Xmas Saver 2014: What's your best bargain? Let us know for a Forum Xmas saver badge

FZwanab

Made lots of fudge in my slow cooker for presents to teachers, neighbours etc., easiest fudge I ever made.

Bought a turkey in Aldi only #9.49.

Did mini Kriskindle using poundland with our kids and hubbie for fun after eights, old spice body wash, headphones, doctor set, bracelets and haribo Christmas selection.

Bought Christmas cards and wrapping paper for next year, only trouble with that is that I did the same last year and only found the cards yesterday!!!

I do shop and scan and get rewarded with amazon vouchers for Christmas presents and got a couple of games like ludo and snakes and ladders with lightning deals for a fiver each.

I also used camelcamelcamel.co.uk to help get the best prices on amazon.

Really sorry I forget how to do photos. Hope this qualifies for a badge?

emceeassassin

FZwanab wrote: »

Made lots of fudge in my slow cooker for presents to teachers, neighbours etc., easiest fudge I ever made.

Can we have some fudge please :EasterBun haha

welshchocolatelover

Made heart shaped lavender sachets for teachers and colleagues using remnants of fabric. All were loved

Best deal though was a little bitter sweet :rotfl: Used tesco point double ups to get a joint pressie for my sons - a PS4 with game. Christmas day, much excitement followed by stropping husband, sulking kids and non-working PS4 :mad:. Boxing day straight down to Mr T's who were brilliant and replaced it with a working one, and for some reason (which I still can't fathom out) refunded us £50 cash. Used this, plus contributions from son's Christmas money to buy headsets for said PS4, which were on 3 for 2 - total cost £140, (of which £50 was the refund from Mr T) plus a "free" third headset sold immediately on flee-bay for £55! So my happy boys ended up with a £70 headset for the princely cost of £20 each :T

Father Christmas did most of his shopping on Amazon this year.

Got BT TV installed earlier in the year (same price as Sky, better internet which need for work) - gave us £150 cash back via Quidco (received and used towards presses), plus £150 Sainsbury's voucher which paid for Turkey etc etc.

I never buy in the January sales unless there is something which I *know* someone will love for Christmas the following year. Which usually means I buy diddly squat. I've started giving vouchers to parents for Christmas, which means they get better deal presents in the January sales. They do a lot for us and we are so grateful to them :A

Former_MSE_Andrea

FZwanab, let us have the fudge recipe and you'll get a badge

craftingmad

I actually saved tons in the sale - by not buying anything as I didn't need anything. In the past I have just bought things because they were reduced but this year (and with the threat of redundancy for my hubby) I just kept repeating Martin's mantras over again and walked away with nothing

FZwanab

MSE_Andrea wrote: »

FZwanab, let us have the fudge recipe and you'll get a badge

Here you go, I put it on a thread in old style the other day but probably hard to see :


I struggled for years making fudge now I make it easily in my slow cooker! 500g chocolate, 1 tin condensed milk, 1 dtsp vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon butter, cook on low for 2 hours with lid off and stir every 15 minutes. Pour out onto lined tray cool and refrigerate overnight, cut into chunks and enjoy or gift. I make lovely white chocolate fudge and milk chocolate fudge, hope that helps some of you.

Hint for cleaning sticky slow cooker afterwards: pop in a dishwasher tablet/powder and some very warm water to dissolve and leave sc on low for a few hours, it makes it very easy to rinse and dry, hth.

rose28454

I bought Beat Headphones at Tesco Direct. Used CC vouchers and assistant applied a money off code so £99.00 headphones for £15.00

Food shop at Waitrose last week. Final bill £83.10 paid £1.79 after multibuys applied on reduced party food.

Former_MSE_Andrea

too_much_debt wrote: »

Two large singing Christmas cuddly toys (Reindeer and Dog) for £5 each down from £30 each from B&Q (saving £50).


http://www.diy.com/departments/large-singing-swaying-reindeer/751701_BQ.prd


Have a picture on my computer but not sure how to load it here.

Feel free to tweet it to us instead if you can't upload it

https://twitter.com/MSE_Forum/status/549506023204331521

Former_MSE_Andrea

FZwanab wrote: »

Here you go, I put it on a thread in old style the other day but probably hard to see :


I struggled for years making fudge now I make it easily in my slow cooker! 500g chocolate, 1 tin condensed milk, 1 dtsp vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon butter, cook on low for 2 hours with lid off and stir every 15 minutes. Pour out onto lined tray cool and refrigerate overnight, cut into chunks and enjoy or gift. I make lovely white chocolate fudge and milk chocolate fudge, hope that helps some of you.

Yum, thank you! Badge on its way, from MSE Badger of course

Emmala

If someone tells me how to upload a photo I can add one later!!

My bargain was a folding Reeb@k exercise mat for my son......they're about £25 new and we've been fobbing him off as they are so pricey (he's 11 but needs one for the circuit training element of his swim club schedule). Anyway, I'd popped into our local charity shop and as I turned to leave, there by the door was a brand new one.....99p :T

We let him have it early to take to the last session before the Xmas holidays, and he came home buzzing as it's the same one the 'coolest' kid has got ( and I smiled to myself thinking I bet his mum paid a lot more than 99p for theirs! :rotfl:)

So nice to see him so happy with such a bargain!