DIY Parents Who Wanted £1,200 Giant Nutcracker Made Their Own For Just £40
- Nicki and Steve Jeffs, 32, were shocked by the cost of nutcrackers online
- They decided to make their own using budget materials from their local scrap store
- Their creation is over seven feet tall and cost less than £40 to make
If you’ve been shocked by the extortionate cost of Christmas decorations online, don’t despair.
One couple has proven that you can make your own products for a fraction of the price, using budget materials and a lot of creativity.
Nicki and Steve Jeffs, both 32, from Gloucestershire, were desperate for a giant nutcracker for their home, but they were shocked when searching for one online, finding some of them cost over £1,000 to buy new.
Instead, the parents of three decided to build their own using materials from a scrap store.
Their creation cost them just £40 to pull off, saving hundreds of pounds.
Nicki, who works for the NHS, told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk: "I really wanted a giant nutcracker and was Googling how much they cost. I couldn’t believe it - they cost up to £1,200 to buy new.
"I thought about making one so with inspiration off TikTok, me and my husband decided we could make one.
"We used wooden barrels to make the structure of the hat, face and body.
"We then used long postal tubes for the arms and legs. We sectioned it and spray-painted it with the colours we had decided to go for. We stuck it all together by using a hot glue gun.
"I made the hair from a scrap bit of wool and the buttons are bottle lids spray painted gold. I bought baubles to set off the shoulders and hands.
"We bought most of our materials from a local scrap store so the total price came in below £40. At our local scrap store, you can just fill a bag for £7.
“The barrels were £4 each, the arms and legs and decoration materials were £7, the spray paint was £20, the glue sticks were £2 and the felt was £1.
"The hardest part was making sure the barrels lined up together so it sat flush and didn’t overlap.
"My main advice would be to shop locally and look around as you can literally recycle so much.
"Get inspiration off the internet and just go for it and have fun!
"It took about five days due to waiting for the paint to dry.
"I am so proud of what we have achieved as it’s turned out great! If people want to make one, they should definitely look out for a local scrap store to help keep the cost low.
"There are loads of different ideas on the internet to what type of style to make so just have fun with it.
"I am so pleased we managed to achieve what we wanted to do!
"I am very pleased with how he has turned out and I am so glad I was able to do it at a reasonable budget.
“He is over seven feet tall so it’s rather large!
"I am so proud of ourselves that we have managed to keep costs low as it shows other people they do not have to spend a fortune to get something they want.
"I set myself a budget to not go over £100 so when we were able to keep the costs below £40 I was over the moon.
"It will never look exactly like the ones they sell for £1,200 but I am so happy with the way it’s turned out.
"I love it even more as it’s personal as me and my husband made it together.
"I am over the moon with the amount of money I’ve saved!"
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, comments: “Nicki and Steve’s £40 nutcracker is an incredible example of when something is far too expensive, make it yourself!
“Using budget materials from their local scrap store, they’ve made a one-off nutcracker that looks like it cost hundreds of pounds.
“Best of all, as Nicki says, this is a personal decoration that both of them have poured their heart and soul into, making it special as well as money-saving."
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