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

Penelope_Penguin

You could try Martin's Demotivator A cup of coffee might be "only" £2, or a magazine "only" £2.50. Work out how much you could save over the year, by noy buying them :eek:

culpepper

If you cant see where the money is going ,write down every single purchase in a little pocket notebook,then look back over it at the end of a month and categorise everything so you can see where the bulk is spent. We did this after I left work to look after the baby and found loads went on baby care things which could be made at home or done without.
When mine were little,we walked to school 2.5 miles . It was less hassle than the car as no one got ratty in the wait for the traffic to get moving and we had some lovely bonus things happen;snow balling,stroking a little trusting squirrel,meeting others on the way there and back,the odd ice pop in the hot weather and keeping fit from the walk.

FatVonD

JulieGeorgiana wrote: »

whenever I think of most takeaways I would rather have my own... they make me feel better (physcially, not as lathargic) and it's the best thing i've ever done.

I'm not sure if it's the MSG or what but I always feel ill after Chinese food (lovely at the time though.)

I took a peek at The Takeaway Secret on Amazon but I'm thinking the other in the series that's just Indian food would be more useful for us as my husband would eat curry every night if he could. I've tried cooking Indian curry from scratch from 'authentic' cook books but I don't want authentic, I want it to taste like it does at the takeaway!

foxgloves

Once you really get yourself into budgetting, you might find, like we do, that this in itself helps stop unnecessary spending. What I mean is that if you have done your budget for the month and you have nothing left over, then you are not in a position to spend anything. If you have a little bit left over then that would be better put aside in a rainy day account to put towards nasty surprises like big car repair bills, etc. If you have already paid something into your rainy day fund that month, and there is still money left over from your careful budgetting, then what a waste to go out & just fritter it. Better to think about putting it towards something you actually need or even save for a holiday. I find that this approach makes me more careful with any bits of leftover money I do have. If our budgetting & planning gives us some spare cash of our own, it feels much more precious than going out & sticking purchases on a card, which is usually a case of spending someone else's money.

soupdragon10

Not being a 'list' person I resisted using a shopping list for years. Now it's my biggest money saver. OH and I go around before we go shopping and make a list of exactly what we NEED.

Last week my supermarket shop had dropped from about £80 to just over £40. This varies from week to week as I have to buy pet supplies etc some weeks and doesn't include veg as I buy this from greengrocer.

Now make my own wraps (even got OH cooking them while I roll them out). Probably don't cost more than 50p for 12 and I can vary the flavour to add variety. Also veg pate for lunch, and turn the remains of veg stew into soup.

I also got into the buy what you see mode, now I look at bogof offers and think if it's something I will be buying anyway in the next 2 weeks, and if it isn't I don't buy it.

sonnythecat

STAY AWAY FROM THE SHOPS

lol

Works for me!!!!!!!:rotfl:

JulieGeorgiana

FatVonD wrote: »

I'm not sure if it's the MSG or what but I always feel ill after Chinese food (lovely at the time though.)

I took a peek at The Takeaway Secret on Amazon but I'm thinking the other in the series that's just Indian food would be more useful for us as my husband would eat curry every night if he could. I've tried cooking Indian curry from scratch from 'authentic' cook books but I don't want authentic, I want it to taste like it does at the takeaway!

The book has a whole section on Indian Take-away food... I think you make a base (enough for 8 curries) then you add to the base to make different curries. The thread I linked above takes you to the tread and people who have tried and tested it will tell you if it's any good or how to tweak the recipes.

I think I paid £3.50 for mine... made a chicken kebab and saved my money immediately. Really is worth giving it a go... PM me if you're not sure and i'll get you the recipe to if you want.

JulieGeorgiana

soupdragon10 wrote: »

Not being a 'list' person I resisted using a shopping list for years. Now it's my biggest money saver. OH and I go around before we go shopping and make a list of exactly what we NEED.

I put mine in the order of how I walk around the shop... and I do it while my son is at cubs... so I end up just grabbing what's on the list and that's it.

2 Supermarkets plus travelling in a hour... you don't have time to look around.

JulieGeorgiana

miecherox wrote: »

OOoooooo You are so good walking! I love to walk but the thought of dragging four kids aged between 9 and 3 to school fills me with :eek: We're moving in a few weeks hopefully and the house we're buying is 1.1 miles away from school - no excuse at all to use the car. And no I will not have my purse in my pocket!!!

I find the trick is not to just 'walk' we use it as time to talk... what is he doing that day, how are things going... on the way home, it's how was your day! So many people don't talk while walking and the children get bored and play up!

[Deleted User]

I have been OS for most of my life and can't think of any other way to be.I was brought up by a canny Scots Mum and Dad during the late 1940s -50s when rationing was still in force so no one was very profliigate at all.
Saying that I have at times succumbed to overspending, very easy to do when faced by an amazing array of offers in todays supermarkets ,easier to be frugal when there is not so much of a choice.
I now only buy what is really needed and set myself a 'food purse' every month, (in my case £120.00) and keep to it as much as I can.I have cut back on unnecessary 'wander round the shops ' trips which also help.
I also shop from 'my existing food cuboards and freezer' and try to adapt what I already have in store.
I read that an amazing amount of food is binned every year ,well I think if most of us were honest we have a huge amount of food already in our cupboards which unless used will also end up being binned.
Nothing was thrown away when I was a little girl as few women had many fully stocked store cupboards owing to rationing.My own Mum had a tiny store of tinned stuff which was kept for high days and holidays and 'visitors but most of her food stuff was turned around quite quickly ,especially as she had three children who like most were always 'starving' after school.
My DD was laid off during Christmas week (luckily she has now found another job which she starts next week) but has found that making stuff even more from 'scratch' than she used to has been more money saving and helped streeetch her meagre cash a bit further.
Last night I had dinner at her house, and her three youngest sons had bolognese sauce and pasta for their dinner as they aren't keen on what we had (HM chicken curry made with left over chicken from the day before) I watched my youngest grandson devour his dinner as though he hadn't eaten for a month.She said that she had started to make the sauce herself and the boys preferred it to the jar stuff.What was left over went into a box to be frozen for another day as a topping for jacket spuds and her two dogs finished off the little bit of cooked pasta with their dry mix to extend their food a bit,result everyones happy.:)
She is a good cook and has managed very well on their one wage over the past 6 weeks or so,they have five children who eat mostly anything which helps so she can stretch a meal with fresh veggies.
I like to try something different if I can every week by using what ingredients that I have in a different way.
I also keep a note of any 'frugal ' recipes that have been posted on here as lots of people send in their ideas .
On the evenings when I go to Uni I always take my own drink, and leave my purse at home or I may be tempted to buy something from the refrectory, if I haven't got any cash on me I can't spend any
Plus of course the list by my kettle which tells me what I need ,and not what I fancy, but essential supplies which I may have run out of.Today I am going to the shops in Maidstone with my DD but I shan't be taking my food purse as I have no food to buy, I shall take a drink with me as its so easy to spend a fiver on just a couple of coffees.That fiver could be spent in a better way to buy a fiversworth of veggies or meat
Its just getting yourself into a different mindset I think.I do treat myself ,but I hope that when I do its not to something that I could have made for half the price at home .I cook from scratch and my freezer is always in full use with left overs or extra portions of food from batch cooking