Fancy being a mystery shopper, dressing up as Santa Claus or passing yourself off as the next Mrs Beckham? Instead of the usual overspend this Christmas, find out how to jolly up your bank account with these fantastic festive money-spinners

There are various ways to make some money before (and after) Christmas - if you're willing to put in a bit of effort and creative thinking.

Firstly, check your benefits and tax credits. This is free money, so make sure you're getting everything you're entitled to. Check out www.entitledto.co.uk to see if there could be a special payment that you didn't know about before.

A spot of free shopping?

As a mystery shopper you could be asked to have dinner at a restaurant, buy drinks in a bar or simply get some groceries at a supermarket, then fill in a simple questionnaire about it afterwards.

The great thing about mystery shopping - particularly at this time of year - is that you can be paid to shop and, usually, get goods for free at the same time. Fees per visit vary between companies, but are usually between about £6.00 and £20.00. Expenses are paid so your food, drink and any travel are all paid for.

To work as a mystery shopper, you will need to register with mystery shopping companies. There are several of them including IMS, NOP, Mystery Shopping Agency (020 8325 8974) and TNS

Get paid to party

This being the party season, entertainers and party organisers - both for children's and adult's parties - are in high demand.

• Entertaining - there is a massive market for children's entertainers and if you have an act that is especially seasonal (Father Christmas, Mrs Christmas or a magic elf, for example) you could offer your services for Christmas parties. In London the going rate is around £15 per child with a minimum of, say, 15 children. Outside London it's about £10 per child. Magic tricks, clowning and artistic skills are all helpful but primarily a sense of fun and a willingness to make a fool of yourself are the main requirements!

  If you are good at singing, dancing or comedy, get in touch with local entertainment agencies and offer your services for corporate Christmas do's. Put 'entertainment agency' or 'corporate entertainment' alongside your area into search engine and see what comes up. You can earn £100s or even £1,000s a night, depending on how popular you are.

• Be a 'lookalike' - there is a fair amount of work for 'lookalikes' to do 'meet and greet' work at Christmas parties. If you look like Cherie Blair (poor you), Marilyn Monroe or Posh Spice for example, hot-foot it to your nearest lookalike agency such as Susan Scott Lookalikes (020 7387 9245) or Splitting Images (020 8809 2327). You can make around £250-500 a night just standing around looking like a celebrity!

Promote new products

Promotional and demonstration work happens throughout the year but there is an extra demand at Christmas. You could find yourself demonstrating a new potato peeler in a department store, ushering guests into a celebrity party or handing out free samples at your local train station.

This work is abundant in the run-up to the festive season so contact promotional agencies in your area. Use a search engine or look in The Stage newspaper - and get yourself on their list. Try IFM Events (020 8524 7111) or Kreate Ltd (020 7401 9007/8 - London, 0131 553 5007 - Edinburgh).

Cash in your junk

There are so many ways for people to buy and sell all kinds of things now that there's really no excuse not to at least make a bit of cash selling your junk at the local car boot sale. That's not the only way though. On websites such as eBay and Amazon you often get much better prices for things like books, DVDs and CDs. Just set up a merchant account with them by following the directions on screen and put your old stuff up for sale. You can sell pretty much anything, but there are pitfalls, so it's worth studying the ins and outs before you start.

Get creative

If you're creative, you could turn your hand to making gifts - either for presents or to sell to others.

• Greetings cards - Websites such as www.craftcreations.co.uk and www.bakerross.co.uk sell all manner of card-making materials, but looking around your home for decorative bits first will save a lot of money. You can use old wrapping paper as background or print it off internet sites like www.magicalkingdom.co.uk plus old buttons, photographs bits of ribbon and even sweet wrappers can make festive decorations.
• Christmas cakes, sweets, jams etc - all make great presents but if you are making lots of them, why not sell them? You can sell a lot at your local car boot sale or simply let friends and family know you have them for sale. You'd be surprised how popular home-made delicacies can be.
• Market stall - anyone can have a market stall and rental varies from £3 a day in cheaper markets around the country to around £32.50 a day in London. Check the database on the website of the National Market Traders Federation, they have prices, amenities and phone contacts for markets of all types all around the country. Around this time of year you could sell home-made gifts, Christmas cakes, cards, home-made crackers and so on.

Money-making schemes for the really desperate!

• Sell your hair! Yes, it is possible. According to Banbury Postiche - the main buyer in the UK of human hair - the fees are £3 per ounce if your hair is 6 - 12" long and £5 per ounce if it is more than 12" long. Contact them at www.wigsuk.com.
• Medical experiments - you can make around £200 for a couple of days if you're willing to try out new drugs. Look up local hospitals and drugs companies on a search engine or go to www.hotrecruit.com, which often has ads for medical 'guinea pigs'.
• Busking - If you can sing or play and you have a pretty thick skin, there's nothing to stop you busking in a busy high street somewhere (until you get moved on, of course). It's cash and, if you pick a busy Saturday before Christmas, you could make quite a lot!