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

Fishcake_Random

Hey all,
Haven't been on for a bit as I've just been so tired out with all this baby growing business.
Haven't been a good frugaller either as OH did a shop on 4th and came home with £23.00 of shopping and came home via the sports shop so also had £30 of football shirts . I know he's wanted some for ages but still that's a lot out of budget lol. So we have £59.39p left for the month, but a full freezer, fridge and store cupboard to last us. OH was given a stern talking to!
Today I have been helping out in OH's shop and tonight I'm going to be stitching the arsenal badge on a blanket for him while he's playing football. He loves a snuggly blanket in bed so I picked up a cheap but good quality fleece one a few months ago in a charity shop with the idea to embroider it for Valentines day for him. I'll try and post a piccy once I'm done.

Thanks for the reminder for the new episode of My Dream Farm I'll watch that tonight while stitching! I've also been watching the Kirsties handmade home series on 4OD for the comedy factor lol. ("Only £100 on material ? bargin!")
Also was given a little bag of girls clothes from a well wisher today. One of the dresses in it are for a 2year old and still had its Miny mode tags on!!! I looked it up and its worth £15 new. I'm eying up the material on it as well for something crafty once babies done with it. LOL
Frugal hugs and love to all
Fishcake
x x x x

pagangirl

Hi all

Got a nice suprise earlier as thought house phone needed replacing due to wire out of cable at back - turns out I can replace the cable from the socket to phone for £1.99 instead of buyting new phone :j
NSD here today, as such a nice day, went for walk in spring sunshine, lovely to see all the snowdrops and bulbs just peeking through - yaaaay spring has sprung (hopefully) just nice to start getting light nights back . No heat on yet, didn't have to light up till 5.15.

If anyone missed My Dream Farm this week, Monty Don was asking for people to take part in the next series. Anyone interested??

Rictus 123 congratulations on clearing that RBS credit card - keep up the good work !:T

Have a great weekend all

Hugs

ceridwen

nykmedia wrote: »

Last night, I made a start on my rag rug. I'm using an empty peanut sack for the hessian base, a corncob holder as a prodder and all the old offcuts from curtain making plus an old sheet and duvet cover to tear into strips and prod through the rug. Not sure how it will turn out but it's a pretty cheap hobby to learn and can easily be unpicked if I make a glaring mistake.

Instructions for this would be good please:)

rictus123

pagangirl wrote: »

Hi all

Got a nice suprise earlier as thought house phone needed replacing due to wire out of cable at back - turns out I can replace the cable from the socket to phone for £1.99 instead of buyting new phone :j
NSD here today, as such a nice day, went for walk in spring sunshine, lovely to see all the snowdrops and bulbs just peeking through - yaaaay spring has sprung (hopefully) just nice to start getting light nights back . No heat on yet, didn't have to light up till 5.15.

If anyone missed My Dream Farm this week, Monty Don was asking for people to take part in the next series. Anyone interested??

Rictus 123 congratulations on clearing that RBS credit card - keep up the good work !:T

Have a great weekend all

Hugs

Thanks Pagangirl :j Iv also just worked out that after my 3 week holiday in the summer my pay goes upto 17.5k a year :eek::j:j im only 18...will just turn 19 when it goes up though :T SO happy tonight and gf will be here soon:p Enjoy your night everyone,dont spend a penny :D

A_fiend_for_life

Good work on the card Rictus - just paid mine off Wednesday and closed the account - glad to be rid of it.

Edit: I put 'yesterday' by mistake it was actually Wednesday - I've lost three days from buzzing with joy.

xnatalie81x

shaz_mum_of__2 wrote: »

Top drawer



Natxx did you get my PM ? was it any help?

we both like to learn about the origins of old phrases and i am going to getand cover a book and put some phrases in and then he can add to it over time

.

yes thanks xxx i have been manic recently so read and ran - here is one for you, i found online a few days ago - apparently the term:

'feeling lousey' originates because when people have headlice it can bring on flu like symptoms. Therefore the term was 'feeling lousey' as in having lice, louse - get it - i thought it was quite cool. And explains why i have been feeling a bit carp - one of the perils of working with children i am afraid

