12 December 2025

If you celebrate Christmas, please read on. If not, and you have a buddy who does, please pass this onto her.

Today's Money Spark - Cage your Inner Santa

We are wired to spend fast when we feel love, excitement, or pressure. That warm rush feels wonderful but can lead to financial regret in January. These steps can help keep your generosity intact while maintaining financial sanity.

1. Make the full list once

Write down every person on your gift list before you buy anything. Family, friends, colleagues, teachers, the neighbour who helps. No extra names at the till. List creep is where budgets go to die.

2. Choose a theme for this year

A theme keeps decisions simple. Ideas that work: Things That Smell Nice such as a candle, essential oil, coffee beans, handmade soap, bath and shower essentials. Gifts for the Kitchen such as a wooden spoon, silicone muffin pans, tea towel, your Mom's secret spice blend, your chutney in a jar. Other easy themes: seedlings, favourite local snacks (I am thinking of creating hampers of 'Made in Knysna' products), books by South African authors. Decide once and shop inside that theme. You will be amazed at how creative you can be when you have constraints (price + theme = boom)

3. Set one total amount

Determine your discretionary spend for December (the amount over and above the fixed costs). Pick one number for all gifts and write it down. Now take off 10% because we know there will be over-runs on this budget. Divide the number across your list. Now every choice has a boundary. It shifts the question from "should I buy this?" to "does it fit my plan?". Be disciplined and creative.

4. Talk to your children early

For older kids, say this: "Let's choose one thing you really want that I can afford." Decide together and keep a small surprise for magic - pick a colour they did not expect, choose a fun variant, or buy a little add-on for the main gift.

5. Buy a joint present with your partner

Christmas is a time where spending often turns into who loves who most by the most amount spent. Choose one joint gift inside your budget. Ideas that feel special and fun: a weekend away in off-peak season; a coffee machine; fresh bedding and pillows; a picnic kit you will actually use. One shared gift beats two competitive gifts that blow up the credit card. I have done this for years now, and my husband and I feel it is a no stress option (no listening for hints, or the chance of buying something your partner just doesn't like).

6. Use the overnight trolley rule

Your brain is impulsive when time is tight. For online shopping, let the items sit in the cart overnight. Do not press buy at once. If it still makes sense tomorrow, go ahead. If not, you have just bought yourself relief.

7. Keep a fall back gift ready

Bake biscuits with the kids as a holiday activity. If you don't have kids (or the kids will not be separated from their tech), have fun baking on your own. If you are stuck for a recipe, try Siba's Spiced Christmas Cookies. Buy cellophane and colourful paper plates. Pack the fabulous homemade biscuits festively. When a last-minute name appears, you are covered without breaking the budget. If nobody pops up, serve them at tea for days and enjoy the win.

Dave Ramsey: "You must gain control over your money or the lack of it will forever control you"

Want a short read on why the silly season pulls us into over-spending?