Mince Pies, Mulled Wine, frugal festive frolics. Yuletide budgeting banter & Merry Saving Shenanigans for all 🎁🎄🦌🎅🤶☃️

[MaryGreenhill]

Welcome to the Christmas Frugal thread . We are a super friendly group here & everyone is welcome 🤗 .
☃️🤶🎅🦌🎄🎁

That sounds a very complicated relationship for you to get your head around @needastrongoneagain 💐
You must have had your head buzzing trying to get your way around recognising your DC had a different relationship with him . Bless your DD it's horrible when they are upset 😔💐

All this talk of cruising is lovely l want to go on one now 😁
Any room for a stowaway 😂

I’m half way through the festival and have bought two books, had samples of skincare, bought some aloe Vera deodorant and done a visualisation exercise…..

I am skimming the thread - cruises! Wellness festivals! What lives we lead, here in frugal corner! Good to hear nice news too.

I spent £12 yesterday on coffee and very nice pastries in a buzzy, fun cafe in Camberwell. Took a load of stuff over to the flat in anticipation of the trades finishing this week and letting me at it. It was going to be Saturday, then today, then Monday, now Tuesday. There are good reasons for the slower progress and I can’t complain, but not can I help my impatience just to have at it now!

Today I am clearing the room at home for the carpet installation tomorrow. DS has gone from north London to Manchester with GF and will likely be away for a couple of days at least, if he doesn’t end up spending a week there. He bought a jumper and pair of jeans yesterday, for which I have paid, so that is the bulk of my Christmas shopping for gifts done! Actually, I probably won’t quite get away with that, but I’m still determined to be very streamlined this year - in recognition, not least, of the expenditure on gifts and good times that has gone on throughout the year!

Frugal eating today- leftover pilau and lentils for lunch, leftover spaghetti alla Norma tonight. Home workout for me -DH installing a pull-up bar in the garage! Book group tomorrow night, more frugal fun.

Lots of frugal fun indeed!

DH has run out of coffee so spent £26 on Azera on Amazon, 6 big cans. He doesn’t hav coffee out at all so it saves a fortune. He takes it with him to London and actually anytime he leaves the house he has his contigo. Surgically attached. I can’t think how much that cup has saved him.

I haven’t yet found a cup that doesn’t impart a taste and smell to the coffee.

Yay!! Another one bites the dust! Credit card that is!! Still a few to go but it's all on a downward trend - so that's good news.
Spent 40 quid in Iceland yesterday but did pick up a couple of bits for Christmas and added the round up to the total which is now 23.06 plus bought our tea which was cheaper than a potential takeaway.
Have now done a freezer audit and moved some food from the garden freezer to the kitchen. Tea tonight is Sausages, Yorkshire puddings, Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli Bake and gravy. All unashamedly from the freezer!! 😋😁
Have also been out in the garden tidying up and cutting back stuff that should have been done weeks ago, but holidays, work and rubbish weather didn't help. We had the company of a very friendly robin who was hopping around and chirruping away.

Also paid a visit to SDD and her DH and had a catch up of family news - just as well we did, as their weekends are now fully booked until Christmas with trips to New York, work do's and significant birthday parties.
I will have a busy week with work, school runs and some appointments for NDN at various hospitals. Hoping to free up some time to do some Christmas shopping - have my secret santa and GCs to sort as well as stockings. These spends will come from the christmas stash so all budgeted for.
DH and I are considering a cruise - kind of a bucket list thing to do during retirement but lots of research to do first. DS and his fiancee have also set a date so need to start saving for what we would like to contribute to their big day but we'll discuss that with them when see them at Christmas time. All exciting stuff!!

@chimichangaz hope you enjoy the festival and the cruise sounds amazing.

@needastrongoneagain that does sound a complex situation to deal with, my DM has been a fantastic Nana but I do question some of the parenting decisions and this makes things difficult. Hope you are having a bit of time for you amid everything

@ChipshopPickledEgg I must resist looking at cruises (for this year at least 😂)

Frugal fail at a massive Farm Shop Christmas Fair today. I didn't set a spend limit, DD wasn't well, but insisted on coming, then looked like her parrot had died the whole time. I ended up buying too much around £70, candles, fudge, chocolate brussel sprouts, curry spice mixes - nice gourmet products at least. Put seven things in the attic with the Christmas gifts and think I can cover a few presents with it. I then realised how rotten DD felt (she did have the option to stay home) so she's in bed with ear drops and I said she can take the day off tomorrow if needed - she looked shocked as I never let them stay off!

Sent Shein jeans off for a refund and expecting refunds from Hollister and M&S soon to try to lessen the costs!

Other than that no other spends - a tub of Roses may have fallen out of the attic while I was up there after the day we've had!

