Thriftmas Controversy: Mom Sparks Debate by Thrifting All Her Kids' Christmas Gifts While She Wears Designer Clothes

Dec 23, 2024

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In an age of picture-perfect Instagram feeds and over-the-top holiday hauls, one mom’s decision to thrift her children’s Christmas gifts has sparked a fiery debate across TikTok.

Known on the platform as @sarah_falls, Sarah Bullock, a mother of three from the Northern Territory in Australia, shared a video showcasing her thrifted Christmas finds, which included books and more. The videos were part of a series that was posted by the TikTok creator to showcase her Christmas thrifting journey for her children aged 5, 2 and 7 months. It was intended as an eco-conscious celebration of mindful spending and quickly gained traction — but not for the reasons Bullock anticipated. 

The videos have seen many other social media users voicing their opinions in the comments, as well as sharing and stitching the video with their own reactions. Bullock uploaded the video with the caption:

“Thrifting our kids Christmas presents. We have a budget of $150 for all kids. I found all of these books on the marketplace for $10. I cant wait to sit down and read all of these books with my children.”

In the video, she showcased the children’s books she thrifted and said that her plan was to thrift all of her children’s Christmas gifts within a budget of $150. She also added that she would wrap the books individually so that they seem more substantial, as kids that age care more about getting presents than what the presents are.

But it wasn’t long before other netizens reacted to her video.

Bullock received a ton of backlash for how she’s going about her Christmas shopping, with some calling her "cheap," which she addressed in other videos. In another video, she showed her clothing haul from Sabbi, an exclusive brand that sells oversized T-shirts with positive affirmations printed on them at high prices. One TikTok user reacted to Bullock’s Sabbi clothing haul with the comment:

“I actually felt sorry for her first videos but now seeing she’s buying herself brand new clothes but second hand for her kids.”

Bullock also posted a screenshot of her interaction with another TikTok user who wrote a scathing comment. In response to another user who said, "Almost feels cruel spending $150 while mummy stands there in a Sabbi shirt lol," Bullock defended herself:

“Comments like this are so below the belt and uncalled for. I cherish the thrifted items i find for my children and find them a lot more meaningful than the big tickets items they've received in the past.”

She responded to her critics by commenting:

"I actually find thrifting to be worth more because of the time and energy I'm putting into each individual item I'm getting for my children."

She also explained her reasons in another video:

"I'm thrifting my kids' Christmas presents to show everyone you can be sustainable all whilst finding great quality gifts at a discounted price."

Many came to Bullock’s defense, thanking her for the interesting idea. They also applauded her for saving money, gifting her children books, and not getting young children accustomed to extravagant, meaningless gifts. 

“I couldn't agree more!!!” one user commented. "Kids don't understand the difference between thrifted & brand new things. So why not thrift it!!"

Many more supported her, with one calling the idea of individually wrapping the books “a parenting hack.” At the same time, another echoed her sentiment of not going overboard with gifts for toddlers and still getting some pretty good items like she did, writing:

“I never do baby Christmas, they literally have no idea haha the longer we can get away with it the better.”

Whether positively or negatively, the mom-of-three certainly got people talking!

What do you think of this? Would you thrift your children’s Christmas gifts, or do you think Sarah Bullock was wrong to do so? Let us know your thoughts & pass this on to any other moms you know to find out their opinions!