It's a Wrap

 Moving on from all those presents you could be forgiven that we're terribly wasteful in terms of wrapping and frills. After all, whether it's 30 presents or 26 or whatever that seems like a lot of paper that simply gets thrown away. So here's what we do...

Month 7 - Bite 25 

We try to use what we've got. Sometimes that's paper left over from a different occasion and at others it's a matter of carefully folding paper that's been unwrapped and keeping it for another time, especially when we're doing a lot of small presents.

There are times when tissue paper is the answer. It quite often gets used as crafting materials afterwards for papier mache or collages. Now and again I've been known to wrap gifts in magazine pages, particularly if the pictures on them link to the present inside (and once more they go into the craft box when discarded).

When I finally get round to Christmas I'll go into designing individual paper without it costing the earth, either financially or environmentally.

Finally I have used a scarf or fabric wrap that forms part of the present itself as the outer wrapping!

Month 7  - Bite 26

Then, of course, there's gift bags. There are some gift and bottle bags that have been doing the rounds between us for a number of years! As we give them to each other it's part of the gift giving process to try and remember who passed on the bag last! Now and again we need to buy new ones, but as far as we can they go back and forth (minus the contents naturally). There's also a nice decorative box that I give back to someone each time so that they can refill it with toiletries as my present - I can't remember how old that is, but it's sort of become a tradition now....

Month 7 - Bite 27

There are other gift bags too. I think I may have shown these before...

I made them from some fabric I got for £1 at a local market and by adding leftover curtain lining I got four tote bags out of it that went on to be presents as well as gift bags.

This year for my niece I couldn't resist this lovely tote I saw, so her presents are going to her in this so she can use her 'gift bag' as a shopping bag!

                                          

A tailor made celebration

 As I write this we are all happily recovering from the excitement of Mum's 90th so a really good excuse for a celebration and party.

Now we do like a party with games and all that stuff, but it has to be suitable for the person actually having the birthday. As Mum doesn't manage musical bumps too well (it's the getting up after the music has stopped she says), her celebration was stretched across her big day so that it was manageable and fitted around regular meals, school times and her (and us) having the chance for a rest or two.

Month 7 - Bite 19

So, how do you celebrate? Well, firstly, as usual we asked Mum what she wanted! It required a bit of planning and conversations for each of us to sort out our parts, nothing particularly stressful. Early morning was about phone calls from each of us - not a lot of cost there, and a floral delivery. Cards were opened, children were delivered to school and then it was off to one of her favourite seaside cafes for the adults for a snack lunch.

When we got back to her place it was one or two presents and a surprise (I'll do presents in the next bite) then the setting up of the cakes before the end of the school day.

After cakes (and a return to school for one end of term treat) there was the rest of the presents and a buffet tea.

All, as I say, manageable and not too exhausting, but fun.
What would you choose for your perfect celebration day?

Month 7 - Bite 20

So just what do you buy someone who's 90? Mum definitely didn't want an expensive super one off present - she wanted the things she likes and one or two things she fancied and asked for.

Of course, we wanted to mark the day so we all provided my niece with photos of ourselves and she printed them ready for her husband to arrange as a collage and mount in a frame. My niece has arranged for this to be done by internet before and the results are great, but there was something even more personal this way and she was thrilled.

Month 7 - Bite 21

Previous big celebrations have come with big cakes - sometimes with the milestones marked by a professional creation. Those by bakers have been very nice (expensive mind), but again, this time it was far more personal as my niece turned up with 90 cakes! I don't know what time she finished baking the night before, but they looked great.

It was so good to have a variety of cakes with everyone being able to choose their favourite and have some (!) to take home too.

Month 7 - Bite 22

Then the surprises... well, they weren't extravagant. Every 'extra' present she opened was something she'll use in the coming days and weeks... The biscuits she likes from the supermarket, her preferred coffee , not to mention the bottle of sherry and the coffee shop voucher! Oh yes and the big bag of tea - well 9 teas - get it 9 teas - 9ties nineties.. Sorry I just couldn't resist that one. Not a waste of money on a joke though as they'll all get used!

It means we spent our money on treats that she likes and will use AND she'll save money on not having to buy them for a while!

Month 7 - Bite 23

Deciding on non-wasteful, yet enjoyable presents is a bit of a theme for us. This year my sister (her birthday was the previous week) couldn't think of anything she wanted so asked for a selection of items that she likes. To make it a bit different I got something for every letter of the alphabet (thank heavens her favourite crisps start with a q!) Each was wrapped (more about sustainable wrapping in another bite) and had a line of a verse (or rap I guess) so she had to open them in the right order.

