It’s never too early for a thrifty, gifty Christmas

Topher

After reading this thread, which chimes with a few books I own (with the same message), I'd like to add a summary of where I am at with this idea. First of all with my understanding of the O.P.'s opening post, I read this as coming up with ideas for gifts that uphold that goal of enjoying Christmas while still staying thrifty. This brought up my own ideas which as well as coping with gifts that I either want or ought to give, involves preparing for the event itself, the celebration and our family's traditions to mark the event, the run up to the celebration and how we enjoy the whole holiday. In our case this is also with thrift in mind. In my family, we are resistant to influences (usually commercially based) to throw money at the celebration, and to meet falsely laid (also by commerce) expectations. At the same time we have people of all ages and backgrounds in our extended family and friendship group, so steering through the different levels of "going along with" those influences. We've had Influence resistant weddings, birthday celebrations etc. and tend to go with "We'll make & uphold our own traditions thank you very much" attitude, strangely enough this attitude is also thrifty.
Books that have influenced me and reinforced my approach (sometimes you need a bit of courage to fly in the face of influences), are ....
A greener Christmas - Scheherazade Goldsmith
Have a Goode Year - Shirley Goode
Unplug The Christmas Machine - Jo Robinson and Jean Coppock Staeheli.

....amongst others on thrift, and others on Christmas recipes, as well as clipped magazine articles on keeping the whole Christmas celebration (food, gifts & activities) collected over the last forty years.

Happy_One

Well as we are now past the first week of October and the days are starting to get colder and darker! For me it’s time to start on the Christmas plans.No big deals but I do like to give family members and friends a present, small and useful bits and pieces,
I hate ‘gift sets from the chemist,’ prefer to make up gift bags of my own, a pair of fluffy socks bag of fudge, paperback (tons of choice at the charity shops, and most only looked through,some not even read) a good over the holiday gift for a stay at home and relax friend. Lots of ideas out there and with all the Autumn and Christmas bazaars coming up soon, along with Home Bargains,Poundland and charity shops, plenty of choice.
I don’t want to give up giving small gifts as I enjoy it
Lots of Xmas sweets in the shops already but some of them not good value, so I buy regular packs of sweets and biscuits to hand round, after all you don’t eat the pretty wrappers.

Topher I have the Shirley Goode book Have a Goode Year, one of my all time favourites, looking very much the worse for wear now but still interesting and very useful

Hard_Up_Hester

This year I'm making sloe gin, blackberry vodka and reusable make up removers and face wipes.
The gin and vodka are in jars, steeping.
I've crocheted all the small make up removers and I've started on the knitted face wipes.

stirchleygirl

hi all

first of all sory abut the spelinining im disabld and curntly of work with a relaps wich amongst many othr nasty symptms affects my ability to spel

im tryinining to mak the most of this bein of work and bein fairly bed-ridn and the fact that my carers arnt havinining to wash and dres me for work or undress me aftr work for them to help organis Christmas stuf

I did a 'file then save as' of last years xmas gift spred sheet to have one for this year so I can kep track and my memry not good du to disabilty

so they got al of my gift stash boxes and got them together in one place - thininings I by thru out the year - when on ofer - usuly Avon toiletris when they are on offr - as it coms to the door (as I cant physicaly go shopinining) and stuf that I was givn as gifts that I don't wont that can be re-giftd
and gosh so many boxes of stuf - I rely don't ned to by from Avon for a few years

also they hav ben sortining for me - brinining stuf from the many many clutr spots (clutr mountens mor like) to my bed for me to mak desisions on (kep, charity, sell, put in recyclinining, or bin if to brokn)

from this we got to my lovly flecy blankets - wich I can no longr us as my body is stuk on overly hot (only summer quilt 4.5 tog ans windows stil open and no nite cloths - saves a fortune in heatinining bils tho) so as these lovly blankets are in excellent condition im re-giftinining them to pepl for xmas as I no they will mak good use of them - and an earlir post mentonining hygge has inspird me and im goinining to cal it a hygge kit with some other bits and put a card explanining hygge in with it
also I hav to many mugs (they sem to breed) so they brort them ALL up to my bed and I sortd them into keep, use as contanrs - pretty but chipd, for charity, nice with no chips and patens stil good to be regiftd with some hot choc again brand as a hygge set

they then went thru the gift stash boxes - so many avon toiletis - and iv now allocatd everyon on my list includinining some up cominiining birthdays and aniversris
except
work secret santa (they put 3 options upto £10 on the slip of what they want - that way yu ar not byining tat and they get a gift that they want) as the draw wont be done until decembr

and thos that I get tubs of choc for

I thort id got thos sortd when Iceland wer doing 3 for £10.00 last week and placd the ordr for delivry on Monday but when the order arrivd the 6 tubs id orderd wher not sent as not avalabl but the boxes of biscits arivd family circle 2 boxes for £4.00 these biscit and tubs of choc I give to relatives that ar families as it is chepr than havinining to get individual gifts for each of them

next steps are to start wrappinining them - from my saved stash of saved wrappinining papr (I open gifts carefuly so I can re-use the papr) and from my stash of saved ribbons and bows and gift bags - havnt brort gift wrap etc in years in fact for non xmas themed it has been decades since I last brort any