Puddleglum

xnatalie81x wrote: »

'feeling lousey' originates because when people have headlice it can bring on flu like symptoms. Therefore the term was 'feeling lousey' as in having lice, louse - get it - i thought it was quite cool. And explains why i have been feeling a bit carp - one of the perils of working with children i am afraid

Thanks xnatx that explains my problem! Still I hope that we are getting on top of the lousey pests in Puddleglum mansions... at least when DS had his hair cut this morning (a number 3 all over) the barber didn't drop the shears and run away! :beer:

Frugaldom

Well done Rictus, glad one debt has gone! :T

Ceridwen, I have the ragrug details on my blog. This is my first attempt at rugmaking since being at school! :eek: It ranks up there alongsides the likes of pin pictures (remember the wood, nails and coloured string and we all made picures of birds or boats) and pictures with dried pasta frames. :rotfl:

Another frugal friends is having a go at making cheese this week after getting some veggie rennet from Mr S. I'm tempted to try it but will wait and find out how much cheese she gets from her couple of litres of milk.

We got loads done in the garden this afternoon, as it was such a lovely day. All my fruit bushes have been planted and there were more than I'd bargained for - each 'pack of 3' contained at least 6 or 7 small plants! :j In total, I planted out 21 fruit canes that cost a total of less than £10. :T I also planted another dozen garlic cloves and began preparing the large tubs for potatoes.

Shaz - On the origins of sayings front, someone on the 'Rural Moneysaving' thread posted about the 'by hook or by crook' saying originating from the peasants being allowed into the landlords' forests now and again to help themselves to whatever dead wood they could collect using only a shepherd's crook or reaper's hook.

Skint_Lynne

Evening everyone,

I have taken the plunge and set up a blog, the address is:

http://suburbanfrugalite.blogspot.com have a wee read and see what you all think.

NYK, not sure if you are adding these somewhere, I think I saw the links for blogs on your page. Yes, I did, just checked.:D

Really, it's just for me to keep a wee record of what I have done within the year. I spend too much time reading and not enough doing, so hopefully this will help. I hope it entertains someone or even gives a wee tip here or there.

Not much to report, still watching as always, just a small spend on mushrooms for cooking with tomorrow. More potato scones made tonight.

Speak soon. xx

cw18

nykmedia wrote: »

All my fruit bushes have been planted and there were more than I'd bargained for - each 'pack of 3' contained at least 6 or 7 small plants! :j In total, I planted out 21 fruit canes that cost a total of less than £10.

Oooooeeeeerrrrrr!!

Had planned to make a start on getting mine out today, but the shopping trip to get (most of) the rest of the stuff I needed took longer than anticipated - so the actual planting out has been delayed until tomorrow. I noticed both packs said they contain 3 raspberry canes, but I only got enough pots based on there being 5 in total to a pack!!

I can see me having to bob into work to get another set of 8 buckets tomorrow if I've got 'extras' in mine as well.....

I brought my 2nd and 3rd sets of buckets home yesterday - but I had to pick and pack them myself, as well as pay for them (99p for 8, so not too bad. And even better once my staff discount brings it down to 89p for the 8 )

There weren't any out for sale when I got to work, but there was a pile of two different sizes where they get sorted form - so one of the managers said I could take my pick after I clocked out, and I made sure I got the larger sized ones The plan was for him to get one of the staff from that section to 'tape them up' for me, but he disappeared into the warehouse as I was going to sort through them - so I did everything then ran them past the senior store manager as proof I wasn't diddling the company.



I've managed to locate a couple of timber merchants not too far from me, so plan to try them this next week for the planks to make my SFG plots. The more local has prices on line (per metre) for the 2"x6" wood, whereas the other doesn't. But the site for the more distant one looks more professional (and they seem to be based more on the general building and garden trade, whereas the closer one seems to make staircase spindles and such with the 'plain wood' being more of a side-line). Called the more distant one late this morning to check their opening times - and I'm debating trying a run-out before school on Monday, as they open at 7am :eek: If I don't make it then it'll be Friday morning before I get the chance - and I'm probably going to have to be in then for a delivery from somewhere else !!!!