Recycled Christmas, could it work???

Mumsie

I'm glad I'm not alone on this and heaven forbid, were the first to utter those words, but like a lot of people I'm thinking of it already! My ideas start in the library because NOW is the time to get all those Christmas ideas from craft books. Titles like The Art of Christmas Crafts, Over 150 Festive Designs etc. which you don't come by easily in the run up. However, I've just staggered under the weight of 6 oversized books with ideas for the festive season that I can start making now. I must admit it's a sweltering hot day and the librarian looked at me as if I was, well, erm.....a little odd. He obviously doesn't have as much as I have to prepare in time.

We have simple pleasures at Christmas. It doesn't involve a lot of shopping, but more in thoughtful preparation, our tree is an outdoor tree and right now it has the most gorgeous new sproutings on it's branches. I think I may take a photograph of it (could be someone's card). I also like to make up personal verses to go in peoples' cards. They are very naieve verses (sort of Pam Ayres, Roger McGough type stuff) but I know they are appreciated and again, starting to think about these now doesn't make that task so ardous.

Not having a television makes us do our own entertainment and every year we all do a "turn" (if that is possible in the afternoon after lunch). It can be anything from a song, a poem, a joke. Joining in is the spirit. One year my daughter had been learning the Snowman on the piano and we didn't know. It was lovely. Fortunately Grandma loves this kind of show, gets into the spirit of it and is very appreciative of it all. We usually all end up falling about laughing.

Games are always going on and we have plenty of Scrabble, cards, Monopoly and I usually try and buy at least one new game throughout the year. We still stick to the old, tried and tested though.

What do other people DO on Christmas day when they're not eating, drinking and watching telly?

Once you have made a positive decision not to join in all that hype (and I have to admit it is probably easier without a television) I avoid the High Street like the plague. It used to make me feel so irritable and angry and not in the slightest bit satisfied even though I had spent lots of money and bought lots of "stuff". Now I would rather spend the time in my kitchen being creative. I'll even avoid the supermarkets in the last couple of weeks. But again it is down to organisation.

EagerLearner

BungleGirl wrote:

The adults will get nothing but each others company.

... and the cheap & abundant French wine

EagerLearner

tiptoes

BOOMDOCKER this site do a few diffrent tpyes and also tumblers
https://www.greenglass.co.uk

savvy

BungleGirl wrote:

Good luck to everyone with their green/ethical/recycled/moneysaving Christmases (can that word be a plural?!)

Absolutely.....................and not only that we can cut green/ethical/recycled/moneysaving down to an acronym......G.E.R.M!!

But if you don't like that, howabout a grethremon christmas?? ;):rotfl:

Joscar

EagerLearner wrote:

My method of saving money this Christmas is... going to Thailand for 2 weeks ;o)

Rather than go on a long weekend in Autumn (£400 each inc spending) + Xmas (£300 each), we're going to Thailand and this will cost the same-ish - this means no buying of new gifts, no wasting of Xmas cards or wrapping paper...

EagerLearner

I have gone away for Christmas twice before and loved it .... it makes Christmas last much longer as we have our family Christmas dinner before we go and continue celebrating for the whole holiday. Though it does bother my family that I expect them to eat turkey in the middle of December and my tree and lights are up religiously on the 1st of December. ( I figure if do not get to see them on Christmas Day I still want my money's worth) My family would like to start to think about Christmas around the 15th Dec each year .... bar humbug.

I love Christmas, I started saving for my next Christmas holiday last January though I have delayed discussing it with my family until now as they do that 'frowning / eye rolling /'don't you know it is June' thing.

I have a question for you EagerLearner ... are you leaving family back home or taking them with you? If you are leaving them behind how do you getaway without exchanging presets? Only one SIL will agree with a GBP5 limit. Secondly where did you find a deal to Thailand for GBP700 over Christmas? Is that flight only or accommodation included. Don't forget your spending money will be inflated unless you can resist the urge not to spoil yourselves 'just because it is Christmas.'

sallypurple

Great thread:T I love the idea of the charity shop challenge, I think I will suggest that for our secret santa at work this year.:p

Linda32

This is great, thanks arkonite_babe

I agree on the terrible waste and over indulgance, and the same complaint seems to come from the peope who do over buy its amazing that you hear people say "oh you always buy too much don't you? " eerrr No actually.

We buy very little extra, really no more than £5.00 worth plus a Turkey, I can't see the point. We never have gataux / cakes in the house any other time of the year.

I've said elsewhere but I'm definetly going to buy in the sales this year. I'll also keep an eye out in charity shops as well :T

Myself and OH decided for his birthday this year (since we went OS) that I wouldn't just buy him anything, so I bought a magazine subscription for him, its one he buys every month anyway so cheaper to buy the whole years worth.

EagerLearner

Joscar wrote:

I have a question for you EagerLearner ... are you leaving family back home or taking them with you? If you are leaving them behind how do you getaway without exchanging presets? Secondly where did you find a deal to Thailand for GBP700 over Christmas? Is that flight only or accommodation included. Don't forget your spending money will be inflated unless you can resist the urge not to spoil yourselves 'just because it is Christmas.'

Hi Joscar - we have told family (well, er, I haven't quite got round to telling my mum yet ) and we will probably get little things - even last Xmas when we were here, with close family we only spent £10 max per person, apart from Mums and our niece.

Joscar wrote:

Only one SIL will agree with a GBP5 limit.

What do you mean? It's your choice not theirs... if you tell them you will only be spending £5 on each of them, if they spend more, it's their look out... they don't get to 'agree'

Joscar wrote:

Secondly where did you find a deal to Thailand for GBP700 over Christmas? Is that flight only or accommodation included. Don't forget your spending money will be inflated unless you can resist the urge not to spoil yourselves 'just because it is Christmas.'

We got the flight only, as we've been there before and want to travel around rather than stay in a hotel and we know that £10 a day each covers food, acommodation and travel. So £200 each for 12 days will be excellent - I'm saving £30 per month already :T

I agree with you on the decorating - I'll have my tree up early December so we get our moneys' worth, it will then be a whole month of Xmas! Plus I love making cards so I'll make some for family & close friends for next to nothing...

Bring on the no-spend, selfish Xmas, at least once in our lives!

EagerLearner

SusanCarter

We've been thinking about covering some shoe boxes with wrapping paper so we can reuse them each year.

Joscar

Hi EagerLearner,

My idea of a selfish Christmas is very different to yours, I am not going to embarrass myself by telling you how much I am saving a month so that we get 2 weeks in the sun for Christmas. But I have shopped around for the best price and haggled with the travel company until they have knocked off £110 each, so I think I am still money-saving. My backpacking/travelling days were over a long time ago. We are aiming for a bit more luxury which is why £700 sounds cheap to me.

If I told my family we were planning to spend £5 on each of their presents and suggest they do the same they would not think much of us as they could guess how much we are indulging on ourselves. I could not do it without them agreeing. I do have a Christmas savings account (as well as a holiday savings account) so I should be able to afford their presents. But it still frustrates me that we all end up exchanging gifts that none of us really want. I'd rather they gave me sun cream or anti bug spray for my hols rather than yet another pair of PJs.