Thread 4 - the one with our Guylian best before fate

[Reastie]

It was a toughie to pick the thread title this time!
Thanks to @RainbowZebraWarrior for the title For those interested, our fate is best before June of next year and the offer was regarding Guylian choices at B&M.

Greetings and welcome one and all to a friendly and joyful corner of mn - the Christmas bargain thread. Here, we share Christmas present purchases, ideas, links and discount codes, with the aim to spread the Christmas magic and joy and reduce the financial stress.

It's a very busy thread, so see the tips below for helping everything run smoothly and avoiding repetitions of Cookiegate etc al. It's a lovely, friendly bunch and I'm so grateful to each and every one of you for building such a warm, fuzzy and generous spot on mn. I know I've save so much over the years and am so grateful to all of you for sharing.

Pull up a sleigh and relax with a mulled wine and mince pie, for Christmas has nearly arrived!

@ me if you need anything or you want to let me know anything - the thread moves so fast I can't always keep up so this really helps

A few pointers to make everyone’s life easier and the thread be as useful as possible:

• It’s handy to put in bold the bargains so they’re easy to spot
• No affiliate links
• No need to place mark or post messages of hello or thanks at the start of a new thread - use the ‘watch thread’ button
• Be nice or leave

The current referral thread for sharing referral codes https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/christmas/4940918-4940918-bargain-referrals-thread-6 . Please use this rather than this page to share referral links to make the sharing fair.

To make clicks links, you set it up like this only without any spaces apart from between the website and the word(s) you’re writing: www.bargainsahoyeveryonecomehere.co.uk

Thanks @RainbowZebraWarrior for the instructions below.
To make something bold, put this star * either side of the word you want to bold (with no spaces in between)

So starhellostar would look like this.

hello

Obviously use the * not the word star

Some of the below is copied and pasted from previous years, so do @ me if the links don't work

Stock informer is a handy site http://www.stockinformer.co.uk/default.aspx?fullsite=1

Camelcamelcamel is a great amazon price tracking tool http://uk.camelcamelcamel.com

The following links compare price products including postage
www.find-book.co.uk
www.find-cd.co.uk
www.find-dvd.co.uk
www.find-game.co.uk (as in PS4/xbox etc)

I always use Christmas as an excuse to stock up on my DSDs hygiene bits and bobs, always include cotton wool pads, micellar water, a body spray, shampoo and conditioner, nice shower gel and those sticky dots you put on spots. Also a few face masks and a Christmas loofah. I do a Home Bargains haul as they stock loads of bits really cheaply.

Both of these were available in my local Aldi this morning!

Sorry to pester with questions on gift list apps. I have Gift List which I've used for years (and love being able to see what I've bought before!) BUT the one thing I hate about it is that unless I've spent the full budget, it doesn't go green.
Not sure I can explain what I mean but say I have MIL listed, with a budget of £30, but then manage to find something great half price for £15, she would still be shown as "red" and look like I've not finished. What I really want is an app that lets me tick 'completed' and ideally then adds up how much I've saved 😁 Realise I might be asking for the world there though...
Do any of the other apps people have mentioned do this?

Same here. 2 x silver mystery earrings with 2 of each design. I'm going to gift them now but was hoping for a choice for myself

Free P&P on Stripe and Stare stripeandstare.com/?utm_source=ShopMy&smsclickid=a4b1a0a6-dc14-4644-affa-9c844d474d14&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=Chloe%20Samwell-Smith&utm_content=Quick%20Link&utm_referrer=l.instagram.com

Sorry if this is really stupid (probably), but I've never shopped online at Next before, always in store. Do they do discount codes? If so, where do you put them in? Completely lost 😶

Re: Aldi - I agree with @Qwerty21 - it’s so unfair that people buy reasonably priced and sought after items in bulk to put onto eBay or Vinted at inflated prices😿

Having said that, what some of these people do is post items for sale, and then, if they don’t get buyers within the store return date, they take them back for a refund. I have seen quite a few sought after items mysteriously reappear in Aldi having sold out weeks earlier.

