Woman shares how she saves her family more than £5k a year

With the festive season on the horizon and the ongoing cost of living crisis to contend with, buying Christmas presents this year may seem like the last thing on your mind.One savvy parent, however, has revealed how she buys Christmas presents for low prices and saves her family around £5,000 year-round by making one simple switch.Potter, 36, from Cardiff, says she buys nearly everything second hand, including her Christmas presents.She said she switched to buying exclusively second hand items four years ago and added that finding quality gifts is ‘easier than you think’.’Some people will always have something against second-hand items, but some things don’t carry that ‘used’ stigma,’ Potter explained.’For example, vintage jewellery or handbags always go down a treat at Christmas!’Potter, who is a mother of two, revealed that she bought a silver moonstone necklace this year with a pendant for £8, something that would have cost £30 new, and that she plans to give it to a family member for Christmas.In previous years she found a pink leather Warehouse cross body bag for £10 that would have been £80 new, a Harrods lambswool scarf for £12 which originally cost £40, and a wrought iron bed for £400, which cost £1,200 new.Potter added that gifts you can regularly buy for under £10 at second hand shops include bluetooth keyboards, Himalayan salt lamps, microscopes, kids’ indoor trampolines and neck massagers.Potter’s love of second hand shopping has grown into her own shop, as she now runs Used and Loved, a second-hand selling website, along with her partner Davey Brown.For those wanting to buy second hand items as Christmas presents, Potter says you should start looking now.’You can’t just nip into town on Christmas Eve and do a last-minute scramble, second-hand shopping takes time,’ she explained.’Allow for deliveries and the Christmas rush too. The beauty of used items is they are one of a kind – buy it before someone else does!’For those doing a second hand shop online, Potter warns to always read the item description before buying, and that too many of the same perfectly presented item on sale could be a red flag.Additional reporting by SWNS