Frugal Living 2010 -The Cost of Living Challenge, INTRO

larmy16

homegrown_life wrote: »

Hi Larmy - is this for washing clothes? Sorry for the dumb question! thanks.

No it's not dumb, I should have said! Also I use about half a cup per wash if that helps. I only use it for coloureds and use the cheapie biological for my sons white shirts, towels etc. It is the liquid detergents that seem so expensive to me.

PS Also the soap should be grated. I then let that melt down in a little water first. It sounds a bit of a faff but it only takes a few minutes really.

homegrown_life

Thanks Larmy, I think I might give this a go once my bottle of supermarket stuff runs out.

grandma247

shaz_mum_of__2 wrote: »

I think it may be Teflon liners i am thinking of ?

Just recieved a 5 kilo can of shredded celeriac from approved f00ds theres only so much coleslaw we can eat so may try some of that then as well as the other i was planning to do a siilair mix like the dried veg you can buy in the shop as it is ideal for casseroles when fresh veg unavailable

Teflon liners should work. Good idea with the mixed veg, i havent got around to that yet apart from a bag of frozen mix veg i did.

larmy16

Here is a bit of a breakdown of costs.

Napisan approx £1.99 (You can use Borax but I would have had to make a special trip to get it) Napisan was in Waitrose.
Soda crystals 67p
Soap ( 4 bars for £1)

I have masses left for making future supplies. HTH

cheerfulness4

cw18 wrote: »

Oven is now on for beef joint, and I have some (Whoopsied) Jersey Milk for making a rice pudding to join it.

Fan oven set to 180 degrees - bumps readings up 2.7kW when the element's working, but when it reaches temp it drops back down to a wobble over the previous reading. Not sure how it equates to kWh though, as it's clearly not a constant 2.7kW useage

Thanks cheryl. Bet it smelt nice in your house yesterday. Yum!

Grandma247 -Thanks. I do keep hearing good things about these remoskas and not generally just from people that like their gadgetry, which makes me really think they must be onto a good secret there.
They are a bit expensive for us at the mo as we tend to save vouchers from surveys we do for what we need but I can't find remoskas on AmaZon or aRgos. Will have to save and hopefully they will catch on to the interest and start stocking them soon.

pink_numbers

larmy16 wrote: »

Pink Numbers I so agree regarding the pets bills. My cat is 8 now - it costs me £17.99 per month to insure him but they still say I would have to pay 20% of any claim in future.

I have made one claim. Should I be trying to find cheaper do you think? I am not very good at changing providers - it always seems to go pear shaped.

I pay £17 per month for two cats, 10 and 9 years old, so yes, I think you could shop around and find cheaper. Also, as your cat gets older, make sure that your insurance will allow you to keep on claiming for on going illnesses if your cat develops one.

trishamggirl

me too ....... trishamggirl

LilacPixie

OK I am caving in. LilacPixie Still need to set a budget. Think i will be doing one for living cost not includding debt or mortgage payments but everything else. Now i just need to sort out a limit

ChinaTea

I pay 29.55 for 3 cats aged 2x nearly 5 and 1x 4 year old. haven't had too many problems with the oldest two although No1 puss had cat flu at 6 weeks but the vet didn't charge as he was a rescue cat ( dumped in a plastic bag at ~3 days). No3 puss has had a broken hip, gangrene after a fight, went lame for no apparent reason that lasted several weeks and had xrays, scans etc. He recovered but now has juvenile arthritis so has regular periods of treatment. If he hadn't been insured I don't know how I'd have found the fees. I'm with the one the vet recommends, got 1st 3 months free for each and have a £65 excess. All are covered for ongoing conditions if necessary. I alays make sure I have the excess tucked away and our vet does a direct claim so I only ever have to pay the £65 no matter what.

I started out with a cheaper one but they didn't cover ongoing conditions so am pleased I changed with regards to No3 puss. Do check when comparing what is covered and for how long and if they do a direct claim as otherwise you'd have to find the money upfront until they pay out.

gizmomum

can I join too please? Have a challenging year ahead with me, hubby and two under twos in a two bedrooomed house...need to sort out debts etc and be able to move house.
I'm GIZMOMUM by the way :rotfl: