What are you not going to buy this christmas

red_devil

twiglets, cheese footballs, any cheesy santa hats or aprons, teatowels anything like that.

marcol143

Christmas Tree - we haven't for years. We use one of those with a rotating light that illuminates colours through glass strands.
Turkey - don't like it much. In recent years, we've tended towards duck. This year we shall have to choose from the freezer between duck breasts (yellow label/Tesco), Lamb Shanks in red wine (Finest, offer/Tesco), beef topside (special offer/Morrisons) or something done with chicken breasts (Asda Lowprice frozen). We have nuntil Christmas Eve to decide - we like them all)
Christmas Crackers - the original complete waste of money
Nuts in shells - they aren't eaten
Christmas cake - we have home-made fruitcake all year - why bother
Mince Pies - we have home made all year anyway
Any booze - we have wine left from a visit to Portugal and spirits that date back to the 70's (fancy labels topped up with supermarket own brands but they are for visitors (if we have any!) because we only drink wine.
Wrapping paper - we still have some from a bulk buy last year after Christmas when it was cheaper.
Presents for each other. We use the policy that 'if you want it buy it'. which saves unwanted gifts and we only buy for the grand-children anyway.
Cards - we bought them after Christmas last year when they were cheaper and we don't post more than we are forced to anyway.
Decorations - the tree mentioned above and incoming cards are our only decorations.

WartimeScrapingofMarmite

I'm not buying turkey this year - none of us really like it, so we are having roast chicken instead.

I would like to not bother with cards however my mum insists that my huge extended family would all be "devastated" if they didn't get a card from me, despite the fact that the greeting inside never alters from the usual unimaginative "to so-and-so love from........."!

Strummy

CHRISTMAS CARDS, DECORATIONS, WRAPPING PAPER etc

I always buy these items in January.

The big supermarkets progressively reduce the price of unsold Christmas stock in the weeks after Christmas.

'Progressively' is the key word here. The items get cheaper and cheaper until you can pick them up for a fraction of their pre-Xmas price.

The trick is to try and judge the right time to buy - that is to say when they reach the lowest price before either selling out or being withdrawn from sale.

This technique means I always have 'luxury' cards to send, 'poshly' wrapped prezzies and a few brand new tree decorations every year.

Obviously it's too late for this Christmas, but you can soon start building up a stock for future years!

My best bargains include buying a few packs of 20 large luxury Xmas cards for 10p a pack (rrp was around £5 per pack!) and getting a few multipacks of Tesco wrapping paper and accessories (each pack contained four 3m rolls of paper, two 8m lengths of ribbon and 8 ribbon bows) at 3 packs for £1!

Happy bargain hunting

wannasave_2

all of the above :rotfl:

We have decided not to have one at all (and believe me those seasonal stress levels have reduced dramatically since that decision - wish we'd done it years ago!)

jomknight

I always make my own from loo rolls , old wrapping paper, snaps available on e bay, jokes from google search. Insert gold chocolate coins dividing one bag between several, and a small useful present.- biro. lip salve. book mark, key ring - anything that will fit BUT this year I have found packs of 8 make your own crackers in POUNDLAND with everything except the present. Good value

sgt1439hux

Why don't we move Christmas Day to February 29th.
Then my list of things not to buy for the next three years would be endless and I would save a fortune.
If I gave 50 per cent of what I would have spent in the next three years to charities then everyone would be much much better off

Thrifty1

I won't be buying crackers, as there are some leftover from last year, though I may buy some in the post Christmas sales for next year.

As others have mentioned I won't be buying any tins of chocs, mostly because of the reduction in size, do they really think we won't notice? And the fact that the OH will eat about 5 chocs leaving me to scoff the rest, if they're not there I can't eat them.

Not doing surprise gifts, have asked people what they want rather than getting some tatt they don't want or need.

Christmas tree, have a plastic one that was bought in a sale and I expect that to last for at least another 10 years.

Expensive cards, a large pack of cheapies convey Christmas wishes just as well and there are plenty left for next year.

robzrob

Just read these through. Best laugh I've had for ages! What about this:

Bake them a cake, write them a poem, give them a kiss, tell them a joke, but for god’s sake stop trashing the planet to tell someone you care. All it shows is that you don’t.

-George Monbiot.

Beverley_Bill

I shall not buy Turkey, mince pies, paper crackers, presents or cards.

I will buy beef, pork or lamb, a few potatoes and some garlic