What it's worth being frugal about?

lessonlearned · 6 October 2015 at 5:08PM

I think you have to do a cost analysis on some things, especially if you are younger, juggling work and family.

So in some instances it might be better to buy in a little help or take a few short cuts rather than killing yourself trying to be "old style" all the time.

My mum once came out with some very useful advice.

I was running myself ragged, working fUll time at a very busy stressful job, bringing up a family and trying to do all my own cleaning, cooking everything from scratch. I had constant backache and had to pay for regular physio sessions.

She asked me how much they cost. then she said "if you got a cleaner and cooked a little less you could save yourself a lot of work and maybe your back wouldn't hurt so much. a cleaner would be cheaper than the Physio".

Of course she was right.......mums usually are.

GreyQueen · 6 October 2015 at 6:28PM

To me, it seems senisble to out-source some household or garden/ decor=type chores, if you are working long hours and have the means to afford it. I know professional women who buy in a couple of hours' a week of a cleaner's time, pay her nearly double min wage and still consider they have had the best of the bargain. They're not affected or precious or self-important, they're just busy at almost all hours and find having someone else take up some of the effort is such a boon.

No need to try to do it all, the graveyards are full of women who were knackered most of the time.

Living_proof · 6 October 2015 at 6:39PM

PasturesNew wrote: »

Well, I look for curtains every time, size 90x90, not seen any in that size at all, never mind at a mind-numbing £5/pair!

Since posting that my friend got two pairs of really good quality new lined curtains still priced at #44.99 per pair for a TOTAL cost of #4. They were the colour he had specified when he mentioned he wanted to renew existing curtains and I spotted them on the ground and alerted him. These made mine look expensive! I think at this time of year people want to get shot of surplus items and just don't want to take them home!

Towser · 7 October 2015 at 8:32AM

Looks like I would have to consider the time vs money equation. But if I get enjoyment from it and treat it like a hobby then well why not. Then it will be worth it being frugal. Such as winemaking and cooking.

Being frugal in some ways can save money towards things that are not essential such as holidays. Here it would depend what your preferences in your budget would be and how you manage your lifestyle. Then this would be worth it.

However, I can see if you have to be frugal because you are short of money and cannot put you frugal savings towards a holiday for example I can see the motivation for being frugal will not be as fun.

Same with things affecting your comfort such as putting on the heating or not being frugal will not be as fun so no motivation to be frugal therefore not worth it.

PasturesNew · 7 October 2015 at 8:41AM

Towser wrote: »

... However, I can see if you have to be frugal because you are short of money and cannot put you frugal savings towards a holiday for example I can see the motivation for being frugal will not be as fun.

Same with things affecting your comfort such as putting on the heating or not being frugal will not be as fun so no motivation to be frugal therefore not worth it. ...

This is what many don't realise.
It's not fun if that's how you have to live.
It's only fun if you're doing it and can "use the money saved" on something else.

One might have the heating on for an hour/day in mid winter.... at about 16 degrees ... and being warm for an hour/day is their luxury.

Another enjoys 'frugality' and will say how they turn their heating down by 1 degree (from 21 degrees) and have seriously cut back how long it's on (only have it on for 4 hours, not 5), and how smart that makes them as the money they save on heating pays for a weekend away in Paris

I am not sure how somebody with it on 1 hour at 16 could find it fun to cut back more, nor could any savings they ever made ever add up to a holiday.

[Deleted User] · 7 October 2015 at 9:11AM

Well I pay a gardener £12. for an hour a fortnight to keep my garden looking tidy and weed free.Its worth every penny as I can no longer bend very well and would not be able to mow my little patch of Kent. He is a lovely chap and also will do any odd jobs that I need doing.I also pay a window cleaner £6.00 every four weeks to do the front outsides up and down stairs ,also well worth it as at my age and wobbly legs I couldn't manage it myself.OK not very frugal, but necessary, and I can afford it by making savings elsewhere..

I have my heating on usually for an hour when I get up and that warms my very well insulated house for the rest of the day.If in the evening when I get in from my DDs and child care its chilly I will happily put it on as and when needed, I can't get too cold or my joints will seize up.I never skimp on heating as I just think that's daft.

My sensible ways of not wasting resources I think come from growing up in the post-war period when every asset was reused as much as possible.

