Preparing for winter II

abwsco

GreyQueen wrote: »

:rotfl:LMAO, definately do that. I always say, if I can't be a good example, I shall at least be a good bad one, IYSWIM.:rotfl:

Besides, 20 cans of tommies is hardly a "stash"; more like business-as-usual, isn't it?

Actually, as well as being slightly insane, there is method in my madness; can't find an interest rate which matches the official inflation rate, never mind the RW inflation in groceries, so I have invested in tinned goods and cleaning products.

I can't possibly tell you lovely peeps how many packets of soda crystals I have by me, but they are currently selling for 30p (minimum) more than I paid for them, so that's a winner.:o

Returning slightly to the topic, I have now got the h.g potatoes down off the lottie and into a paper sack inside a rattan-type linen bin, inside my bike shed here at Shoebox Towers. I have been a bit fly about this as we have a high degree of villainy in the 'hood and if times get tough enough, they may bust in there for the tatties.

Plus, that's where I'm hiding most of my 48 loo rolls and I'd hate to lose them.

So. tatties are in frost proof storage only a few metres away and that leaves my Turk's Turban squash, which seem to be ripening nicely on the vine. Due to limited storage space I won't be able to prep and freeze them so has anyone got experience of storing them overwinter? I think this is a sort of OS-American thingie so perhaps someone across the pond will know the answer.

Yep, you're right Grey Queen thinking about it so I MUST make my tomato stash into a mountain:) I know what you mean about prices shooting up. I noticed a couple of Sainsburys basics range things have doubled in price in what seems like overnight:eek:

Frugal wrote: »

Yayyyyyyyyy I just had a quote for having the gaping hole in my living room turned back into a real fireplace :j:j:j

After much umming and arrrring he gave me a rough estimate which is just about IN BUDGET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am soooooooooooooo pleased - I have wanted to put an open fire in here since I first bought my house 11 years ago but there was an old back boiler in there and I have only just been able to have a new boiler sited upstairs in the airing cupboard instead.

That has cheered me up today

That's great news:D We had our old gas fire taken out last year, chimney swept and now have an open fire.

Hope no-one minds me posting this pic pre open fire. I know it may not be everyones cup of tea but I love my fireplace:o

roosterpotatoes

Hi again everybody,

Not visited the board in a short while so hello everyone again :wave:
If the supermarkets and shops suddenly close I know at least we will be clean and heavily carbed up for about 2 1/2 years

Just done a count of the store cupboard :eek:

17 tins of tuna,
42 tins of beans,
21 tins of tomatoes,
12kg of pasta, :eek:

Just noticed in my freezer I have about 2 1/2 kg beef mince, two breasts of lamb, 2 big legs of lamb, 1 neck of lamb, three beef joints and about 20 chicken breasts, I do love Costco but you forget how much you really do have

I have roughly...... wait for it.... (drum roll)........710 washes of washing powder/liquid for the washing machine :rotfl:

For the dishwasher we have at least 270 washes Just need to get salt

Just need to stock up on loo roll and kitchen roll :cool:

I start uni in Sept so thats my reason for going completely ott with non perishables :A

Thankfully both boys are not in the house in the day, one is at school and the other is in nursery so when I'm in uni i wont need to worry about heating the house

Will be visiting £land to see if they have any of those silver camping bag things :T

:money:

Oooops forgot to add I have 400 Redbush tea bags and over 1100 Typoo normal bags lol

rising_from_the_ashes

GreyQueen wrote: »

Just remembered that I stashed a few tins of tommies in the sewing cabinet last month after hitting A$DA so have inadvertantly lied to the reading public. It's 67 uner the bed, 8 in the wall cupboard, 2 on the counter and 7 with the sewing gear.

Total stash = 84.

roosterpotatoes wrote: »

I have roughly...... wait for it.... (drum roll)........710 washes of washing powder/liquid for the washing machine :rotfl:

For the dishwasher we have at least 270 washes Just need to get salt

Can I join in with my ..... 172 loo rolls:o (108 sealed in new packs, 42 emergency winter stash, 18 in bathrooms and the 4 pack "absolute emergency not to be used and have had for at least 3 years:eek: pack" tucked away in a cupboard)

Confuzzled

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Can I join in with my ..... 172 loo rolls:o (108 sealed in new packs, 42 emergency winter stash, 18 in bathrooms and the 4 pack "absolute emergency not to be used and have had for at least 3 years:eek: pack" tucked away in a cupboard)

i bow down to you, loo roll queen, i'm not worthy, i'm not worthy :rotfl::T

Gettingtherequickly

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Can I join in with my ..... 172 loo rolls:o (108 sealed in new packs, 42 emergency winter stash, 18 in bathrooms and the 4 pack "absolute emergency not to be used and have had for at least 3 years:eek: pack" tucked away in a cupboard)

Gosh, and I thought I was bad having recently done a Costco run!

GreyQueen

Wow, I am soooo out-classed in the loo roll department.

