How to have a stuff free Christmas - Wiltshire Photographer

I don’t know about you guys, but I spend most of the year trying to de-clutter our house. ‘Stuff’ really gets me down, so we’re pretty brutal as to what gets to stay! Then Christmas comes around and we find ourselves giving and receiving lots of well-meant gifts. And, hey presto! The year of decluttering starts all over again. So I’ve been thinking, what if this year is the year things change? What if we find a way to show people we love them without filling their house with ‘things’? Here are a few ideas I’ve pulled together to get you started. Have I missed anything?

Gifts of time

Nothing is more precious to us than our time, so what could be more of a gift? Vouchers and IOUs both work well! (Anyone fancy deep cleaning my oven this year!?)

Babysitting
Cleaning
Decorating
Cooking
Teaching a skill

Experiences

Memories can last a lifetime! Shared memories are even better. There are speciality vouchers or tickets but they often come with restrictive times and deadlines. Why not put together an IOU so you can plan the experience together?

Adrenaline
Shows
Gigs
Cinema trips

Days out

Another opportunity to spend time together! Or to encourage our loved ones to spend time with each other. You could even extend this to a year’s pass if that was within your budget.

National trust
Zoo
Theme parks
Farms

Treats

We all need an excuse to treat ourselves sometimes! A massage or meal out could be the ultimate treat that doesn’t fill your families house up with nick-nacks.

Beauty treatments
Afternoon tea
Dinner out

Homemade

Even better! Do you have a little time or a skill you could use to bless your friends and family? Bonus points if it’s something disposable, like food or a body scrub.

Baking
Decorations
Scrubs and soaps
Drawings or paintings
Oils, cordials, spices

Holidays

Okay, this is isn’t for everyone, but maybe for your partner or family! Maybe there’s a dream holiday you could afford if you gave it to yourselves as a Christmas present? Or a special activity on a holiday you’ve already planned? It doesn’t have to be out of the country, exploring a UK city or going hiking or the weekend can be fun too!

Weekends away
City breaks
Summer holidays
Adventure holidays

Wish Lists

Sometimes there are things that people actually really want, or maybe even need. Christmas is a great opportunity to bless them by gifting them something they’ve really been hoping for. It’s not clutter if it’s wanted!

Amazon wishlists
Paper wishlists (we can still write things down!)
Take them to their favourite store with a budget

Photos!

I couldn’t finish this list without adding in photos! This could be a full photoshoot, a voucher towards a shoot or just prints or frames of photos they already love. We’re all guilty of meaning to print photos for years and never getting round to it. Bless someone by doing that for them!