Christmas 2020 purchases

Posy

Pick up a tub of Celebrations? A Christmas ornament? Splash out on a new Christmas tree?
Cake decorations? Wrapping paper or get somebody's present ticked off the list?

Come and show us here so we can ooooh and aaaah over all your purchases!


I officially kicked off my Christmas shopping today- got a few Clinique bits and pieces for the mammy.
Arnotts are doing Bonus Time, and LookFantastic have 15% off everything, so between the two, I did pretty well!

TRS30

The fact that this thread even existing is exciting

pigtail33

I actually bought these a couple of months ago but only had them delivered recently. My first Christmas 2020 purchase.

Posy

Oooooh, I love them!!

PaulT21

Loughc linked a Facebook page on the Christmas Funnies thread and they have this calendar

https://xmascount.com/products/christmas-countdown-flip-calendar

Think it will be my next Christmas purchase :D

PaulT21

pigtail33 wrote: »

I actually bought these a couple of months ago but only had them delivered recently. My first Christmas 2020 purchase.

Hi pigtail33, would you mind sharing the site you bought these cool bottles from? Cheers:)

pigtail33

PaulT21 wrote: »

Hi pigtail33, would you mind sharing the site you bought these cool bottles from? Cheers:)

I ordered them from thebookpeople.co.uk back in March. The company had gone into receivership and all the stock was being sold off. They only cost 96p!! Unfortunately they're no longer taking orders anymore as all the stock sold out pretty quickly once it went so cheap.

Jude13

I bought the OH a dyson hair dryer. Its in a generic brown cardboard box so a photo will be boring. Not that hair dryers are exciting.

DvB

Ordered the first of the santa shop items over the weekend, havent arrived yet (first item due tomorrow) mentioned it on another thread but have to admit it did feel good to gte the ball rolling on the christmas shop.

Lord Spence

DvB wrote: »

Ordered the first of the santa shop items over the weekend, havent arrived yet (first item due tomorrow) mentioned it on another thread but have to admit it did feel good to gte the ball rolling on the christmas shop.

Oh man I feel much slower this year but its harder as all my kids have gone past the toy stage, my 10 year old I think will want a electric scooter this year and doesn't like toys anymore but is still a believer.

TRS30

Was in Smyths on Friday as Granny had given the Elves some money to spend. I heard a lot of 'I'm going to ask Santa for that' etc. I kept replying they are going to have to be seriously good then

otnomart

I bought a box of Orange Spice tea, absolutely loving it. Brand is: Numi

TRS30

otnomart wrote: »

I bought a box of Orange Spice tea, absolutely loving it. Brand is: Numi

An early Christmas present to yourself

CheerLouth

TRS30 wrote: »

Was in Smyths on Friday as Granny had given the Elves some money to spend. I heard a lot of 'I'm going to ask Santa for that' etc. I kept replying they are going to have to be seriously good then

My kids say this about literally everything...Ad on the telly "I'm asking Santa for that", child with a toy on the street "I'm asking Santa for that"....I reckon there will be a lot of "you didn't ask Santa for that, remember, you asked for XYZ" this year :rolleyes:

DvB

As of this evening we have just one gift left to close out the santa shop, pretty much in keeping with the timescale of previous years, so a big relief to get that boxed off already.

Jude13

That's a brave approach DvB should some new toy come out in the meantime.

DvB

Jude13 wrote: »

That's a brave approach DvB should some new toy come out in the meantime.

Have done the same every year Jude. Got stung years ago when they were v.young when we left it later to get the presents and couldn't get the one thing our little lady wanted and the disappointment on her face on Christmas morning is not something we ever wanted to repeat.
To be fair to both of them, they tend to know early doors what they want and rarely swerve from that which is a bonus.

Slime Princess

DvB wrote: »

As of this evening we have just one gift left to close out the santa shop, pretty much in keeping with the timescale of previous years, so a big relief to get that boxed off already.

Same, only have one Christmas present left for the 4 year old to pick up. 1 year old is done. All nieces, nephews, friends' kids, kids' friends, etc are also done.

