"Money Neutral" Xmas - is it possible

Beanietdc

Being a Sunday lunchtime in November I got to thinking...

We hear all these stories in the news about companies trying to be "carbon neutral" by planting tree for each big truck they produce (kind of!) and it got me thinking :eek:

Is it possible to have a money neutral Christmas?

I have started in the right direction but I would love to hear how other people get on...

A while back I had a clear out and put a load of stuff on Ebay. I made approx £55 from that.

With £45 of that I ordered a big box full of bath bomb/soap making stuff and got making. I also ordered (for less the the remaining £10) some cellophane bags and ribbons.

My bath bombs and soaps were packaged up and sold to friends and colleagues at enough of a profit which meant that I had used half the ingredients but got back my £45. This means that I can make bombs and soap out of what I have left, turn them into pressies for my family and they haven't cost me a penny. :T

Now, with the profit from that little venture (and a couple of mystery shops) I have ordered some more kit and booked a table at a "pamper evening" event next Saturday - the theory being that I will make more money than it cost me to be there. Then with the profit from that I can either keep going or take the cash and buy ingredients for the fudge, truffles etc that I am going to make for presents.

So, effectively I am still "money neutral" and I am still working off the proceeds from that 1st Ebay session.

Oh, and I have £30 of boots vouchers (pigsback) and £20 on my advantage card so I can buy lots in their without really spending any of my own cash.

I do have an advantage in this case - off to my parents for Christmas Day and only have to supply the Christmas Pudding - no food bill for me :j :j

Does this make sense? Can a money neutral Christmas be done?

pudding06

Wow - thats really food for thought.

Well done for thinking this one up and for doing so well.

I'll have to think about this one to wee what I can do.

Have £20 in vouchers to come form pigsback and about £10 in boots points

I must have a think.

pudds

Anastacia

I havn't been quite as productive as you but I am trying. We have a lovely extended family christmas with plenty of emphasis on being togther & eating together rather than buy,buy,buy but I have bought a few present from Car Boot Sale this year.

For my mum a blue delft dish with a lid to plant crocus (10p) & some cross stitch pictures of birds.(3 at 65p each) BIL a wine puzzle (rrp £12.00) cbs 10p. A really nice cafetierre & two glasses, £2, not sure who to give them too. Still have the instructinos & labels on them.

I would highly recommend going to 'posh' car boot sales. This one was at a local esate to raise money for church funds. All those who live on the estate turfed out their rubbish. Antiques roadshow would have had a ball.

For the rest a bit of crafting & recycling quidco & pigsback.

So, basically I am trying but possibly not quite as hard as you! Well done!

earthmother

Doing fairly well ourselves - have £60 of Boots vouchers from Pigsback, and a further £40 worth of points on the card, £30 from Mutual points, three mystery shops, totalling £30, and a £5 Argos voucher. Have also been able to use saved catalogue commission totalling about £150, and have received about £80-£100 worth of 'free' stuff through discount codes and offers.

That's all (except the commission) been in the last 4 months - mostly thanks to MSE


Most of the other shopping has been done with vouchers saved for over the course of the year - actual 'cash' spent is going to be minimal.

:j

Lillibet_2

I have apparently been unconsciencsly (sp?) doing this for a couple of years!

Our Xmas present spending is funded by loyalty points, Rpoints, credit card cash-back & the odd ebay sale. It has to be, there is no money in teh budget to do it otherwise! The only monetary contributions I do make is that I buy Tesco savings stamps everytime I go in (keeps me from making un-necessary trips!) & I used Decmbers usual grocery budget too, but we do entertain quite a lot of small groups over Christmas so I have to make relatively little food go a long way & appear special too:p Oh, and I save my 1 &2p's through out the year for a special Christmas Eve treat for Hubby & I, usually a Chinese takeaway. But all our pressies are money neutral:T

V_Chic_Chick

How about making christmas puddings / cakes and selling them to family and friends and keeping one for yourself?