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

xnatalie81x

Hello my frugal friends


Feb has been fantastic so far! I am about 50% under budget this month - don't really know how or why, just that i have been very frugalised from last year.

As i have not been on here for a couple of weeks, here is my:

NEWS

1. Washing machine broke, had one given to us ages ago in garage at parents. Got it here, too small - stressed (washing building up) - 3 days later aunt offers us her washing machine and her dishwasher (only few yrs old) - washing machine bigger than 'new' one but still a little small than 'old' one. New dishwasher mucho bigger than old one (slimline) and more appropriate for family of 5 :j 'new' washing machine and 'old' dishwasher advertised on my facebook (have lots of non friends from around the area due to business) and now donated to worthy new homes!

2. Half term is upon us and am finding cheap things to do in the hols. Park and MIL's yesterday, sisters in Stokie today, swimming tomorrow (free due to my job ) Thu splashing out at soft play £13 entry plus some treats _pale_ and Friday will be pets corner type thing. Total cost for hols £30 with petrol :T Am adding kids activities and going out mthly budget together for this and total £24.99 available (so if i can find a penny on the floor somewhere we are on target) lol

3. Got big pack school socks for £1.50 in tesco instead of £3 but splashed out on new duvet for £21 (king size) as i like a new one every year all other spends have been groceries/cleaning stuff

4. MY FIRST EVER TERM OF running my own swimming lessons came to an end on Saturday and i am pleased to say all but 1 have re-booked for next term PLUS i have had to put on an extra class!!! So from end Feb i am running 1.5hr now instead of 1hr on a Saturday AND from April i am running an hour on a Sunday too!!! (already taken 5 bookings for this and it is 8 weeks away!!!) SOOOOOOOOOOO business is really taking off and doing well!

5. We have decided we are going to move out 31st March, not wait till end April. landlady agreed it is ok and even let us have £50 off the rent this month - she is very kind. As our rent covers till 25th we are effectively getting a week free (told she was nice!) to move in our own time so i want moving in date to be 28th and we 28/29/30/31 to move to new house! O the joy of not having to rush will be lovely!


Sorry not been around much but things have been sooooooooo manic with all the business stuff - off to get ready to take monstArs and me to my sisters in Stoke Newington - see all you lovely and inspiring people's later xx

babyboysmommy

ceridwen wrote: »

...and further on that washing machine. I just googled for the price of that washing machine.....make that "...and the rest" on top of that figure I thought. Looks like about £700-£1,000 of my savings is about to go west...



I need a strong drink...(and any helpful comments about a cheap supplier of Miele washing machines....)

I don't know about Miele's but I bought a top of the range BOSCH 15 years ago & it's still going strong without any problems from the day I bought it

xnatalie81x

rictus123 wrote: »

Is anyone on this thread in debt? I know its a silly question really given what website im asking on but you never know. Id like to ask how much of an emergency fund everyone has? I know about 3-6 months living expenses is the reccomended but id like to know everyone elses take. Need to get some good saving habits now iv got the budgeting sorted!

Yes i am about 29k i think now (less than Jan last year) - i am on a DMP so pay off 250 a month (£3000 yr)

Here is how i work mine:

total money in
- essential out
= disposable income
- live on 12500
= save the rest

Plus i have an 'extra income' column for all my additional income, so as my business has expanded to 1.5 that will be 1/2hr money over 30 weeks of the year. All of this money gets saved (as i cannot account for how much it could be) I also do swimming cover, summer/holiday work, invigilate on irregular basis, use TCB etc etc.

At the end of last year the leftover and additional income totalled around £2000 which i have lent, invested and used to pay for a course plus i have about £600 tucked away.

At the end of this year i shall more than likely use the projected 1500/200 saved to offer a f&f on one of my larger debts (have about 7 creditors now) - i like to have about 2000 in savings for emergencies! It is amazing as i never used to have savings but after nearly losing my youngest last xmas it helped me to see how i was living and i have completely changed!

Sorry to waffle xx

babyboysmommy

Life is ticking along. My Kenwood Chef is being delivered today, still can't believe I got one for £140 instead of the usual £250+, I know it's not a necessity but as I didn't pay for it...

All the books I listed on Amazon have now sold. I didn't expect that, let alone so quickly. Just one thing on eBay right now that has also sold, just not sure what the final price will be as 2 people have been bidding on it.

Got the notification through for my car tax £215 :eek: I know it comes at the same time every year but for some daft reason I thought it was due in May so it caught be a bit by surprise.

