Who's Making Their Own Presents? And Requesting Others Not To Gift

Penelope_Penguin

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SonjaLiK

I don't use marg at all, always butter (since I've had kids).
I have a silicone muffin tray and love it, it really is so easy to use.

As far as the title, the idea of saving money and asking others to do it as well - this year I've asked MIL if we could save on expensive cards and use the same for all cos I'd rather have the two of them over for a meal than spend 3 quid on a card that will be binned within weeks.
"Yeah, sure, alright", she said nodding.
So we gave her a standard card.

Three days later she brings us a huge, expensive card. I ask and she replies "Oh, I love my cards!".
Yeah, fine. MILs.

Soundgirlrocks

Hi this is my first post. Every year I make some homemade presents for extended family. I think it's much nicer than a generic box of chocolates, it shows you have made an effort. This year it will be homemade marmalade with whiskey.

I got the jars from ikea (nice old style chunk clip lids) for 89p per jar ( I could use empty jam jars but these look great and I’m sure they will get re-used)
3 kg Organic Seville Oranges from Able and Cole (only place I could find them) for £10.95
8kg Fair-trade Granulated Sugar for £7.63
Whiskey donated by OH who gets it as gifts regularly ( I think because he's a scot!)

Will make 12 500ml jars (with a bit left over for us) for £2.44 each. I have seen organic artisan marmalade in posh farm shops similar size for £4.99!

I'm pretty pleased with that hopefully so will the recipient!

Going to make the marmalade tomorrow :beer:

donquine

marmitepotato wrote: »

Poundland for silicon sheets, they are in the baking section and are in a green cardboard wrapping. They last and last and are very good value.

Thanks for that, I did wonder if they were worth buying. :j

I use the silicone cup cake cases you can always get from Poundland - the bright colours might make them look cheap, but they work really well. The cupcakes always come out really easily. Love them.

Over the past year, I've started using the following cheapy ingredients in baking:

• Tesco value choc (white and/or milk)
• Tesco value fake rice crispies (ok in crispie cakes, vile as cereal)
• Tesco value/Co-op cheapy spread (ok in cupcakes/sponges)
• Co-op cheapy eggs (they're cheap because they aren't all exactly the same size - they're still free range!)
• any store brand/value flour (self raising and/or plain)

Some store brand/value products are horrible, so I've been cautious with my trial/error downshifting, but I'm glad that I have found some cheap alternatives I'm happy for our household to use.

I haven't managed to find a cheap brand of butter for baking (for those recipes where you need butter not spread, e.g. shortbread, buttercream icing, etc) or icing sugar (Tate & Lyle can't have a monopoly, surely?) but I have got the cost of baking down overall by swapping some other ingredients (per above).

I've never bought choc chips before - even when I was buying 'proper' chocolate - I just hack at a bar with a knife. For some reason, I think using uneven chunks is nicer. Just personal preference, though.

dogstarheaven

marmitepotato wrote: »

Poundland for silicon sheets, they are in the baking section and are in a green cardboard wrapping. They last and last and are very good value.

I make choc chip cookies for my family and friends, I make the dough then freeze it. I then bake the cookies the night before I am going to give them away. It means less work for me and all the cookies will be crisp and chewy.

This year I have made Vanilla Sugar to give as presents. I saved up the jars through out the year and got my vanilla pods from ebay as they were much much cheaper there.

Sadly you can stop people from giving you presents you dont want. I usually give my useless presents to charity shops, then at least they will make a little money for the charity of your choice.

Vistited Poundland yesterday along amidst all the maddening xmas crowds, and.... they didn't sell them. they had about 6 types of sillicon products in the range, but no baking roll sheet!:eek:

after umming and arr-ing around after seeing the M&S one for £7.50 each, i decided that it wasn't worth it and use parchment paper instead. DD is coming back from uni tomorrow and has currently been making biscotti biscuits (unbeknown to me!) and having had a phone conversation last night with her to tell her of my woes, and she's offered to make me a batch (of 72!) surprisingly, she's gifting them to her flat porters and as additional presents to her family (me, dad, grandmother and bf's parents). that's so sweet of her...

so, now i'm left with a stress-free afternoon w/o the need to think about how i was gonna to bake and wrap my cookies on xmas eve:D when i'd get home after a 9hr day at work! altho' biscotti isn't really an ideal choice of biscuit for children (as they're really hard due to them being twice-baked), i've reconciled that they could be used as a general 'family' present for everyone to enjoy. they have cranberry and raisin in so they look and taste more interesting.

next yr, when the xmas rush is all over, i'll have more energy to cook the cookies. altho' i'm still leafing through my folders of ripped-out magazine pages of "dishes i will be make one day!" and just seen a recipe for macarons (did anyone see the macaron test on Masterchef Australia in Series 1? delish!) - yes, bit of a challenge, i must say... but i would love to taste one!

on a more serious note, re. re-gifting unwanted presents to charity, well... mentioned this to my OH and he was horrified at the thought of my do so with his parents' gift for me, so i think it's best for me to shut up on the matter and i'll just have to accept it graciously w/o showing too much disdain...

it's great that some of you who are gifting jams and stuff is that you present them with fabric covers and stuff, but when i was cleaning the tens of jars out, a few of the labels didn't come off due to the glue was too sticky, or that the residue of it is still there... so i shall have to gift the good ones to the family instead.