Only have adults left to buy for now which are to be honest way harder (and much less fun) than buying for kids.

DvB

Slime Princess wrote: »

Same, only have one Christmas present left for the 4 year old to pick up. 1 year old is done. All nieces, nephews, friends' kids, kids' friends, etc are also done.

Only have adults left to buy for now which are to be honest way harder (and much less fun) than buying for kids.

Vouchers!

We actually stopped getting gifts for our siblings, we just get stuff for the nieces & nephews across both mine & my wife's family. Takes a lot of the hassle out of it & it was something everyone agreed to readily!

We both get our mum & dad gifts though (hard to know what to get them nowadays though), usually something small and then give them vouchers as the costly part so to speak.

jellybear

I only have my dad and sister bought for...still a lot left to do!

Thought I'd pop this here as her gift packs are fab and are great for neighbours or to add as part of a larger present to family Or as a 'me present', which I often treat myself to https://bigredkitchen.ie/shop

TRS30

Slime Princess wrote: »

Same, only have one Christmas present left for the 4 year old to pick up. 1 year old is done. All nieces, nephews, friends' kids, kids' friends, etc are also done.

Only have adults left to buy for now which are to be honest way harder (and much less fun) than buying for kids.

Agree, buying for the various children is the easy/fun part, for the adults not so much.

Due to birthdays in Sept/Oct we usually dont buy the Christmas presents till after they are done howevr have been putting out feelers already so have a few ideas.

We usually get a weekend away for my folks and then one other present each, if it an expensive one (last year was Lego train for my Dad) then my siblings and I go together to get it.

Slime Princess

DvB wrote: »

Vouchers!

We actually stopped getting gifts for our siblings, we just get stuff for the nieces & nephews across both mine & my wife's family. T/akes a lot of the hassle out of it & it was something everyone agreed to readily!

We both get our mum & dad gifts though (hard to know what to get them nowadays though), usually something small and then give them vouchers as the costly part so to speak.

Parents are the big problem, never ever know what to get either my folks or the in laws. Vouchers won't get used and will sit in a drawer until they expire. Cash will illicit an awkward response and refusal to accept it. Same with ] thought out meaningful or useful gifts. Both my dad, and my mother in law are notoriously bad for leaving things in boxes for years and never using them even if they need them. Occasionally we'll fluke it one year and get someone something they'll actually like or at least use. But they're super hard to buy for. Food gifts sometimes go down well (though not always).

We don't buy my husband's siblings and partners anything, just their kids. Even token gifts are gone but I don't know if that was a temporary arrangement or the norm going forward (here's hoping).

As for my siblings, my brothers are usually easy to buy for as we share a lot of interests and I've been making them send me gift wishlists for birthdays/Christmas well in advance for the past couple of years so takes a little stress off. Tickets for things are usually a back up but I don't think i'll be going down that route this year...

Then there's the teacher/teaching assistant gifts etc which is always difficult too.

Oh but the biggest headache is figuring out what to get himself. If I ask he always a surprise or don't bother. Real helpful that! I was thinking of just getting him one 'main thing' and doing him a stocking with lots of useful bits and spend a bit more on that this year, but finding things to put in it is also a problem.

Slime Princess

TRS30 wrote: »

Agree, buying for the various children is the easy/fun part, for the adults not so much.

Due to birthdays in Sept/Oct we usually dont buy the Christmas presents till after they are done howevr have been putting out feelers already so have a few ideas.

We usually get a weekend away for my folks and then one other present each, if it an expensive one (last year was Lego train for my Dad) then my siblings and I go together to get it.

I wish I could just buy everyone toys! (But I don't think that'd go down to well :P )

One of our little ones has an end of September birthday I haven't finished getting things for but is totally sorted for Christmas.

Sheep Shagger

......and we're off!

