The cost of hosting Thanksgiving adds up quickly. According to a survey by Lending Tree it costs on average $334 to host Thanksgiving, or about $31 / person and takes 11 hours of time to prep. If this is your first time hosting Thanksgiving you may also need to buy additional kitchen tools and serving trays. The food, kitchen tools, and decoration costs all add up. Additionally, preparing the menu, shopping and cleaning take up a lot of time. Planning ahead will reduce the cost of hosting Thanksgiving and reduce the planning time. Here are ideas to save money and time hosting Thanksgiving in 2019.

Save Money on Thanksgiving Food

The easiest way to save money on Thanksgiving food is to not prep the entire meal yourself. Create a menu and when people ask what they should bring let them know which dishes are an option. If you already have enough food, ask someone to bring drinks, paper towels or paper plates.

Create a Thanksgiving Menu – And Stick To It

Not sure what to make? Here are ideas for what to make for Thanksgiving dinner. And, if you usually don’t make big meals, don’t forget to check out meal planning tips and tricks.

By creating a menu for Thanksgiving dinner and sticking to it you’re ensuring you won’t buy ingredients you won’t use. Don’t cook too much food either. While food can always be eaten as leftovers, if you don’t eat it in time it’ll go to waste.

Save Money on the Ingredients

The turkey will be the most expensive food item. To save money on the turkey and all other ingredients look for store coupons and manufacturer coupons. Some grocery stores even have turkey points which you can collect throughout the Fall and redeem for a turkey during Thanksgiving. It is cheaper to buy a frozen turkey than a fresh turkey. Don’t forget for every four pounds of turkey it takes a full day to defrost. You’ll need to take the turkey out of the freezer days before Thanksgiving. Plan ahead! And, if you forget here’s a backup plan for how to cook a frozen turkey.

Save Money on Thanksgiving Kitchen Items

You’ve now figured out what to make, but do you have all of the kitchen tools required? Hosting Thanksgiving is a big undertaking and you will need more kitchen items than usual to cook and serve the full dinner. In addition to the usual cookware, there are kitchen tools you rarely use that you’ll need for Thanksgiving. This includes items like a turkey roaster, baster set, cooking thermometer, potato masher, baster set, turkey lifters, chopper, zester, apple peeler, pie tins, drying mat, flavor injector, cooking twine, and gravy strainer.

Wow, that’s a lot! And that doesn’t include the usual items like serving bowls, serving utensils, measuring cups, mixing bowls and a mixer. You can always go to a store and buy these items but it adds up! Don’t worry, there are a few things you can do to save money here.

Borrow Thanksgiving Kitchen Tools from Friends

First, see what kitchen tools you can borrow from friends and family. Is anyone coming over early to help and they can bring a few items with them? Are any friends not hosting Thanksgiving that have some of the items above and will let you borrow them?

Scour Local Estate Sales for Kitchen Tools and Cookware

You can find deals on cookware, serving items and more at estate sales. An estate sale usually happens when there is a death and the family is trying to sell almost everything in the house before putting the house on the market. Estate sales are a great place to find complete sets of holiday table decorations, cookware and high end decorations as the family is trying to sell most of the stuff in the estate all at once.

To find local estate sales, enter the town + estate sale into Google. If you live in a city, you may have more success looking at close suburbs. This is also a great time to buy furniture or other household items you still need for your home.

Look For Kitchen Tools and Cookware on Craigslist and LetGo

Often when people are about to move they will try to get rid of stuff to make their move easier. When it’ll cost more to ship something than buy something new they will want to get rid of it. Looking for kitchen tools, cookware and other kitchen items at moving sales is a great opportunity to spend less acquiring these items. Since fewer people move in the winter the best time to look for moving sales are in the spring and fall. But, you still may find a decent selection in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving.

Use Coupons When Buying Items for Hosting Thanksgiving

When you must buy an item look for coupons and deals. The deals won’t be as good as after the holidays but you can still find 10% or 20% off the store coupons. Bed, Bath and Beyond always has 20% off coupons. Bed, Bath & Beyond usually accepts coupons that have expired as well. For higher end kitchen items Bloomingdales Home has Friend & Family sales (it’s free to become a loyalist). However, deals on the kitchen items you need may be better on Black Friday or Cyber Monday so it’s worth holding out if you can.