I don't know what I enjoyed more - making up the rhyme (yes I did print out the whole thing so she didn't have to rely on keeping all the little bits of paper) or sourcing all the gifts - some of which needed making.. all good fun and she's working her way through using them all...

Here's one or two that I made...

So I had plenty of fun too....

Month 7 - Bite 24

And finally for this section...

The alphabet presents reminded me of the bag I did for my sister's retirement - you might like this one too...

I created a bag of presents - 30 of them as she retired at the beginning of a September. Each present was labelled with a different day of the month and all related to things she said she was looking forward to doing - I made an apron as she wanted to cook more, cookie cutters for the biscuits she intended making and so on..

Again I'm not sure who enjoyed it most - me or her!

Is there an occasion where you could try an idea like this. It does take time and planning, but no where near the cost of a large milestone present which, while nice, might not have quite the tailor made effect..

Tailor made - I think that's where I started this post!

Theme for a party...

 So this little collection shows how our family's fevered brains come up with themes to make simple parties with the same ingredients varied and different to each other...

Month 7 - Bite 15

Choose a colour and go for it.. a red party or an orange party for example - it might mean everyone turning up wearing the colour or decorations made to fit the theme or even all the food matching the chosen hue! It can be a bit mind bending, but it's great fun too. Oh and the joys of cooking cakes with food colouring or hunting down juices and drinks in the right colours.

Last year my niece went for a gold party. No, we couldn't push the boat out as far as golden presents, but with sequins, foil curtains and so on it was a special day. 

We do recycle lots of the decorations and table dressings though in an effort not to be wasteful - on which subject you may have noticed in a previous post a huge 60 decorated and used on a party table - well, that's about to reappear this week at my mum's 90th! See what I mean.

'Dressing up' our parties like this may mean lots of effort and brain stretching, but largely keeps some of the costs down as the value is in us all being together (pandemic allowing) and having fun, not splashing the cash necessarily.....

Month 7 - Bite 16

Now here's a practical one that's been used when a big job needs finishing.

A working party is always helpful if something like planting and digging or stripping wallpaper is required. By getting all the hands available on board you can cover a lot of man/woman hours of work and enjoy yourself at the same time. It makes the tasks go quickly and saves on having to get in extra, paid for help. All that's needed is some music, the right tools (especially if the workers can bring them and save on buying new ones) and some refreshments.

On one previous flat move my niece and her husband were simply moving a few streets from one flat to another. They got their friends round to a grand moving party and then furnished everyone with plenty of pizza to enjoy together once the job was done. Much cheaper than a removal firm, even if the sight of them walking the bed and mattress through a shopping street was an unusual comedy routine for the Saturday shoppers!

Month 7 - Bite 17

Then, of course, there are the 'make it' parties. These are great - exploring the brains and interests of those around you who can show how to create something or to pick up a skills - or just gathering a group of you together with a pile of materials and going for it. There's something quite liberating when you try your hand at a craft session with others who are trying it for the first time. Whether it's beading or weaving or, well anything really, just pitching in and having a giggle while you attempt a creative explosion leads to plenty of chat and discussion.

It might be that you all bring along a kit to finish or gather up any odds and ends of crafting leftovers to reduce the cost.

Or that you're all making something with a purpose. When I was in the classroom we did have some craft parties that were to make items for the summer or Christmas fair. Or a group yarn effort can lead to the fun of yarn bombing. At the moment the post box round the corner from here is sporting a fabulous knitted scene.

Or there's always the traditional quilting bee or blanket making session. As long as it's a group of people having fun, and probably a little wine, it's classed as a party for me!

Month 7 - Bite 18

And finally, for now, there's the foodie parties based on a particular country. It doesn't matter which country, as long as everyone enjoys the menu. Of course, it's not just the food, whether it's Italian or Mexican or Chinese or Caribbean or ..... the table and setting have to be right. 

Printing photos or making up collages from travel brochures add to the atmosphere, as well as food mats made from travel pictures and music too, naturally. Speaking a bit of the language relevant to the meal, if only to say 'please' thank you' or 'this tastes great' helps transport you to another place. 

Don't forget the menu describing each dish and decorated appropriately (that's where children are very useful) to add to the feel of the occasion.

