5 Top Ways to Celebrate a budget-friendly Christmas

‘Tis the season to be jolly!

Ho ho ho! It’s the time of the year when you hear Christmas carols everytime you visit the shopping malls. It’s the time of the year when your Instagram feeds are filled with Christmas trees and Christmas feast! The magnificent Christmas lights, performances and parties make up for the absence of snow here in tropical Singapore! Well, the year-end rain shall not dampen our spirit! We are gonna really celebrate Christmas, albeit with tighter purse-strings!

Watching Christmas Classics

Put on your fuzziest pair of socks and matching family pyjamas and huddle together for a holiday-themed movie. Watching sappy Christmas movies together as a family is a must! Picking a good movie is actually harder than you think! Imagine having high hopes for the movie but it wasn’t what you expected. Here is a curated list of movies to watch during this jolly season! There is something for everyone!

• Love Actually by Richard Curtis (2003) - family drama/comedy (you either like it or you don’t!)
• Office Christmas Party by Josh Gordon and Will Speck (2016) - adult comedy
• Klaus by Sergio Pablos (2019) - family comedy
• Home Alone by Chris Columbus (1991)- family comedy
• The Christmas Chronicles by Clay Kaytis (2018) - family comedy
• Dr. Seuss’s The Grinch by Scott Mosier and Yarrow Cheney (2018) - family comedy, also note that the late Angela Landsbury played the voice of Mayor McGerkle
• Holidate by John Whitesell (2020) - rom-com, starring Mrs Brooklyn Beckham
• A Boy Named Christmas by Gil Kenan (2021) - fantasy, family
• Last Christmas by Paul Feig (2019) - rom-com and hello HENRY GOLDING!!!
• The Holiday by Nancy Myers (2006) - rom-com

Photo by Ron Lach from Pexels

Game Night at Home

Whether your favourite part of the holiday season involves decorating a Christmas tree or shopping for presents, the best thing about Christmas does not require any time or effort, and that's spending quality time with loved ones. And while you can't beat a holiday get-together with family and friends, that Christmas gathering sometimes needs a little fun to keep everyone excited (and off their phones). Christmas games may be exactly what you need to keep the party going. Some suggestions include:

• Christmas Charades Game
• Christmas Bingo Game
• Christmas Minute to Win It Game
• Christmas Trivia Game
• Christmas Limbo Game
• Christmas Drink If... Game

Photo by Solstock from Getty Images

Have a Christmas Feast

There’s just something about the holiday season that turns us into gluttons. But, stuffing your face with goodies at this time of the year is totally okay 😉. The food just never seems to stop coming. And in a land of gastronomy like Singapore, one can never resist a mouth-watering Christmas dinner?

For Christians, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ but for others, the season has become synonymous with feasts, decorating and gift-giving. The holiday season places a large emphasis on ‘togetherness’, and indulging in a scrumptious feast is definitely part of the equation

It also involves a lot of work and planning. Cut out the resentment and instead organise a pot luck - ensuring guests bring something to the table! Give your guests some “suggestions” such as Lucy, pls bring a salad, Andrew pls bring a roast, Huimim, pls bring pasta, Vikesh, pls bring dessert, etc etc.

If making and preparing food is too much of a time cost for you, All Things Delicious is here to make this joyous holiday season extra special with their Christmas menu, comprising Roast Turkey Roulade, Roast Beef with the works, Christmas Buffet Sets, Log Cakes, and so many more! This will definitely sleigh your Christmas party and make your guests go WOW!

Photo by All Things Delicious

Decorating Christmas Trees

While Christmas celebrations are incomplete without log cakes, gingerbread houses, fancy dinners, Christmas carols and spiced wine, decorating the Christmas tree with dear ones is what many of us look forward to. Everyone can contribute by chipping in ideas. This activity also creates the perfect opportunity for you to bond with your loved ones.

 
Photo by Odua Images

Secret Santa (gift exchange)

As the holiday season draws closer, people have always gathered with family and friends in togetherness and delight. Secret Santa, also known as gift exchange, has become one of the most popular traditions to celebrate with family, friends and colleagues in the spirit of the holidays. Secret Santa has its roots in early Christmas traditions. The original ‘Secret Santas’ were the gift-bearing helpers of St. Nick. Today, it’s celebrated annually as a gift exchange affair that renews bonds and strengthens relationships between loved ones or colleagues. There's always the anticipation of “who’s my Secret Santa?” Nowadays, you can simply do a draw and create wish lists with a Secret Santa online generator! The best part of a gift exchange is to get surprised by your Secret Santa.

Photo by mokuden-photo from Getty Images Signature

It’s so thrilling to draw the name of a Santee for whom you know exactly what to get, while some dread having to shop for someone they are not that close to, and are totally clueless about what they like. Read up on our Top 8 Christmas Gifts To Get for Secret Santa a blog post to save you from becoming the Most Feared Secret Santa at least till next year.

No matter how you decide to celebrate, what’s most important is that you are with those you love.

With that said, All Things Delicious hope you and your loved ones will have a wonderful holiday season. Merry Christmas!