Live on £4,000 for a year - 2009, Part 3

Savvy_sewing

Thanks for the information.
I think I was discharged when the insolvency said they had no further business with me, last year, 12 months after the bankruptcy. However I still cannot get credit etc. (Not that I want it ever again really.)
I think I need to find out what local skills are around in my village, and see if there are things that I could trade off for. Seems like a good idea to me.

Just made a banana cake, from the links at the top of the thread. Didnt really rise mutch, but is lovely and moist. Naughty me just had the end with my cup of tea.
The cushion pads have arrived. Yipee. The first cover looks good now its got a filling!!
About to turn a gold strappy top, (bought from a charity shop for £1), into another cushion. It has pleated detail on the front and plain on the back. Going to use the tie straps as a tie feature to close the cover. (If it works). Wish I knew how to take photos and get them downloaded on to here. mmm oneday perhaps!!
Think I will look for this Lets thing then...

Frugaldom

bails wrote: »

... I promise it does get easier in time. Then you wonder how you ever had so much and feel like you'd be a millionaire if you ever earnt that again :rotfl:

:T That's how I feel about money now, too. :rotfl: I can't understand how friends and members of my family are skint on 30k+ I do have a friend who follows the frugal lifestyle. Frugal, single professional who has chosen not to have a family, they openly admit to not knowing what to do with the money bar save it.

Congratulations getting the viewers so quickly for your house! Hope you find lovely, trustworthy, deserving tenants.

SF, glad you had a frugal yet productive day, even if we haven't to mention the swim suits :rotfl:

Shaz, cucumbers ready already - I am now soooooooooo jealous. I thought I was doing well keeping mine alive this long and their reaching 2 sets of leaves .:rotfl:

Patchwork, good luck at hospital.

It is very hot here, too. Going out to try and figure out how to make more sun screen for the chickens to hide beneath and to tidy up the straggling plants before they all wilt in the sun.

Savvy_sewing

Its very hot here too! I am sweltering. Had to sit on a towel as I had put on a short skirt and my sofa is leather!!
The laptop is generating too much heat so my legs are getting too hot.!
Its time for me to have a rest now anyway.
HAlf way through the gold cushion cover for Biggest of Mooloo's flat. But I am just too hot to carry on with the sewing too!.
The garden will have to wait until its cooler before I venture out there.

sophiesmum_2

Hello Frunchkins:D
Spent the day sweltering in a meeting with 60 others, so glad to be home and able to cool down a little:cool:.They did give us bottled water though through the day and a free lunch so not all bad.
Arrived home to find a letter from work advising me that £75 bonus will be in next pay for training a manager a while back, very unexpected so a nice surprise and will go towards my challenge of making £350 extra. Now up to £95.64:j.

bails

nykmedia wrote: »

I can't understand how friends and members of my family are skint on 30k+ .

I know exactly what you mean - one couple friends of mine are a solicitor and teacher on Upper Pay Scale and they are struggling and another friend who's a DOCTOR had to borrow a deposit for her house...

So hot here too, I'm struggling! About to take the dog out, although I'd rather sit in the garden with a cold glass of Chardonnay (if I had any) Next year I'm keen to try the Eldeflower champagne Nyk. We have a tree in our garden although I think it'll get the chop to make way for more fruit and veg (we have lots of elderflowers around us).

Blairweech

Hi all :wave:

Hello to the new thread

I never thought I would say it but I was actually glad to get into work today (I work in a refridgerated warehouse). Even in there (at ~2 degrees) everyone was working in a T shirt! And I got an early finish :j

Off to Morrisons in a minute to do the first grocery shop of the month. I have a dilemma really - if I go in one direction from my house, I go to Lidl and Tesco, but if I go in the other direction, I go to Morrisons. However - Lidl and Tesco (and especially at this time of night) I find are very ropey with their stock - Lidl will not have any fruit/veg, Tesco no bread/meat etc., so it is not worth the journey, even though it is probably cheaper.

Not sure what my plans for the weekend are yet - am meant to be going out for a drink tomorrow night but will see what happens, then I want frugal beau to put up some mirrors that I bought in IKEA. Will probably do a couple of batch cooking things - sausage and bean casserole, chicken and potato casserole etc (yes, I know I am eating winter food!). Will also go up the lottie and do yet more digging :rolleyes:

Nyk - That is interesting about the EU lifting the ban on wonky veg, I knew about it, but thought it would actually make things cheaper - as long as you do not mind it! I guess they will force people to buy it through the pricing as you see - had not thought of it as a means of meeting demand though :think:

slowlyfading

So, have had a lovely day, and I've spent £80 in July already, and its only the 2nd! :eek: :rotfl:

bails

The refridgerator sounds lovely Blairweech Just spoken to my SiL who's 19 days off her due date and she could definitely do with a spell in there, poor love.

Don't worry SF, it's not as if you do it all the time so it'll even out over the year I'm sure. Before my hol I shelled out £60 for a bikini set (yes, that's how much I was willing to invest in attempting to look reasonable ) but ended up taking it back and wearing a £6.50 number :rotfl:

sophiesmum_2

Obviously everyone is having salads here this week and not cooking as asda was bereft of salady type stuff tonight, lots of empty shelves,(wanted some for oldies sarnies), BUT they did have other veggies on woopsie so picked up 3kg of broccoli for 66p, two cabbages for 10p each and two bags of white turnips for 22p each which will be very handy for both households in the frugaldom area;) I can feel some broccoli and stilton soup on the horizon:D need to go and check freezer for stilton - sure there is some there somewhere.

Currently emptyingfreezer ready to move and today found a box of maltesers near bottom that I put there to chill......last xmas:rotfl:- I think they are ready:p

whitewing

Thank you for all your good wishes. It makes us smile when we read them.

DH is still very happy and spent nearly 5 minutes of a recent car trip laying down the law on how the 'pregnancy months' will go! He has eased off a bit when I said it applies to him too.

We took DS for a milkshake today and told him. He is a child of few words at times, but he's quietly pleased I think. After a few moments, he said, "Will I get half the birthday presents now?"

I said no as there would be a separate budget. I could see him thinking, same mum, same (step)dad doing the same so where's the money coming from. He didn't quite believe it. So I said I thought that tax credits would go up. He beamed at me and said, "Are tax credits for birthdays then?"

Then pretended he was joking when I laughed. That would be good wouldn't it? Rebranding the Tax Credit Office as Birthday Credits. The world would be such a cheerful place.

I blame myself as I have a habit of branding each credit into my bank account for a purpose eg this week's wages is the mortgage overpayment.

Lovely reading all your news everyone. I am very tired and dropping off to sleep as soon as I sit down regardless of the time of day. Do an hour's work and then fall asleep for 2 hours.