There's also the possibility of a slide show cast onto the TV of photos of a visit or a streamed programme/film based in the particular country so that you can all feel immersed in the idea of being somewhere else.

Bearing in mind that you would be buying the ingredients for a meal anyway, this sort of party doesn't need to cost the earth either!

Onto the party ingredients next time.......

Food Glorious Food

 Now it wouldn't be me if food didn't come into the celebrations here!

Here's four bites to consider...

Month 7 - Bite 11

Make a cake... yes, make it, don't buy it. That way it's a) cheaper and b) individual and personal. The cake could be a sliceable goodie or a number of cupcakes arranged and decorated beautifully. 

A cake made by my husband was one of the requested 60 presents for my sister's celebration which we delivered separately to her party (COVID number restrictions staggered her gatherings throughout the day!)

Sorry, his creations never last once they are put on the table - you can even see the candle holes where the candles have been hastily removed for eating purposes!

Month 7 - Bite 12

Let the birthday boy or girl choose their favourite meal. Over the years we've seen old favourites revisited again and again - fish fingers and jelly eh sis? 

Month 7 - Bite 13

Picnic in the Park - a really fun one this - we've done it on the beach too with plenty of finger foods and treats. It means that no one gets moaned at for picking at their food as they can have as much or as little as they want and there's little clearing up to do with any crumbs left for the birds!

All that's needed is a big blanket, towel or tablecloth and a coolbag full of everyone's favourites with games on the grass (or sand) to follow and fight off the calories. There's also the possibility of ice cream being available too!

Month 7 - Bite 14

Bring Your Own...

This one is great for celebrations where everyone brings something to the meal. It works for the above picnic, but also for any other occasion. Our badminton group used to do it regularly pre-pandemic, usually with the hostess providing baking potatoes and everyone else pitching in with their speciality either homemade or shop bought. Of course, a bit of co-ordination and forward planning makes sure that there's a variety on offer, but it doesn't take too much organising. We also used to do it for Christmas with the hostess cooking up vats of soup...

Last Christmas our Spinning group went down this route as a number of our older ladies were still a bit hesitant about eating out in an enclosed venue and it went down a storm. So much so that we're probably going to do it again this year without the encouragement of a pandemic!

Money, Money, Money

 Of course, not everyone in the family wants to go down the multiple present route and for them there's always the gift of cash to do as they please or to put together with other gifts to buy one big present.

Here's one or two of the ideas we've used to make this entertaining too...

Month 7 - Bite 7

On one or two occasions I've managed to collect coins with particular years on them. One year I got 30 one pound coins - every one of them had a different date representing each year of the recipient's life. It became a bit more difficult to to this once the coins changed with the older ones then not being spend-able. But at the time it was fun collecting them - it took some advanced planning and collecting as you can imagine.

I also made a purse for the coins to go in!

Month 7 - Bite 8

On another occasion I somehow got a complete set of coins with the year of the birthday person's birth on them and mounted them in a frame to go with a cash gift. As this has become a bit more difficult as our currency changes and some coinage passes out of circulation I've had to settle for mounting just one coin with a birthdate on it.

Month 7 - Bite 9

When my nieces, their children, other friends' offspring were small I also used to buy a money box and fill it with change. It was a great game for them to open the box and then count up how much they had - it's amazing long that can last with £5 worth of small coins!!!

Month 7 - Bite 10

Now this one does take patience and planning. When I was born my mum's boss began buying me a Premium Bond every year to build up a little fund and give a slight chance of a windfall. Sadly he died when I was four and although I've never won a penny the fact that he bothered and planned was very special to me. I still have the Premium Bonds and can't part with them, of course, you never know I might still win and his plan could come to fruition!

I wanted to do something like that for my nieces when they were born, but decided money might be safer. It had to be something I could commit to long term so I opened a savings account for them and put £1 a week in each. I added an extra £5 for each birthday and Christmas. I knew I could always find these smaller amounts and it was amazing how it mounted up, along with the growing interest. By the time I handed them the accounts on their eighteenth birthdays they had a really nice windfall to buy a good present each.

AAaarrgghhh... Just when I thought I was on top of it all...

 Oh well, the best laid plans and all that.

I was doing so well with little catch-ups and getting most of this blog rolling without too many gaps until - well, it had to happen really - the dreaded COVID got me! Luckily not too badly, but with enough brain fog to stop me writing too much...

