AIBU to ask how to have a lovely, frugal Christmas

[milkyman]

We will be at someone's for Christmas day and have a 5 and 1 year old. I am a SAHM so not much money for presents for family this year - looking for some inspiration!

Check out some of these articles. They are by minimalists who deliberately buy less to make space for the important things.
www.becomingminimalist.com/simple-christmas-links/

Tell people you don't want to make a big fuss over presents this year, and agree to a spending limit of perhaps 5 pounds per adult (or even less, depending)

Maybe you could bake a few batches of different christmassy biscuits, wrap a few up in cellophane with tinsel etc, and that would make good but cheap little gifts for people. Much nicer than tat from Poundland. You can do this with the 5 year old, and turn it into a nice Christmas activity for them.

Don't buy for anyone except your own kids? Or suggest a secret Santa for the adults.

We only buy for our own children, nieces and nephews. No adults or friends.

Don't spend much on the 1 year old's presents (they will appreciate cheap/second hand presents just as much), and try not to go overboard on the 5 year olds.

For other family, maybe home made stuff if they like that kind of thing, and if you are good at making it. I personally love home made stuff, but it is important to make things that a particular person would actually like to receive rather than what looks like fun to make on pinterest, iyswim.
For close family, bulk out cheaper bought gifts with home made goodies, eg:
Chocolate truffles using cheap dark chocolate (30p/100g kind of price), double cream and butter have gone down amazingly well in the past when I've made them (I put a slosh of whisky in too) and are easy (if a little messy) to make.
Christmas biscuits, shortbread, etc can be cheap to make and there are loads of good recipes out there. Just be wary of some christmas recipes (like fruitcake) which need a lot of costly ingredients.
Packaged carefully home made edibles can look really nice. If you need to give token presents you could put chocolates or sweets etc in cellophane inside a cheap but nice mug or similar.
Maybe speak to some family members about setting a maximum limit on presents, and try to avoid buying for lots of extended family.

For grandparents of the dc, try giving a present "from the dc" as well, like a handprint ornament or Christmas card. Fun to make with the dc, and makes your overall offering look more generous without spending any more money. Search pinterest for "kids hand print Christmas" or similar.

Have a look on pintrest, there's loads of ideas for inexpensive home made gifts.

There's a Christmas bargains thread and a home made pontastic thread on the Christmas board so have a look there. It might be better if you reposted on the Christmas board as you'll get loads of ideas now.

Christmas bargain thread no 15

If you want something that looks nice, and that you've put a bit of effort in, but is just a token present for an adult, then things like homemade fudge work really well.

I have a tiny kitchen and am a terrible cook, but I have made these peanut butter cups really successfully - and they are so delicious.

mymakedoandmendlife.com/2015/06/23/homemade-peanut-butter-cups/#more-7865

Also tiger butter is gorgeous and easy:

allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/42189/white-chocolate-and-peanut-butter-fudge.aspx

Cut into small one-bite squares (like fudge) and either pack into jars (save nice ones when they are empty) or buy nice glasses or bowls from the charity shop and then wrap in cellophane.

As an adult, I really appreciate a token gift which won't still be there come the new year, and consumables fit the bill!

Also a blogpost on how to package stuff you've made so it looks like a present:

mymakedoandmendlife.com/2015/12/19/easy-homemade-upcycled-packaging-for-edible-gifts/

inexpensive gift ideas thread