previously, i've used cellophane bags and ribbon for my biscuits but this year, i've not had the time to even think about the presentation. i never thought back then about it not being recyclable.
Valk-scot: it's interesting to use a tea towel for wrapping your biscuits in, i'd never would of thought of that...:p

donquine thanks for recmding which s/m value brands that are good enough for baking, i'll bear that in mind...

soniaLiK guess what i've done with my cards that i begrudingingly receive??? i've binned them... that's cruel, yes i know, but i don't have any decs up in the house, so why would i want the cards up.. yr upon yr, i've told everyone that i don't buy cards anymore due to cost and wasted trees and that i don't want one off them. yet, they carry on the tradition regardless of what i've say every year... (i remind them). my homemade door wreath (see my other thread about wreath) is enough... sorry, if this offends anyone. i'm sure i have to some of you:(

MrsE thanks for the lurpak tip at waitrose, i'll stock up (hope it doesn't end too soon!)

and all the others about their hm stuff i think it's wonderfully reassuring to know there are others of a like-mind about making HM presents.. i suppose it's the circles i meet really, when most ppl i know just shop, shop, shop all the time... which is far from the lifestyle i lead:o

dyldwarf

i am making cupcakes in jars for my family as christmas gifts this year cheap and easy present and taste nice too...

themull1

you shouldn't bin cards - recycle them.

MrsE_2

dogstarheaven wrote: »

MrsE thanks for the lurpak tip at waitrose, i'll stock up (hope it doesn't end too soon!)

I was there today & it wasn't there:(

BUT they had own brand 500g packs (double packs) for about £1.68 (I think), I got one.

marmitepotato

dogstarheaven wrote: »

Vistited Poundland yesterday along amidst all the maddening xmas crowds, and.... they didn't sell them. they had about 6 types of sillicon products in the range, but no baking roll sheet!:eek:

after umming and arr-ing around after seeing the M&S one for £7.50 each, i decided that it wasn't worth it and use parchment paper instead. DD is coming back from uni tomorrow and has currently been making biscotti biscuits (unbeknown to me!) and having had a phone conversation last night with her to tell her of my woes, and she's offered to make me a batch (of 72!) surprisingly, she's gifting them to her flat porters and as additional presents to her family (me, dad, grandmother and bf's parents). that's so sweet of her...

so, now i'm left with a stress-free afternoon w/o the need to think about how i was gonna to bake and wrap my cookies on xmas eve:D when i'd get home after a 9hr day at work! altho' biscotti isn't really an ideal choice of biscuit for children (as they're really hard due to them being twice-baked), i've reconciled that they could be used as a general 'family' present for everyone to enjoy. they have cranberry and raisin in so they look and taste more interesting.

next yr, when the xmas rush is all over, i'll have more energy to cook the cookies. altho' i'm still leafing through my folders of ripped-out magazine pages of "dishes i will be make one day!" and just seen a recipe for macarons (did anyone see the macaron test on Masterchef Australia in Series 1? delish!) - yes, bit of a challenge, i must say... but i would love to taste one!

on a more serious note, re. re-gifting unwanted presents to charity, well... mentioned this to my OH and he was horrified at the thought of my do so with his parents' gift for me, so i think it's best for me to shut up on the matter and i'll just have to accept it graciously w/o showing too much disdain...

it's great that some of you who are gifting jams and stuff is that you present them with fabric covers and stuff, but when i was cleaning the tens of jars out, a few of the labels didn't come off due to the glue was too sticky, or that the residue of it is still there... so i shall have to gift the good ones to the family instead.

previously, i've used cellophane bags and ribbon for my biscuits but this year, i've not had the time to even think about the presentation. i never thought back then about it not being recyclable.
Valk-scot: it's interesting to use a tea towel for wrapping your biscuits in, i'd never would of thought of that...:p

donquine thanks for recmding which s/m value brands that are good enough for baking, i'll bear that in mind...

soniaLiK guess what i've done with my cards that i begrudingingly receive??? i've binned them... that's cruel, yes i know, but i don't have any decs up in the house, so why would i want the cards up.. yr upon yr, i've told everyone that i don't buy cards anymore due to cost and wasted trees and that i don't want one off them. yet, they carry on the tradition regardless of what i've say every year... (i remind them). my homemade door wreath (see my other thread about wreath) is enough... sorry, if this offends anyone. i'm sure i have to some of you:(

MrsE thanks for the lurpak tip at waitrose, i'll stock up (hope it doesn't end too soon!)

and all the others about their hm stuff i think it's wonderfully reassuring to know there are others of a like-mind about making HM presents.. i suppose it's the circles i meet really, when most ppl i know just shop, shop, shop all the time... which is far from the lifestyle i lead:o

I am surprised there were no silicon sheets left, there are always plenty in my local Poundland. Perhaps once the rush is over and done with there will be more in stock.

I havent got any cards up in my house either. I find them a bloomin' pain when dusting and always manage to knock one off which leads to a domino effect and I end up picking them up time and time again. At the moment they are in a pile in the kitchen waiting for the green recycling bin!!

dogstarheaven

themull1 wrote: »

you shouldn't bin cards - recycle them.

they went in the recycling bin, so don't worry. am not wasteful like that.