First present bought, for the mother in law, will give on 1st December, think she'll like it as has stuff she can try out...

https://www.rituals.com/eng-ie/the-ritual-of-advent-exclusive-1111817.html?channable=00908b696400313131313831378a&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7cOttP_j6wIVxO7tCh1XfwBBEAQYAiABEgKn1vD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Posy

Oh, that looks lovely!

bobbyy gee

i am buying my girlfriend a car so she can drive me to the bar
as she does not drink and the cards always hide down the road especially at Christmas

bertsmom

I usually buy my parents a weekend away as the main gift but this year they definitely would feel very uneasy to go away (my mum's health ) so I've decided to get them a voucher for the company they get their home heating oil from. I know it's boring but I've a few smaller bits for them each too make up, chocs etc
I don't do gifts with siblings or my nephews and niece I just go a bit bigger for birthdays and that's our agreement.
It sounds so boring but since I'm paying my mortgage on my own now and also trying to save for a deposit for a new house when this one gets sold it's actually a weight off to not have to do all the sibling/niece/nephews ones and just concentrate on a decent one for mam and Dad

TRS30

Having to buy a lot of presents at Christmas can be financially stressful. Most people have other commitments that don't just go away for a month!

Has always been a bit of bug bearer of mine that while we do Kris Kindle for the sibling adults on my side we buy for all the adults on my wife's side. However yesterday we are chatting and they are coming round to the KK idea. I think house purchasing, back to college studying etc has made things a bit different this year.

To be honest, if i had my way i would only buy presents for the kids and only small token things for adults. Christmas hasn't been about getting presents for a longgggggg time.

Jude13

I guess it depends on age, also number of siblings. I only have 1 sibling, we buy each other a pint as it was just a pain buying each other things. This also came about due to 2008/9 when that was all we could give. My OH's family do KK and its great, there is also a cap. Sure we are grown ups and only our OH's know what we need anyway.

I bought the OH a stocking filler today of Tibetan bowls.

screamer

We buy for the kids and give a house pack of choccies/ biscuits/ wine or whatever tipple they like. Going to start the pack shopping soon as the offers disappear the closer you get to Christmas and this year I’m going to be well prepared.

Jude13

Yeah the kids get pressies, again we have a small family so it is easier. Though my OH's brothers are growing up so they will have their only family's in the future. The only issue I have at the moment is what lego to get them, everyone is lego mad.

TRS30

Jude13 wrote: »

Yeah the kids get pressies, again we have a small family so it is easier. Though my OH's brothers are growing up so they will have their only family's in the future. The only issue I have at the moment is what lego to get them, everyone is lego mad.

Is the biggest request in our household this year for both birthdays and Christmas. That's one of the great things about Lego, you can fire trucks to princess castles!

DvB

Lego is big in our house too, hence a fortune being spent on it yet again this Christmas. If the yound lad gets any cash or vouchers for smyths over christmas or birthdays that inevitably gets spent on Lego too (or V-Bucks!)

tscul32

My family only do kids presents, except for my youngest brother and partner as they've no kids but buy for ours, so we always get them something. My lads' favourite pressies last year were Amazon vouchers from my brother. As the kids are all hitting teen and pre teen it's getting harder. Lego was the only present for years. And my 3 all have birthdays and Christmas within a 6 week stretch. So I've to start asking soon (only one believer left).

Jude13

Yeah the preteen/teen age is a pain. My eldest is in this bracket and I havent a clue this year. I get shrugged shoulders when I ask. I am sure it will be some type of make up...

TRS30

Jude13 wrote: »

Yeah the preteen/teen age is a pain. My eldest is in this bracket and I havent a clue this year. I get shrugged shoulders when I ask. I am sure it will be some type of make up...

Not there yet, however dread it already for lots of reasons!

TheBlackPill

DvB wrote: »

Lego is big in our house too, hence a fortune being spent on it yet again this Christmas. If the yound lad gets any cash or vouchers for smyths over christmas or birthdays that inevitably gets spent on Lego too (or V-Bucks!)

Much cheaper to buy the toys in august/sept

DvB

TheBlackPill wrote: »

Much cheaper to buy the toys in august/sept

Really? wasnt aware of that TBH. Another bonus so!

