The 2008 Money Neutral Gift Challenge

jamtart6

well done sugar spun!!!

Can I just point out about opening an Alliance and Leicester e-saver. I opened it about 2 weeks ago, and just received my £20 from Quidco in my account. I think its a really good deal, so might be of use to some people to bump up present values. You dont have to have an A&L current account either.


I need to get back into eBaying, but summers not the best time to do it usually...

mum2one

A big hello to everyone, here goes my June monthly total.


payments - me / dad / mum

Quidco
£39.84 / £12.56 / £31.30

Greasy Palm
63.23 / £10.95

Toluna
27970

Valued opinions
£5.75 / £19.50 / £10.95

Home of research
£15.25 / £19.05 / £3.53

You gov
15.00 / £21.50

market points
315

Mutual Points
1550/936/811

One poll
£32.20 / £25.70 / £28.50

Pigs back
4.25/ 0.00 / 6.55

Sainsburys Nectar points
325

Boots
£19.10

Tesco
£125.00 vouchers exchanged £500 Haven voucher on order
£5.02 on the go

Christmas tin
£325/00

Internet Activity tin
£42.00

36 FIRST CLASS STAMPS

Daughters ballet fund
£60.00

others
£5.00 asda card
£15.00 tesco card
£10.00 Amazon vouchers - won on GFK
£15.00 Argos gift card
£6.00 Love to shop vouchers

Walkers brit trips
120 points

Not doing to bad x

jamtart6

Well done Mum to One!!! You are doing brilliantly!!!

Well I've just basically blown the budget eek! My OH's birthday, spent £80 and just spent my Nectar points on Wii accessories! Oopsies!!! Need to work out where I'm up to and get back on track with doing surveys etc.

jamtart6

Eek...need to get on the money making bandwagon!!!

Total Cash fund 342.13 Original Cost 536.17 Total Spent 266.20 Total Saved 269.97 Total Left 75.93









This includes all friends bdays and xmas presents for this year. It does not include 2 family birthdays (spend > £50) and all family xmas presents ARGH!!! My budget for last xmas was £400.....so I need to get thinking of ideas! ...and cheaply!

mum2one

Hi jamtart6

Your doing brilliantly, same here kept family bday and xmas out of the equation.

The gd thing is with spending ur nectar pointys on wii stuff, you get a better deal, I've got my eye on more trips on Orient Express, the points side could be workable its the remaining balance that is HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
x

SugarSpun

I was in the UK briefly this week, and I went to Sainsburys and found a socks and cufflinks set with "Best Dad" or something on them, reduced from 5 to 1.24. So I bought them.

Still to get:
Grandmother: theatre tokens (waiting for 2000 points), avocaat (€4)
Brother: can of that weird Jack Daniels/Coke pre-mix (€1.25)
Dad: pack of German sausages (€3)
My partner: a few small weird things, aftershave, a radiometer and some chocolate (budget £60, should come in below)

Hurrah!

jamtart6

** Nicked Mum2ones' list and changed the values for me

Quidco

103.92

Cashback Rewards

12.69

Envirophone

5.00

Money from Boots card

45.00

Money from Argos card

19.72

Onepoll

20.80

eBay

135.00

Total £342



Toluna
26000

Pigs back
£21.00

Sainsburys Nectar points
£0 ** :eek:

Boots
£30.00 points, £30 vouchers

Tesco
Approx £40 in deals

Got £75 left for the rest of the year (plus the Boots vouchers and Tesco deals)

For birthday/anniversary gifts from now until the end of the year, I estimate I will need £100 so the amount I have left should cover all that.

Friends xmas gifts are already sorted, and now have to start thinking about ideas for family for xmas. Will still probably need £400...:eek: so eBay is probably the only way for this....

Anyone got any good ideas for Mum's?? Mine is so hard to buy for, I've done the beauty hamper, gardening hamper and sweety box idea already....

SugarSpun

There's a Laura Ashley throw on the Grabbit board for £3.50. Would your mum like that?

jamtart6

SugarSpun wrote: »

There's a Laura Ashley throw on the Grabbit board for £3.50. Would your mum like that?

Thanks for the suggestion (and what a bargain!) but this isn't Mum's kinda thing at all. She likes practical presents (she'd prob prefer an iron!) except I've exhausted all options.

I've done:

beauty hamper
gardening hamper
pot of gold
sweety box
pamper vouchers
scrapbook/memory book

She doesn't:
watch films
read books
go the cinema
wear much makeup
wear watches

we have:
a camera
a wii
a tv
all electrical appliances you could possibly think of

options left:
a cd (gets one every year)
perfume (gets this every year)
slippers (loves getting them, i'd get shot if i didnt get her some)

....which leave a very unexciting bag of xmas goodies


See my dilemma???

Ideally I would like to send them away on a break, but its "wasting money" and I can't book it without working out when they are both off work which I would have to ask them. for their anniversary, I said I'd pay for them to go to Paris...and 4 years on, they won't go as its 'too expensive' and would 'rather go somewhere hot'...but won't let me pay for it! :eek:

You all have 6 months to help me think of an idea!!!

SugarSpun

An organic veg box delivered weekly?

A bird bath and a bird book/binoculars?

National Trust membership?

Do you have Wii Fit? Would she like that? Or a family board game?
That doesn't go down well with my family - we have loads that we can't play any more because we're all too competitive and it gets nasty.