Earthgirl gets back on track!

gallygirl

Crikey EG - you have big drawers :rotfl:

Well done :beer:

freebiequennie

Thats great earthgirl, def all very positve.

StuartGMC

EG
Once MF can you prop up the economy too?
Well done :beer:

earthgirl

StuartGMC wrote: »

EG
Once MF can you prop up the economy too?
Well done :beer:

Ha Ha think it will take more than my 1,2 and 5p drawer to do this!:rotfl:

Even though as Gallygirl pointed out - I am a little ashamed at the extent of my drawers!:o

I am keen to keep the momentum going. I am still doing the tidying up of my bank accounts - need to keep about £500 in current account as car has its first MOT in october, and I think I'll have to get new tyres at least.

At this rate, I hope to be MF in 3 years instead of 5, so with that in mind, and as I have more time in the school hols, I'm interested to see where I can save/make more money without affecting quality of life. The pennies really do add up to reasonable overpayments. I find sometimes that focusing on what you need and what you can make yourself actually improves quality of life. For example we have a fridge full of HM jams, chutneys etc - much better than bought stuff!

I am going to add my ideas in a seperate post, so sorry if it is far too much boring detail!

EG

earthgirl

Making More Money

• Tutoring

1. Promote website (2 hours per week)
2. Promote service more within the area
3. ad adsense adverts on website

• Small business

1. Spend 6 hours per day on promotion work.

• Mystery shopping

1. check daily for convenient jobs

Saving Money

• Petrol / fitness

1. Use bike for trips to allotment, library, doctors - anything in the local area under 5 miles. This will mean I also save money on trips to pool etc. for fitness
2. Bike to work in september, all days a car is not necessary
3. Use free gym trials

• Groceries

1. Go to liddl at start of Aug and get toiletries and cleaning products (should last 2 months)
2. Use box of hotel freebies up before buying soaps/shampoos etc
3. Bulk cook, and make homemade biscuits, jams etc
4. Try making own bread again, and try pitta breads filled with allotment stuff.
5. Dont over eat!:rotfl:
6. Find a good supply of cheaper good quality wine, circa £4 a bottle. Will save me upwards of £6 per week!
7. Don't throw clothes and towels in the wash without thinking.

Allotment / Garden

1. Continue planting at allotment to ensure veg all year.
2. find a source of free manure - farms, stables.
3. Use £10 voucher to buy stuff next year - tomato plants (£5) and seeds (£5 variety pack).
4. Grow hanging basket plants from seed, and try to get seeds off current pansies/ sweetpeas and grow for pots next year.

Trips to hair dressers

1. Use money from Birthday for this. Try to find student nights in salons. Done - Ring in August for bookings

• Electricty (no gas here)

1. Make sure all appliances switched off when not in use (perhaps mention to OH :eek:)
2. Get house ready for winter (finish lining curtains with fleece, make two draft excluders)

• Entertainment

1. Like the idea of having a few special nights in, making a fuss of OH.
2. Check the restaurant vouchers when going out

• Gifts

1. Continue to use up cards stored in drawer.
2. Try to save up vouchers for Christmas, four remaining presents to buy. £10 M&S currently - use pigsback to get more.

Sure I will think of other things so I will keep adding!

Mortgage_Reduction_Novice

Hiya Earthy,

Loving your get focused post! You might be able to combine Mystery Shopping with getting your hair cut at the moment - are you a shopper for Mystery Customer Evaluations? If so they have jobs at hairdressers at the moment!

Could you combine your promotions for tutoring and small business too? For example have flyers or posters for both companies with you when doing out and about promotions?

My top tip for using toileteries up is to put them in order. I usually do this, so I group all the soaps, all the shower gels, etc. then it's easy to grab what you need, use all of that type of thing up before buying new. It's like visiting a shop for the items when they're grouped. When I get bored of shampoo or shower gel it gets poured into a liquid soap dispenser and used as hand wash!

troglodyte

Hello and many congratulations, I've been reading this thread off and on and I can hardly believe how well you're doing, you'll be a (mortgage)-free woman soon!

I just wondered though, when I read:
My OPs are steadfastly ignored by OH - Although the £8,000+ did raise an eyebrow!
Are the mortgage and the house in your name or in joint names? I don't want to seem pessimistic, but just in case you did split up, unless you have kept proof that you have paid well over half the mortgage, if the house is in joint names he would get half, even though you have paid far more than he has into the mortgage. Also if there is still any of the mortgage left to pay, you are both 'jointly and severally liable' for it which means you both ought to pay, but if one defaults (like if he leaves, for example, and refuses to pay any more) you would then be liable for all the rest, even if you have already paid your half or more.

It would be well worth getting a simple deed of trust drawn up to sort this out if you haven't already - it should cost about £50 and is much easier while things are fine between you than in the case of an acrimonious split when things could get much more difficult and thus more expensive and risky. And if he did leave you, just think how much more P**d off you'd be if he took the proceeds of all your hard work and OPing as well!

Hope it's never needed but always worth taking precautions!!

earthgirl

Thanks for the thought. OH has put about £40,000 of savings into the value of the house. Don't think we had a deed of trust drawn up then, I'm not sure.

When you think about it, you think 'we will be together forever', but then you always hear another couple has split up, and you do worry!

I will have a think about this!

earthgirl

Mortgage_Reduction_Novice wrote: »

Could you combine your promotions for tutoring and small business too? For example have flyers or posters for both companies with you when doing out and about promotions?
wash!

Thanks!:beer:

I am so thick - this is a great idea! I have looked into it, and although they are aimed at completely different markets, I am sure Ii can find some synergies.

I will try the hairdressing mystery shop company too - thanks!

earthgirl

Need a bomb behind me today! So far I have done about 3 hours work on small business and some other bits and bobs including falling asleep!

Going to do an hours more work and then go to allotment to see if I can wake myself up!

Got a voucher for 50% off at la Tasca tonight, but can't work out if it will actually be cheaper than going for pizza somewhere cheap. I'll see if I can find a menu - anyone else been and tried voucher?

Wish it was bbq weather!