It is the season!

I was recently in a discussion on FB with a few women who have very little money. It is coming up to the festive season when gifts are expected to be given and received. What happens when you can’t meet these expectations?

I am Jewish, so I don’t celebrate Xmas, but I do wonder if people have lost the meaning behind this day and it has become to commercialised,  I feel this way about Valentine’s day and Easter and mother’s day and father’s day too.  People spend far too much money on material items, instead of celebrating the meaning of the actual day.

So I asked my friend Google for some Ideas, and here is what I got.

This filled jar is available from a reputable company for R299.00 including delivery. Now look what I did.

I took an old jar and soaked off the label. I put a mixture of Bicarb and oil on for 15 minutes and it scrubbed off easily.

I then bought assorted chocolates, this cost a lot, I do admit, about R175.

I divided the chocolates from each packet equally and filled my jar, which is a good sized coffee jar.

And then I filled some bags, which you can get at any Chinese market for about R3 each.

The jar, chocolates and a little ribbon to decorate cost me about R55 in total, the gift bags even less.

6 gift bags and 1 jar filled with yummie chocolates cost me R200.

There are so many other wonderful ideas out there. Change out the chocolates for dried fruit and assorted nuts.

Fill a jar with the dry ingredients to your favourite cake or biscuit mix and add the recipe to a special label, for something different.

If you don’t like the used jars, take a drive to Consol in Woodmead and buy direct. Their prices are extremely good. In April I bought the 2 litre jar for R30.

All my life I have heard that Xmas is the season for giving!   I am pretty sure that the saying refers to love and kindness and not your last penny.

In the next few weeks I will look at other gifts which you can give that won’t put you in debt.