It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas Off Topic Chat

DvB

Beyond sick of cr*p weather at this stage. Whatever about matches being cancelled we're struggling to even get out for walks these days. Forecast for most of the week is wet, wet, wet too so nochange for the foreseeable either.

At this stage I just want to skip 8 weeks to our holiday in the sun and fingers crossed after that the summer here will be at least not wet, wet, wet!

DvB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121988776#Comment_121988776

Don't forget Christmas in July!!! 😀

All kidding aside, I'll be sticking with September as the first month with Christmas build up vibes. July & August are just too soon for me to consider them as even remotely part of the extended build up. We'd usually start our prep towards the mid/end of september (after the kids go back to school) with gifts etc being started then for the kids.

dubstepper

Another option for outdoor is solar. We had something like below for about 3 years out the back and they worked great. Fully disclosure, they are better in summer/autumn when you get more day light. We had them for the back all year but went wired for the front at Christmas.

https://www.temu.com/ie/1-pack-20-50-100-led-solar-string-lights-outdoor-waterproof-solar-festoon-fairy-light-for-garden-christmas-festival-decor-g-601099519630258.html

CheerLouth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121991487#Comment_121991487

Ditto! We are on a countdown already for our holidays & it's not until July!

Andrew93

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121987047#Comment_121987047

Will be in the same boat myself this year coming will be our first in our own home. (We officially moved in Dec 23rd 2023, but we barely had furniture never mind decorations). Looking forward to starting my collection of decorations going forward. Have a kitty that I'm topping up every month to FastTrack the essentials 😁

DvB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121991996#Comment_121991996

The one suggestion i'd make is quality over quantity. When I first moved out I had nothing & ended up trying to do too much too soon, with the result I ended up binning a lot of cheap crap that aged poorly. I restarted & bought more expensive & better quality bits and just added to them over the years, and that definitely looks better IMO.

pigtail33

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121991487#Comment_121991487

It really is a depressing sight. I'll wrap up and go out for my walk in most weathers, a bit of drizzle wouldn't bother me, but the constant rain is just too much. I hate getting home with wet feet.

Andrew93

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121992179#Comment_121992179

Thanks for the advice. I would have the tendency to purchase a load of cheap crap to fill the house this year. I'll definitely make sure the main items (tree, lights etc) are high quality.

antimatterx

Rain hadn't let up all day and doesn't look like it will this evening. Won't be getting a walk in by the looks of it

jellybear

No walk for myself and the doggy this evening 😔

On the plus side, it's my sister's birthday tomorrow so we've decided to go out for breakfast just us and my little girl AND dinner with the whole family tomorrow...sure what else would you be doing in this weather 😆

BK5

Just want to echo DvB's advice on the decorations. When it comes to your home, remember it's a marathon not a sprint. I've been doing up the house for 23 years and trust me you need to build up your stock of decorations over the years with good stuff that doesn't fall apart after one season.

We make a plan every January what we would like to add and what needs to be replaced/updated for the next Christmas.

And write and label everything when your putting it away, makes it so much easier when late Nov, early Dec rolls around.

Posy

Echoing DvB and BK5's sentiments.

I've gotten a few nice Kilkenny Shop and Tipperary Crystal ornaments/decorations in early January to build up a nice collection of bits and pieces.

My Christmas tree is 10-11 years old, and I'm thinking a new one might be my Big Purchase of 2024. 😁

CheerLouth

The likes of Carraig Donn also tend to reduce their Christmas stuff close to the big day. They do have lovely homeware pieces.

Smell the glove

Thanks everyone for the tips! Much appreciated! It's just the outdoors stuff that'll be new to us this year. We have been renting for about ten years and have a very solid indoors decorations layout. Obviously now we have more options it will be exciting, the house we were renting was small. This house is a normal sized house so can't wait to have a 7ft tree instead of a 6ft one and not be squashed away in the corner!

pigtail33

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121995084#Comment_121995084

I think I'll need a new tree this year too as I've had mine for 10 years. I love the look of the Nebraska in HS&M, but I think they're a bit too wide for the space I have for it.

I also bought a good few cheap tree fillers for the first year in my house that I stopped using after a year or two. Easons had a great post Christmas sale one year and I picked up a good few fancy baubles for 75% off and they're all still in use.

DvB

So, into the 250's on the countdown today, so nearly half way through the 200's… even with the miserable weather the year is moving at a fair old lick so far.

Was at training last night with the team at the slightly earlier timeslot of 6-7pm and with it being bright & clear it was a great reminder of what the summer evenings can be like, looking forward now to the longer evenings & it being bright until after 10pm, love that time of year, just hope the weather plays ball at some stage and we dont have another miserable summer like last year.

CheerLouth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121998824#Comment_121998824

I have the Nebraska & I think if I was buying it again, I wouldn't! It's a lovely big full tree but it's an absolute nightmare hanging baubles on it - the branches are too wide. Bring a bauble with you & try it on all the trees before you buy is my advice!

DvB

Just noticed that that the Christmasbuzz.uk website is gone. What with the ChristmasUK website disapearing last year too that's 2 of the better Christmas build up themed sites gone which is a shame. Very little out there now for the 2024 build up.

pigtail33

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122000490#Comment_122000490

Oh good advice, I never would have thought to bring a bauble to check for size! I was able to see right through my tree last year, even when it was decorated, so I love the idea of a nice full tree with no gaps.

