Christmas is going to look different in thousands of households this year, as families tighten their budgets. As the cost of living crisis rages on, shoppers are more savvy than previous years.
Charity shops, and second-hand sellers such as Vinted have seen a surge in new customers, and more of us are doing our food shop in budget supermarkets such as Lidl and Aldi. One writer from Birmingham Live decided to visit her local Primark and see how much she could buy on a budget.
Emily Collis wanted to see how many presents she could buy, from clothing to trinkets and homeware bits. Here's her account of how she got on:
I certainly wasn't expecting to spend an hour and a half in there and leave with a list of gift ideas for the whole family. The shop was stocked full of Christmas goodies - quirky Christmas jumpers, traditional decorations, matching pyjamas (including that TikTok-famous Grinch set) and cute kids' clothing.
There was stylish homeware that wouldn't look out of place in Next, Disney toys galore and tonnes of novelty stocking fillers for less than a fiver. Here are my favourite festive finds from the shopping trip that changed everything I thought I knew about Primark...
Christmas PJs, dresses and accessories
I'd already heard about Primark's matching range of Grinch pyjamas and wanted to see for myself. I could have spotted them from a mile-off - a family of mannequins sporting slime green tops with red-and-white-striped trousers. Hideous, I thought, but then I felt how soft they were and suddenly wanted a pair for myself.
There was a size and style for everyone - even a onesie and matching bowl for the dog, with outfits starting from £9. The 'Snuddies' looked ridiculously comfy, priced from £16. There was also a matching Disney range, a red tartan set and some green PJs covered in cute Christmassy characters.
Walking round, I was impressed with the selection of festive jumpers, starting from £7. In the men's section, there was a great Simpsons jumper, featuring a grumpy Moe holding a tray of gingerbread men and the phrase 'oh, what fun it is!' for £17.
My favourite items from the women's section were two fluffy-trimmed knitted Christmas dresses - a Santa-style dress and a green one which immediately reminded me of the one Zooey Deschanel wears in Elf. Both were £16.
The accessories wall was another highlight. I'm a sucker for a pair of festive earrings and Primark had a huge range priced from £2. There were novelty glasses, hair accessories and hats - ideal stocking fillers.
Festive homeware and decorations
As I stepped off the escalator to the homeware section, I couldn't believe I was in Primark. I was met by a beautifully-presented display - a tree decorated with elegant red baubles, traditional wooden decorations, soft blankets and patterned cushions, woven baskets and expensive-looking candles.
The first thing I picked up was a patterned cream, red and pink throw for £18 - a fair amount to spend on one thing in Primark, but it felt and looked more expensive. A softer throw in a tartan pattern was priced at £12.
There were shelves filled with festive plates, bowls and mugs priced from £3, plus runners, napkins, coasters and placemats in different colour schemes. I smiled when I spotted a range of novelty tea towels - a red pack with Santa's legs sticking out and a green Elf-themed set. They were £5 for a pack-of-two - perfect for a family Secret Santa present.
I moved into the Christmas decorations section - there were baubles of all shapes, colours and sizes starting at £1.30 for a box, a pack of candy cane decorations for £1.80 and tree lights from £2. There were decorations for as little as £1, a Harry Potter collection (including a box of 45 baubles for just £14) and a Mickey Mouse range.
My favourites were the more traditional decorations, made from wood or felt. A stand-out item was a wooden sleigh advent calendar at £16. There was also a wooden Coca Cola truck advent calendar, priced at £20, which I've since seen selling for double that on other sites online.
I looped back round to check out the candles and had to refrain from buying the lot. There was a stunning dark green range - including a massive jar candle I could barely hold with one hand to take a picture, just £12. Diffusers were priced from 80p, plus some little eucalyptus jar candles with cork lids for £2.50, which smelt amazing.
Adorable baby clothes and kids' toys
As much as I loved the Christmas dresses, the best festive clothing was undoubtedly in the baby and toddler section. There were cute Santa's outfits from £9, knitted Mickey Mouse dungarees for £13, a fluffy reindeer onesie for £12, the cutest Christmas pudding suit for £12 and a gorgeous navy penguin dress with tights that looked way more expensive than £9.
I was also impressed by the quality of the kids' stuffed toys, which included a vast range of Disney characters, with large toys from £16. But the best of the bunch, in my opinion, were from Primark's own range of plush animals - a polar bear, reindeer and penguin - priced from £6.
If like me, you're shopping on a budget this Christmas, Primark is definitely worth a punt. I left feeling confident that I could afford Christmas this year - and officially a Primark convert.
