Xmas money savers Part 4.

Every year Green minded people hum and hah over the greenest way to decorate the house for Xmas. Now on the surface it would appear that a real tree is the greenest way to go, after all fake trees are made from petro chemicals, will sit forever in a landfill once dicarded..... so its a no brainer right?

Only its not always.

After all, the journy of a real tree is not all magic and fairy dust.

For a start the the trees are planted as a commerical crop, often sprayed with pesticides and weedkillers. The fossil fules used to plant them, spary them, tend them and then finally cut and transport them also have to be taken into account. 

Its worth remembering that few trees are grown locally to the majority of people, so if you live in London your tree may have come from as far away as Scotland or even abroad. When these trees are cut early in the season and the season is a mild one there is also a need to refrigerate these trees to keep them fresh!

And after?

     

Of course a real tree can be composted, but how many households have the space to compost a whoel tree, even if they used a chipper? 

So instead the councils send out fuel drinking lorries to pick up the discarded trees.

As evergreens the trees don't even pump out that much Oxygen to compensate.

So, what to do for the best???

A nice compromise could be to plant a tree outside a cionveniant window, decorating it with lights suitable for outside. 

A tree in a pot can work well for a few years so long as its acclimatized slowley and not put in a very warm room.

What about alternatives?

Can a fake tree ever be green?

I think ours is.

We got our "new" tree from a friend via Freegle and as it is over 30 years old I think it can now safely be considered carbon nuteral! Of course there is still the disposale to consider but its strong and sturdy and likely to give us many many years of use.  

   

Athe end of the day its all a compromise.

I'm glad we stopped a tree ending up in a landfill and got a tree for free :)

                                    

Mantle piece display with home dried orange. 

Home made (by my Mum!) knitted xmas decorations!

The whole tree

Fairy lights adorn our Glastonbury prints by Norman Parker. 

Xmas money savers part 3.

MUM AND LEESA!!! TURN BACK NOW!!! DO NOT READ THIS POST!!!!!

Presents often make up the bulk of what we spend over the Xmas season,and while I wouldn't suggest that the kids should make do with a bit of string, a stick and a satsuma on the big day, there ARE a lot of ways you can cut down the cost.

*When you HAVE to buy new.
Lets face it, that Buzz lightyear or must have Barbie is unlikely to turn up for free. Be prepared and shop for special items early in the season and shop around to find the best deals. If shopping online, go for a site that has all the items you want. Its worth paying a little extra for your item if you can save on not shelling out postage costs to three or four separate sites!

*Charity shops.
Don't be alarmed! Charity shops are full of hidden gems! Books, DVD's and CD's are often found in as new condition in charity shops. Snap up bags full of toy staples like Lego or train track to re-package yourself.
Charity shops often also have unwanted Xmas decorations as well!

One of my boys is going to be pleased with this charity shop haul!!!

*Organise a swapping party. (Great tip Sandie!)
Get together with friends and swap your kids unwanted or outgrown toys/ books/movies for new-to-them ones!

*Make your own!
Nothing says love like homemade <3
Chocolates, toys, jars of preserves, toiletries, clothes, the list is as long as your talents!

Here are some things we have made ....

Kim made this farm set for Owen a coupld of years ago. Super sturdy and much played with for only a few pounds and some time!

Oliver went through a real knights phase for a coupld of years and Kim made the big castle first and then the smaller "baddie" castle the following year. Much of the wood was from scrap we had in the shed, as was the paint. Again, very sturdy, surviving being stood on, dropped and left outside. Compare that with an expensive plastic one he had that was broken with a couple of months.   

This year I turned this......

......Into THIS!!

Home made cosmetics for my mum and sister!

Inspired by my sisters bathbombs last year, I wanted to make some nice pampering treats for Xmas day. So much nicer than an expensive set from superdrug or tesco... Vegan, cruelty free and (mosty) organic! And for PENCE each!

  

Left to right I made, Lip scrub, lip balm, body scrub and moustiriser.

Want to know how?

Lip scrub- For kissable lips *Mwah*. Simply mix sugar and olive oil for a mild and sweet exfoliant!

Lip Balm- Melt shea butter, add a little plantine oil (or olive oil) and a dash of peppermint essence. Tip into contaner and it cools hard.

Bodyscrub- FINE sea salt ( I learnt the painful way that coarse is no good for this!) and olive oil, mix to sedired consistancy and pot.

Moustireser- Melt shea butter, soild coconut oil, olive oil and lavender essential oil, mix and pot. Adding more oil gives a runnier consitancy, or you can add less and have a harder cream (it softens readily in yo hands).     

I used plastic pots for these, although glass would look nicer I had to take the weight into account because of postage issues!!

So there you go.

Feel free to share your own frugle gift tips!   

Xmas money savers part 2

Sandie, a regular commenter here and a good facebook buddy, has shared some delightful photos of her boys home made Xmas decorations!

Turn these old bits of card into.....

THIS!!!!!

Sandie says "They are really simple. Just four circles of card, with an equilateral triangle drawn and scored in the middle, then stick the flaps together!"

And heres what a homemade decorated tree looks like! Courtesy of Sandies Homeschool Group!

I LOVE homemade decorations, it must be inherited!! My mum still has a stick with pine cones on it that I painted and stuck glitter on when I was about 4!! That stick has come out every year at Xmas for the last 29 years!!!

She even  brings out two toilet roll tubes my sister decorated one year.

It just wouldn't be Xmas without them!

A quick search online throws up lots of amazing crafty ideas to make decorations, prefect for those "I'm booooooored!" moments between now and the big day.

Some to get you started....... 

Xmas card balls from ehow

Christmas choir from Familyfun

How to Make Angels out of Recycled Christmas Cards


Hopefully there's enough here to wet your appetite for a recycled homemade Xmas :D
Share your pics!!!

Xmas money savers part 1

So .... Time for the countdown!!!!

And what better way to mark the days off till Xmas than with an advent calender!

The last couple of years we haven't had one..... The plain one's with just pictures seemed to have disappeared, the chocolate ones in the supermarkets for obvious reasons are no good to us, and the vegan ones too expensive (including postage!).

I often thought I would like one of those lovely fabric calenders with pockets you could pop treats into but again money gets in the way of buying frivolities like that.

So this year I made my own!!!!!

First I cut out xmasy pictures from magazines. I have to admit to being a sucker for home magazines at Xmas so this is a perfect way to justify my consumerism ;)

I stuck the pictures onto thick paper and then cut them out again.

On the back I wrote little notes, Sing a specific Xmas song, draw a picture, give everyone a hug and some even have the word SWEET on the back so that the receiver gets a little treat that time.  

I drew a tree on our black board wall (although obviously a large bit of paper would do as well) and using blu-tac I stuck the numbered pictures on.

So now the boys are taking turns to pick their number off the tree and do what the card says! Healthier than 24 chocolates, cost nothing and the cards can be recycled after the big day!!!