I've chosen a sewing machine, just need to buy it now (I'm not paying for that either). I've decided to take a course at my local adult education centre, NCFE dressmaking levels 1 & 2. Hopefully that will give me a good grounding in the basics as well as giving me a new skill & something new to do when DS starts school in September.

I've gone through the house now but have decided to start all over again. I think looking at everything twice might mean more gets rehomed/sold etc. If not then I know I did a really good job the first time

Half term so no pre school etc & it's raining. Lots of craft activities, games, dressing up etc to pass the time today as I refuse to have the TV on during the day.

BigMummaF

chika wrote: »

....fell in love with the Degus. I think I may have to make some room in the budget for a frugal pet or two.....

Had to look them up Chika--they remind me of chinchilla but with smaller ears Just wondering if they need things like dust baths & extra heat tho Our Iggie is a delight but needs a vivarium which of course bumps up the lekkie, & then Pup has jabs, worming, flea treatment, etc etc etc. I didn't have anything more than fairground goldfish as a kid, so didn't realise how expensive pets can be when I agreed to the Offspring's requests :undecided Then you get into 'who will look after them if I go away for the week-end' if you're used to just throwing a few bits into a rucksack & hopping on a passing wagon train...Apologies if all of this comes over as a negative, but I really do wish I'd thought a LOT more before opening my heart to our four-legged house-mates. I love them to bits & wouldn't dream of short-changing their needs, but it's all the bits you don't think about as you gaze into their adorable, trusting eyes that soon mount up.

ceridwen wrote: »

....As regards what your minister is saying to you - what are his precise objections to you having that man stay?....wondering if you might get "involved" if you get my drift) OR he has seen practical reasons for objecting (as in some sort of evidence that you are "being taken for a ride")....

I did wonder about this myself, but primarily the implications it would have on any type of Benefit Erme may be claiming. I strongly suggest to err on the side of caution because as admirable as the intentions may be, there comes a time when you HAVE to cover your own back first.

catznine

:hello:Hi folks!

I'm a tad late with my fortnightly report!:o possibly cos I have spent rather a lot for only halfway through the month!

Total so far this month £263.18 (£86.82 left from £350)

Mostly this was a Costco shop where we stocked up on tea, coffee, easy cook rice, cheese, chicken, braising steak, tuna and salmon. The freezer looks healthier now and we have enough protein in for the next 3 months.

Also bought some sugar (15 x 1kg bags for only £7.94 - 53p a bag) so now I am diving into the chest freezer and hauling out bags of blackberries (from 2008!) and making blackberry jelly at about 20p a jar:j

Broken down the totals are:-

Food £134.01
Dog £ 19.48
Cleaning £ 29.25 (bulk supply of fairy)
Vits £ 12.87
Presents £ 14.00 (2 birthdays)
Clothing £ 16.43 (new bra size so bargain pack of 2 at costco)
Charity £ 6.11
Mob/Ins £ 19.59 (ooops sent a few photos from ds wedding)
Misc/spends £ 11.10

I've cancelled the organic box for this week as we have more than enough veg to use up, so will save an extra £11.95

I've had a couple of days cardmaking all from supplies I had in, most were for charity but I've kept a few back for the next few birthdays due. Can't believe I used to go out and spend between £2 and £3 a card before!

Still listing every spend, which is very scary but hopefully will encourage me to be more careful. Has anyone seen the you tube videos of the Economides family from Arizona? Also known as Americas cheapest family, they have paid off their mortgage and raised 5 children who are all keen frugalites themselves. It does seem to be based a lot of coupon shopping but they also mention menu planning, shopping lists and thrift stores.

Right off to catch up on the thread and then get some more blackberry jelly on the go.

Catz x

chika

BigMummaF wrote: »

Had to look them up Chika--they remind me of chinchilla but with smaller ears Just wondering if they need things like dust baths & extra heat tho Our Iggie is a delight but needs a vivarium which of course bumps up the lekkie, & then Pup has jabs, worming, flea treatment, etc etc etc. I didn't have anything more than fairground goldfish as a kid, so didn't realise how expensive pets can be when I agreed to the Offspring's requests :undecided Then you get into 'who will look after them if I go away for the week-end' if you're used to just throwing a few bits into a rucksack & hopping on a passing wagon train...Apologies if all of this comes over as a negative, but I really do wish I'd thought a LOT more before opening my heart to our four-legged house-mates. I love them to bits & wouldn't dream of short-changing their needs, but it's all the bits you don't think about as you gaze into their adorable, trusting eyes that soon mount up.


