General Chat

from The Dogs Trust - their sale is on - I will benefit and so will they. Last year it was the Donkey Sanctuary in Sidmouth - take alternate years.

Usually buy some of mine and wrapping paper this time of yr in the sales, but haven't this yr.
Hubby bought a 6ft tree (supposedly £39 for £2, there was one show which he said looked good, dau bought a very big box of baubles other tree deccies gift tags, bags and other bits and pieces all colour themed for £2.
Just taking our tree down now, it looked fine to me , I didn't put it up tho...., hubby said that the branches were staritng to go !
Up they go into the attic>>>>>, see which is the best for Dec 2011.
Perhaps we'll put the old one in the garden, stuck well into the ground, depends on the weather etc ;lol cos that's 6 footer too>:)

My problem is that whatever Christmas cards etc I buy in the January sales, I have lost (misplaced) by the time next Christmas comes along and I end up having to buy more

Sorry girls but have beaten you in the cards stakes got mine 27th dec from wilko they were half price buy one get three first time i've ever had a bargain

I bought a pack today half price from the BHF. Ended up it cost me nearly £10 as I got 3 X£2 coins in my change....i save them lol

I bought long life/energy saving bulbs from T**co for 20p and two baking trays 44p. That was my bargains for today.

Marion

Lol Marion~~~

I'm a sucker for a bargain ,so is hubby and he bought all our new bathroom (except tiles ,which I wanted to personally see ) off the net at greatly reduced prices.

But your name indicates you're even cannier than us .lol
Hubby ordered something from a guy in Scotland , who said he would sent it by next day day delivery to reach us by Xmas, but he was loathed ' in his words' to pay the extra price.. course we paid it ! .lol

Good bargains there :))

Best wishes
Sandie. ( Welsh)

I used to always go with my Mum to the sales and buy good quality cards half price when she was alive, but found lots of special offers before Christmas 2010 on Charity donation cards so wasn't too expensive. I wish they would do the postage stamps bogoff, that's the most expensive part!

I do have several boxes part used from over the years so might not have to buy many next year, will wait and see and hopefully find bargains nearer the time if I don't have enough.

I have noticed several cards missing this year, and a few that turned up after missing me last year lol I am convinced there is a black hole somewhere where missing cards congregate. Last March I received a Christmas card my aunt sent before Christmas 2009, no wonder she was surprised when she told me in a phone call after Christmas that her broken ankle was healing and I hadn't a clue what she was on about. Had the card arrived on time I would have been up to date with her news.

I saw someone I know yesterday in the poundshop and she said she and her daughter had bought all their cards in the sale and written them already! I find that strange, I mean people can move house or have all sorts of things happen in a year so unless they just signed names and didn't add personal messages, as I mostly do, the cards will sort of be out of date by Christmas 2011.

I know we all get bored at times but....to write your card's that early lol

Keep anything to do with Christmas - cards and gifts in same drawer for years - then do not lose them. We like to support animal charity though a bit more expensive sometimes than in shops so do our bit by buying in their January sale.

Chris, morning, just
I like to buy my cards for charity, but they have in the past been for the human variety. Not seen any for animals around here, but would willingly buy if I could. Don't forget the purple poppy for this year.
Take Care
Julia in Derbyshire

If you can afford it and know roughly how many stamps you will use during the year you can buy books of second class stamps now to use after April. As long as they don't have the amount paid on them (which the books don't) they can be used.

Good morning Julia - we use The Dogs Trust and The Donkey Sanctuary in Sidmouth, Devon. Buy on internet just google the charities. I noticed this year that most of our cards were for charity but all for humans!
Sale for Dog Trust begun, Donkeys not yet but should be soon. Take turn and turn about with both of them.

I got a Christmas Card today with a second Class stamp and no postmark so I have no idea when it was sent.
I feel mean as I was just moaning that we had not recieved a card this year from these people.

I buy my cards in the sales every year, most seem to be for charity nowadays so the money goes to a good cause.
It stems back to the days when we were first married and very hard up so buying in the sales seemed the sensible idea and 20 years on I continue the tradition.

I would never write them until end of November, you never know how peoples circumstances change.

Teresa

Barry, I am the same, I miss reading the postmark and trying to guess who the card is from, I got several with no franking over the stamp at all, around 5 or 6 I think.

I definitely wouldn't write my cards this soon lol, how can you give up to date info if you do that. Imagine how it would be (awful thought I know) if you wrote them all out and then your partner died or left you for example.

Some people are just too organised.

O.h.'s son told us at the end of last week he had taken down all the decorations but I would have thought with a very young baby she would have enjoyed seeing the bright things around and another few days would have been nice.

Lizx

I would not dare write my cards until 30 Nov at the earliest, each year for some time now. names have been disappearing.

We buy Christmas wrappng paper for birthdays too.
If you look around you can usually find some that would be suitable. One year, when it was a friend's 25th wedding anniversary, I already had a choice of about 4 different papers.
Gold is also ideal if you want to wrap little gifts for a Golden wedding.

Still yet to buy cards for next Christmas, but I have lots of stamps ready!

Gwyn

For past 5 years or so I buy silver paper by the roll and then it does for Christmas and during year for gifts

Actually I was in the Sue Ryder charity shop three weeks before Christmas and they had all their cards reduced and the wrapping paper was down to 40p a roll, so got two Christmassy ones and a red, green and gold striped one which will be good for birthdays etc. O.h. has a birthday on 5th Feb. drives me nuts as it takes long enough to think of things to get him for Christmas then I have to try again for February!


Lizx

Whilst donating items to Barnados yesterday, I said some of the items were Xmas deccies in good condition and noticed that local stores were currently selling them at reduced prices, she said they probably store them for next yr but pointed out that they had reduced their Xmas card and admitted that most of their staff had bought some.
I had 4 packs of cards reduced from £3 .49 to 19p ( 10 in each pack).
They also had reduced their wrapping paper :)

Sandie.

Can understand them reducing things now but was surprised to see the reductions three weeks before Christmas.

Lizx