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Gift giving has always been a bit of a touchy subject in our society. There are some situations that it seems we are obligated to give gifts, and if for whatever reason we don’t, then we are accused of being cheap-skates or jerks. Sometimes people expect gifts when you don’t feel an obligation to give one. Usually it’s better to err on the side of caution, but that can be a rather costly activity. Here are some tips that will enable you to give gifts but not get stuck spending a ton of money in the process.

Gift Recycling – We’ve all seen the crazy situations on television where one gift is re-gifted several times and everyone involved gets in trouble, but in reality that rarely if ever happens. The worse case scenario is that you say you enjoyed the item so much that you decided to get one for the person you gave it to. This way you can get rid of gifts that you really don’t care for, and have something to give to someone else.

Draw Names Christmas – It’s not uncommon for some people to spend upwards of $1000 on Christmas gifts…that’s a lot of money! After you think about all the people you have to buy for, there’s got to be a better way. Try to get the family to draw names instead…this way you will only have to buy a few gifts rather than one for everyone in your extended family.

Be Creative – Some of the best and most remembered gifts that people receive don’t cost a penny. You could give someone a family heirloom, an item that you own that has special significance to them, or make some sort of craft with a personal touch. Your gift just has to be from the heart, you don’t need to spend a ton of money on it.

Cards are Okay Too – If you’re going to some coworker’s son or daughters graduation, a going away party for a coworker that you barely knew, or to some distant relatives Christmas party, it’s okay to not spend a whole lot of money on them. They’re not your immediately family or close friends, you shouldn’t feel any obligation to give them anything. If you get them a nice card, you’ve done your part!

Stay Away from the Plastic ­– A lot of people bust out their credit cards during Christmas and other gift buying occasions, spend too much money and end up paying on it for years to come. If you have to use a credit card to pay for a gift, you just can’t afford it. Instead get something smaller that you can afford to pay cash for.