Those of you who started planning Christmas in June...

[MardyBra]

... was it really worth it?

Or do you feel a teensy bit disappointed that you spent half a year planning one day?

I agree it was worth it.

jenny I think your comment was unnecessarily rude.

DH usually has November and December deadlines so that means that I don't see him much then but the laundry still appears and the crisps still disappear so I have to start early. I'd love if that meant a quieter December but it generally doesn't and definitely didn't this year when I was I'll for a week at the start of the month.

I just don't get starting early... I am all christmassed out by Boxing Day anyway and I never start one thing till December. When the DCs were tiny I started slightly earlier because of stocking stuff but now that has stopped, it's a doddle starting preps a couple of weeks before the big day. Quite enjoyable too.

There's no need to start shopping early nowadays because Sales start pre Christmas online and in store so you don't get bargains by starting early, you spend more by doubling up on presents. The only time I tried to start early I had forgotten the huge bag of presents I had already bought until too late so that rather defeted the whole object of the exercise .

Mardy, you're obsessed about how other people do Christmas.

Do you start your Christmas moaning in June? Was it worth it? Does thinking about other people thinking about Christmas in June not spoil your summer?

My Christmas had been amazing. A month of the warm and fuzzies.

I started in January 2014 bought christmas cards that then got pavked away to be sent out in December. Over the months I pivked up little thing s for my 4 childrens and dhs stocking ans just stored them in my cupboard. Yes totally worth it. I got some bargains and we had a lowish cost christmas that was filled with lots of fun.

I've started for 2015 already, by picking up half price pulling crackers in Tesco yesterday

But seriously, this year has been the most stressful Christmas which had the least amount of planning. A family bereavement earlier in the year meant I had no passion for Christmas then a ten day illness which wiped the family out mid December, meant everything was done in a panic the week before and weren't able to enjoy the build up with the kids properly. We didn't eat at home Christmas day, I seriously don't think I could have coped with the shopping for that too. Hence I'm starting early for next Christmas.

I went out on Boxing Day, to do my Christmas shopping for next year while the sales are on. Bought all the toys and loads of clothes (just got the next size up so it will definitely fit) Got lovely wrapping paper too, much better than I usually get because the price was knocked right down. Just 50p for a 10m roll of a beautiful quality foil!
Grabbed the cards out of a bargain bin too. Saved so much money that I will have plenty left over throughout the year not having to do anything else. Oh oh oh... yeah and I got the dc advent calendars for 9p each!!! I did check and they will still be in date until 06.2015!
I spent all day yesterday wrapping and writing out the cards, then in the evening I stored it all away nicely in the attic along with the tons of extra decorations I managed to find at slashed prices! Roll on Christmas 2015, I am ready!!!

Like bollocks! But this is the way some people have bragged about getting ready to the extremes

ooops ruined it with ood calendars haha

I've also started for 2015 - Christmas present buying in the sales helps me to stay organised. So far everything done online.

For me it's not about planning the "perfect" Christmas - it's because I like to buy as much as I can in advance, avoiding being massively broke in November/December and because I'm too fucking lazy to tackle the shops when they are filled with Christmas shoppers.

Don't start any proper planning until mid-November. However, I did make a few gifts this year and some of the work for that started several weeks ago. Don't think it was June though. Now I come to think on it would have been September at the earliest

My Christmas isn't done yet! I have extended family Christmas with aunts and uncles today and then PiL tomorrow. It basically runs in a blur of meals and parties until New Year. Totally worth planning for.

You need to break the TAT cycle. Just be honest- cut down who you gift too. Buy small and no just for the sake of it tat. Easy then.

Nobody wants a Boots 3 for 2 gift set- honestly (look at the swap thread on here) . All the Boots sets are just made by Cussons and packaged differently. You can get Lynx, Dove etc of 3 for £5 most of the year, or Dove for £1 an item - putting 2 in a gift box still makes it a carp gift for any teenager.

Back to basics. Simpler, cheaper and more fun. Only give if you can give someone aloverly bespoke gift (ie you know them well enough)

I know that I am Grinch. At the school tombola over 200 Boots Christmas items were given- That was over £2000 of wasted cash- at 1 school. There were 3 big GOK WAN sets included.

I started shopping in September for my kids and family as my dp and I aren't that well off and need to budget. If I started in December i would not be able to get what I wanted. And yes it was worth it as my dc were very happy.

The opening sounds a little smug to me.

Sorry op not opening!