I also save nice boxes to pakage gifts in

I also save gretinining cards and upcycle them into new ones and gift tags

PipneyJane

MSE_Tine wrote: »

As the semi-resident Old Style expert/fanatic of MSE, I am (in)famous across our office floor for being a human incarnation of a cornucopia of homemade cakes, cordials, preserves and sweets. Even Martin has fallen for the charms of my balsamic pecans, and my appearances in the office on a Monday morning usually gets a few greetings of "hey *cough* any… banana bread?"

So here is the first of hopefully many blogs inspired by our Old Style board.

Rhubarb & Ginger Cordial

Please share your successes, recipes and photos!

We are the Borg. We will assimilate you! :rotfl:

Thanks for starting this thread, Tine. My Christmas gift treats are Sloe Gin Truffles and Chocolate Vodka.

Chocolate Vodka

4 regular Mars Bars, cut into small cubes
1L "cooking" vodka

Method

1. Suspend a bowl over a saucepan full of hot water. Add the chopped Mars Bars to the bowl.
2. Bring the saucepan to the boil and simmer until the Mars Bars melt/go soft and squishy. (I've never got them fully melted.)
3. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and stir in about 1/4 of the vodka. Use a handheld, wand-style blender to combine thoroughly.
4. Add the remainder of the vodka and blend well. Carefully pour the chocolate vodka mixture into a jug and then decant back into the vodka bottle.
5. Seal the bottle and, once cool, store in the freezer. Serve direct from the freezer. The vodka will thicken but not freeze.
6. You will be left with about 1/4 of the chocolate vodka mixture, after you've refilled the bottle. Either pour it into another container and store in the freezer or chill the jug in the fridge and enjoy once very cold (cook's treat).

- Pip

Happy_One

Been to the shops this morning looking for bargains to put into Christmas stockings and bags. Did well in the charity shop, got a scented candle in a glass jar, a pack of ten heart shaped candles and a pack of two Hugs soaps all 50p each.

I like to put a bag of gold wrapped chocolate coins in each stocking/bag and found lots of shops have them at 50p each so if I buy two each week in the run up to the 25th I will have enough

I’ve been making scented pine cones, collected the cones earlier in the year when out walking, gave them a good wash in soapy water then dried then in the oven, next day I put them into a plastic bag and sprinkled them with some essential oil that I got cheaply on a market stall, tie the top of the bag and leave for a while. I save the cellophane bags that birthday cards come in to make up nice packs, three or four cones and tie the top with some gold gift wrap, makes a nice little stocking filler for a lady.

Former_MSE_Tine

PipneyJane wrote: »

We are the Borg. We will assimilate you! :rotfl:

Thanks for starting this thread, Tine.

Cough... should probably be said that I've actually been on the Forums for around 12 years - just that I wasn't around as MSE staff
A few years ago I joined the gang of Forum Team contractors before managing to join as a permanent member of staff last yeat to support Andrea... and then she decided it was time to hand over and it feels that I accidentally ended up as Forum Manager :eek:

So you see... I've been assimilated for a veeeeery long time

I really must finish my next blog post! Yikes!

happydays89

Our local red cross shop is selling all books for 50p each, they are all immaculate and look brand new,I have been buying cookery books as Christmas gifts this year.were having a very frugal Christmas.

Nargleblast

A friend of mine makes beautiful soaps, so I have ordered some from her as Christmas gifts. I also have some home made liqueurs on the go - blackberry whisky, elderberry brandy, elderberry vodka and orange brandy. I ordered some 200ml hip flask style bottles through that South American river place, so those I get presents for will be mostly getting homemade stuff. I find that people get to the stage where there's very little they need or want, so something self indulgent and luxurious that you can't get in the shops without selling a kidney first is more likely to be appreciated.

Happy_One

Hi Everyone and how’s your Thrifty Gifty Christmas coming along? I’ve been to two Christmas fairs and a mega Christmas jumble sale recently and managed to come home with a very good collection of amazing bits and pieces including cuddly toys, toiletries lots of very new looking books, both for adults and children. And a jumper and dress for myself both BNWTs!

On the home front I’ve been making dried orange slices, three large oranges from the greengrocers for £1 20 made two trays full and they came out very well, saw the same at a garden centre £15 for a small box and thought mine were just as good, will combine these with the scented pine cones I made a few weeks back along with some cinnamon sticks I got from Poundland.
Have knitted fingerless mittens with some very posh cashmere yarn that I got from a charity shop for £1 plus knitted a load of tiny Christmas puddings with a chocolate inside.
All sounds very Blue Peterish but I enjoy doing all these bits and pieces and people do seem to appreciate these kind of gifts, plus it keeps me busy in my retirement!