How much do you spend on Christmas?

[Canvy]

I have recently been lucky enough to receive an inheritance. It’s fairly significant but dh and I are very sensible and quite frugal naturally. But we’ve decided we will push the boat out a little this Christmas. We always spoil ourselves with food and a few new nice pieces of clothing - a coat for example. But it just seems so unnatural to us to really go all out. Sort of don’t know what to do.

I’ve thought I might catch the train into London with my mum and sisters and buy a few nice treats from Fortnum/Harrods food hall. But tbh I’m more than happy with our normal M and S splurge.

But beyond that I can’t really think of anything else I could splurge on.

Im curious how much you spend? Maybe if I see that most people really do go all out it will make me feel self conscious. We have no kids yet. One nephew. Not the biggest family. I normally make chutney/do homemade Christmas biscuit boxes as gifts for adults with a bottle of fizz.

I think your homemade chutney and biscuits sounds lovely, I’d much prefer that to a shop bought hamper which I probably won’t eat half of anyway. Although someone did send us a Fortnum and Masons one a few years ago, it was pretty nice but oh my goodness the price ! Nice to receive but I wouldn’t pay for one.
How about treating your family to a show, Christmas or otherwise ? Or
go to London to see the lights, or the ice rink at Somerset House ?
Or my favourite, Denis Severs House in Spittalfields, I think they do a Christmas visit still ?
It’s the thought that counts as they say. Doing something lovely with your family is the best !

We live very far from all our family so usually don’t see them over The period so we tend to splurge a bit. We enjoy it just us too, but for the kids we tend to go a bit extra. We’ve booked theatre tickets and 3 other days out ((1k). We do Fortnum biscuits and jars for gifts to friends.
we also order some platters, biscuits and a cake. Dh and I buy ourselves whatever we want throughout the year so don’t really do gifts for each other, we buy for the kids.
Dh receives a lot of expensive gifts from clients as well for the family.
Everyone spends differently.

I put £50 a month aside, so have £600 to spend. I’ll buy my partner, little boy, mum and sister gifts and some food from M&S. It used to stretch a lot further and cover a few Christmas days/ nights out but it doesn’t anymore.

There's only DH and I - we don't do gifts with extended family, or with each other.

I'd guess we spend about £50 above what we'd normally spend, mostly on some extra food and drink.

I’d buy some nicer wine and then book a theatre show and go to watch the west end Christmas lights. For me it’s not so much about the day and one meal but the whole festive season

We spend a lot now we have more money but in the past have done on much less.

I suspect Christmas will cost us around £3k including an expensive theatre trip, effectively two Christmas Day dinners and gifts for around 20 people.

As we are getting quite close to Christmas now, one option could be to hold that thought for this year, and ask your family if there is something you could all do next Christmas as a one-off treat.

Theatre trip
Day trip to Lapland
Christmas Market in Germany, for example.

If you ask them this Christmas for ideas then you have longer to book and arrange something memorable for next year and ensure everyone is free.

About £500-£700 usually that includes a real Christmas tree, presents for my DD, DP, 4 family members, a few close friends and some people at work. We have people over early December for coffee / mince pies / mulled wine.
My boss buys our turkey (how Dickensian) and I get all the rest of the food and host.
DP and I have a tradition where in December we go out one night just the two of us for a nice steak and a walk round the city and look at all the lights. I love that part - feels festive and lovely and a break / treat for us before hosting mode begins and we turn attention to making things special for our DD.

I’ve spent over 2k already, still got loads to buy and all the food and wine yet. I’m not a high earner,band 4 NHS, but I guess I’ve tried to overcompensate for the kids dads leaving when they were very small and it’s kind of stuck, it’s very sad really. I spend over £300 on real trees and garlands every year, I wish I could cut down but it never happens.