right gift for each of their friends and loved ones, going to several different shops and even online in search of the perfect gift. For many people, money is also a great concern during the Christmas Shopping season. Here are the best shops and places I've found to shop on a budget for Christmas.

I remember one Christmas. I had just turned twelve years old two weeks before Christmas. For my Birthday that particular year, I got approximately $30 in birthday money from the various members of my family. Since I was too young to have a job at that time, I intoned to use at least some of my Birthday money to buy Christmas presents for my family.

At that time I had approximately twelve people to buy Christmas presents. I was also at that age where I wanted to have money to spend on other things children like to buy everyday such as toys, candy, and sodas. I went to my local Big Lots store where I found Christmas presents for everyone on my list. I walked into Big Lots with approximately $30, bought Christmas presents for everyone on my list, including some very nice gifts I might add, and still walked out of Big Lots with nearly $10 in my pocket.

Every Christmas since then, my local Big Lots store is where I always begin my Christmas Shopping. More recently, I think it was Christmas of 2003, between Big Lots, Wal-Mart, and Dollar General, I got nice Christmas Presents for everyone on my list, which had by then grown to about 20 people, nice Christmas Presents and still only used one third of my $250 budget for Christmas.

Aside from using Big Lots, the best shop I have found for Christmas Shopping is Dollar General. On my Christmas list, there are more children than there are adults. Dollar General has a wide assortment of toys for Children for under $20, as well as tools, jewelry, clothing and kitchenware similarly priced.