Frugal Living 2010 -The Cost of Living Challenge, INTRO

skintjenny

hi all,
sorry i havent posted for a while, have been down staying with family over the xmas period and grandma doesnt have internet!
am really happy with my xmas haul- santa knows ive been a good girl this year! I got a halogen oven so that I can bake things again (the flat I currently live in is so small the only cooking facilities I have are 2 hob rings, a microwave and a GF grill- but now i have an oven! woop!) also got some essential shoes off my mum.
THEN on xmas day everyone was laughing at my aincient Nokia, and my aunite says- work have given me a new phone, so you can have my iphone if you like? hurrah! iphone!!

hope you all had an ace christmas? Im stressing about money lots at the mo, but am meeting with a friend on Tuesday to discuss tactics to get us both out of messes!

bails

Hi everyone, just popping in to wish you all a great start with the challenge! I won't be about much for the first 4 months but then I'll be back with a vengence Great to have so many people signed up :T Here's hoping we all have a successful year! xx

Nikkiev27

please can you count me in? this is my very first challenge!!!:j

trex170104

Wow you're all so inspiring on here I love reading all the new posts. Had my first few bargains of the year [even though I know we're still in 2009] this week. We're in the middle of decorating our front room in our lovely new house [not new but new for us!] and yesterday went to B&Q to get wallpaper yesterday and got three rolss for under £6 when it should have cost us £60:T
Also got a lovely 2-seater dark brown leather sofa from BHS sale today for £349 instead of £900!!!

Tomorrow myself, OH and DS [aged 2] going to Hollywood Bowl for their 1p bowling event which should only cost us 3p and have free cinema tickets for us all next sunday so have lots of free fun things planned to do - woo hoo!!

Just about to organise my fridge and cupboards now to make all the food in there last as long as possible with a little bit of creativity!

sallyknits

Hi Everyone

I would like to join the challenge for 2010... I'm Deleted_User's mum!! (shes bullied me into this) will post budget when I've figured it out. Harder than most as I have a knitting obsession and 7 children (5 are still living at home).

Sally

trex170104

... also I'm in complete agreeance with the baby blue/ink thing I had a little boy who wore lots fo white and cream which have all been saved for the next little bubba. I don't think I'd put him in pink cos he's always getting mistaken for a little girl anyway! But I'd def put a girl in blue I wore loads of blue as a little one.

Also good news my OH is completely getting on boar with the money saving. He's in charge of our newly acquired allotment and has even put himself on freecycle - a new convert for the group hoorah!!!

savingfortravel

Hi Everyone!
I am also looking forward to the New Challenge.


Had a very successful Christmas.
Fed and watered for 2 days. Also Mum gave us some pieces of quiche/ham to take home.
My sister gave us a hamper full of jams, sloe gin, HM wine, and cake. My brother gave us a range of cheeses. My parents gave us YHA vouchers. Got boots voucher too. Got lots of useful toiletries-swapping body lotion for body wash with mumzy. Got socks (including a pair of beautiful cream cashmere bedsocks from a child in my class) too.
Now I have worked out what toiletries I should need for the rest of the year..Got a couple of money off coupons which will help with this. Luckily got enough body lotion/shampoo/shower gel and soap to last the year.

Need to get some new school shoes (unfortunately I need to get Cl*rkes wide fitting which are expensive but they do last) and probably 2 new shirts/2 new skirts for school-will try to get these from ebay.

So things are looking good.

sft

ceridwen

and I'm gearing up mentally.

Got myself that O.S. standby - a slowcooker - mini version with both high and low heat levels in the process of being sorted out. Visions of long slow cooking of things like grains and soups in my case:D

Just had another crack at the homemade cosmetics - and my improvisation of the double boiler that seems to be so necessary for a lot of them. The basic recipe for making many homemade cosmetics is "take the following ingredients and melt together in a double boiler". Errrm....does a Pyrex flan dish put on top of a saucepan of boiling water count do you think as a suitable makeshift double boiler? (errrmm...did just splash a bit of grease from my latest recipe over the top of my ceramic cooker - so not quite as moneysaving as it shoulda been - as will have to get out the kitchen paper towels and ceramic top cleaner to clean that off.....DUH!).

Wondering what MEGA cheapo things I can use instead of cosmetics - I've done a bit of experimenting with using sunflower oil as body lotion and vegetable shortening (cant remember what English brand name was?) as moisturiser - but little wary - as I dont want to smell like a chip shop:rotfl:

knithappens

ceridwen wrote: »

Wondering what MEGA cheapo things I can use instead of cosmetics - I've done a bit of experimenting with using sunflower oil as body lotion and vegetable shortening (cant remember what English brand name was?) as moisturiser - but little wary - as I dont want to smell like a chip shop:rotfl:

have you tried olive oil, hrealth visitors highly recommend it as a moisturiser for newborns, and it is really good, plus has less of an odour.

rozeepozee

Dora, no you're not the only one - I find it exciting too - maybe we're both wierd but I'm happy to be wierd with you

This is our first proper family Christmas as my DP's been very transient in the past so never done the Christmas tree and tinsel thing and I was brought up as a muslim, but I don't want our little boy to miss out on the fun - However, I find it very commercial and really balk at just falling in with everyone else's inclination to spend and spend so we're trying to make our own traditions without spending a fortune... Also, (is it just me?) I don't want anything and I certainly don't need anything so DP and I didn't exchange any pressies between us - and didn't buy for any other adults (just the kids) (Admittedly, we have recently bought ourselves a campervan...)

This year I squirreled away half of our son's still wrapped birthday presents (he was born in November) as he received an obscene amount and used them to top up the presents round the tree (not loads for Christmas as none of my family celebrate). We also avoid commercial TV channels so that we don't get the "I want one of those" pestering. Whilst he is young and we can exercise some control, we will :rolleyes: I bought our chrissy decorations last year in the NY sales in anticiaption of this year, as we had none.

Neither of us like turkey so we thought we'd do Christmas dinner with lamb. Lamb (and other other red meat) is incredibly cheap at this turkey-time-of-year and a real treat!

We're now living on leftovers. I've spent £1.69 since last Monday, getting into practice for the challenge ahead.

fascinating to read all of your posts - hope I can maintain this momentum.

RP X