CheerLouth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122000646#Comment_122000646

I would never have thought of it either but honestly, it's a pain putting the baubles on it. I've contemplated just putting lights on it and leaving it at that 😂 We also only have it about 8 years so I can't justify a new one yet, it has held up well to be fair.

I think that @Loughc also has the Nebraska.

Smell the glove

Note to self......Nebraska can do one!

Loughc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122001561#Comment_122001561

yep I have a Nebraska tree too. Some of the branches can be difficult to put baubles on but I love how full it looks every year.

Loughc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122000581#Comment_122000581

I think people are moving away from websites and using social media to share the content on.

In other words we are getting old.

BK5

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122000581#Comment_122000581

Were these websites running all through the year or during the build up period?

Only websites I visit during the year are Christmas FM, mostly Classical and Xmasclock which is just a countdown page running all year round.

DvB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122002829#Comment_122002829

Both tended to go quiet from January until around 100 days to go on thr countdown. Both websites had been maintained and could be viewed throughout the year though, not anymore though.

ChristmasUK is still going on.the blue-sky platform but Christmasbuzz.uk looks done.

miamee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122002789#Comment_122002789

There might be a little gap in the market if any of you are app developers by trade (or in your spare time)

DvB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122004225#Comment_122004225

I think the time required to maintain these sites is the issue. Can easily see in the 100 days countdown period it being practically full time.

miamee

Maybe so, I never used the sites so I have no idea what kind of service/info they were providing

freshpopcorn

I couldn't think of the word side dish for a meal and all I could think of was stocking filler!

pigtail33

It's bizarrely warm out there today, bright but no sunshine, but more importantly, no rain so far today! I'm pretty sure it's on the way, but for now, I will live in ignorant bliss until it arrives. My grass needs to be cut again, so hopefully there is a decent spell of dry weather in the not too distant future.

Loughc

We got a nice bit of rain for a couple of hours there this evening thankfully it stopped now. Very very warm here today as well.

DvB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122006546#Comment_122006546

Just back from Shannon, absolutely bucketed down all the way home, awful driving conditions. Thankfully stopped now.

Car said 19 degrees at one point too!

Aisling(",)

My grass is cut! Happy dry Friday folks.

I've a quiet enough weekend but going to a Pink Floyd candlelight concert. I know about 5 songs but the person the ticket was intended for has a wedding so I'm hopping on just for the evening out really.

pigtail33

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122009173#Comment_122009173

I'm hoping it stays dry enough for me to get mine cut tomorrow. My back garden is NE facing, so it takes a while for it to dry out. There's not great drainage either, so the ground feels like a swamp with all the rain!

I've never been to the candlelight concerts, I only found out about them earlier this year, but I love the idea of them. With the atmosphere at something like that, it should be enjoyable even when you don't know all the songs. Enjoy!

CheerLouth

It's doing that misty sort of rain here where you need to look twice out the window to see if it is actually raining. Looking forward to the weekend as I'm knackered.

BK5

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122009173#Comment_122009173

I was at the Beatles one a while back, really enjoyed it and my wife who wouldn't be a Beatles fan said she enjoyed it more than she thought she would. And she knew way more songs from them too.

Are you going to St. Andrews church for this?

Aisling(",)

This batch of concerts are on in O'Reilly Theatre in Belvedere College.

Coincidentally I'd bought my Mam tickets to the ABBA one for mothers day and it's on today as well, same venue but earlier!

SCOOP 64

I got the grass cut!, there was a time where I wouldn't come on a forum just to announce this but it feels such a achievement.

pigtail33

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122014916#Comment_122014916

Me too and and I got my washing dry this morning!

freshpopcorn

Won't be long until the costumes are out!

BK5

Bloody Halloween!!! It just gets earlier and earlier every year 😄

DvB

Tell you what, bloody chilly this morning. may have been a little premature turning off the central heating... brrr

At least it's looking like brightening up a little later in the week ( if you can believe a forecast these days)

pigtail33

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122020861#Comment_122020861

Today is my first day in the office in a few weeks, so I left the house at 06:30 and I couldn't believe how cold it felt. I thought the weather had started to warm up the last few days, but that definitely wasn't the case this morning. I heard some very heavy rain during the night, but the sun is shining out there at the moment. Long may it last.

DvB

In Arklow at the moment on site and it's clear and sunny, but breezy and very cold.

Jude13

I have very fond memories of stopping off in Arklow for an ice-cream on the last day of school on the way to spending the whole summer in Wexford.

miamee

Lads it was 4 degrees this morning, it has lashed down with hailstones about 3 times in between sunshine and then dark clouds…and we've run out of oil. Happy feckin Monday!

DvB

Hard to believe we're closer to May than January… feels like groundhog day with the weather these days. Talk of it improving later in the week… fingers crossed, though wouldn't be surprised if the rain just got slightly warmer 😀

BK5

4 seasons in one day alright. I was outside today and had change the working gear a few times to suit the weather.

Just noticed that we're halfway through April already. It's ✈️ by.

BK5

Youngest child (21) dropped to the airport this morning to get a flight to England to visit a friend, I know he's practically a grown man but the wife's and my self's nerves are gone. You never stop worrying about them.

CheerLouth

Nice bright day here but cold! Hard to believe it's the May Bank Holiday in two weeks!