I can, however, admit to having 22 kg of pasta quills on the premises, bought el cheapo as a hedge against inflation (it's working already, they would cost 50% more to replace than I paid for them) so I have something to eat with my tomatoes.

It's not as extreme as it sounds as it's all in date until 2013 and I eat 500g of pasta a week as I cook up a packet on Sunday and make pasta salads to take to work from the big bowl.

I wa shocked to find that my supply of porridge oats was a mere 7 packets (= 7 months' supply and I am about to start on one of the 7 as I have porridge every morning).

Hence the wisdom of having an inventory as it's great to know that I can get more when the 3 for 2 comes around again. And that deal, gentle reader, only puts it back to where it was a few months ago. Honestly, all these price wobbles are doing wonders for my mental arithmetic of not for my blood-pressure.

Aha, whilst I was away for an hour or so, I wandered into a store which has 18-packs of 2-ply t.p. at 2 packs for a fiver, which equates to 13.8p a roll which is better than the recent price-hike of Lidl's Floralys recyled t.p from £1.37 to £1.65 a roll (meaning 16.5p a roll).

I'm gonna have me some of those during the week. I was always raised by a mum who'd say, in the face of sudden price hikes; "Don't pay that, you'll only encourage them!"

To this day, this is her mantra and she's playing Lemon Cake Wars with her local Sainsbugs over a favoured product whose price fluctuates wildly. When it swings past £1/ per cake, they get to keep it.

It's no wonder I'm a bit odd..................:o

Ooohh, like that fireplace!

Confuzzled, yes, they are like middling-size pumpkins and I shall look at storing them in the bike shed, once I have evicted the paint cans, as I don't fancy them sitting cheek-by-jowl on the same shelf and I will bear in mind about putting something under them.

boultdj

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Well, been to the market and very disappointed with the "carpet square man" - he wanted £1.50 for each of them!:eek: (and they were the small ones). I can get them for 50p at the carpet shop but they haven't got any just now so I guess my new rug will have to be put on hold until they do!

Did get some new slippers (£5) - I wear flip flops in the summer (toes have been a bit cold the last couple of nights) and the furry boot ones in the winter but I put these on last night & my feet were roasting so these are an "in-between".

Also got some wool which is the same shade as the fleecy blanket I got from John Lew*is the other day - going to attempt to make a big scarf/shawl to go round my shoulders in the evenings (wish me luck - years since I've knitted)!


Food stock has made some progress, so far:

Tinned tomatoes (2 x 4 tins)
Rice (2 x 1kg)
Pasta (2 x 1kg)
Pasta Sauce (4)
Pasta Bake (1)
Chicken tonight (2)
Olive Oil (1)
Porridge (1kg)
Soup (8)
Crackers (2) (good if you run out of bread!)
Milk powder (1)
Coffee (200g)
Brown sugar (1kg)
Tea bags (240)

It's a start .... (all stuff on offer) and I reckon 14 main meals from the pasta/rice already:D

Any ideas what I can get to go with my rice? (I'm preparing on the worst case scenario of snowed in & no power so cooking on the camping stove).

I'm in the same boat [just got a 5kg bag from Lidl £5.49] being all electric and my idea for the rice is to add dryed veg to the rice and cook a vegtable rice like what you can buy in the shop's. hth.

Confuzzled

i don't suppose anyone knows where i can get large bags of cheap brown rice (current cheapest i know of is £1.25/kg) and where i might find packages of dried veg?

i had heard morrissons does them though when i lived near one i could never find them. i would like them to make up my own dried rice mixes, i quit eating white rice as brown is healthier and my daughter prefers brown. i bought a wee microwave rice steamer off amazon a few months back and now we're eatiing more and more of it because it's so easy to pop in the rice, water, seasonsing and veg and in 20 min it's done to perfection!

boultdj

Packet's of dried veg in Morrison's and Home Bargain's. Sorry not noticed any brown rice.

GreyQueen

Confuzzled wrote: »

i don't suppose anyone knows where i can get large bags of cheap brown rice (current cheapest i know of is £1.25/kg) and where i might find packages of dried veg?

i had heard morrissons does them though when i lived near one i could never find them. i would like them to make up my own dried rice mixes, i quit eating white rice as brown is healthier and my daughter prefers brown. i bought a wee microwave rice steamer off amazon a few months back and now we're eatiing more and more of it because it's so easy to pop in the rice, water, seasonsing and veg and in 20 min it's done to perfection!

Hi, hun, do you have any "ethnic" foodstores around your way? If so, I'd take some time and have a snout around to see what they have.

My city is a bit monocultural compared to some but we do have a lot of eastern Europeans as well as Indian-origin, African-origin and Chinese-origin peeps and we're getting more and more interesting food stores. The ones I use are a bit muddled in layout but great places to have a poke around.

Morrisons tends to have a "International Foods" aisle where they corral the ethnic stuff so it's always worth going for a cruise in there.

Could it be worth your while to buy larger quantities off the net? Maybe you have a pal in a similar boat who could split an order with you? Just a thought. HTH.