The holidays are almost here, so some friends and I are sharing some holiday planning tips to make planning for the 2011 holidays easier, thriftier, and more fun! Feel free to share your own tips as well.

Holiday Planning Tips 2011

1. Decorate a few weeks before the holidays with classic looks that never go out of style, so you can reuse decorations each year and save money.

2. Save money on decorations by shopping early and with coupons, and store the decorations until you are ready to put them up- don’t wait until the last minute when selection is low and prices are high.

3. Shop for gifts early and beat the November and December holiday shopper crows, and shop when stores are slowest. Holiday shoppers can be aggressive, so plan your shopping excursions when stores are slowest.

4. Shop online, and beat the crowds altogether. Many online retail stores and shops offer great discounts to encourage you to shop online, and most also offer free shipping.

5. Plan your holiday menu early so you have time to get creative, and save money too! Save up coupons and gather ideas for fun and tasty recipes.

6. Search online for great recipe ideas for holiday desserts and more, and you’ll have time to plan great dinners and meals, as well as discover ideas for making foods look colorful and decorative for the holidays!

7. Share craft ideas with friends, and have fun making decorations and crafts for your home with your children. There are no better decorations than those handmade by your kids. Hang them up on your refrigerator, on your windows,

8. Order your Christmas cards early, because the weeks pass quickly and you want to make sure you get them in time. That way, you can make sure they look great, send them out to friends and family on time, and even order more if you run out and need more Christmas cards.

9. If you have children, buy personalized photo Christmas cards so friends and family can see how your children have grown, can post their photos on their fridge or save them in photo albums. Your children will love seeing their Christmas photos over the years as well, so save them!

10. Shop around for beautiful Christmas cards that your family loves and offer a lot of design options. We like this one from Storkie.com, which offers a big selection of Storkie Christmas cards:

I wrote this blog post while participating in the Storkie holiday blogging program. I received compensation for my participation. All opinions are 100% mine.