New, New Thirfty Gifty for Christmas and All Ocassions 2011..Santas Challenge...

kiwichick

Hi All,

Have managed to find a few bargains on ARGOS for the coming year;

Meccano Red Arrows Acrobatics Kit was 14.99, now 4.99
60 Holly & Berry Lights was 7.99, now 3.99
So Sinful Gift Set was 5, now 3.49
Family Guy Cufflinks was 9.99, now 3.99

A spend of £16.46, and a saving of £21.51. Feels so foreign to me buying gifts now when the birthdays arent till April, July, Sept and Nov!!

Must must must get my act together and sort my ebay things out.

elysia2003

Fedup I made the seville marmalade too (from Lakeland). I made two of the big cans, so I added a big (massive) glug of whisky to the second. I absolutley detest whisky, it's like sucking a plank of wood (how would I know that????) but anyway, I digress, the whisky one is much, much nicer than the plain. It gives it a mellow taste rather than the sharp (sucking on lemons) taste. Don't bother with fancy recipes - just pour some in. I have another can here ready for when my lot has been used up

Hiya LittleKel and Saver Natalie - you are very welcome to join the thread, pull up your chair and make yourself comfy. There is a sister thread to this about making money to pay for the presents, if your interested.

JulieJim - that's so kind. Bless your cotton socks.

Esmer - you enjoy your night out, you deserve it. Been ages since I had a girly night out, we'll all have to have a 'vitual' one, one of evenings. LOL

Everyone who bought bargains today (oh Rufus it was you, and someone else who I can't remember LOL) Well done. I LOVE LOVE LOVE a good bargain.

My candy grabber came today off IWOOT. Cost £3.49 free p+p, and it would have cost much more than that to send it. Oh happy days.

Off topic:

Ahhhh you never guess what I did today! I had a gift card for Christmas with £10 on, I had a gift card from before Christmas with £5 on, one with a refund on from my iron yesterday, and an odd one. I reserved a coffee machine in Argos, and paid with each gift card one at a time. I had more than enough but I wanted to use up the smaller denomination cards first so I didn't have lots of vouchers and lose them iyswim. Then SA (a Man) totalled it up and said that's £7.01 you have so and so left to pay. I hit the roof, one has forty pounds on, one definately had £10 on ( and I had the receipt to prove it), One have a fiver on, and was not sure about the last. He insisted i had thirty odd pound to pay!!!

I called for the manager, and said I would have to take the £10 giftvoucher back to the store I purchased it (it was a present from OH family in Wales - I'm in Brum. Something wrong there. Then I said what about the forty pound on the one card that was empty!!! I was doing a mum2one in the shop. LOL. :rotfl:

Then I looked in my purse. :eek: I must have had 5 giftcards all with bits on, and not 4 like I thought. I made an excuse that DD was waiting in another shop and go out of there fast. I've got to go back tomorrow now. I think I'll send OH. :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

fedupandskint

elysia2003 wrote: »

Fedup I made the seville marmalade too (from Lakeland). I made two of the big cans, so I added a big (massive) glug of whisky to the second. I absolutley detest whisky, it's like sucking a plank of wood (how would I know that????) but anyway, I digress, the whisky one is much, much nicer than the plain. It gives it a mellow taste rather than the sharp (sucking on lemons) taste. Don't bother with fancy recipes - just pour some in. I have another can here ready for when my lot has been used up

That's what I used for the end of this year as ran out and didn't make any from scratch in Jan. It turned out a more commercial colour than doing it all from scratch and the taste was a little more commercial soooooooooooooooooooooo I'm making some from fresh if I can find any to tide us over for the year then if I run out I'll use my other tin to tide over until the end of the year.

I prefer the more tawny looking colour of starting from scratch and I'll glug in about 150ml into the mix - just off to have a look in my river cottage book to see what I need to get in

Endless list making here - what cleaning products do I need to stock up on again and preserving things for the next couple of months as won't be a huge amount to make

However, as I live in the rhubarb triangle, I'm going to make use of the pink forced rhurbab when it appears here for a change, instead of ignoring it stupidly!

elysia2003

I realised after I posted that you wanted to make 'fresh'. Isn't it a lot of hard work though? I couldn't be bothered faffing.

fedupandskint

Too true, the slicing is a faff and another faffing faff faff - last time it took me ages but I'm going to give it another go. Only if I can find some sevilles as they tend to fly off the shelves so I need to keep a keen eye out!

fedupandskint

Found it in my trusty River Cottage book

Sliced method will make with just seviles, whole fruit method will add 50ml whisky - that bottle's going to last about another 5yrs then! Then also might have a go at 3 fruit marmalade (1kg made up of pink grapefruit, sweet oranges and lemons and use whole fruit method)

Then onto rhubarb jam and then rhubarb and ginger jam for later rhubarb. I feel like I'm turning into that character from the Vicar of Dibley again! Brown sauce and mint chocolate anyone!

junior_j

Hey

I am trying to tidy./clean/organize my room (having friends 9month old stay over night) At the moment it looks like a bombs hit then a rubbish truck dumped its rubbish there and then the local tip managed to throw some of there rubbish in there , get where this is going?

So far have managed to get one carrier bag of rubbish out and a few bits in the washing basket , lots left to do .. x

elysia2003

Come on JJ pull your finger out!

Fedup ooh please (when you have the time), could you post the recipes or do you think they would be on google? I don't want to inconveiniance (can never spell that) you too much.

bunbun2

elysia is there a free p&p code for IWOOT? I have £25 worth of vouchers for there and my two boys would love a candy grabber (they point them out everytime we are in Hawkins Bazaar!)

cookiedough38

I am with junior_j on the tidying, its never ending after christmas!