I started in July. Bought loads in the summer sales and saved a bomb. December was stress - free and Christmas has been brilliant. Totally worth it. Although, I didn't actually spend 6 months with my focus solely on Christmas. I just bought presents when I saw them on sale.

I tend to leave things to the last minute, but I am going to do a little bit each month this year to avoid all the stresses of postal delay/running out of money/ shop selling out of vital items/ late night wrapping sessions which happen every year.

I will buy or make lovely presents for people as soon as I think of them, wrap them at the start of December and have the rest of the month free to deliver presents, bake tasty biscuits, drink mulled wine and so g carols.

I only gift to close family, so I don't spend anything on 'tat'. I refuse to put pound store stuff in the dc's stockings as it's a waste of money, I never buy anyone something they don't want. I enjoy giving gifts because I make sure I put thought into what I buy for people.

I didn't spend the year buying 'tat' at all. I bought DD1 craft sets as and when i saw them on offer. They are her perfect presents. DD2 has been on about a baby and a pram for ages. So i bought them in end of summer sales. Thankfully shes at an age when shes not bothered about packaging.

I love Christmas. I am a Christmas nutter. This year we spent £400 to cover the whole family for presents including nieces and nephews. RRP was over £1000. So yes. I like saving money.

I too have started. Got ten rolls of wrapping paper in Morrisons yesterday. 18pence per 3m roll.

how is it rude, Dawndonna?

did i forget we have to type 'lighthearted' [hhm]

maybe she does spend a lot on presents?

I start early (usually end august in the sales). It does not consume my every waking moment - rather, I buy what I know people will like and have the bonus of getting it at a good price. I got my DM a Liberty scarf months ago (thanks to the Christmas bargain thread ) for £10. Would never normally be able to afford stuff like that, and my DM was thrilled to bits.

Starting early means I can spread the cost, take more time to consider what I'm buying (rather than rush round the shops, picking stuff up for the sake of it and thinking "oh that will do for x"), and I won't have to drag reluctant DC round the shops in December by myself as DH works offshore for most of the month. DS2's birthday is mid-December so I like to be done by then (bar food shopping) so I can focus on making his birthday special.

I also have a spreadsheet so I know what I bought and where I hid it!

I tell you what - at the start of December I was extremely grateful to my January self for buying the cards, the wrapping paper and gift tags.

I also start planning early and I don't buy 'tat'. (And am with other posters who think it's rude when those who do Christmas differently and dare to start before Dec 23rd are accused of being grabby, commercial, tat monsters).

I have a full-on and demanding job and I finished a PhD this year. My job was juggled which meant I was able to do all the school-related Christmas stuff in the run-up to the end of term. All presents I gave were (IMO) well-thought out and tailored for each recipient. Some things were particular niche items which I ordered from the States and they all arrived in plenty of time. I did a month of fun things with the DCs in December including a 3-day trip to Lapland which because of the temperatures needed a lot of clothes planning.

We had a fantastic time and probably our best Christmas yet. But it wasn't a fairy which organised it all. Without the planning (which I enjoy doing) it wouldn't have happened.

I don't give a stuff how other people choose to plan (or not) their own Christmases, or how much they choose to spend and am always amazed at how much other people care about how others choose to organise their own families.

It was worth it for me.

I saved a couple of hundred of pounds through bargain hunting, it helps me to spread the cost and I had a lovely stress free December.

I don't get stressed about Xmas so it wasn't a disappointment.

Yes it is worth it, but I'm still in the midst of celebrating Christmas and haven't finished swapping presents yet. So not one day for us.

Personally, I prefer to start early, finish my shopping in Nov and use Dec to enjoy doing Christmassy things as a family.

I also never buy tat either. Don't buy smelly sets (I don't know anyone who actually appreciates receiving these) but my DDs do get a lot of practical items each year that I can buy as I go along. Vests, pants, socks etc can all be bought whenever in the next size up, likewise pens, books and stationery bits are also easy to buy. I get the practical presents bought early, which means then I've only got to buy the DDs toys / requested items in Nov. Other family gets spread out in Oct / Nov. This generally works well for me.

However, this year I started working full time again, had OFSTED and a hard term meant I was shopping up to Christmas Eve. Whilst Christmas itself was lovely, the run up was no where near as nice; we didn't find time to do all the Christmassy things I love like going ice skating at the shopping mall, visiting Father Christmas or the Panto trip. I have to say that this Christmas period has been no where as good as a result.

Next year, I'm back to starting my shopping in the summer.