The holidays are expensive. This isn’t a huge shocker, I know. And if you’re a writer and not John Grisham, money is probably tight. I know it is for me.

It’s so easy this time of year to feel like we must miss out on things. Like the lack of numbers in our bank account is holding up holiday joy. And it just shouldn’t be that way. Christmas shouldn’t have a price point for entry.

So today, I want to share some things that I do every holiday season that cost little or no money. Because while I’m on a budget now, I used to be dead broke. And this is how I made the holidays special.

Read

I have a full list of Christmas books that aren’t romance. I posted them here, here and here. I also wrote my own collection of Christmas stories, if you’re interested.

Reading is maybe my favorite solo activity during the holidays. And while reading is always a treat, there are ways to amp it up. I think reading with the electric fireplace on and a nice hot mug of Earl Gray tea with a slice of orange in it makes the whole experience next level. Before I had an electric fireplace, I was obsessed with fireplace videos on YouTube. I still use those if I’m reading in the bedroom, rather than lugging the fireplace all over the house.

We’ll talk more about YouTube soon.

Crafting

This will look different for everyone. And it’s something that I’ve leaned hard on ever since my first (very broke) Christmas on my own. Decorations, gifts, cards. These are all expensive, and they can be crafted.

On my first Christmas out, I made origami ornaments for our pathetic little tree. I drew portraits of my family in a circus. I hand-stitched a teddy bear. Over the years my family has received hand-knit and crocheted scarves, blankets and fingerless gloves.

While I’m in a better position this year, my loved ones are still getting handmade gifts. I crocheted my grandmother a sweater, which I can say safely here because she doesn’t read this blog.

Well, you might be thinking, that’s all well and good for someone handy with yarn and such. Or paint, sketch or pottery. What are the people who don’t craft supposed to do?

The answer is that there is always something you can create. For instance, my grandma is also getting a casserole dish of homemade mac and cheese, a dish she doesn’t need to return, with a nice note telling her the time and temperature to bake it.

You can cook something, take pictures, make fire cider, or make cute ornaments from a tutorial on Instagram. Or, since I’m assuming you’re a writer if you’re here, you could write something!

A handmade gift doesn’t need to be a traditional handmade gift. It can be anything that you create that someone else will value.

Repurpose decor in your home for holidays

So, we’ve got gifts out of the way. So, what about decorations? Well, there are lots of ways you can simply move things, and reorganize them. And make your home festive without buying new things.

I decorate my house plants with ornaments. I collect red and green books from the house to place in specific places. I leave my Christmas mugs or just ones that happen to be green or red, out on the counter where they can brighten up the place. When I’m putting out a hand towel or washcloth in my kitchen, I reach for the holiday-colored ones. Look over your home and belongings as though they’re all brand new. Get creative. And let me know what you come up with.

Forage

I love pinecones this time of year. I am also blessed to live in Western PA, where pinecones are plentiful. So are holly and pine. I can take a simple walk to a nearby wooded area and collect things to decorate my home and alter. I can make all sorts of things. People make some truly amazing things out of sticks, yarn and paint.

And, if you’re witchy inclined like I am, natural-made ornaments also match a more Yule-centered vibe. The whole reason we decorate trees is because people brought them in so the wood spirits would have somewhere warm to spend the darkest nights.

Just be careful your foraged goods aren’t harboring tiny pests. You want to invite wood spirits, not woodlice.

Check for local events that might not cost anything.

God bless my local library. They are doing all sorts of events for the holidays. Concerts, craft nights. There was even a local author event to help people out with their Christmas shopping.

Yes, I was there, and yes it was a delightful time.

We are blessed to have a local symphony as well, and they do free concerts every week. I am willing to bet that you have something local that is awesome and exciting. Check your local library website and any other cultural organizations you have. You’ll be amazed at what you can enjoy for no money.

YouTube’s holiday content is vast

Then, of course, there’s the question of Christmas TV. Everyone wants to cozy up and watch something festive and nostalgic this time of year.

But if streaming isn’t in your budget right now, don’t despair. YouTube has some fantastic holiday content. Garfield’s Christmas, those claymation videos everyone seems to like, clips of Pentatonix concerts. If you are looking for holiday watching, you will find it on YouTube.

Spending time is the best gift

This one is a bit cliche, but it’s true. The best thing about the holidays is spending time with people you love. Your family, your friends, your pets. Spend as much time with them as you can. Bake together, read together, go walking and look a the Christmas decorations together. (Oliver especially loves this one.) Decorate the house together, make homemade cards together. Break out the board games if your family likes that sort of thing. Put on matching PJs and take a million bad pictures. Because that’s what everyone’s going to treasure in the latter years. That’s the point of the holidays, to hold onto warmth and brightness during the darkest and coldest nights of the year.

I have, over the years, written several gift guides that include inexpensive or free gifts for readers and writers. If you’re interested, you can find them here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Now, it’s your turn. What is your favorite no-cost way to celebrate the holidays? Let us know in the comments.

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