the daydream fund challenge thread

ok i thought as there were quite a few of us with a similar sort of dream of owning a smallholding or a house with loads of land, i thought i would start a 'daydream' thread as a sort of challenge/incentive to keep the dream alive,

last year i started a thread on another forum i did feel a bit like a ninny to be honest as i know the prices of smallholdings etc have gone silly money, but as some of the other forum members said, you never know, and if you want something badly enough you will do/achieve it

i started last year, trying to earn save 'extra' money as i didnt want it to effect the rest of my family in a noticeable way.

then at the begining of this year my mil said we could use her huge garden that she hadnt ventured into for over 2 years... as there were loads of trees etc i used the money i had saved to pay for a professional to clear it

it went from this

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to this

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now this will give me my 'training' ground..lol... but even though i am lucky to have this land to use, my mil will not let me put my chickens and ducks there so they are in my smallish garden.

so yesturday i started my fund off again by selling 2 of our old fish tanks for £50 which were desinted to go to the recycling site.


i have also got a sealed tin, which i put my scratching money in, as the kids put it..lol.. any loose change i find around the place..lol..

i have got loads of ideas and ways to get the extra pennies in to my daydream pot...

so if you want to join in so we can all tell each other our ideas and help each other keep our dreams alive..please do....
Work to live= not live to work
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Comments

  • Hi,

    I'm definately up for joining your thread. :T My husband and I (always sounds so posh :D) are planning to do a lifestyle change in the future and we are working towards paying off our outstanding debts by clearing all the 'stuff' we own that won't be any good on a smallholding (and for 2 people we have a lot of stuff).
    Nil Illegitimi desperandum carborundum ;)

    All of my posts are simply my personal opinions.
    They are not professional advice nor are they the opinions of my employer.
  • elliep_2
    elliep_2 Posts: 711
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    I'll join your thread.

    I work as a 'The Body Shop at Home' consultant so manage to save a bit from that. Everything I earn is extra to what we need so that gives us £100 - £500 every month, depending how many parties I book in.

    I also collect any coins that I find lying about the house. DH doesn't like having coins in his pocket or wallet so is prone to leaving £3 or £4 on the bedside table sometimes.

    I empty any 1p, 2p or 5p coins from my wallet every now and again, though that jar is only up to about £2 now!

    I'd love to be saving all this towards a smallholding, or at least a larger house with a much larger garden near to the in-laws but that feels a bit unrealistic. At the moment I'm aiming to have £500 for DH's christmas present. He wants a digital SLR camera and with lenses etc I want to get him a good one without having to ask him for the money near christmas!

    The money I save also has to cover anything I want for any of my cross stitch projects so I'm going to be really careful and think before I buy anything for my hobbies.
  • MRSMCAWBER
    MRSMCAWBER Posts: 5,442 Forumite
    oooohhhh excitement :j

    Hubby and I (thought I would be posh too :p ).... have a 3 bed terrace back home -not that we have ever lived in it yet....its rented out as we are still with the forces (so at least someone else is paying our mortgage)... we would LOVE to move to somewhere that has more space -outdoor more than indoor -So i will be following this thread too please :D
    Hubby has 3 year left in the army (unless they extend him past his 27 years again -fingers crossed)... so it would be nice to set down roots in somewhere we would be happy to stay for good...

    My main way of saving has been by attacking the grocery spends -so i now stash as much of the housekeeping as possible ;) -which will be even more once the veggies get going in my "potio appotment" ......I have about £2500 saved so far in a bit over 1 year :T ..and we have a sealed tin for anything under €1 -

    I have started a blog for those who are growing in tubs etc like I have to -Im hoping to do everything step - by step to help anyone I can ...

    Elliep... Im another x stitch fanatic ... with lots of stuff to keep me going ... we will have to look into swapsys etc...so PM if you run short of a thread etc -every little bit counts ;)
    -6 -8 -3 -1.5 -2.5 -3 -1.5-3.5
  • elliep_2
    elliep_2 Posts: 711
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    Ohh, x-stitch swapsies sounds good. I have everything I need for my current project but I'll bear you in mind next time I'm looking for bits. Thank you.