Ask for Thanksgiving Kitchen Tools on your Wedding Registry

Today, 66% of married couples have lived together before they walked down the aisle according to the NCBI. When you’ve already lived together there are less things you need from a traditional wedding registry. If you already have most of the household basics, use this opportunity ask for kitchen tools you need to host holidays. While this may be too late for this year, this will help you host Thanksgiving in the future.

DIY Thanksgiving Decorations To Save Money

Are you crafty? The best way to spend less on Thanksgiving decorations is to do it yourself! You can make DIY Thanksgiving decorations for centerpieces, table decor, outdoor decor and more. DIY Thanksgiving table decorations that are cheap include fruit displays (that you can eat later!), candles, repurposing fake pumpkins from Halloween, pine cone wreaths and pumpkin pie place cards.

Look for additional inspiration for DIY Thanksgiving Decorations on Pinterest.

Budget Your Money and Time Wisely

Spending an average of $334 and 11 hours to prep to host Thanksgiving is a lot of money and time. It’s easy to overspend during the holidays on food, decorations, kitchen items and gifts. Create a budget for how much you want to spend hosting Thanksgiving and stick to it. Don’t be shy to let people know what food or drink they can bring over when they volunteer.

Balancing all of the shopping in addition to work, holiday parties and other events makes time really tight. Be mindful of how much time you spend researching what you want to buy, looking for deals and actually shopping. Consider hiring a cleaning service. Follow this hosting Thanksgiving checklist to minimize planning time and reduce the stress of planning the day. Don’t forget to take time for yourself and enjoy the season. It’d be better to spend a little more money and be happy than save a little more but miss out on all of the fun.

What are ways you’ve saved money on hosting Thanksgiving?

This Christmas, make your home look festive for the holidays without spending a ton of money. Whether you want to buy cheap Christmas decorations or high end Christmas decorations for cheap there are ways buy Christmas decorations on a budget. Buying Christmas decorations after Christmas for a discount, scouring local estate sales for high end Christmas decorations or DIY Christmas decor are all ways to save money on Christmas decorations this year. Here are affordable ideas to save money decorating your home for Christmas.

DIY Outdoor and Indoor Christmas Decorations

Are you crafty? The best way to buy cheap Christmas decor is to DIY Christmas decorations! You can make your own Christmas indoor decorations and Christmas outdoor decorations. There is some decor you can find for free like pinecones and pine branches outside. You can also spend a little money on craft materials from a local craft store. Look out for coupons at local craft stores to buy your supplies and save even more.

Look for inspiration for DIY Christmas Decorations on Pinterest such as this Pinterest board by The Crafty Christmas, and ideas for cheap Christmas decor like 100 Dollar Store Christmas Decorations by the Prudent Penny Pincher.

DIY Outdoor Christmas Decorations

DIY Christmas wreaths are one of the most common examples for DIY outdoor Christmas decorations. Grab a few evergreen branches from the outdoors and look for inspiration on Pinterest. You can also make your own wreath from other materials. DIY outdoor Christmas decorations Pinterest searches yield results for wreaths, repurposed skis / wood and more.

DIY Indoor Christmas Decorations

Pinterest is abundant with DIY Christmas table decor ideas. There are many DIY holiday table decorations that include materials you can buy for cheap at a craft store or materials at home you can repurpose. Cheap Christmas decorations can include finding pinecones and evergreen branches outside to decorate your mantel or use a garland with ornaments. DIY Christmas Decoration Pinterest searches include napkin rings, waterless snow globes, Christmas tree skirts and more.

You can also make holiday gift bags as centerpieces, or repurpose other Christmas decorations you have lying around such as a garland with ornaments down the table. There are plenty of DIY for holiday kitchen decor!

Christmas Decorations from Family Members or Friends

Understandably not everyone has the option to get Christmas decorations from family. But, over time things tend to accumulate especially if you have family that has lived in the same place for decades. Help them declutter by taking Christmas decorations off of their hands. Perhaps they have held onto items that are sentimental but they don’t use. They’d prefer to keep something in the family instead of donating it. Christmas decorations that tend to accumulate over time include ornaments, coffee mugs, vases, table cloths, festive gift baskets, ribbons and other festive odds and ends.

Are any of your friends moving or moving in with a significant other? If they are, do they have duplicate items they’re looking to get rid of? Any time someone moves there are always items – big or small – that they won’t want in their new place. It works out for both of you if you can take something off your friends hands they don’t want anymore.

