ok, what to buy (list of people)

[CherryMonster]

dmum- 57, into birds, tea, gardening
dad- 62, miserable. likes alcohol
dbro- 30, likes games workshop, pokemon, heavy metal, alternative stuff
dsis- 25, likes alcohol, pretty stuff, into jewellery making, and likes dr who
ds1- 14, likes dr who, pokemon, gaming. is getting a 3ds as main present.
ds2- 12, (high functioning autistic) likes football, gaming. is getting a 3ds as main present, and fifa 14 for the ps3.
dd1- 8, (has aspergers and adhd) likes angry birds, moshi monsters, buzz lightyear, computers. is getting a 3ds as main present.
dd2- 7, likes dinosaurs. is getting a 3ds as main present.
dp- 40, likes gaming, alcohol (but works for a wine merchant), me. so far have ben sherman boxers.

no idea what to get for anyone really. please help

Every year I see this clock which 'chimes' a different bird call every hour and think how good it would be for my niece who's very interested in birds. Always forget by Xmas though!

A lovely bird table/house?

Groupon or similar - I'm sorry I can't remember which have been advertising amazingly cheap tablets.

my mum would love a chiming clock. my dad would probably take a hammer to it. they have loads of bird stuff for the garden. parents have tablets, db and dsis dont want, and the kids dont need.

Do what loads of us do and follow the Xmas bargains thread - I find it not only saves money but often gives me inspiration.

And if you're buying 3 x 3ds's you should definitely be doing it through a cashback site like quidco/topcashback if you're not already!

When I get chance later I'll post some of the things I've bought for my relatives, as some of the ages and hobbies sound similar (for example, my MIL loves tea & gardening, so in the past I've made her a tea hamper, with a fancy 'tea for one' pot thingy and some exotic teas to try. She's also had the 'funky veg' kit as a stocking filler. Look it up on Amazon, it's a kit where you grow purple carrots etc!)

i have been following the bargain threads with bells on. will be buying 4 3ds's, using quidco and going through game probably as i have their reward card. i made a hamper for my mum last year filled with goodies from her childhood. i commissioned a mohair teddy for her, put in jars of coconut ice and toffee, and various other yummy and pretty things. i only do stockings for the dc's and dp, dbro and sis do have one but thats done jointly with my mum. will get the usual things for them, crayons, undies, pens, and fun stuff for the kids, deodorants, smellies etc for the grown ups

ok, so i have a couple of things. i got an angry birds onesie set for dd1, and will get a moshi one for dd2 next week. also sony headphones for ds1, the bloke in argos said they were as close to the quality of beats as you could get without a huge pricetag.

Magazine subscription
Gaming gift cards
Massage voucher
Games for 3ds and accessories

Restaurant vouchers

Mum - would she enjoy a beauty treatment?
Dad - magazine subscription?
Db and dsis? Don't know how much you want to apend? Tbh we can't afford to buy for adult relatives apart from parents.
Kids - if they are all getting a 3ds each I would just be getting them stocking stuff tbh and small things so books / stationery / underwear / outfit each / DVD / maybe a game if affordable.

It really all depends on your budget.

For the DCs, I would think about fun things for the stockings. I go by the
Something you want
Something you need
Something to eat and
Something to read
route.

Wants are silly things and pure frivolity.
Needs are things that are nice but you'll need anyway - so maybe some Moshi Monsters underwear, or Dr Who socks. Hair bobbins, character toothbrushes, ....that sort of idea.

Eats are fruit (red apple, green apple, orange, satsuma, banana, and then maybe a kiwi or pear or some kumquats) and sweets (a 1/2 lb box of something usually). Last year, I put a "Yard of Jaffa Cakes" in the tree for DD and DH to find and share.
Read - a book. Any book. I am a big believer in getting books. It could be an annual related to their individual interests, a book of secrets for different games, a joke book (DD has aspergers so that was a great one last year as she wants to fit in but is very bad at telling and understanding jokes - so at least she could learn a few), a novel suited to their age, an heirloom classics that you can read at bedtime....

For the adults who like alcohol - and not knowing anything about budgets (this is more about thought and time than money anyway). Some infused drinks. I know there is a Christmas Pudding vodka recipe on the BBC site (I keep meaning to make it but others on MN rave about it). I make things like rhubarb and ginger schnapps (made using vodka), blackberry liqueur (vodka based), sloe gin, limoncello (vodka based) and have made cherry brandy in the past (I wanted the cherries preserved so it was a nice surprise by-product, I used the cherries in the middle of homemade chocs). They would all use fruits still in season or only coming into season - but you could still buy fruit and make raspberry liqueur, cassis (blackcurrants in vodka), or use sweets (I've seen others rave about sweets like toffees or skittles but haven't tried those ones). You just use the cheapest bottle of your spirit you can find, add in the fruit and enough sugar, shake daily for a week, occasionally after that, and leave to combine for as long as possible before straining out the fruit and bottling in nice bottles for giving. (I usually use lower levels of sugar initially and adjust upwards gradually after 10 days to get the necessary levels of sweetness and stickiness for the final product).

Not the Bargains thread, but there was another thread here about hampers ideas that I put a good few ideas for a tea for 1, gardening, and a few other hampers that might help, and there were great ideas from some other posters on that too. www.mumsnet.com/Talk/Christmas/a1820723-Thrifty-christmas

I know in recent days, I have seen lots of interesting ideas by looking at "geekery" and following likes from the "Present ideas for a Sheldon" thread - some may be too far out for you, but it may bring you in useful unusual directions for the gamers and Dr Who fans etc.

I've got Dh some Star wars lounge pants and t-shirts from Character.com
Last year I got him pacman soaps
Wilkos & primark had space invaders/pacman stuff last year so worth keeping an eye out