Everyday Cheapskate

I don't know anyone who relishes the idea of putting Christmas away for another year. However, I have to admit that today's great reader tips almost have me looking forward to it!

HOLIDAY BABY. I've found ways to save money on everyday items at the after-Christmas sales. I found infant sleepers that say "My First Christmas" marked down to $1 each at one store and Onesies with holiday graphics for 50 cents each at another. I bought several sizes to donate to our local crisis pregnancy center. Christmas sleepers are just as warm Jan. 1! — Susan V., Missouri

PAPER POTENTIAL. When buying wrapping paper at the discount sales after Christmas, look for patterns that will do double duty during the year. Last year, I bought silver paper at 90 percent off that works beautifully for weddings and polka-dot paper for birthday gifts. — Susan V., Missouri

SMART CARD. As a teacher, I get lots of gifts from my students during the holidays. It can get expensive to write and mail 20 or more thank you notes to them. This year, I bought a package of 20 Christmas cards at Walmart for $3. I cut the fronts off the cards and turned them into postcards. On the blank backsides, I drew vertical lines to separate the address sides from the message sides. I wrote a brief thank you note on each and mailed them for 27 cents each. I put the leftover envelopes in my envelope drawer for future use. — Gretchen, California

DECORATIONS DISMANTLED.

When I pack my holiday decorations, I put each strand of lights into a different plastic shopping bag to keep them from getting tangled. I keep my ornaments in brown paper bags and put them in a plastic tote bag. I usually can get several ornaments in a paper bag, and it keeps them from breaking. — Lisa, Virginia

HEIGHT HELP. I am vertically challenged, so I've found a creative way to reach my holiday decorations in the back of a deep closet. After the holidays, when I put everything away, I take a long strand of cheap Christmas ribbon or string and staple it firmly to the box. I let the strand dangle and push the box to the back of the shelf. The ribbon is long enough to be accessible. To get the box down, all I have to do is grab the ribbon and pull the box toward me until I can reach it. — JoAnne K., Maryland

HOLIDAY JUMBLE. I have accumulated so many plastic tubs of Christmas decorations that I decided to mark each tub with a number and letter. When packing away my decorations, I make a list of everything that is going into a particular tub. Then I put the list on my computer. When the next Christmas season comes, I check the list and only bring in the tubs I need to decorate a particular area. — Janet F., e-mail

Would you like to send a tip to Mary? You can e-mail her at mary@everydaycheapskate.com, or write to Everyday Cheapskate, P.O. Box 2135, Paramount, CA 90723. Include your first and last name and state. Mary Hunt is the founder of www.DebtProofLiving.com and author of 18 books, including "Debt-Proof Living" and "Tiptionary 2." To find out more about Mary and read her past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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