So this month might be a bit truncated (handy for an elephant theme don't you think?). I'll get all the bite ideas in, but they may well be a bit crammed. Mind you, that's a bit how the summer feels for our family with so many birthdays, anniversaries and celebrations.

Okay, let's get started...

Month 7 - Bite 3

When you get to a certain point there's a problem in that you may well not need superfluous presents. I'd argue that you probably never need them - anyway there still has to be a way to mark and celebrate milestones and in the last few years we've had a few of those '0' birthdays - 30ths, 60th and so on. Actually next week sees my mum's 90th.

A while back we started clubbing together to get the number of presents to match a significant year. Some of them were 'present sized costs' while others were simple things that the recipient liked. My sister's 60th was a real planning episode with a spreadsheet and multiple messages as we all piled in with ideas and actual buying. The gifts ranged from her favourite orange chocolate and photo fridge magnets of the grandchildren to vouchers.

It was great fun (even if I had to witness it through video link because of the pandemic rules at the time!)

And there was a lot of love and thought put into it all.

Mind you, I don't now whether it took more planning or less than my niece's 30th previous to that which involved getting all 30 presents to Italy. Now that was a suitcase I was hoping they didn't want to open and examine as it was all wrapped and ready....

Month 7 - Bite 4

Of course, such present buying has to avoid descending into silliness and wasting money and time on stuff that isn't wanted or needed so the biggest factor with presents is to get what's wanted. The simplest way of doing this is to ask! 

I think I've mentioned before the trick of messaging each other exactly what any of us have our eyes on with links to where to get it, or sending photos of the desired items - especially with the children. We try to co-ordinate our efforts so that there aren't 'doubles' of any gifts too.

Month 7 - Bite 5

We also enjoy a good voucher. That doesn't have to be shop bought or specific either. Sometimes a handmade voucher to accompany the cash is rather nice. Thankfully the laptop and printer make that particularly easy. During the pandemic when getting to the shops or going out to choose was difficult there were vouchers promising sports gear or the like to be redeemed when the situation improved.

Month 7 - Bite 6

As well as voucher to buy things we've also enjoyed experience vouchers to be redeemed - that afternoon tea that I wrote about. Spending time together doing something we all enjoy and making memories are really precious.

Using pictures and screenshots helps to make the voucher more unique especially if there's some pictures of the intended destination or activity.

                                          

Sometimes it's a voucher promising meeting up for tea and cakes or lunch or even for a reflexology session or a manicure. It just depends on  the recipient... oh and the giver gets to go too!

Partytime

 I know I haven't been burdening this flow of posts with a specific time of year, but as I type it's just about the busiest time of year in our family for birthdays and celebrations! So, here we go with some suggestions and ideas for the fun times ahead that will have a positive impact on my purse (I hope). Some of the ideas will be prompts for me to try out while others will be tried and tested, so let's go!

Month 7 - Bite 1

Couldn't resist this particular party animal elephant in her festive frock, even if she does look a little unstable after celebrating!

Way back in Month 1 I made a list of dates and anniversaries and in Month 2 I started looking at making one or two things to keep in store. Now it's time to ramp up the efforts. I'm going to begin adding to the list suggestions for each of the occasions. I know what particular sweets certain family members like or puzzle books or bath stuff so I can put those into the list. There are other things they've mentioned that they'd like to try - that afternoon tea the other month for example - so those experiences can go in too. The main thrust behind this is to make sure that I don't get caught unawares with no thought in my head of what I might get, do or make. That's the fastest way to waste money that I know and doesn't necessarily mean that the recipient ends up with the best present for them - or perhaps one that they even like...

Month 7 - Bite 2

Card making is next on the list. Here's a selection of various cards I've already made for friends and family. I keep photos of them to spark off new versions - although it's a bit tricky sometimes making sure that I don't re-send copies to anyone!

This one features a handmade ceramic button on some wet felted fabric I created.

A special sewn card for a milestone birthday.

Okay, the original photo in the middle is a magnet created by my niece's husband and his camera, but the pebble photo and composition is mine!

More stitchery onto card.

I just found this ladybird button and knitted a background square.

I've made ice cream brooches from felt before and had a spare that became a card topper.

It's amazing what you can do with some card, an envelope and some scraps of fabric, paint and paper...

I also like to photograph any good ideas I see to help inspire me for the future - that includes stuff I see in magazines or shops too.

I'll add an extra mouthful at the end of the month with some more easy designs....