'Let me share with you my holiday gift guide for the broke mum'

"I don't think there's anything wrong with telling people the truth," mum Sam begins in her viral post.

Tis the season for... tighter purse strings. As the cost of living rises, buying gifts for the entire family becomes more expensive. Of course, Christmas and the holidays are a time to come together as a family or chosen family - but should you go into debt to buy gifts? No - and a viral video has the right idea to avoid going into the red. 

TikTok mum Sam has given the internet the ultimate gift guide: don't buy gifts. 

"Let me share with you my holiday gift guide for the broke mum," Sam says in her video. "The guide is that there is no guide. I have no suggestions because I'm just honest with people."

She explained that instead of going into debt to keep up with appearances, she's just being honest with her friends and family.

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"I don't want to buy you a gift"

Sam continued, "Last year, we were so broke we couldn't afford gifts for anybody. So I told people that. I said, 'We can't afford gifts this year for Christmas'. And you'd be surprised how many people were like, 'Oh great, because I don't want to buy you a gift either'.

"In my opinion, the only people you need to buy gifts for are people that you're responsible for. So, your children. Even then, I've learned that kids don't need a bunch of sh*t, and anything they do want or need, you can probably thrift," she said.

"With the state of our economy, you'd be surprised how many are in the same boat and don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on people for the holidays, so I don't think there's anything wrong with telling people the truth."

The mother also had advice for those who are embarrassed to share their financial troubles - and it's not your typical "gift guide" - for seeing family and friends over the holidays. 

"Obviously, you can thrift, you can make gifts. I'm not embarrassed by anything, especially financial troubles. So, I have no problems telling people I can't afford it and bringing over something I made or baked. To me, that screams, 'she can't afford anything, and she still tried'." 

The mum concluded, "So maybe we should all be a little more honest this holiday season because you don't know who you'd be helping. You don't know who was embarrassed to say that they couldn't afford something for you this year, and you saved them by telling them that you're not doing gifts."

This mum says what we are all thinking, no gifts this year! Source: TikTok

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Christmas word for 2023: honesty 

Many TikTok users who saw Sam’s video agreed with her take on holiday spending, while others came clean about their debts from previous years. 

"I refuse to go broke for holidays anymore," one user wrote.

Sam replied, "👏👏👏👏👏 Not worth it nobody can afford it anyway."

Another said, "We don’t do gifts for anyone anymore. We're all just passing the same $20 around, lol."

"EXACTLY NO POINT," Sam replied.

"Last year we went into SEVEN THOUSAND DOLLARS OF DEBT for Christmas. It was insane. Never again," another user shared.

"Magic! This is why I bake cookies and banana bread for everyone! You rock!" another happy TikToker replied. 

"Print photos at Walgreens and thrift higher-end picture frames! So many people never get around to printing photos anymore. It's a thoughtful gift!" another mum offered. 

And finally, another said, "Honestly it would make me feel terrible if I knew someone was struggling and they gave me a gift. I'd rather you not and spend it on what you need."

Originally published as 'Let me share with you my holiday gift guide for the broke mum'