Today’s spending was a reckless £25 in Waitrose on two bottles of Terrys chocolate orange baileys. I went for one but there were only two left and I thought the other one would be lonely.

Snap @ChipshopPickledEgg. I will also need to be rich in my retirement for all my travel and second/third/fourth home plans but there’s little chance of that.

Congratulations on the credit card @Rainbow1901. Any idea where you’d like to go on your cruise?

The contractor I was expecting today didn’t turn up. I’ll contact them in the week to see what is going on. They had said they were ordering a hard to find part so I’m hoping that they did and will therefore want to do the work. The carpet samples arrived today. I could only order three and I’m not sure I like any of them so that has not helped matters. Have emailed the solicitor in reply to her message last week.

I agree that last bottle would have been lonely @RumBananaSundae I didn't know Terry's Baileys existed - now I do!

@RumBananaSundae That's why we need to do a lot of research - the Norwegian Fjords sound wonderful, but so does the Mediterranean, spoilt for choice really. But then if you are on a cruise why would you want to be jumping ship at every port to go on a tour?
In a way, I'd like to cruise just to enjoy the feeling of being at sea without having to do anything except be All inclusive on board and just chill!! But we'll be a while yet as debts still need to be cleared and we have a wedding to prepare for but it's nice to dream though in the mean time.🚢

Terry's baileys exists?!?! Yummy!!! Def can't leave one on its own.
And chocolates falling out of the attic. Well, it happens. Happens all the time here out of kitchen cupboards.

Ooohhhh cruises. I'd love to do cruises. I eye them up every month in my magazine. OH doesn't like the sound of them but I do like looking.

Well done on the credit card @Rainbow1901 !!!!
I'm finding it hard to cut anything off mine at the mo. Must try harder when Christmas is out of the way. So hats off to you indeed!!!!

NSD here. Went for a walk in the park. OH paid for a hot chocolate from the café.
WFH tomorrow so will post the two more things I sold on eBay at lunch. Should be a NSD there too
In Birmingham for work on Tuesday. Not looking forward to it as I hate leaving DD for longer than normal. But hopefully food is covered. And travel is paid for already.

Sad the weekend is over already. Happily chocolate just fell out of the cupboard so.....

Forgot to mention that my business that I started and put on hold was making eco friendly, vegan, cleaning products that you could digest so safe for children and pets. Not that you would want to eat them as they taste disgusting. But they don't harm you if you did. I make my own anyway and they work really well and made logos, packaging, websites etc. But I can't find a company to test them to take them to market. I shall keep going :)

Ah @Frugal25 that sounds brilliant! But ultimately frustrating in the testing area.

Very. Although a company did give me a few bits to read over last week. They don't test themselves but had some advice. I need to find time to read it this week.

Afternoon.

£104 Ocado.

@Mochi1fudge I’m sorry that your DD isn’t well, but the phrase ‘looking like her parrot had died’ did make me smile 😊. Curry spice mixes do work well here too for presents.

Well done on the credit card @Rainbow1901

Thanks for the thoughts re my DF. I know I’ve not modelled his parenting style, and that I’m a bloody good one (dc might disagree!), so any cycle is hopefully broken. My DM is amazing though and a shining example.

In positive frugal news, we’ve finally got a revised council tax bill for DH being disabled. You can claim a reduction for this fact, subject to certain conditions (which I think differ around the country). It’s a reduction of circa £500 for our bracket. Our payments will reduce to £70 a month for 2 months to pay the balance for the year, as we’ve paid the full amount until now.

Got our IFA coming this afternoon, so hopefully further postive news but we shall see!

I keep transferring little amounts from my instant access savings into my current account as I keep getting low warnings. Checked it this morning and it's back down to £3 due to a regular payment of £26 going out yesterday. Got enough in Was thinking of going to the farm with DS today but he is sick along with DH, so I've been able to pop out on my own, school run etc, but not for long. I just did a quick grocery shop on my credit card today, £19 in Lidl. I pay it off in full every month.

I have just seen I have taken Net £390 out of savings this month. It wasn't through frivoulous savings, but I had lots of payments going out for things like my yearly professional registration, car tax, a full term of a couple of different kids clubs, so next month I hope to have put into savings instead.

Good afternoon everyone 😊
I have spent £100 in Aldi this morning, £28 on food and £72 on 9 wreaths, ready to do the graves for Christmas.
Hope your DD is better today @Mochi1fudge💐
Well done on your budgeting @Alwayslearning25 👏
@needastrongoneagain excellent news re your Council tax and l am sure you aren't a bit like your Dad as a parent 🤗
@Frugal25 wow l am so impressed with your business plans well done! 👏
Great stuff clearing your CC @Rainbow1901😊
@FurForksSake your DH is brilliant for doing that, it saves so much money in the long term . How are you today sweetheart all good l hope💐
@BigSkies2022you are so busy with everything you have going on & finishing your Christmas shopping 👏😊
@chimichangaz that festival sounds amazing hope you had a wonderful time ☺️
@RumBananaSundae that Terry's choc oranges Baileys sounds absolutely delicious 😋
You definitely couldn't leave it ☺️
Think l have caught up , if l have missed anyone please excuse me 😊💐

I’m doing ok, sore and tired but I got some more sleep.

