Competitions - Worth While or a Waste of Time

[PaperMachePanda]

Clearing out the attic today and I came across an old Jiff Lemon cookbook I won in the late 80s / early 90s (I had to colour in a lemon) and a Barbie doll that I had to design a new outfit for (I'm still annoyed I didn't win the first prize of a Barbie dream house lol).

The biggest prize I've ever won was an all expenses paid trip to Paris for 4 when I was 16 but my mother wouldn't let me go because it was for 4 people and she wanted everyone to go or no one (I have a huge family). I was fuming! I don't think I spoke to her for a month.

I haven't really won much since (a few cheap boxes of chocolate and some wine here and there), though I do occasionally enter things. I mostly kind of think they're pointless now though.

Anyway, what's the biggest / best thing you've ever won, or do you think they're pointless?

Ignore the poll, not sure why it was included.

I won a colouring competition at the library when I was about ten. I assume the prize was a book but I can't remember!
And I won tickets to the local panto a few years back (oh yes I did)

I actually knew someone who won a brand new Mini in a Reader's Digest Prize draw many years ago. My best win was a case of 12 bottles of wine in a Gestetner competition at a business exhibition about 35 years ago. I happily enter free draws at shows, or the online Vodafone competitions, but cba to fill in forms etc.

My ex won us a holiday in Florence and Venice

She had to say who she would like go with and why.

Her answer

"Pierce Brosnan because he makes me go gnocchi at the knees and is a pizza of all right"

I won 2 nights dinner/bed/breakfast at a country house hotel. Was lush. Only won littler things since... a free will, cinema tickets, meal out. I just enter anything... especially in the free magazines that come through the door - not many entrants, good chance of winning something. Always enter the ticket ballots with Sky vip, waitrose and John Lewis comps. Surprising how often you do win something, and if not, you often get sent a money off voucher.

When I was 5, my mum won a holiday for 2 to Hawaii, LA and Sydney, so she and my Dad went and I was left with my grandparents!

I enter a lot of competitions but haven't had any big wins. I've won Monolopy, some vitamins, a Barbie wig... ha ha!

I won a frozen turkey in a school raffle when I was seven. I also won a cookery course in Living Magazine (showing my age). Four of us won (you had to come up with a slogan). Out of the four, two were serious about competitions. It was the days of postcard entries, collecting product labels and so on, competitions in local news papers...Both had won prizes due to entering loads (and had cupboards full of cat food tins with no labels) but I just don't think its the same now.

My husband's dad won a car... he couldn't drive!

Oooh - I won a basket dash around Woolworths when I was about 9 as well!

When I was 16/17 I remember winning 2 lots of gig tickets and a CD within a pretty short period of time. I don't think I've won anything since! A friend at work won a fancy holiday to NYC, it was very impressive.

I knew someone who won a camper van in one of those raffle things . Was life changing fo him.

I won a competition with a clothing brand who paid for all of our wedding attire and gave us clothes/jewellery/suitcases for our honeymoon

Couldn't get a worthier winner than that.

Ha I love that.

Yeah a few years ago I won some Champagne with M&S and that was pretty good.

OMG I would've loved that!

Did you go? What did you get?

I once won vouchers for a brewery tasting tour when I was pregnant. It was really annoying as I would have loved to go! Had to give them to someone else though as they would have expired before I could use them.

I won them in a pub quiz so I suppose I can't complain, though obviously I was not drinking during the quiz.

I've entered competitions on and off for over 40 years.

My best prize was furniture worth £3500, but I've won some other nice things like an iPad, a Champneys spa break, and a trolley dash round Asda.

It depends what you call worth it. I once calculated that on average for the time spent entering, I won about £1 worth of prizes for every hour spent entering. So in terms of producing an income, it wasn't worth it, I would have been better off if I had done an hour's overtime at work, but for me, it's a hobby, not a side hustle. I enter whilst sitting watching tv. Now I'm retired, if I wasn't spending time entering competitions, I would be spending more time reading Mumsnet.

So far this year, I've won 5 prizes, worth a total of about £250. Gardening stuff, a £100 voucher, skincare, a cosmetic bag etc.

It's a nice surprise when you get an email to say you've won a prize.

I never pay to enter competitions, so I swerve things like the Omaze prize draw and the ITV or radio competitions where it costs you say £2 to text in.