What are you not going to buy this christmas

themull1

I'm not buying a large christmas cake, or luxury chocolate buscuits, and definitely just one tin of sweets. No tinned goose fat, can't stand the 'wet dog' smell!

Bitsy_Beans

I refuse to buy the tins of sweets this year. Weight dropped price the same :mad:

After that the only think I care about is that my mum makes Nigellas chocolate steamed pudding for me because I don't like Christmas pud or mince pies :j

I will probably make some more biscotti this year and some festive cupcakes for the kids. Not buying Pringles or anything else like as it never gets eaten on the day and we end up chuffing our way through it for days after.

bargainbetty

I'm having Christmas at my brother and sister-in-law's place this year. I will be bringing the bacon and bread for late breakfast and the bacon-wrapped sausages for the main dinner. My mum does the meat, my aunt brings a big tin of mini sausage rolls and other family members do bits and pieces. My flatmate will be visiting his family for the big event, and we live on curries and stews the rest of the time, so no need for special meals when he does get back.

So, I won't be buying anything else. I've already bought and wrapped nearly all of my presents (sorry, obsessive much) and used up all my old wrapping paper bought in the January sales of the last three years. I'm using up all the Christmas cards I already have, and refuse to buy any more until I have finished what is there.

This year, Christmas is on a strict budget. I'm not buying anything I don't need to buy! Humbug

oldtractor

no xmas decorations --I have plenty. No real flowers or plants---I have plastic poinsettias etc. No expensive stuff from Deli's. No cheap rubbish.
No xmas cards --I don't send them any more, people get a cheery email.

Pernicious

miffy257 wrote: »

No novelty gifts that might be a laugh, I only end up donating them to CS later in year.

THIS. I have lost count of how many times I've done this & then regretted it!

meritaten wrote: »

I am NOT going to the card shop to buy the 'special' cards for mum, sisters, brothers, sons and wives, daughter and husband and grandkids - It cost me nearly £40 last year!!!!!!!!!!!
I have found 'peel offs' with those on and this year they are getting 'handmade cards' - I think I can do them all for less than a tenner!

Unfortunately my DH's side of the family have a tradition of doing this...but since he's met me we buy them in the January sales ready for the next Xmas from a fairly cheap card shop anyway like Card Factory. It's much nicer spending less than a fiver on cards that just get chucked away!

Shropshirelass

Really great thread :T

I'm having a giggle thinking about $kye news on Boxing Day - 'all shops in the High Streets panicking due to low sales before Christmas - hoping Jan sales will make up their profits' :j:j:j

Rebelle

cheeswright wrote: »

christmas crackers
small oranges
any alcoholic drink containing cream, chocolate or thats blue in colour
advent callenders
any more cards.... i'm going to use up the hundred or so that are in the "ends" of packs
cheese with fruit or alcohol in it
anything that would normally be nice - but for december is mysteriously flavoured with cranberries
a three bird roast...oh no I'm not...(this to the members of my family who would buy this...without even having a meal planned to eat it for)
a goose...never again....
holly
mistltoe
a live wreath
a live christmas tree
festive "clothing" for the pets
any item of clothing that plays a tune
candles that claim to smell festive but actually smell like ...ick
any more baubles - tinsle or lights -
christmas hats of any description including festive earwarmers and antler headbands
any clothing decorated with snowflakes
a sledge
any toys for the kids which are too big to fit in a drawer
any ingredients i've never used or needed before but that are suddenly popularised by some celebrity chef in the run up to christmas
presents for any of my relatives......(who are very happy about this by the way)

and I'm sure theres more...oooh this list has made the grinch in me very happy:rotfl:

This made me laugh so much!! Love it!! Bah humbug! It's the Spirit of Grinch-mas!!! :rotfl:

Newly_retired

I love Christmas but not the silly trappings.
We have an artificial tree and enough deocrations - no new ones needed. Definitely no chocolate santas or coins or holly or ribbons...
I never do crackers.
We are not having visitors and are going to family from Boxing Day onwards, so apart from presents I shall buy nothing special, just food and drink I would buy anyway during the year, but maybe something really nice to eat and a few bottles of wine.
We will either have a good joint of beef ( and freeze the rest, sliced in gravy) or a free range chicken. Plenty of sprouts and other veg as we love them any time, not just at Christmas.
No cake, mince pies as DH is diabetic and we both need to watch our weight. I adore Christmas cake so maybe my DIL will give me a piece.
so actually these are not economy choices, but just suit our circumstances and lifestyle.
The biggest problem is cards, as many of our friends live all over UK and we don't want to lose touch. I shall email those I can, but otherwise it is stamps.
I still haven't found my hoard bought back in March.

frugaller

Great thread:j

I'm going to make a little cake, we normally buy the £5 one whe it's on offer at M&S but it's £6.50 on offer or thereabout this year so haven't bought one, going to make one myself, got the baking stuff 3 for 2 in Tescos this week.

Not buying tins of choccies or biscuits for us, just bought 3 for Christmas gifts.

I made my own Bramley Apple Sauce so going to open the first one on Christmas Day.

We've got christmas crackers and party poppers from last year (and got those from a carboot sale :-) ) so don't need to buy any.

Not buying the big boxes of cream crackers etc this year either, Tesco's cheap crackers are lovely and only 25p for 200g.

Not buying any beer this year, hubby's started homebrewing :-)

So that leaves meat (we had homemade sushi last year), Ginger Wine and a copy Baileys. We've got the frozen veg in for Christmas. Going to buy chestnuts too.

Everything else we buy normally anyway - fresh fruit and veg, nuts, dried fruit etc. We're having tasty and healthy Christmas this year, not getting all the chocolates, cakes and buscuits like previous years.

babyshoes

We don't have family here, so in the years that we are home and not elsewhere in the world with family we spend it with a friend whose family is also elsewhere. He brings the bubbly and some small treats like nice bread, dips etc for a starter and some choccies for later on. We do the main meal, cheese board and pudding. This year needs to be frugal though, OH is currently out of work. She may have a short contract starting soon, but no guarantee of a job after mid Feb so need to save even if she is working at Christmas.

We normally do a ham and a turkey crown, then eat leftovers for months! This year, we will still do a ham as it is so yummy and versatile that we always use it up quite quickly, but none of us particularly like turkey so we will probably do chicken or duck, as we already have those in the freezer. I think we still have some crackers in the box from the year before last (away last year) so won't need to buy those. Ditto for decorations and wrapping paper. Haven't done cards for years, tbh. The post to southern Africa is so expensive and erratic, it's not worth it. Rather spend the money on a phone call!

OH tends to go overboard on the cheese, but we are normally so full after lunch that the cheese and biscuits end up as a light, late supper! Usually loads left though, so will try to reign in the spending there. Either buy a smaller selection, and/or smaller chunks!

Christmas pudding never gets finished, so we will rather have something we actually love, like sticky toffee pudding.

We also tend to buy too much wine, intending to let ourselves get merry as we don't need to drive anywhere, but again we are so full it's tough to fit any more booze in! Think we may just make do with one bottle to go with the meal, then crack open some vintage (2010) damson gin I uncovered the other day... It tends to taste like vaguely fruity petrol when first bottled, but matures nicely after a few months, and the best we've had so far was a year old - but we've only been making it for a few years so haven't had a chance to try it after 2 years yet - normally gets drunk and/or given away as presents first! It should be wonderfully smooth by now.

I try not to get sucked into buying most of the other 'seasonal' carp anyway, most of it is overpackaged and overpriced compared to normal! I will buy it after Christmas if it is cheap enough though.