Have you started Christmas shopping yet?  I am usually close to done by now, but I have had a wild and crazy year and I’m just now getting started!  I have found some amazing deals so far though, so I’m excited to save big money on my Christmas budget.

Here is what I have found so far and a couple of sneaky places to find awesome deals on Christmas gifts in case you are looking:

• Grocery store clearance racks.  Seriously, this sounds weird, but almost every grocery store has that aisle or two of books, toys and other non-food stuff, right?  Well, these things inevitably end up in clearance! Last spring I was able to buy some seriously adorable winter hats and gloves for less than $1 each!
• Tuesday morning clearance.  If you haven’t shopped Tuesday morning yet, you are missing out!  The only thing I ever buy there is their clearance stuff and even that I wait until it is 70% off or more.  Wow, have I found some good deals. A couple of weeks ago, I found some cool LED jumpropes for my nieces and nephew for $1.25 each!
• Goodwill.  I don’t know about all Goodwill stores, but my local Goodwill sells Target overstock items, which means I have scored some seriously low prices on brand new items.  I bought one of my nieces a cute Trans by Jansport Backpack last week for just $4.99! Brand new with tags still on. Christmas is covered for that little munchkin!
• Your kitchen.  Seriously. Get in the kitchen and start making cakes or muffins, or fudge or bread or something!  Food gifts are great to receive, easy and cheap to make and it is a project that you can do together with the family. I guess I can’t speak for everyone, but I love receiving food gifts.  The entire family likes to munch on them and I know that they were made with love.

What’s your favorite sneaky way to save big on Christmas gifts.