Xmas Ideas '13

[wjp666]

So it's shopping time again (well, it is for me anyway... left it a bit late this year) and as always I am looking for stupid, novelty pressie ideas. So... anyone got any weird n wonderful stuff I can wrap up for loved ones this year?

[oldspice]

What about poking round the few remaining car boot sales in search of things people are trying to sell that were given to them as novelty Christmas presents last year??  Actually, just now, loads of people are selling novelty gifts from years gone by. I've seen a good few 'Singing Billy the Fish' about.

[goldencup]

Left it a bit late??? Please tell me you're joking!  I refuse to even think about Christmas until December, it's still summer as far as I'm concerned - swam in the sea yesterday!

[Rainbow]

I don't know how to say this, but.... I am almost done buying presents...
I have my 'ones of twelve' for the kids and their main presents are 'on order'.
I have the gifts I wanted for my mum and my partner, now I just need to get some wrapping paper and I'm good to go.

I would love to be able to leave Xmas until December because I think it would be much more festive and exciting, but if I did that I would probably not be able to afford to eat again until sometime around July..   

I do each of my kids a 'survival box'. I take a box (around shoebox size) and in it I put a few of the things they would find it hard to live without. Things like Peppermint tea, J20, Magic Stars and Skittles for my boy, and Skittles, Licorice Allsorts, Mint humbugs and Dolly Mixtures for my girl. I wrap each item individually, and pop them in the box, and then wrap the box too.
In the past I've bought things like puzzle books, reading books, funny socks, lipstick, Sharpie pens, colourful shoe laces, My Little Pony figures, oh all kinds of things my kids were raving about. The boxes can cost as little as a few pounds, to, well whatever you want to spend really. The bits and pieces can be popped into a shopping trolley a couple at a time and spread over quite a few weeks it lessens the impact on the budget quite nicely. They are a way of showing my kids I actually do listen to them when they talk about the things they love, and they always  seem to really enjoy opening them, lots of 'ooohs' and 'ahhhs' and 'what have you got?',  and 'see what I've got' can be heard.
Much fun..

Perhaps adults would like something like that too..

[wjp666]

I've given out soooooo many Big Mouth Billy Bass fish over the years it's not even funny. But that's the kind of thing I'm looking for.

And yes, this is late for me... usually finished by now.

[oldspice]

Rainbow, those are lovely ideas! My children have both left home now and are both of an age when they can buy phones, laptops, kindles etc for themselves and would rather do so. They don't like gift tokens or getting money so I just buy them a goody bag full of luxury sweets, cute little notebooks and other useful things. We decided to stop swapping biggish pressies and just indulge each other with smallish things.  It's much more fun.

[Rainbow]

Thank you Oldspice. 

We still have one 'Santa Baby' in the house, so the jolly fat man still drops by for a mince pie, a glass of milk and some water and carrots for the reindeer, but the other two are far too old for those kinds of things, and we believe that the survival boxes help to bring fun and laughter to our older children which helps the magic shine just a little brighter for our youngest.
These kinds of tiny gifts are often much more personal than a larger one, (as much as they might be super gifts to get there's nothing sentimental or even very personal about a laptop or a mobile phone is there?) and as old as they are (17 & 20) they still LOVE opening presents. The more the merrier, especially if the whole thing is accompanied by bacon sandwiches. lol

[goldencup]

I agree that the little presents are much more fun.  My work colleagues and I all have a lucky dip at Christmas and each present must cost no more than a pound.  We all have fun throughout the year finding unusual gifts to go in the sack - some very strange things have turned up!

[drterror_6_6_6]

All I want for Xmas is an Orbital Ion Cannon. Oh, the fun...

[oldspice]

I agree that the little presents are much more fun.  My work colleagues and I all have a lucky dip at Christmas and each present must cost no more than a pound.  We all have fun throughout the year finding unusual gifts to go in the sack - some very strange things have turned up!

We have a 'secret Santa' system at work where you spend £7.50 on a gift for someone whose name you have selected in a secret name dip.

[wjp666]

Just got one of these for my parents. I buy them rubbish like this every year.

Singing mini buck

[goldencup]

I agree that the little presents are much more fun.  My work colleagues and I all have a lucky dip at Christmas and each present must cost no more than a pound.  We all have fun throughout the year finding unusual gifts to go in the sack - some very strange things have turned up!

We have a 'secret Santa' system at work where you spend £7.50 on a gift for someone whose name you have selected in a secret name dip.

We used to do it that way but it became a hassle trying to choose something nice - so we go for the totally tasteless option and enjoy watching people's faces when they unwrap their 'surprise' in front of everybody!  A vajazzle from the 99p shop was a highlight last year...

[Rainbow]

That sounds like fun GoldenCup.
I have the type of personality that would really enjoy looking for the ugliest thing for sale anywhere to put into a secret santa like that.  lol

[wjp666]

I always wrap up something ridiculously embarrassing for my SIGOT to open in front of family members on xmas day. Last year it was a vibrating candy cane. This year? Why, anal beads, of course! Should get a reaction.

[goldencup]

WJP and Rainbow - you have both got the idea!  I think Christmas presents for adults should just be fun things - we've mostly got everything we need anyway and if we haven't we go out and buy it ourselves.