I did wonder about this myself, but primarily the implications it would have on any type of Benefit Erme may be claiming. I strongly suggest to err on the side of caution because as admirable as the intentions may be, there comes a time when you HAVE to cover your own back first.

Thank you for this. They do need dust baths. No extra heat thankfully, I also need to look into gettin insurance for them which I think may be tricky for a rodent. Does anyone have insurance for a similar animal? I live in a house with seven other people so if I want to go away there are lots of extra helping hands. I'm going to sleep on it for a week and if I still want them then I think I'm going to go ahead. Thank you though, I am a bit impulsive, I almost came home with half the pet shop yesterday...

Just packed up and going to the mothership for a couple of days. I'm really looking forward to it but not the spend on diesel. I think I'll take my goddaughter to the local farm which is free and fun and investigate some of the free museums located around Yorkshire. Has anyone been to Eureka? Is it worth the fees? £8.95 each just seems a bit steep especially and the baby boo is only three and a half :eek:

Karmacat

I've had to let go eating frugally a little bit, because I've been so tired with this virus/infection/whatever it is - but this sounds *so* good. I particularly like the idea of doing your own cards - I've found a couple of nice charity shop cards for £1.30 or so, but I love the idea of decoupage for cards - do you buy stuff in to make them, how does it work?

catznine

Karmacat wrote: »

I've had to let go eating frugally a little bit, because I've been so tired with this virus/infection/whatever it is - but this sounds *so* good. I particularly like the idea of doing your own cards - I've found a couple of nice charity shop cards for £1.30 or so, but I love the idea of decoupage for cards - do you buy stuff in to make them, how does it work?

Hi Karmacat - hope you feel better soon, I have me/cfs and have to eat as well or organically as I can but it can be done on a budget with a combination of shopping at reduction time, growing your own (sprout beans in winter) and bulk buying from places like goodness direct.

For cardmaking try your local market, we have a great supplier down there who sells sheets of decoupage, greetings, embellishments, double sided sticky tape etc., I buy the card from The papermill shop - you get to fill a box with as many sheets as you can fit in A5 size used to be about£3.50 and A4 £5 but that could have gone up.
I like to nosy around charity shops and car boot sales for supplies and also use old cards that have been sent to me. There are loads of online sites that will give you great ideas though.

Optimisticpair

rictus123 wrote: »

Is anyone on this thread in debt? I know its a silly question really given what website im asking on but you never know. Id like to ask how much of an emergency fund everyone has? I know about 3-6 months living expenses is the reccomended but id like to know everyone elses take. Need to get some good saving habits now iv got the budgeting sorted!

Oh yeah, see my signature!

Our emergency fund is now up to enough to replace the car cheaply tomorrow if that was necessary because it is essential for work plus 3 months for two adults. Anything we have left over from our 5k budget goes to pay off debt.

Include in our 5k budget is:

£460 a month to cover

Food & drink, cleaning and toiletries
Landline phone.
Tv licence. (entertainment)
Electricity
Oil (hot water and heating)
Wood (heating)
Coal (heating)
Clothing/footwear
Garden (to grow own veg) (entertainment)
Household maintenance
Petrol & travel
magazine / newspaper (entertainment)
House insurance
Birthday/Xmas gifts and donations

Entertainment like a day out to visit friends and have a couple of drinks in a pub is included under petrol and food & drink. I'm trying to include the full amount for car repairs/MOT in the budget also.

excluded from our budget is:

water on meter which is reducing
Council tax
Our Mortgage payments
Expenses to care for elderly parent includes mortgage.
Car tax
Car insurance
Debt payments
Dental / medical
Internet and 1 mobile phone is a work expense

That's it.

Every penny I scrape together counts as extra towards clearing debt.

Whatever figure you decide on for your emergency fund add a bit for the worst case scenario as well in case there are two disasters. That's what happened to us.

We were owed about 2k and had an urgent 5k emergency two years ago. :eek:We didn't have enough emergency fund to cover it and keep 3 months living expenses on top which we thought we might need to use. So while waiting for the 2k back we went into temporary debt ourselves. It is clear now that we won't see any of what is owed to us back so that's now disaster 2 a debt we have to clear.

Good luck keeping to your budget and saving to put into an emergency and living expenses fun. it is a big bit of peace of mind to have there.