NOT BUYING IT! 2015 - A consumer holiday

Butterfly_Brain

Here are piccies of the gifts that I have made.
Each lantern was £1 in the Jan sales and they are filled with a battery candle (4 for £1) and a handful of sweets from a tin of heros £4. Total cost for 10 = £16.50 or £1.65 each.





The film I had from last year and the decoration is from last year's Christmas crackers

camelot1001

Well, my 'smellie' stash has just grown, I won a prize in the school fair raffle of bath creme, body lotions, etc. I may never see the bottom of the box! On the up side, that's less I have to buy.

Congratulations on your retirement Goldiegirl!

camelot1001

Primrose - I was having this discussion with my DD yesterday saying that I should really have kept all my 'carp' to sell at a car boot sale but that would mean storing it all somewhere. I then would probably change my mind and keep it. I prefer to take it to a charity shop there and then and at least someone benefits.

Butterfly Brain, those gifts are gorgeous, you are so talented.

mynellie

Butterfly Brian those gifts are lovely and it is so nice to see someone else keeps the decorations off the crackers I do the same and my son laughs at me I can now show him your gifts and tell him I'm not the only one

Nellie xx

Bobarella

My son has a birthday party to go to this weekend so I went to have a look at the gifts drawer. This is full of things I've either picked up for a few £££s or decided to re gift. In this case it was an item given by grandparents last year but unopened. I think the little boy will like it & it would cost over £10 to buy. I then wrapped it in paper I kept from my son's recent birthday (yes I've turned into one of the crazy people that sit there watching my child pull off paper saying 'be careful we can reuse that' ) & we will be making a card to take so using up art supplies given by grandparents over the last few years.
It isn't a huge thing but it ticks my boxes for Minsgame, keeps ££ s in our purse, items from landfill that are single use much of the time so I am happy.

thriftish

lessonlearned ~ I am so sorry for your loss. I hope this Christmas is peaceful for you and your son

GQ ~ that AbeBooks site is great! I have bookmarked it for future reference, thank you.

Butterfly Brain ~ love the gifts! What a clever idea, love it!

nannygladys

Nothing to say really, made breakfast, lunch and dinner. Been to work for my8 hours and now I'm really tired, baby sitting duties tomorrow and Wednesday and back to work Thursday so watching what I spend.

I will at some point have to wrap presents, write cards and reassess the Xmas food lists as I have all my dd's and other halves and dgc for dinner and tea on the Day. I have bought/made everything and seem to have got myself organised, but I bet I have forgotten something lol.

Anyway off to bed as I don't seem to be making sense!!!!

Nannyg

katkin

This thread just amazes me.:j

I'm stunned by the flow of anti-consumerism consciousness! wow that was a bit of a mouthful. Imagine what it would be like if we marched down the streets with banners shouting it out. It's like a protest in the making and none to late - so many of us feeling the same way too. I'm absolutely speechless by how we can all come together here and agree on making 2015 - A No Spending Year!

Lets' riot with our scones and budget books and scrimping. We're all in this together..phew, I think I've just outted myself as a middle-aged revolutionary. Maybe I should just go to bed calmly now

I'll be back...keep up the good work girls :T

camelot1001

An early rise for me so I have unsubscribed from all e-mails that I may be tempted by so bye bye Gr0upon, It!son, Amaz0n, etc. I think I have only ever bought 1 thing from them this way anyway. If I NEED anything I will have a look myself!

Caterina

Katkin that's exactly how I feel, like I am staging my own quiet revolution, refusing to buy not only the stuff, but principally refusing to buy the illusion!

I had an interesting experience yesterday, staying in bed with this pesky cold. For the first time in ages I read one of the women's magazines I used to love and religiously subscribe to. I found it so uninteresting, I just saw it for what it is, a shopping catalogue, really. Must have this and can't miss that and the gimmick you can't live without, peppered by interviews to celebs who are totally irrelevant to my life.

I shall know better than buy one again!