Budget setting

twirlypinky

Hello hello.

How do you set your budgets? I've written myself a financial plan for the next 18 months, and I'm trying to set realisitic budgets, but i just don't know on some things. How much do you set per person per month on clothes? Hairdresssing? I just have no idea.

And, do you have a line for miscellaneous/emergencies?

Cheers!

Twirly x

Ps - if some uber keen person wanted to run their eye over my spreadsheet to check it for realism, that would be fab! x

immoral_angeluk

You need to be realistic. Work out what you're currently spending then gradually cut it down... like £5 less a month or something until you hit the lower end of what you can manage on and then keep it at that.

twirlypinky

Well at the moment it's a bit random really, I bought a dress for a wedding in feb but due to horrific reasons took it back. I bought a hoody last month because I ripped another moving. I bought a few bits for guide camp (I'm a guider) but that's not regular. I don't seem to have a steady spend. Perhaps I'll work out an average.

Hair cuts is another issue, I seem to only get it done twice a year, but that's more due to fear of hairdressers than anything else.

Thanks.

OliveOyl_2

Fear of Hairdressers :eek: :eek: how inconvenient :rotfl:

I'll stick with my fear of dentists :rotfl:

tyllwyd

You could start off by estimating
- how often do you get your haircut? Every two months maybe? And just a cut and blow dry or colour or something else as well? And what do you usually pay, maybe £30 a time? So £30 x 6 = £180 which is £15 per month.

And clothes, do you buy, maybe two new tops, two new trousers/skirts for summer + winter? And two pairs of shoes every year? And some underwear? That might be £80 + £120 + £60 + £40 = £300, which is £25 per month (of course that's probably very different to what you do, so have a think about what you would normally buy and what you would expect to pay). And then of course if you keep a record of what you are actually spending, you can find out if your budget is realistic.

twirlypinky

tyllwyd wrote: »

You could start off by estimating
- how often do you get your haircut? Every two months maybe? And just a cut and blow dry or colour or something else as well? And what do you usually pay, maybe £30 a time? So £30 x 6 = £180 which is £15 per month.

And clothes, do you buy, maybe two new tops, two new trousers/skirts for summer + winter? And two pairs of shoes every year? And some underwear? That might be £80 + £120 + £60 + £40 = £300, which is £25 per month (of course that's probably very different to what you do, so have a think about what you would normally buy and what you would expect to pay). And then of course if you keep a record of what you are actually spending, you can find out if your budget is realistic.

That seems like a good way of doing it. I had set £30 a month for clothes, so i'll do some more calculations your way.

I get may hair cut twice a year if they're lucky. Last hair cut was in march, before that the previous june. I hate having it cut, really hate it because i can never replicate what they do at home. It is getting rather long now though, so I should probably go soon. Before Crimbo probably. And that's a problem too, i only go to Toni and Guy because they're the only place I've been that haven't messed it up, and that's £50 a time. Don't colour my hair, the sun does that for me. So I'll put in £10 a month then to cover that.


Also, I need to new front tyres on my car. Do you think the prices quoted on kwikfit website include fitting them? I'm guessing not...

twirly x

Milly1974

I think KwikFit include fitting on their tyre prices. However, they don't include the scare-mongering that they will do to make you think that your exhaust/brakes/suspension is dangerous and needs replacing TODAY! Why not try a tyre specialist, as they may do something cheaper, and will not be able to try to sell you something else.

Otherwise, budgeting suggestions. Why not go through your old bank statements, and see how much you have spent in clothes shops etc on your debit card over the last year? That will exclude what you have spent in cash, so will cut it down a little, but will give you an accurate representation. Of course, I am assuming that you spend a little like I do, and put almost everything on the debit card!

Good luck with budgeting for 18 months though!