TRS30

TheBlackPill wrote: »

Much cheaper to buy the toys in august/sept

Waiting to see if Symths do their 20% off that they do most years. Have to watch prices thought as they have been known to put them up before the 'sale' :mad:

tscul32

Jude13 wrote: »

Yeah the preteen/teen age is a pain. My eldest is in this bracket and I havent a clue this year. I get shrugged shoulders when I ask. I am sure it will be some type of make up...

My boys aren't really into makeup, I think it's probably easier to buy for teen girls than boys, most like fashion, make up, shopping. Having said that most lads like fashion and football whereas I have computer nerds happily dressed from Penneys. 12 year old has asked for an office chair for his desk instead of the hard plastic one he has. That'll probably be his birthday present. 14 year old will probably ask for computer bits, built his own PC over the summer after saving for the last 2 years. But he still has a few bits on his wishlist. 8 year old will probably still pick Lego. But as I said they all have a birthday as well as Christmas. This time of year is exhausting. Thank God we don't do our own siblings birthdays/Christmas too as all 4 are between Dec and first week of Jan. I obviously inherited my mother's bad planning!

DvB

WFH today & my order of books for the young lad has just arrived from Amazon, so thats his santa shop done. We'll pick up a few small bits along the way for the stockings but other than that he's done, one thing left for our little lady and that'll be both of them sorted. With no hositng duties this year either we might actually get away with this year not being too bad on the spending side either.

Sheep Shagger

Always a favourite with the other half and they've opened their Christmas shop today online..

https://www.thewhitecompany.com/row/c/christmas?cm_mmc=social-_-Autumn20-_-facebook-_-christmasshoplaunch&;utm_source=social&utm_medium=facebook&;utm_campaign=Autumn20&;utm_content=christmasshoplaunch&

TRS30

Was reading that Lego are getting rid of the plastic bags that the bits come in and replacing them with paper ones. I can't remember the exact amount however they use some crazy amount of plastic each year.

Lord Spence

Well sort of a purchase but the Mrs prezzie to me for Christmas this year is nearly sorted, managed to snag a playstation 5 pre order last night

Posy

Had a €100 Arnotts voucher, so went in today and bought a couple of beauty gifts, then headed to Boots and Superdrug, and spent about €100 on stocking fillers and bits and pieces.

Just 2 more main presents to buy, and a one for all voucher to get. I'm hoping to be pretty much finished by the start of October, so I can look forward to the Christmas without too much stress!

TRS30

No where near as organised as some other however have all the kids main presents agreed, so just need to order/ go get them now.

Only one up in the air a bit is eldest's main present as might have to get her a new bike. She got one last year from Santa however has grown so much that already look like it might be too small by Christmas!

Sheep Shagger

An old reliable for a stocking filler and there's 25% off Max Benjamin today (part of storewide sale)

https://www.carraigdonn.com/collections/max-benjamin?page=3

stephmcd

TRS30 wrote: »

Waiting to see if Symths do their 20% off that they do most years. Have to watch prices thought as they have been known to put them up before the 'sale' :mad:

Only read there the other day that they aren't doing it this year in order to keep the crowds away. I could be wrong but I know I saw it somewhere.

Lord Spence

stephmcd wrote: »

Only read there the other day that they aren't doing it this year in order to keep the crowds away. I could be wrong but I know I saw it somewhere.

I hope they don't start blaming crowds like were some sort of uncontrollable animals, If they don't want to offer 20% off then fair enough I think everyone understands most business need all the help they can get this year.

TRS30

stephmcd wrote: »

Only read there the other day that they aren't doing it this year in order to keep the crowds away. I could be wrong but I know I saw it somewhere.

That's a bit of a cop out if true. They offer click and collect and most stores are pretty big and open long hours so crowds can be avoided!

Sheep Shagger

Lord Spence wrote: »

I hope they don't start blaming crowds like were some sort of uncontrollable animals, If they don't want to offer 20% off then fair enough I think everyone understands most business need all the help they can get this year.

Lower than normal stock levels cold be a factor too