We have a spending limit. This year it's £15 per person except between spouses. I'm getting sheepskin boot slippers and DH is getting a saw and new overalls. The kids are getting edibles and books.

I give gifts only to my grandchildren and my sisters' grandchildren. As for my sisters and my son and daughter-in-law, we decided long ago we all have enough stuff and we don't need to join the commercial buy in.

I do a fair bit of Xmas knitting - this year, have done feminist gloves, beret, Fairisle Jumper and stripey handspun yarn jumper.The boys (boys!, they are 47 and 36) always get spendy tools, the sharper and shinier the better), and have also made a wool and silk dressing gown for my sweetheart. None of the younger crew are terribly keen to get handmade things (although I have made minecraft hats and such in the past). I pot up terracotta pots of spring bulbs for other gifts (will be using some of my haul of species tulips this year). Everyone already has sheepskin slippers!

I know |I am getting some ridiculously expensive red Duckfeet boots (after spending the entire year dropping gigantic hints (including leaving the webpages open on sweetheart's phone). And (a lot of) books.

Last year, I bought everyone a fruit tree but you can't really do that more than once.

One year, I ordered a dozen plain aluminium biscuit tins which I primed, painted and stencilled and filled with home-made macarons. Not ever going there again although the macarons were stupendous and my garden wall still bears the spray paint and primer evidence. Plus, I was still fannying about painting, late on Christmas Eve.

Another year, I had been bought a jigsaw for my birthday so made a heap of furniture, mirror frames and shelving with various timber cutouts in the shape of kestrels (my daughter's middle name), rowan trees (eldest boy's name) and various dogs...but I had been working on them for months.

I am handy with tools (I taught carpentry and textiles at a local college for a few years).

I think we would like to see pictures of a few of these things.

O, I know, Vaporvac. I have taken the precaution of photographing my knitting for this year (I am especially proud of a colourwork jumper cos I dyed all the yarn myself)...on the vague chance I manage to upload something on this account (which, handily, also ties in to sweetheart's mobile phone).

Not just on here but I never manage to upload anything to my knitting forum, Ravelry...and over the years, I would have loved a record of the items I have made since most of them get given away to various friends and family.

I want to manage to do this for my new year resolutions as I almost stopped using forums because I was so embarrassed to chat away about this plant or that with no accompanying photos (especially when certain forum members (not on here) like to insist on 'photos or it never happened').. It is becoming almost a pathological obsession because I am such a fail at managing technology these days, especially since I always thought I was a competent sort of person. I swear it used to be so much easier before clouds and apps and the many different platforms and operating systems. Put a tenon saw or spinning wheel in my hands and I am fearless but even a mobile phone leaves me baffled and clueless.

Suzy, I really just tolerate technology [g] So, I understand the difficulty in postng photos, especially to Houzz. If you want some help in the New Year with step by step posting instructions, I can at least check what you've tried and see if I know anything that would bring success. Happy to do it. Just come back and post to this thread, I get a notice for all posts to the thread. Posting photos gives a whole new dimension for you.

rosa your post left me quite out of breath! LOL where do you find the TIME to do all that? I haven't even written out my Christmas cards yet!

Hubby and I have never really exchanged gifts - although I must say he outdid himself twice. The year after we were married I got a diamond engagement ring (too young and broke to have one when we actually GOT engaged lol) and then he once bought me a pair of diamond stud earrings. To this day he looks at them (I wear them very often) and says, "Thank goodness your ears are so little - they make the diamonds look big!"

Hmm, I was beginning to feel guilty rattling off these gifts he's gotten me, since I haven't reciprocated in kind, but there was the one Christmas he bought me a very nice digital camera... and then proceeded to immediately use it for himself, complete with buying a camera bag and instructing me how he wanted it to be packed. I don't think I ever used it, because, let's be honest, it was for him lol. :)

The kiddos got presents when they were little, but now I, being very practical, do something like make a student loan payment for them.

I thought I would be all excited to buy presents for the little ones again, but here it is five days before Christmas and I haven't bought a single present for the 2-year-old twins. Again, being boring and practical, I will probably put money aside to their college fund.

Gee, I used to LOVE buying gifts for people, taking time to find just the right thing, matching the gift to the person. Now I can't be bothered lol

:)

Dee

It's a frugal holiday here (DH and DD are federal employees). DD has been searching thrift shops to find old cookbooks for DH. He loves cookbooks so she tries to outdo herself each year by giving particularly gruesome ones (think aspics, spam, Jello molds, etc). Then DH gets revenge by cooking something from the book and serving it to her unawares. DH intended to build a couple more bluebird houses for me but a red tailed hawk is building a nest in my yard so I expect the songbirds to move on.

I’ve so enjoyed reading the lovely posts in this thread! Especially @suzy jackson & @diggerdee zone 6 CT. For the past few years instead of buying something neither of us needs, my DH & I have chosen to give a largish donation to an animal sanctuary - different ones. The no kill animal shelter in my area & an exotic bird sanctuary in AZ - places like that. This year we also took 2 tags off the giving tree set up in the community center where we go to the gym. The gift recipients are homebound seniors that are receiving some type of in home care or are in a care home themselves. Their wish lists were limited to 3 things each with things like slippers, puzzles, chocolates etc. It’s a nice feeling thinking about brightening another’s life just a bit. We don’t decorate the inside of our home anymore - seems too much trouble so most of our holiday decor was donated long ago. But, we do put some seasonal decorations outside our home for our neighbors to enjoy - it’s fun looking at theirs so it seems neighborly to join in and hang a few things out there!

I have some of those cookbooks, KW (Marguerite Patten's Cooking with Colour' and the like) and do quite enjoy making a lurid aspic mould for a laugh.