Not dropping Santa down the chimney!: 2025 Santa, Shoebox & Life Chit,Chat,Chunter! ALL welcome....

Happy_Kitties

I hope everyone is doing okay, six shoeboxes completed so far….its a miracle!!! Just waiting for friend to hand over two empty shoeboxes, I have things ready to fill them. Once January was over I cannot believe how quick this year has gone.

i think I have a house that will rival Katiehound’s, not lots of quilts and doggie beds but filled with items I have picked up cheap. I have things everywhere and with having local connections, I picked up more bargains yesterday that were in store but not online with Arg@s.

Really hoping that I can drop shoeboxes off at the end of the month and create some room. I also have birthdays this month so I am trying to be prepared-now that will be a miracle!!!

DD is almost finished for Christmas and her partner, last few bits to pick up but will probably wait for Black Friday (which I hate) to get the items cheaper. I have mainly got them things they need or have bought specific items for the house which I knew will go down well as soon as I spotted them. 

Life has been abit hectic, hopefully things will begin to settle down now….i hope so.

Hope everyone is doing okay and RL isn’t causing too many issues

Happy_Kitties

I forgot to say i got some really good books at bargain prices for £2.00- £3.00 from Arg@s. I got a Paddington Suitcase of books for £3 (that is now retailing at £12)the latest Jamie Olivier, Nadiya’s Everyday Baking for £3.00(which is currently retailing at £19). I noticed that Amaz@n price matched for a short time. The books flew out of stock with Arg@s so what I wasn’t able to get there I managed to pick up from Amaz@n. Some will be used for charity, some for Christmas presents. One of the best deals of the year🙂

Happy_Kitties

I hope everyone is doing okay. It has become full steam ahead in the house, it means things are everywhere for a few weeks. I have sorted out some items to drop off to the shoebox organiser in a couple of weeks including 7 shoeboxes……it is a miracle. Might even get the 8th done if I get my act together!!!

The Dunelm Bags of Joy labels are due out soon, I have started to put together some bags with base bits in- an advent book, Christmas book, activity book with pencils and jigsaw so far. I can then add depending on the label. Once I have done the bags and have dropped them off aswell as the initial drop off to the shoebox organiser, I should have a lot more room to play with to sort out Christmas presents. I have wrapped quite a few presents, but it is always handy getting the birthday ones ready and the Christmas ones that need to be sent. Hoping most things will be sorted by the end of September as I can’t get to everything until items are dropped off 

A stoke of luck, by chance Dun elm had Christmas candles, small ones down to 62p and big jar candles £1.50 in.  Bought quite a few of both. I will use one of the small ones to add to a present, and a big one to add to someone else’s present, the rest will go to charity. 

As a treat I have bought myself an autumn wreath for the autumn display that I do. Time is beginning to speed up again. 

Happy_Kitties

In a year of challenges with some highs, I actually dropped off 6 shoeboxes to the organiser yesterday along with items for the organiser to make up gift bags for local projects.
i have nearly finished the final 2 shoeboxes (just didn’t quite finish the 7th, it need tweaking, so close!) so those 2 boxes will be dropped off with the remaining items for their community projects, hopefully by the end of September. The organiser was telling me that demand with local projects still exceeds what they can do considering originally it started as a shoebox hub.

it now means I can access some of the Christmas presents I picked up in the sales that were stored. I took a look in one box last night with all the presents wrapped but the box was very overpowering. Lots of Lush items bought this year, I find them abit too much but it makes for a very popular present.

Dun elm Bags of Joy labels out next week, looking forward to picking them up, then a big drop off planned with bestie, then off for food.

Christmas trip planned with bestie in December, back to the place where i grew up. We have planned to see a Christmas tree festival, go round a Christmas market and hopefully a Christmas concert in the mix aswell. I have booked rooms in a very posh place that I used to pass as a child, still got a discount on the rooms, was very money savvy!!

Also a two night trip away planned with a good friend next month, lots of savings made so far, she left me to do the booking as she knows I like a bargain!!!

In the shops wise, no more bargains to be had. I think the remaining that I do need for Christmas are definitely items I would get much cheaper in the Black Friday events, even though I dislike Black Friday.

Behind on sending out two birthday items……no surprise there…some things never change!!!!

Katiehound

Huge Congratulations Happy_Kitties on getting your boxes done.

yes, I know I haven't been on here.......long story..... mainly 'cos I was coughing for all of May & most of June (aching ribs, nose bleeds etc felt very rough). Followed by 2 week cruise to the Baltic, then developed a cold & a cough on my return home. More coughing! went to Ireland for 5 weeks- pretty incident free.

I started looking at my boxes for real about 3 weeks ago having been collecting 'stuff' all year. Panic when I realised I was short of 3 pairs gloves / mittens. None in the shops, they might have Christmas gear displayed but it's too early for gloves!! So I had to set to and knit, and then the worst bit, sewing up!

