Scrooge?- Fed up with the constant buying of presents!

Holly76

I have 3 children who are all at school, between them they tend to be invited to a classroom friend's party once a week, I try to stick under £7 for a present, but that's still £364 a year on gifts for classroom friends who (most of them) I don't even know! It's fine for those who can afford it but I can't.

I would rather not have presents bought for my children as they are often played with momentarily and being token gifts they do not last and it's a strain on our environment.

I would love to jump off the present buying merry-go-round but wouldn't want my children to become unpopluar!

PootleFlump_3

Could you maybe try doing handmade things instead? There are loads of ideas on here and on the web and you will probably save quite a bit of money.

LJM

i know how you feel i feel exactly the same way it works out expensive but ialso dont know how to approach it without looking like a meany

mr_knight

There was abig thread on here about vouchers being bought instead. Maybe when it isn;t one of your childrnes parties you could suggest that the children (well their parents) put in a couple of pounds for a gift card or something? I'm sure you are not the only parent to think this

LolaLemon

I know how u feel! nd my son is only in nursery!

I tend to buy stuff from tesco as and when its on sale... i buy both boy and girls stuff... in a wide range of ages... and buy out of season, like a few weeks ago, i got outdoor presents, big bats and balls was nearly £20 (its good wooden bats) n i paid £3 for tehm, i picked up the last 2, and thier was a table tennis kit - bats balls and netting to fit most tables for £1.25, got pack of 4 good sized play d'oh for under £2, the individual pots which where same size cost £1 each, so i saved over £2 and can seperate them to give or keep together... i now no longer pay more than £4/5 for these items and they get put away and taken out as and when needed...

Me and my friends, when we do a party, thier is generally a note to go with the fb invite...
no presents please just your presence is enough...
but no one is going to go to a kids party without a present... and we mostly all bring homemade toys... sock monkeys (still not got the hang of these), fabric dolls, small diy kits etc... i do crochet cakes and food for girls, as they always have tea partes with their dolls... and they go down well with both the child and the parent (can get bunged in the washing machine to clean easily) for boys i normally to some arigurami type things like dinosaurs' planets and rockets... all very easy to do.. and loads of you tube tutorials...

This year is our first where it is not just kids who's parents i know, as i will be inviting all from nursery 1 (was only 8 kids, has increased to 10 now) and a few from nursery 2 (busy nursery that does out of school care too!) unsure what to put on the invites, as i really dont want crappy presents, and im also not doing party bags and a lot is going to be handmade (post on some of my ideas , ok i am spending out for owls, but decided defos no party bags, they cost me over £50 last year!)

LJM

i used to get bits and bobs and make up little crafty bags but the kids dont seem too chuffed on recieving these anymore, you could give mine a cardboard box and a roll of sticky tape and that would make their day and any pressie is expensive nowadays. it makes me laugh when you also hear the parents talk about how much the parties have cost them especially when they break it down to per child,i feel like saying sometimes that what i have spent on a card wrap and pressie more than covers the per child head charge so in fact i paid for my child not you.waah do i sound really scroogy

bigmomma051204

Hiya - i tend to buy those book sets from Book people when there is a code for free delivery etc floating about...means i get say 10 books for £10 so a quid each, and then i buy odds and ends at Tesco when they are reduced... only things for about £2-3..... i then give a book and one of the little cheap pressies... means i look mega generous and they never know i have paid less than £4 usually!! lol - oh, also The Works is good for cheapo bits and bobs... i buy things on bulk lol also when things are on offer/sale etc so i always have a "stock" cupboard of pressies so i dont have to go and buy at last min and pay full whack

LJM

thats what i miss living on iow, we dont have the works and my girls love that shop we go in when visiting inlaws when we go to chesterfield and i tend to stock up in their,savers and wilkos

Little_Miss_Determined

My nephew recently had a big birthday party and my sister was really concerned with the amount money which would be spent on toys that he didn't need and probably didn't want. She talked to him and they decided that he would collect money for charity instead. On his invitations, they wrote that he was very lucky and already had a lot of nice toys and that he was collecting for charity and then they put his money box at the entance to the party and people could leave a donation in there instead of giving him a gift. He later had a lovely time looking on the oxfam and send a cow websites deciding what he would buy for other less fortunate people.

Some people said that they felt mean and so my sister suggested that they give him a token toy (He got a macdonalds toy which he loved because he hardly ever goes)and a couple of second hand toys. A lot of the parents seemed to like the idea and my sister is hoping that it will start a trend. I know this doesn't help your predicament though.

LJM

That is a fantastic what a lovely idea

georgiesmall

My son recently went to a party where they held a wish list at a website called The Present Club, basically a child can choose items they'd like to receive and friends can contribute towards them, as much or as little as they like. No one else can see what you're contributing and Kids love it because it's interactive and they can cartoon themselves and leave messages for each other.

This way there's no unwanted/duplicated toys given and the party person could receive soemthing that they really wanted like a games console. So if you did this with your child, then they would receive soemthing that you wouldn't have to go out and buy yourself.

I know myself it's such a shame when your child receives 30 small token presents, yet you still need to go out and buy the more expensive presents that they really wanted like a bike.

Everyone's happy!