Ask for Christmas Decorations on Your Wedding Registry

Today, 66% of married couples have lived together before they walked down the aisle according to the NCBI. When you’ve already lived together there are less things you need from a traditional wedding registry. If you already have most of the household basics, use this opportunity to start collecting stuff you want to decorate your house for the holidays. And, consider what you’ll need if you want to host people for the holidays. This includes Christmas decorations, Christmas table decor and kitchen appliances that are more helpful during the holidays like a Kitchenaid mixer to make Christmas cookies as gifts. Additional hosting items can include extra table settings, serving utensils, serving bowls and more.

Split Buying Christmas Decorations With Friends

Do you live with roommates? Have everyone chip in to buy cheap Christmas decorations together. You can split the cost evenly and agree to a budget. Or, each pick certain pieces to buy (ex one roommate buys ornaments, one roommate buys the Christmas tree skirt) so that it’s easier to split up what you bought when you no longer live together.

Buy Discount Christmas Decorations After Christmas

The best time to buy discount Christmas decorations starts the day after Christmas. Stores want to clear their inventory quickly to make room for New Years Eve and Valentine’s Day and will have sales immediately following Christmas. While the selection may dwindle quickly as the sales get better it’s an excellent way to save money. Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel and Home Depot are a few stores where you’ll Christmas decorations on clearance after the holiday. I’ve also had success finding Spode at TJ Maxx and Macy’s on sale.

After Christmas sales are also a great time to stock up on Christmas cards, wrapping paper, gift stickers and ribbon for next year.

Scour Local Estate Sales for High End Christmas Decorations

Finding deals on Christmas items at estate sales is one of the best kept secrets. An estate sale usually happens when there is a death and the family is trying to sell almost everything in the house before putting the house on the market. Estate sales are a great place to find complete sets of holiday table decorations, high end Christmas decorations and luxury Christmas tree decorations as the family is trying to sell most of the stuff in the estate all at once. It’s also a great opportunity to find quality Christmas decorations. You’re also more likely to find high end household items like Waterford crystal, Spode and more that can be put out during Christmastime.

To find local estate sales, enter the town + estate sale into Google. If you live in a city, you may have more success looking at close suburbs. This is also a great time to buy furniture or other household items you still need for your home. This includes kitchenware and table settings that you can also use during Christmastime.

Look For Cheap Christmas Decorations on Craigslist and LetGo

Often when people are about to move they will try to get rid of stuff to make their move easier. With Christmas decorations, especially items they purchased for cheap, they may even be willing to part with holiday items for free. When it’ll cost more to ship something than buy something new they will want to get rid of it. Christmas trees, ornaments, outdoor decorations take up space but are cheaper to replace than move.

Since fewer people move in the winter the best time to look for moving sales are in the spring and fall. You may even get a better deal since fewer people are looking to buy Christmas decorations during those months.

Use Coupons When You Buy Christmas Decorations

When you do want to purchase new items prior to Christmas look for coupons and deals. The deals won’t be as good as after the holidays but you can still find 10% or 20% off the store coupons that you can apply to Christmas decorations. Wondering where to buy cheap Christmas decorations? Bed, Bath and Beyond always has 20% off coupons. Bed, Bath & Beyond usually accepts coupons that have expired as well. Everyone makes fun of the long CVS receipts with coupons, but those coupons for $10 off X for example can be applied to the Christmas decorations they sell and Christmas cards and wrapping paper. For higher end Christmas decorations Bloomingdales Home has Friend & Family sales (it’s free to become a loyalist).

Use coupons after Christmas as well! While some stores limit combining sales with coupons you can always try and see if you can get that extra discount.

Rent Christmas Decorations

While this market is still relatively new, you can rent Christmas decorations. You’ll find Christmas decorations rental companies in various cities. Rent-a-Christmas is one example and is based in New York City.

Budget Your Money and Time Wisely

It’s easy to overspend during the holidays whether it be on food, decorations, gifts or all of the above. Create a budget for how much you want to spend and stick to it. This cost can come out of two areas in your budget: either how much you want to spend on the holiday season all together or how much you want to spend on household items throughout the year. Personally, I created a household items and repairs budget and included any holiday decorations and cookware that was required in that part of my budget.

Balancing all of the shopping in addition to work, holiday parties and other events makes time really tight. Be mindful of how much time you spend researching what you want to buy, looking for deals and actually shopping. Don’t forget to take time for yourself and enjoy the season. It’d be better to spend a little more money and be happy than save a little more but miss out on all of the fun.

What are ways you’ve bought on Christmas decorations on a budget?