I spent last weekend packing the boxes, then wrapping. Last Friday I suddenly realised that I had no selotape & no chance of searching really cheapie places... managed to find wide rolls @ £1 each. One roll almost gone as the boxes are more tape than paper!!

There is now only one area collector & she is bang in the city centre.
I haven't been there for many years so it was something of a stressful drive in the foul weather too. Boxes delivered thankfully. The only teeny hitch was when I came to drive home, I had plotted my route with regard to one way streets etc only to discover that my plan (also using Google street view) was a no-go, literally, when the last bit of the main road ahead has been pedestrianised.   Luckily I have a good sense of direction & didn't get lost........

Going to Ireland on Monday so now trying to get to grips with packing the car.

Nelliegrace

I have nice handkerchiefs for the shoeboxes. 
We bought wind up torches one year. I thought we would never get out of IKEA. 

Katiehound

I bought wind-up torches online this year- they were a bargain, under £2 each so I have a stash in  the cupboard for the next 2 years! (to qualify for free delivery)
 Two of us (an area collector) pretty much bought up their clearance stock as I see they are no longer available.

I haven't been in IKEA for years and years- none near here-  but I recall it was a maze to escape 'tho I understand there is a short cut !

Katiehound

Actually packing the boxes themselves wasn't too bad. I did 6 elderly ones and laid them out on the bed and then distributed the items between them. Then I packed each box in turn, ticking off the list & adding the extra gifts. Put on the lid & did a temp tape of the list.

At the end there was just one thing that had got left out!, luckily it was only the second box that was to blame! I then wrapped the boxes next day.

I only do 2 family boxes so that really wasn't too hard except they had to be selotaped to stay closed!

I got all my boxes from an independent shoe shop in Ireland- he always saves them - so nice strong Ecco boxes brought home much earlier in the year.

I have already started knitting a hat... never too early! and as I type 4 mugs are in the dishwasher getting ready too! 4 for £1 was too good an opportunity to miss.
(Sadly the knee blanket did not get completed, so that will also be for next year)

and I just remembered- the saga of the rats! 5 holes in the garden July/August. Each time I blocked a hole they dug a new one...... I have just stuffed the holes with steel wool & stones

Katiehound

I realise that I didn't elaborate on the previous Irish trip

I don't really want to go there!
The car broke down about 70 miles from destination, still under manufacturer's warranty so needed to go to a dealer but sadly not the nearest to my house. Long story very short- dealer said warranty wouldn't cover it, dealer in UK said they'd fix it- bring it back. What 380 miles and a ferry away? Unreasonable. Got to my house nearly 6 hours late driving my car but had to return it next day & collect the Renault trafic van.

Dealer in Limerick fixed it- ha ha. When I got home I could still smell fumes so took it to my regular garage (who serviced my Fiat for 16 years.)
They said- yes, someone has been there, it's wrongly assembled. New part? No, we don't think so.......Euros 2,000 for nothing. Plus it cost nearly £200 to remedy. 

journey back. Rough crossing so ferry couldn't easily dock at Holyhead- 3 hours late. plus they couldn't get the ramp down as it was too windy & dangerous. I would have been one of the first cars off, instead had to wait for lower deck to empty & most of upper deck and then drive down an internal ramp. Oh, and communication on the car decks is.....virtually nil.
 Home 4 hours later than usual. Poor dog , again!

Happy_Kitties

@Katiehound you never ever have any luck with cars and journeys, and i can believe that of Holyhead. My new car is about 18 months old now, the problem I have had with faulty sensors has been a nightmare. I remember when the issue first started, but I managed to get the car to the dealership fortunately. We went through the list of things I was having trouble with,  they kept saying user error but I stood firm. Four hours waiting, I fell asleep in the waiting room!! They came out sheepishly to say there were faulty sensors, only about 200 miles on the clock.
I hope the coughing has now subsided and the rats sorted. You have had quite an eventful year.

i was hoping to finish my final two shoeboxes, I’m so close and have been planning a drop off to the shoebox hub along with extra items for their extra community projects that they do but health has decided to get in the way, hopefully next Saturday everything will be dropped off.

i have been dropping off quite a few Dun elm Bags of Joy which I am pleased with. I’ve been collecting bargains all year for these and making up bags. Awful to see so many labels asking for oodies to stay warm.

The plan is, as community items go out I can wrap up Christmas presents and pop into a big storage box I now have free. Going to London the end of the month but don’t really need to buy anything as I’ve had a bumper year for bargains and picked up some lovely things for family members much cheaper than usual. 

@Nelliegrace I never think to put hankies in my shoeboxes, I try with a tie if I can even though it isn’t on the list. I’m lucky I have a main shoebox hub not too far from me, we get extra hints of things that people love in the shoeboxes. I’m sure the organiser has been out to Eastern Europe delivering boxes 2 or 3 times now, she said people cannot understand why people would be so kind as to send them a shoebox of goodies.
Fortunately I have never been in an IKEA!