The Thrifty Gifty Girls 'n' Guys 2009 (Organised & Money Neutral for All Occasions)

sammr85

Hi there I would sure like a go at being money neutral! I already use my consumer pulse vouchers for prezzies, check quidco and look for vouchers. I no i have loads to sell around here but never get round to putting it on ebay! I never thought of being money neutral!! Already preparing to go to the boots sale boxing day to spend the points ive accumulated since June (£200!!). Hopefully I can do it all with u

Samm
(ps voted for Mel )

katholicos

I don't thinki will be doing any ebaying but i really want to join in because i would like to be much better prepared for Christmas 2009 and i hope to pick up some tips and tricks here. I just joined Quidco, so hopefully thats a step in the right direction. I am amazed at all the great ideas i have come across in the forums and though i'm too late to put many of the great ideas into practice for this year, i'm certainly going to make sure to start 2009 a lot more money savvy!

I've never heard of money neutral but i think it is a brilliant idea. Can't wait to learn more about how people are achieving that goal. So glad i found this thread!

chocolate.orange_2

JordanShannon wrote: »

Thank you:j
just wondering, if i brought something for £24.47 and th p&p is £3.95 do i get the money off the total or the item, if that makes sense?!?!
..xx

With quidco you usually just get a percentage of the actual items cost not the p & p HTH

jamtart6

Welcome back mum2one great to have your wisdom (and halfcost bargains) with us again

Sarahf, sammr85, katholicos - welcome, welcome! The main drive at the moment is the organisation for 2008. Mel will have you making lists soon enough

sammr85- the best thing about having a group thread is the motivation to start eBaying etc. is good as lots of people encourage you to have a go! I couldn't get motivated, but finally after weeks and weeks of writing "list things on ebay" on my organised christmas list I finally did it, and made about another £100 for Christmas!!It is amazing how much stuff you have lying round that you will never use. I bought a DVD for £3, watched it once, decided it was OK but wouldn't watch it again, put it on eBay and sold it for £5! Only wanted to cover my costs, so a profit was great!! - also point to note, the 75% off sale in Boots in January is brilliant, so save some points for that!!

JordanShannon - Make sure you clear your cookies before each transaction as it is more likely to track. If you arent sure how to do that, give me a shout and I'll write you some instructions! The % of money is usually just off the actual purchase I think. Some places e.g. Dell only give you cashback on the purchase before VAT. They all have different rules, but I'm sure that the % doesnt come off the postage Hope that helps

Out for most of the day now, but have a good and ORGANISED day xxx

ragz_2

HI all, I'd love to join in. Only just found this board s so too late for 2008 but I have to admit to having been quite organised, if not money-neutral. most of my xmas gifts were bought months ago when I saw nice new items cheap at boot-fairs and I have half the kids stocking pressies and some birthday presents for next year too as I ordered loads when I found them cheap.
I love writing lists and looking stuff up so I am going to really enjoy joining in and hoping to get the hang of the money-neutral thing. I do enter a lot of competitions and use unwanted prizes as gfts, which helps with cost.

furrypig

Ok I'm over here properly now!! Sorry!!

I have sorted out my problems with Virgin and tickets all sorted for my hols in Feb (Children are asking Father Christmas for Orlando related presents so it's part of my christmas organising!!)

Anyway I have to go to Sainsburys as have done no supermarket shopping this week and apparently they have all their Chrimbo lights at half price and I need lots of new ones for outside....

pinkladymel

Good morning everyone and welcome to the brand new thread. Welcome to all newcomers, everyone is so welcome to come join us.. It really is a case of the more the merrier!

Just to clear up any confusion...

Me and JamTart have both been running our own seperate threads for a few years now.

Jamtart - Money Neutral
PinkLadyMel - Organised for Christmas

This year we met and realised a lot of the people we know were hopping from thread to thread. We decided to join both threads so everyone can have one place to stay and we can all share our knowledge and lives beyond Christmas.

You can be organised for special occasions, You can be money neutral for occasions, You can be both. YOUR CHOICE. Everyone is welcome.

I will continue the Organisation throughout the year making sure we do something on the 25th of every month. I will also be sharing my craft ideas to help keep yourself money neutral and bargains.

I love a bargain me

pinkladymel

All the decs and lights are half price at Sainsburys Furrypig. I hope your kids get what they want for christmas Sounds like a brilliant idea!!

I CANNOT believe that someone has complained about my blog and it has been removed from my signature. I have seen loads of people around here with blogs in their Signature and now I have lost my christmas message with all the colours that took me ages.

IM SO PEED OFF.

rainmac

Hello guys!!! I'd love to join in if that's ok . I mainly used the Crafty for Xmas and Finished Baskets threads to keep me on track this year and I've thoroughly enjoyed being so much more organised than usual. I've made quite a few of my pressies this year (have learned loads from the fab people who contribute to this board) and I hope to make even more next year so this thread will help no end in my mission to start Xmas 2009 in January :T

This year I have done surveys to help fund a bit of Xmas - hard work but very rewarding for getting something for answering some questions in the comfort of my own home

I am another who can't work out Quidco

Sorry you lost your signature Mel :sad:

ASC

Hi all, can I join in too please!

Great explanation of money neutral Jamtart, I'd already decided to try this in 2009 (highly likely to lose my job in the new year, grrr to the global recession). Plan so far involves lots of crafty things and lots of ebay selling (desperately need to declutter anyway). Will be great to have help with motivation here.

Thanks to the organised Christmas thread, I had everything for 2008 bought well before December (although not wrapped as we're currently having to camp at in-laws thanks to building work at home - don't get me started...) and just have a few things left to make. As a consequence, I have saved hundreds of pounds on my normal spend with offers, ebay and halfcost etc and I really don't think the gifts look any less generous than my normal 'panic last minute and spend a fortune as I feel guilty' method! Having time to really think about what to get people will hopefully mean that they're actually more pleased with their gifts this year (I said hopefully!)

Sorry for the long post, but I really am grateful for all the help (and laughs) I've had over the last few months from all you guys.
Ok, someone elses turn now

Amanda xxx