Tips and Quick Questions on “How To Start Being Old Style”

PaisleyPPL

thanks ,am doing right now :j ,my word ppl u have alot of recipes on here ,someone should produce a cookbook its amazing

claireac

I don't post on here often, but do lurk a lot, and the things I've been doing have saved money and time. Both dh and I work and we have a 3yr old dd so quick and easy is good!!

I've got a slow cooker (present!), and I batch cook at the weekends. Casseroles, bolognese, curry and thick, chunky soups (good for lunch). I've learnt through here that I can stretch my meat right out by using lentils (we like red ones), grated carrots and lots of extra veggies. I'm also trying to lose weight, and it makes the meals really healthy and low fat too.

Not much for me, but it's a start!!

pomadaprincess

I can't agree more!

Wouldn't be without my trusty old slow cooker which we got as a wedding present 23 years ago. Like Claireac I use it to batch cook huge casseroles, chillis, curries etc. which I then freeze in smaller portions for the next couple of weeks ahead.

Me and OH both used to work shifts and I know how difficult it is trying to eat balanced meals at odd times of the day and night. It's all too easy to grab a take away on the way home after a long & tiring late shift. All I can say is plan plan plan ahead and keep your freezer stocked with your own batch cooked ready meals which can be popped in the oven or microwave whenever you need them.

As far as supermarkets go, I use Aldi and Tesco, but just because they are convenient. I meal plan and take a list. I don't deviate from the list unless it's whoopsie reduction time at Tesco and it's stuff which can be frozen and form the basis of another meal.

Keep on reading the OS forum and i'm sure the two of you will be able to reduce the monthly food shopping down from £200. There's 3 of us - me, DH and DS who's a hungry 14 year old. Before I began OS I spent about £70 per week on food now it's always less than £50 for the 3 of us.

Good luck

twinklie

Hi guys,

Just a little intro about me. I'm a married full time teacher..but I live in the "family" home (we don't yet have a family) Monday - Friday whilst my DH lives down in Wales. We take turns going to each other at weekends and most school holidays I go down to him.

The other problem we have is that our house is "half finished". We've been trying to finish it for years now. First we didn't have the money to do it, now we are just struggling for time. So the living room has 6 internal doors leaning against one wall, lots of rolls of wall paper and a gas fire and cooker hood. These have been here since about September.

The plan is to finish bits on the house at weekends over the summer, we'll be in Wales probably most of the time....or that is the current school of thought, whether it works out that way is another matter.

Other rooms of the house are essentially only half finished as well. Sooo...I'm looking for any help or advice in what I can do to help save money around the home. I've looked at lots of threads on here but I'm struggling to piece it all together.

We are currently OPing the mortgage and trying to make as many changes as we can to get our finances on track....any little changes you can suggest would help. Cleaning at our house is obviously quite difficult due to the amount of stuff that needs shifting for a "major" clean. But I live on my own most of the time so it's pretty easy to keep clean in the main.

I currently batch cook and appear to be mainly living off stews, lasagna and shepherds pie! Not that I'm complaining.

I don't really know what I'm asking other than trying to identify if I'm missing a trick really. Any thoughts are gratefully received.

Little_Vics

ooh - I feel for you. I tried to be OS while doing up our house and it's really hard. The biggest tip I can give is to make a concerted effort to use what you already have (ie doors & wallpaper!) and then flog/return/freecycle the rest to sort the house out a bit. We resorted to living in one room for a while, so therefore cutting down on heating etc. I would also suggest you put time into sorting out the house with a major clean/DIY spree - even using up annual leave if you have to. It will make you feel a heap better. Hope that helps a little!

Penelope_Penguin

Welcome :beer: Try this thread on how to start out being OS There are lots of links and tips, so hopefully you'll see if you've missed anything I'll merge this thread to that one later, to keep ideas together.

Penny. x

twinklie

Thanks Little Vics, unfortunately being a teacher our holidays are set so we don't have annual leave as such...it is what it is, or rather is when it is.

We did live in our bedroom for about a year and a half 2 years, but then sorted out the living room into a livable state after we bought a new mattress in a bid not to kill it. We do keep it as clean as we (or rather I keep it as clean as I) can...but it does get difficult.

Little_Vics

it does get hard - it really does! We've nearly come to the end of our 'big push' to get the house finished so I can de-clutter and become proper-OS, so I'm sending all the encouragement I can!

wssla00

What about seeing if your local area has a skills swap? You could perhaps offer tuition for kiddies in exchange for someone fitting your kitchen or your doors? I think there are a few about.

Other than that, I would get the mates round and make a painting/wallpapering party. Provide some food and have a good night getting some of the stuff done. Even if some of it is done it means that you can concentrate on the other stuff when you are together?

Good luck

don1975

hi all a newbie here ,i have been reading through lots of threads on how to save money with cleaning products and making food go further but can i ask some quetions ,sorry if they sound a bit silly but im new at this lol ok i have my stardrops for cleaning ,where is the best places to use this and will i have to dilute it or use it neat??i also have soda crystals for my washing i have been using this half and half with the powder ,is this the best way?? and what else can it be used for??.i also want to use lentils to make spag bol,chilli ,stew etc go further but i have no idea where to start with this,do i use tinned or dried.if i use dried do i soak them or add them straight in with cooking?? sorry to ask so many questions and type so much on my 1st post but i dont want to muck up and waste stuff when i should be saving money thanks