    I'm personally really pleased about the interest rate cuts. Our mortgage is linked to base rate and we have a deal whereby we can pay as much as we want each month without penalty. It means that almost everything we're paying at the moment is coming off the capital that we owe. If it keeps up for long we'll have a lot more equity in the house and therefore a much better chance of being able to upgrade sooner rather than later. Has anyone else found the recession to be to their advantage so far? Sorry to anyone who is finding the opposite, I know that I'm lucky to be in this minority.
  • I want to join in too - for the last couple of years a smallholding has my happy daydream, the one that cheers me up on the way to work. I always thought I'd have to win the lottery to afford one, it hadn't occured to me to save for one!

    For now, I have 2 allotments and I keep 6 ex-battery hens on one of them. In fact, walking to the allotment twice a day since I got the hens rather than twice a week has made me lose half a stone in the 6 weeks since I got the girls.

    I live with my partner in his house, and will shortly renovate and let my house. The income from this can go towards my 10 acres!
  • COOLTRIKERCHICK
    COOLTRIKERCHICK Posts: 10,510
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    cool i thought i might haveen on my own..lol....

    i used to use a lot of money off coupons when i went shopping and i would split the savings between my weekly shopping budget and my daydream fun..:D

    so i think i'd better see how the land lies ( excuse the pun:D ) at my local tesco, i nearly got banned a few times :rotfl:

    i have also got back from buying my broad bean and runner bean seeds which i thought was a total bargin

    he charged me £5 for a good kg of broad beans and £11 for a good kg;) of runner beans, also bought a box of plant trays the 9 plant ones, he also give me 3 HUGE boxes of plant pots for FREE, he was also talking about how he cought sell me the rattan style hanging baskets for a £1 each, which i was very interested about, then when i was walking to my van he said i could have the pile of htem that were left outside which ended up being 19 of them:D , so i am well happy bunny,

    i am planning on planting all the seeds up in the trays, and selling as many of htem as i can at the farm auction i go to, and maybe do a bootsale, and what ever profit i make will go into the fund. and what ever plants i am left with will be planted...


    my loose change pot money i havent got a clue what is in there, so i think i will leave that until the tin is nearly full and hten get the tin opener and bank all the money...


    i have also opened a halifax account, just for hte free £5 per month, and i have also started doing slice the pie again the music review site that pays you, not loads of money, but its all extra,

    i also do the free bingo scratch card per day on the virgin bingo site too:D
    Work to live= not live to work
  • Rummer
    Rummer Posts: 6,550
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    I would love to join you but I still have a small heap of debt to pay off before I can start my dream fund!
    Taking responsibility one penny at a time!
  • elliep_2
    elliep_2 Posts: 711
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    CoolTrikerChick - What on earth did you nearly get banned from Tesco for?

    Rummer - Join us anyway. We all need to do it in smaller stages anyway - nobody can save up change in a piggy bank then use it to buy a smallholding!!!
  • COOLTRIKERCHICK
    COOLTRIKERCHICK Posts: 10,510
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    elliep wrote: »
    CoolTrikerChick - What on earth did you nearly get banned from Tesco for?

    Rummer - Join us anyway. We all need to do it in smaller stages anyway - nobody can save up change in a piggy bank then use it to buy a smallholding!!!


    i used to take FULL advantage of their own policy.. which was if you got overcharged for an item they would give you a full refund and you could keep the item:D my freezer was bulging at the seams.... and the kids had loads of ps2 games and cds for christmas that year:rotfl:

    i also used to use alot of money off coupons, and they nobbled me:rolleyes: so i had to lay low for a while, this has happened a few times now, but i think i am due to go back to test the water again so to speak..

    i have just finished counting the amount of beans i had..lol.. i know i am sad.

    the runner beans i had 821

    and the broad beans i had 834 got to work out how much is going to cost me to plant htem in the tray of 9 which cost me 12p each..

    wonder how much profit i will make on each one..need to get my calculator now
    Work to live= not live to work
  • COOLTRIKERCHICK
    COOLTRIKERCHICK Posts: 10,510
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    right i have just done a rough guide..

    right the broad beans cost me 0.005 p per bean:rotfl: and the trays cost me 12p if i say 20p for compost.

    the grant cost per tray of 9 broad beans will be 37p

    the runner beans cost me 0.013p per bean. and the other cost are the same as above.

    so a tray of 9 runner beans will cost me 44p so even if i only charge a £1 per tray i have more than doubled my money:D

    i have got some tomato seeds from last year hanging around somewhere, but there is a seller on ebay who is selling 1000 money maker seeds for only £3.99 with 70p p&p so might be an idea for next year...
    Work to live= not live to work
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