Today's generation are not the first to recycle.When I was a kid everything was recycled as much as possible, and very little was wasted at all,neither food,(if it didn't go in the kids it went in the dog)clothes, remade into something else, or even rubbish (went on the fire if it was burnable ).Perhaps there would be far less waste if things wern't made obsolete so quickly or people learned to mend things more.

The amount of stuff I see binned today would have horrified my late Mum. No wonder our green and pleasant land is being filled with landfill

So what I save on somethings I spend on something else.My window cleaner was a self starter who when made redundant from his job in 2007 decided to have a go at earning a living doing something else and I was one of his first customers.He now has such a big round he has another chap helping him.I am happy to help his business along and recommend him to everyone I know as he is reasonable in price and very reliable. My gardener is a chap who took early retirement and supplements his income by doing what he enjoys doing ,so again my savings on other things helps him as well.Its the smaller one-man-bands that need people custom, and I am quite happy to use local people to help in a small way with our local economy.

Frugality has its benefits not only for me but for other people

JackieO

lessonlearned · 7 October 2015 at 12:48PM

I went to the tip yesterday or perhaps I ought to call it by its proper name - the recycling centre. Ive been using it for years. Usually I drive so don't get chance to have a good luck round.

Yesterday I was a passenger so had time to have a good gawp.

I was astonished by how many different bays there were and all the categories. It really got me thinking about "waste" as a concept.

How even 50 years ago there would have been no need to seperate plastics, wood, chipboard, cardboard, metal, electrical appliances, garden waste, batteries, oil, hardcore materials, plasterboard, papers, textiles, glass.

Most of it would simply have been automatically repaired, reused or recycled and made into something else. Every time I go to the tip I am reminded what a shockingly wasteful society we have become.

And I agree - frugality through choice can be fun but when it's enforced through sheer necessity it can be soul destroying.

When I was in my worst time of need I tried to turn it into a game, setting myself little challenges to spur myself on and keep sane. It was hard at times though to always remain upbeat and not feel overwhelmed.

Towser · 9 October 2015 at 11:00PM

I got this list from a Debt Free Wannabee thread:

Frugal = thrifty, living without waste

Ideas to help you achieve and/or maintain debt free living
Recognise the differences between needs from wants

Spend within your means
Set a proper budget
Quit expensive habits
Houseshare
Get a lodger
Shop via cashback sites and always price compare
Buy reduced items in stores only if you need them
Stockpile & bulk buy
Batch cooking
Make the most of charity shops
Join Freecycle or other similar waste awareness and recycling associations
LETS trading - become active members of trading & exchange groups
Bartering
Grow your own herbs, fruit & veg
Preserving & winemaking
Beadmaking & home baking
Card & gift making
Order splitting for better discounts & shared postal costs
Landsharing, allotments & frugal garden systems
Free scratchcards
Matched betting
Free online bingo
eBid and eBay trading
etc, etc, etc...

These are worth being frugal over. I would have to find the motivation for.

Towser · 13 October 2015 at 9:03AM

My favourite hobby is charity shop shopping. ooh I think I am going today

Currently I am wearing my brand new pyjamas I found in one shop for £5

Can someone tell me where to go and what to look for I need a challenge/inspiration? Not just clothes because I can only wear one set at a time. So more than three outfits is a waste, but still I cannot resist.

I have 5 hunting grounds all in areas of least deprivation according the the National Office of statistics. I call my shopping "buying trips" because I usually manage a good haul for all the family.

This is definitely worth it as it is so much fun.

kathrynha · 13 October 2015 at 9:42AM

I think cooking from scratch is definitely worth the time and effort. I often find it quicker than convenience food.

Last night I made carbonara for my daughter and I. Took about 12 minutes. Met up with hubby in the supermarket whilst daughter was at Brownies, as he was late home, and bought him a ready meal which required 15-20 mins in the oven. I accept I had to be more hands on with my carbonara, but it was still quicker.

Also I make use of my slow cooker, which is really quick. Shove it all in before work, and it is pretty much ready to eat when you get home, and the long cooking allows you to save even more money by buying cheaper cuts of meat.

Growing my own fruit and veg I don't find worth it, but I don't particularly enjoy gardening. If you enjoy it, it probably is worth it.

Making cards and presents I do find worth it though, even though it isn't that much cheaper, but I enjoy it.

If an aspect of being frugal can be considered a hobby, and you find it fun and relaxing then it is worth it, as the benefits are more than financial

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What it's worth being frugal about?

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