Maybe not one of my better ideas.

[mothhawk]

Lollies and dip-dabs. It is C-------s they have an excuse to be childish

My mum's 98 - she LOVES sherbet dip dabs!

[Cadalot]

White Mice and Black Jacks

[Nicos]

Chocolate body paint?

Ooops...wrong forum!

[Guest]

^^^what sort of christmasses do you have? Do you have pampas grass in the front garden?

[greenishfing]

Thanks for all the replies. Some gave me food for thought and some made me laugh.

Most of the Christmas Dinner guests are in their 70s and 80s. (Yes I am a glutton for punishment) and all come with assorted health and mobility problems but good appetites. I always provide plenty wine and a pretty traditional 3 course meal and they usually seem to wobble home full of Christmas cheer. I think I usually mutter "never again" at some point.

I just want small cheap things for the crackers as I have already bought presents but they are too large to go inside the crackers.

After seeing todays Daily Wail magazine I think I'll be making some Florentine lollies, and mini gingerbreads to go inside and maybe also fudge and truffles.

[Bigmallly]

Most of the Christmas Dinner guests are in their 70s and 80s. (Yes I am a glutton for punishment) and I just want small cheap things for the crackers as I have already bought presents but they are too large to go inside the crackers.

Steradent, Polygrip, Gaviscon Tablets....................

[Miss Mousetrousers]

Make some like they did in the Good Life series! You could also use left-over wallpaper to wrap them in and use blue ribbon for men and pink for laydees then put name tags on them. Presents could be gob-stoppers for someone who talks too much, a lottery ticket for someone who deserves a win, a little pen- knife for a prospective surgeon, a screwdriver for someone who loves drinking cocktails, or make a gold star for someone who needs a bit of a lift-up in life.

[Bigmallly]

I think you may have hit the nail on the head Miss M.................put a lottery lucky dip in each cracker.

[Mrs Bee]

I think homemade sweeties are always good and they carry on the tradition of the original crackers which were actually for selling sweets at Christmas.

Homemade fudge, chocolate truffles, marzipan stuffed dates or apricots or make small chocolate salamis.

If you go round the big department stores perfume counters you can get tiny free samples and they will fit in the crackers nicely.

We had extra large reusable crackers made from velvet which pulled apart. We used the cracker snaps and they usual hats and mottos but could fit something quite smart inside. I used to make scented sachets, or embroidered hankies, mini smellies from Body shop, some home made booze in little bottles, homemade fudge or truffles, or a couple of large biscotti and lottery tickets.

Unfortunately they gave up the ghost so last year I bought some with snowmen and penguin wind up toys in and we raced them.