Improving my life during Summer 2010

Mags30

Mags30 wrote: »

I'm hoping to introduce the envelope system to my finances. I'm going to start fairly simply with €100 being taken from the ATM. All bills are by direct debit so this is cash for spending only.

• €30 petrol (€20 should be enough but the extra could go towards car tax, insurance, MOT, parking discs)
• €35 Food
• €35 Unnecessary/Spends

I started officially with the envelopes today and I'm having serious trouble with it already:(

I put €25 petrol in the car and bought 2 parking discs costing €4. The petrol tank is only 3/4 full and I have €1 left in my car envelope which was supposed to have money left over towards tax/insurance. I also forgot that I get the bus sometimes which is €3.20 return. Clearly my petrol/travel fund needs to be increased.

When I met a friend for coffee at lunchtime I could only have coffee and nothing else because my envelopes don't allow me to fritter away €10 notes buying cake or sandwiches. I was so dis-satisfied when I couldn't eat. (I lied and said I wasn't hungry)

I had to post some letters and the stamps cost €3. I took this from the unnecessary/spends envelope. I was annoyed because the stamps were essential but I had to take the money from the envelope that's supposed to be for me to spend as I please.

Then I saw teenagers in school uniforms eating Dominos pizza at lunchtime and this evening 2 students coming out of an off-licence carrying two 24 packs of beer, 2 bottles of wine, a bottle of vodka and a few bottles of mixers. Where do these people get the money for all that stuff:huh:

This probably all sounds so petty but I just feel so fustrated about money today. It's not just about clearing debt, I'm trying to teach myself to live within a budget.

Mags30

15 newspaers/magazines/brochures in the recycling this morning.

From now on I'm going to keep all incoming paper separate from the stack I already have. Just like the cosmetics the aim will be more out than in.

Mags30

This evening I painted the garden shed. It took an hour and a quarter. Amazing how quickly jobs that you've been putting off for ages can get done when you put your mind to it.

vasseur

If it's any consolation I am having problems with my envelope system (except mine is in account pots at the bank).

Where do you get all the cosmetic freebies? Do you get the emails or do you just go in the shops and ask at the cosmetic counters? If so, what do you say? I have only managed to blag one freebie because I was too scared to say 'give me all your free samples'!!

Mags30

polesalot wrote: »

Where do you get all the cosmetic freebies? Do you get the emails or do you just go in the shops and ask at the cosmetic counters? If so, what do you say? I have only managed to blag one freebie because I was too scared to say 'give me all your free samples'!!

I enter the competitions on the comps and freebies boards here but mostly I ask in the shops. Usually only when I'm buying something but when I am buying I always ask "do you have any samples I could try?" They almost always give more than 1, do that a few times a month and it'll add up to a lot.

If you are buying toothpaste and deororant in Boots pay at the perfume or Clarins counter and ask there, you don't have to be buying expensive things to ask. I find Debenhams very generous with samples too.

A lot of people on the freebies board are signed up to test new products, they won't post to Ireland so I can't do that but you could:)

Mags30

I've started Payment a Day PAD this week, I hadn’t really planned on adding this until later because my budget is so tight as it is but I thought “what the hell, a few euro here and there won’t make much difference, and I can re-start it more seriously from Jan 2011.

vasseur

Mags30 wrote: »

I enter the competitions on the comps and freebies boards here but mostly I ask in the shops. Usually only when I'm buying something but when I am buying I always ask "do you have any samples I could try?" They almost always give more than 1, do that a few times a month and it'll add up to a lot.

If you are buying toothpaste and deororant in Boots pay at the perfume or Clarins counter and ask there, you don't have to be buying expensive things to ask. I find Debenhams very generous with samples too.

A lot of people on the freebies board are signed up to test new products, they won't post to Ireland so I can't do that but you could:)

Thanks I'll try all that :T

vasseur

Mags30 wrote: »

I've started Payment a Day PAD this week, I hadn’t really planned on adding this until later because my budget is so tight as it is but I thought “what the hell, a few euro here and there won’t make much difference, and I can re-start it more seriously from Jan 2011.

This is what I do. I just round down to the nearest pound (or two pounds if it isn't much rounding down). I don't notice it and it all makes a difference. Keep forgetting to post my update on the PAD board though!

Mags30

Having a stressful week so I’m trying to avoid my own life by living vicariously through other people’s diaries, in particular Memorygirl’s “Make do and mend” diary. Like many other MSE users I’m intrigued. The diary is really long so I still have loads of catching up to do but in her first challenge she made £100 last for 40 days. I didn’t manage to make €100 last for 7 days with my envelopes. (I went €5 over and spent a lot of the week feeling deprived).

My life seems to include a lot of lunches out, coffee shops, expensive cosmetics and shopping centres. Reading other diaries makes it very clear to me that other people do not live like this. They do not make regular visits to Boots, Debenhams or Primark, yet they look so groomed, polished and professional (I’m not stalking anybody honest, just that I’ve seen some of their blog pictures). My idea of cutting back seems to be equivalent to what other people would consider splashing out.

Living in the city definitely contributes to this lifestyle because when I spend time with friends in the country I don’t do any of those things, but then I spend loads on petrol instead.

I don’t aspire to living on a budget that is tighter than €100 a week or growing my own vegetables. For me €100 would be very frugal, I need at least €30 of that for petrol and parking leaving only €70 for food and entertainment which I find depressing when the students and unemployed around here have more than that to live on. But I’m desperately hoping that the attitudes to both life and money of these fabulous diary writing ladies rub off on me soon.

Mags30

I went on another driving adventure today! Had a flyer through my letterbox about an Asian/Chinese cash+carry which is open to the public and has an “all you can eat” lunch buffet for €6.95. Took me about 20 minutes to find it but I’ll be able to get there faster next time.

Lunch was really great value. I had a diet coke as well so I paid €8.45 but that included dessert (choice of cake with cream). After lunch I took a basket and went for a walk around the shop. It’s huge and I wished some of the ladies on here who have store-cupboards could have been there as they would have loved it.

There was loads of stuff I wouldn’t know what to do with, (banana leaf anyone?) and loads of industrial kitchen sized packets of rice and noodles but there were also massive packages of brand name things like washing powder, teabags and toilet rolls. They had desserts packaged in pretty ceramic bowls and glasses and one in a coffee cup for less than what the cups and bowls would cost elsewhere. Couldn’t buy any because I wasn’t going straight home to put them in the freezer. They also had really useful looking storage containers and an electric hot pot which appeals to me more than the slow cooker.

Then I bought a Christmas present at Debenhams Mega Day:xmassmile An Armani Code (aftershave for men) gift set. This should be €60 but I paid only €31 and got a lovely Armani towel and loads of samples free with it. The set was reduced to €40, I think it’s old stock that they are clearing out to make way for the new Christmas stock. Then mega day 10% discount made it €36 and I had €5 worth of points on my beauty club card so I used those too bringing it down to a very MSE €31. Oh and because I spent over €30 I get another €5 on my card to spend next time. I’m delighted with this because it’s rare to see Armani reduced and it’s much better value than will be available during the Christmas shopping season. While there I fell in love with the Orla Kiely perfume but I'm definitely not allowed to buy that. I'll just have to spray the tester any time I'm near Debenhams;)

Then I checked the charity shops and I got myself a black tea-dress with an olive green leopard print. It sounds awful but it’s not honestly, leopard print is meant to be really fashionable for Autumn/Winter and I only paid €4.95 for it. I’ll wear it with my flat black (investment buy) leather boots from TK Maxx which I bought a few years ago. I love dresses because no outfit co-ordination is required.