Frugal Christmas thread….?

[maskingscrape]

I can’t see one yet, apologies if I’ve missed it.

We’ve had some (lovely) big expenses this year, and more coming next year, and so Christmas needs to be a bit of a budget affair. It’s me, DH, and two kids 9 and 5.

So this year I’m setting out to be consciously frugal but still making Christmas special, so I’d love ideas! So far:

• I’m planning to find a big candle in a charity shop to use as a sort of advent candle and we’ll light it and read the Christmas story in installations over advent.
• I’m saving silver foil yogurt lids etc to make decorations with the kids.
• some useful things that I’d buy for the kids anyway (socks, art supplies, toothbrushes) will be stocking stuffers alongside other more treaty things.
• I’m going to plan food shopping carefully rather than going ‘it’s Christmas!’ and buying 5 tubes of Pringles just because.
• I’m committing to not buying anything new and Christmas themed. If an event calls for jumpers or PJs or a silly hat or whatever, we’ll borrow or make or just sidestep it.

Five per post apparently.

I’ve never actually done these but I’m so very very poor, as poor as a church mouse, and I will do these this year. Just need to find out what setting in the oven and for how long.

Plus a primary school teacher friend used to get slices of white bread, cut the crusts off, roll them out a bit thinner and firmer, cut shapes and a hole for thread, bake in the oven (until they were hard, no idea how long, very low setting, or maybe just leave on a radiator, or maybe just airing to dry???) then paint and add thread for tree decorations.

we visit the free shopping center Santa, they usual get given a book or something too and have activities like find all the reindeer statues around the shops etc... to get a pack of sweets or something.

We can't afford a proper theater shows, so we go to the cheap local hall panto although its still £50 for a family of 5 so not that cheap but half the price of the theater.

Our Christmas dinner is really cheap, usually about £30. I don't really know how people spend £100s on one meal but it does seem people buy insanely expensive custom butchered meat and as veggies we do a standard roast with parsnips and then pasta instead of meat for the main. Veg and pasta are pretty cheap items. Desert is a classic Vianetta which is like £1.

Vinted, we buy lots of stuff second hand.

We do the £1 chocolate advent calendars, the fill your own ones where a nightmare and the kids love simple cheap ones anyway.

Also I'm from the north and in many areas (like my childhood) its common to have the presents out on the sofa... you can set them up ready to play with so no wrapping needed.

I never had anything wrapped as a kid and it saved time, straight into playing yet still got surprised as I realized and discovered each new thing.

In our group of friends we donate each year to a charity.
We take it in turns to pick one that is important to each of us.
It's a good way to make secret Santa meaningful

Moose Allain, the artist, does a downloadable advent calendar for colouring every year. You just need to google his name.

I think kids love home made things as they see the thought behind it and it's cheaper than branded stuff.
Amazon, Dunhelm & the works usually have make your own crackers & crepe paper for Xmas pass the parcel - if you get green it's a sprout, brown is a christmas pudding. Wrapped chocolates as the gifts.
I made reusable Xmas gonk bunting a few years ago, made from Dunhelm material (sold by the metre), cut into diamonds, few stitchs to hold the triangle shape, hanging from a wool chain (just finger knitted but could be plaited). I had spare material in a long strip so blanket stitched the edges for the middle of my table.
Let the kids decorate the tree as an activity. Yes most of the decorations end up near the bottom, but they don't see that, they just have pride they did it.

On a wooden tray or in a pretty square of fabric that your little one can use as a tablecloth, maybe?

Strangely I watched 'The Wartime Farm at Christmas' yesterday. They were recreating a 1944 Christmas.

It's quite old and lots of things seem to have been made with carrots, candied carrots, carrot fudge and carrot cake.

Anyway it is on YouTube if you fancy a watch and some inspiration. Although you won't be finding chaff on the streets to make directions.

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p012glzr

decorations, not directions. Bloody hell I fear my brain is decaying.

I adore this series, as well as all the other living history Farm series.

The Wartime Farm Christmas does feel particularly appropriate, and there is also the Christmas episode from the actual series, which has similar ideas.

Something like this? https://flyingtiger.com/en-gb/products/suitcase-storage-box-3058158
It can be used as a storage box for the tea set, you may need to add some elastics in if you want to create a picnic hamper effect.

Or you can get plain papier mache cases you decorate yourself

Foraged greenery from garden to make a wreath, twiggy " tree" with fairy lights and baubles,dried fruit slices.
We used to have a Christmas craft day when dcs were young adults when we all got round the table with some fizz,and decorated cookies etc. Until the year DS beautifully iced a cock and balls onto his! The next year he did a Freddie Mercury figure....must see if I can find the photos.