outfitting our boys for "new" school clothes, as we can get clothes for as low as a dollar a piece. (Sometimes they want a $5 shirt. Some years we can do that, some we can't.) And we keep an eye out for coupons for buy one get one or half off deals on sneakers, which is the real budget buster for us.
As for hair, I've cut theirs for years. It's not fun. I hate it and so do they, but somehow they come out looking more or less like a human being. Some barbers have really decent prices on haircuts, $10 or so. But for our family that was still out of reach, so we haven't done that very often. If you have a hairdresser's academy in your area, you can get good deals there as well. (I haven't had my hair cut in a good long while, either. I am wearing hairbands again like when I was a little girl, except the hair by my forehead is all grey now. I've come full circle, I guess.)
Last year was a sparse Xmas. We had a tree with hardly anything under it, and those things came from lovely people who knew our kids didn't have anything. Some years can be like that.
I will keep you, your family, and your brother in my prayers. I hope everything goes well for him and gets better for you! I understand the strain of not feeling good about yourself, about worrying over the food and clothes and bills. I hope you can make that beautiful jewelry and sell it, so you can can get your hair nice. It's funny how a decent haircut can make you feel so much better!! 
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