What I am trying to say, is keep an eye out for returns!

Tu at sainsbury's have 25% off clothing (woohoo) starting 18 october, according to hot uk deals. finishes 20. october

You can either remove the budget completely or amend the amount to the amount you've spent 😀

@Christmasnearlydone that's true, would probably be simpler! I just really want to "see" that I had a budget of £hundreds, and I've saved £tonnes so now I can go treat myself lol 😆

I got mine from decathalon, I think it was 4.99 and the best turban towel I've used! I highly recommend their swimming towels too!

Oh I know what you mean. Would love that!

Sienna Hooded Blanket with Ultra Soft Sherpa Lining Warm Cosy Blanket Oversized Thermal Throw Hoodie, light pink

Lowest price in 30 days
£9.99 with 69 percent savings-69% £9.99

Thanks for the ASOS tips! I used a new email address and the HIFRIEND code!

Does anyone know of any bargains on Linkimals? Are they all much of the same or some better than others? What's a good price?

My daughters are 16 and 12. Things they use alot are the witch blemish stick and the spot stickers (savers £1 a pack!). Nice smelling face wash, my youngest really likes the apricot one from aldi. Make up remover/face wipes from primark - 2 packs for £1.30 lots of different flavours. Or alternatively micellear water and cotton pads (primark is cheap). Travel packs of tissues. Face and feet beauty masks. Primark is cheap for these too. Hand cream, my daughters like the nice scented ones. Body sprays, dd1 likes the superdrug ones and dd2 likes the Charlie black or impulse (£1 in savers). Simple makeup? Dd1 doesn't wear it but dd2 likes either clear or black mascara I buy whatever is on offer or the cheap range in superdrug. Lip balms and oils, carmex is a favourite here but dd2 loves the lip oils from primark. I would avoid coloured lip glosses, maybe clear ones? Another idea, I got sleep spray and roll on oil from poundland last year which has lavender to help sleep and relax. Dd2 uses it with an eye mask.

Dd2 also uses a facial roller its got a rose quartz crystal on it, I think it was from primark. Helps her when she's feeling anxious.

And dds both use a small zip up bag in their school bags with a few sanitary products, paracetamol and those stick on heat pads (I buy in poundland) the zip up make up bags i think were from shein or temu but could buy in primark.

Sorry for the essay I hope there's some helpful ideas!

I don’t know why this never occurred to me before, but for M&S I got so frustrated at the rubbish SPARKS offers that I created a new account. And straight away I have better offers on that one (10% off clothing and homeware).

I think I might just keep 2-3 on the go and use whichever has the best offers at the time.

Did you need a new email @fishfingersandchipsagain ?

Anything between £15 and £20 is generally a good price.
I have a selection now. I really love them for my little one.
Amazon sometimes have good deals and I managed to get some for £15 each from Smyths before but you have to keep an eye out for them.
Though it looks like they are now doing a different sort, that are a band and not called Linkimals anymore and they don't link with the Linkimals, so just be careful. Xx

I tend to make a note in the notes section, something like ‘was £50, bought for £20’ (in the case of the amazing Rainbowcorn deal I had from Argos!)

I noticed a few people have recommended primark for period pants - personally I would avoid. They are not absorbant and do not wash well, I use period pants in addition to a cup. I would however recommend m&s, I had a mishap and without too much information they really were put to the test and saved me in a potentially embarrassing situation! If you can get to an outlet I got mine half price!

Yes, but I just used one that I usually use for junk (signing up to newsletters for discounts etc).

It asked for my phone number, which was a mandatory field, but clearly doesn’t validate whether it’s a duplicate to another account.

I swapped from using GHDs to these they're fab.

Fisher Price Little People, 99p in Home Bargains. Cute stocking fillers for toddlers.

thanks - that’s two lovely people suggested that one - I’ll download it this evening and give it a go x

Thanks @fishfingersandchipsagain - I must sort out some different email addresses for newsletters, etc.