FRUGAL LIVING CHALLENGE 2010, part 1. (Living on £4,000 a year)

Miss_Bubbles

After 2 days of no spending i ended up parting with £90 last night!!
News has stated that there is more snow on its way here so i decided to do my shopping slighty early but...
£3 on savers stamps at morrisons-i usually manage to save £150 ready for christmas.
And im having the girlies over for a cocktail and nibbles evening this evening so i needed to buy a few extra bits. There are 14 of us and do this once a month. We rotate the homes and each bring a plate of nibbles (keeps cost down) and in pairs we bring a spirit and a mixer! Great fun and a real treat to have an evening away from the kids(although my daughter is at her dads this weekend,so im free)! We used to go out for dinner once a month but its alot more expensive. Hosting at home is much more enjoyable,i love having people round!

Frugaldom

Natalie, if you want to be precise, it's actually £438.65 per month as there aren't exactly 52 weeks in a year, either, it's 52 weeks and a day for 2010 :rotfl: Being such a 'Scrooge' and having done the challenge through a leap year, I know how much an extra day can make. :rotfl:

Just noticed post from Lynzpower - Hello and welcome

Anyone else wanting to join PLEASE write name in BIG BOLD COLOUR so I don't miss it as the thread is moving too fast for me to keep up.

DdraigGoch

Well pointed out, XNatalie. Nyk often did these calculations, if I remember correctly:

Weekly pay x 52 = annual income
Annual income / 365 [or 366 in a leap year] = daily income
Daily income x 7 = weekly income

I find that Daily Income is a good "frightener" [for myself or others], Weekly Income [less outgoings] is useful for planing properly and Monthly Income handy for allocating big expenditures such as Rates, Fuel etc

HTH


LOL, crossposting alert! *Waves to Nyk*

Fishcake_Random

Hello all,
I for one am truely glad of all the millions of posts on here as I have been stuck indoors getting more and more bored for about 3 years now (feels like it).
I decided I had had enough this morning and took a hot drink OH who was in his shop, unforchantly a friend of his was walking behind me in town and saw me slip up, I didnt fall just had a wobble, and sold me out so OH walked me straight back home with a lecture about safety and resting for the baby lol. Foiled.
I have hooked out an old cushion I don't use so I can use the stuffing for this, which is my current project for baby. http://susanbanderson.blogspot.com/2007/04/page-18-elefante.html
Hopefully it turns out okay, I may even make a couple and try and sell them or gift them.
Todays dinner might be pork chops, I got them out the freezer a tad late so they may be tomorrows dinner and tonights will be pasta in cheesy sauce. We shall soon find out.
Yesterday and today are no spend days, though todays was not for lack of trying lol I fancied a coffee in a cafe so I had human company for a change.
Keep posting everyone your saving my sanity.
x x x x

Puddleglum

Hello All,

MIL went home today back to her modern well insulated bungalow after her Xmas holidays with us. This means that we can now start cutting back a bit on the gas and electricity consumption. She is 85 and we couldn't get the temp in the house up much above 17 degrees even with heating on constantly. She was wrapped up in layers and layers but still looked miserable. Thank goodness for cold weather payments for the elderly and vulnerable.

So typing in the dark, huddled round a candle for warmth......

I was talking to a colleague yesterday and suddenly realised that I have no need to grumble about my lack of money anymore. Not that I have any more money, no such luck, simply that over the past year I have become so much better organised and thrifty.

MSE forums - :iloveyou:

minjara

cw18 - its cool. payment shield didn't pay out when he lost his job due to what the employer put down on the form. thats one of the things thats going to get recovered through the tribunal. and the mortgage is getting paid through his debt management people just now.

xnatalie81x

nykmedia wrote: »

Natalie, if you want to be precise, it's actually £438.65 per month as there aren't exactly 52 weeks in a year, either, it's 52 weeks and a day for 2010 :rotfl: Being such a ,Scrooge' and having done the challenge through a leap year, I know how much an extra day can make. :rotfl:

Darn off to re-write my budget lol thought i had done so well working out the 5 week months! If you could see my income 'budget' - it has 10 columns at the top and each month down the left lol with each month's amt of weeks lol.

Makes quite a difference you know as TC and WTC is 239 week plus child benefit so i get an extra £40 this year :rotfl: i'm happy, - unfortunately don't think it will affect my wages.....

Twinkles08

Hi fishcake,your knitting skills are far superior to mine!I used to knit when I was like 8 yrs old but drifted away.I brought a rowan (sp)book which is enchanting (before frugal attempt I hasten to add!)but I've only just learnt the pearl stitch.I love the elephant it is really adorable!Plse will you post a pic when finished I'd love to see it.
Ps I slipped and skidded on the ice yesterday and I've been grounded indoors by hubby as he's petrified by my lack of balance at the mo.Chin up!

savingfortravel

butterfly72 wrote: »

Hi all! Is it too late to join the challenge?!

I haven't read all the posts but will make my way through them at some point! Some great ideas tho. Love the bulk cooking and freezing of chickpeas. We use a lot of them and I buy the ready cooked tins. I guessed it was cheaper than boiling them on the hob for an hour but didin't think about bulk cooking and freezing! I wonder if you can do this with other peas/beans?

So, my plans for this year are to make EVERY card I send out. I've already made a valentines card for the OH and mothers day card. I'll have to find out what other family birthdays are coming up. Mum normally rings me two days before and I pop a bought one into the post. I just need to get organised. I'm hoping to make them from bits and peices I find around the house/packaging etc... nothing bought especially for card making. So far my craft box has coloured tissue paper, bows and ribbons from old wrapping etc, the sides of tissue boxes which often have lovely patterns and pics on them. I cut these and glue them on to card, scraps of paper, buttons and sequins from old clothes. I'll try and post piccys of the cards I've made this week. They're not that good, but its the thought!!!

I must also make use of the sewing machine I got for christmas 2008. I've piles of fabric too! Trouble is I'm not actually very crafty so this will be a struggle. Tonight I might make a draught excluder!

I have a remoska which must be saving me a fortune because I hardly have the main oven on anymore. I also have a slow cooker and infact will be using it twice next week for planned meals. I always meal plan and hardly throw any food away.

We also have an allotment. Last year we had a really successful year last year growing 27 different vegetable and fruits. Im not sure how much we saved because it was our first year and we had to fork out for spades, hose and all the equipment. Saying that, we spent every night down there so our going out spending went right down! I'm really looking forward to our second year.

I also have a dream of owning a small holding.. or a patch of land big enought for a veggie plot and greenhouses, chickens and a couple of horses. (used to have horses and ponies as a kid) Its just a dream tho.

Hopefully in the next week I'll have a bash at martins budget planner and see whats what. I think I need to plan to get started!!

:beer:

Welcome Butterfly-
Wow, found your post very inspiring and do hope you join us as you'll fit right in.

Now feel inspired to make own cards this year too. Starting to realise that you don't have to go to expensive craft shops for bits/bobs for cards..just kept your mind and eyes open.

Thanks
sft

warney27

Hi all!
I have just had an email from scottish power asking me to do a metre reading, just done it £554.59 and used 4968 units since 23/10/09. just went on a comparison site, but no one can do it cheaper. I also worked out my annual cost for electric is around £1500 per year and not £2328 that i have put in the budget. But there is still room for an improvement, any ideas?
also my car insurance is due in march, so i went on some comparison sites but no one is close to my current supplier swift cover. which is £324 per year
cheers all
I am off to raid the cupboards for something for dinner as i am home alone