Reformed shopaholic? please can you give me the benefit of your advice

Anglea

NGlady, thank you for reminding us how beautiful we all look of course I won't say a word about your purchases this week............

So that could be about 4-£500 a month on personal spends???

I think the most important question is do you have the money to cover all your expenses, holiday fund and driving lessons.

If the answer is yes, then it's ok.

If it's no, and I wanted to carry on spending money on clothes and eating out with Deman, I'd eat and drink something different for lunch.

Or what about signing up to be a mystery shopper and eat out free?

NGlady2

I know what you mean Angela - its scary how much money I waste. I am just going to try my hardest to skim down as much as possible, and get used to cooking ourselves CHEAP meals - any ideas what we could make anybody? I love spicy foods, love most meats etc. Gotta b easy as neither of us can cook haha.

Most months i do have about 400\500 disposable - urgh that i've wasted this for 8months! so hopefully itll go down to 350 this month, and hopefully 300 the next.

I can afford to do it, on paper, but mentally, i dont want to be so wasteful.

Anglea

NGlady,

Two ways to look at it - you're only young once and spend it how you want OR

400/500 x 8 = :eek: you could have saved towards something big.

Cheap meal - chilli con carne - especially if you buy a bag of frozen mince.

NGlady2

I know - its horrible, that could have paid for my car and insurance
Chillis good may try and make one on weds :O

Anglea

Even a wedding in the Caribbean :rotfl:

NGlady2

Lol. I've only known deman since end of July ... maybe one day, but not the caribbeen - somewhere at home, nice country mannor or maybe in Spain

Anglea

6 months, plenty of time to get wed Although I went out for 3 years before getting married, however it was long distance so probably saw less of him altogether than you have since July!

Seriously, it is nice to think you are happy with him.

CompletelyLost

Hi all,
Tskkkkkk @ NG. That seems a lot for one meal... £50... Was it somewhere really posh that you ate at? Makes me glad I never go to restaurants (I'm weirdly OCD when it comes to food preparation - happened after I had food poisoning - so rarely eat out). You seem to have saved quite a bit on food for work though, so well done on that :T

I made a quick trip into town today to post a couple of ebay items (£24 profit ) and I ended up spending £14 My mum was a bad influence on me - I put something down, but she told me to buy it because it looked nice... so I did.

Anglea: I am too scared to add up all of the tops, bags, etc that I have. What's even worse is that I don't wear most of them but I just can't part with them, so would just end up feeling even more guilty. I'll stick with my spending diary... that's about as organised as I get!

Frogletina

I've been out tonight and feel really guilty, and not because I have been spending money.

I didn't take any with me because I thought there would be no need. But I was at a committee meeting and when there I was asked for £2 for someone who was stepping down. Fortunately I found £1.50 in the bottom of my bag and someone lent me 50p

When the evening ended, it was decided to go to the pub. I said ok, again forgetting I had no money. Fortunately the same woman bought the drinks as we went in and it was only one round.

So officially I have spent £2 tonight - within my budget, but it should have been more. Oh well. At least it's only January I am spending up to £3 a day and saving the rest - I think February it will have to be more, especially on committee meeting night. It'll be my turn to buy the drinks, I guess!

I'm amazed I have lasted so long on £3 a day personal spends, I'm sure one day soon I'll not manage

Anglea

Hi all

CL did you need what you bought? (silly question of course you did or you wouldn't have bought them:))

Froglatina, it can feel uncomfortable going out without money, glad you managed to deal with it.

Today I spent 1.70 subs for the craft club - first time it occured to me that I forgot about this weekly amount for my expenses last year, also bought lunch from Gregs £2.80 because I forgot to eat breakfast and was starving.