I had a panic about the John Lewis vouchers we got last Christmas not being spent, so got DH to balance check them. That then meant they’d last another 24 months. Then I spent them all on three blankets for the lounge 🤣

Spent £3.95 on postage for a free candle from Anthropologie, fingers crossed it comes. They were doing a £20 perk with no minimum spend that someone posted on the Christmas bargain thread and I think some people had orders cancelled. Worth a punt!

DH has been to the hygienist, no idea how much that costs but it’s important to him.

Hi Guys!

I've just caught up with this thread and I'm now craving Dominos Pizza and Beans on Toast!!

NSD yesterday and today should follow, nothing needed here, macaroni cheese for dinner for the vegetarians, and Steak for the meat eaters tonight, so looking forward to that. Hopefully tomorrow can follow suit and I'll make it 3 NSD in a row, I have a Yoga class tomorrow evening but that's already paid for.

I've just about finished the bulk of my Christmas shopping and have over purchased - I've come to the conclusion that I started too early and this is why, also teenage/early 20's females are too easy to buy for and this is a big part of the problem, DD's have more than I planned on buying them, the things they've asked for plus a load of stuff that I've seen and thought they'd love, nothing extravagant but it all adds up. DS's on the other hand don't have much at all, but they are older and both have well paying jobs compared to DD's who are both students.

Things are so expensive right now that budgets just don't go far, I was in Morrisons at the weekend and a bag of M&M's that used to be around £1 was £2.60, I don't know why I'm still shocked but prices are increasing daily it seems.

I haven't made any plans or put any thought into Christmas catering yet, still undecided if I should invite family over for Christmas Day, I'd like to but it becomes quite stressful as none of them help out with anything at all, they don't contribute in any way so DH and I end up spending the whole day on the go. Actually I think that's made up my mind!! Maybe I'll suggest A Boxing Buffet as that's much more straight forward.

I hope everyone here is in good spirits and looking forward to the festive season, as we are over halfway into November already and time is flying, it's freezing here today, we've had really nice weather the last few weeks and this morning was the coldest it's been for a long time, this morning's dog walk just felt different, like the Winter season is well and truly on it's way.

Today’s spending doesn’t bear thinking about. I paid the contractor from last week and bought two pairs of trousers and for them to be altered. Then bought some milk and cookies. By that point I’d given up on trying to be frugal. Had been hopeful for a no spend day.

I missed your post yesterday @Mochi1fudge. I hope your daughter is feeling better today. Your attic sounds a bit like Narnia. Except it’s not Turkish delight. And nothing fell.

Enjoy Birmingham @Frugal25.

Norwegian fjords sound like a lovely idea @Rainbow1901. I’ve always wanted to go. I was investigating adding Norway and the Arctic circle to a rail trip but think I’d need to buy lottery tickets.

That Baileys was OK @MaryGreenhill . Straight it was OK but it was better in a hot drink. I might try the Aldi clementine version you mentioned. I don’t think the two bottles I have will last long. Some made it into my mid-morning drink.

Glad your are doing ok @FurForksSake.

I know what you mean about winter @Johaanah. When I went out this morning I nearly came back to change my jacket.

Have two days off work from tomorrow. Tomorrow is therapy, which tires me out, and Wednesday I’m meeting a friend for lunch. I have found a place in Germany that will print wallpaper of/from maps so I’ll take a look at that. I did note they didn’t have pricing information so that makes me think I’ll need to sell an organ.

I’m not doing very well. I was working away all last week and our expenses don’t go terribly far so had to spend out of my own money. And then since I’ve been back, I’ve been ordering ribbons and fabrics etc for my Christmas crafts.

Evening all, a NSD here. Two days in a row. Hoping tomorrow will be a hat trick like @Johaanah . Decided to not go to yoga tomorrow. Saves £10 and also I'd get home to go straight back out. Although I would love to go esp after 5 hours on trains.

What Christmas crafts are you planning @Thanksforyourlackofthought ?

£521 today being the balance of the carpet for DS’ snug- fitted today and very nice too. I will tackle moving the furniture back in tomorrow. I have also seen a coffee table in the Swyft sale that will go well in there.

£13.99 in B&M on Douwe Egberts coffee and a Christmas with antlers!! Only went in because NDN is looking outdoor pre-lit Xmas trees for her porch!! Had a wander around the Range too but left empty handed!!