Its tough, it will get better and guess what its freezing brrrrr!

Primrose

£14,000 for an engagement ring :eek: When we got engaged my OH was living in a bed sitter and I was having to help fund him because he was studying, so I actually paid for my inexpensive ring myself. It's become a bit of a family joke over the years. Hundreds of times he's tried to buy me more expensive ring but I've never wanted one. Once you're married you realise there are far more important domestic things you need to spend your money on.

the_cat

I must have been OS before my time! I got married at 20 and was lucky enough to be told by my parents that we could have a gift of £3000 'towards' our wedding

We decided on a lovely registry office wedding, with a meal for close family etc after and wedding cake/drinks at my mum's house. 25 people absolute max. From memory it cost about £800 in total

The balance was used to kit out our first home with many essentials which was a huge help to us at the time. I wondered if I would ever regret not having a fancy wedding, but I look back on it now as the best wedding I could have had. Everyone of importance was there and I got to spend my day with people who mattered to me rather than making small talk with relatives I didn't know and friends who were more 'aquaintances' than long term keepers

OH is driving me nuts today!! His car needed some work and went in today. It will cost £500 minimum to do:eek: He now thinks that once the work is done ie;tomorrow, we should get rid of the car and buy a new one (yes he actually means 'new,new') as 'it's starting to get old and we don't want another big bill' He only uses the damn thing for about 30 miles max per week and pretty much never further than 3 miles from home so will not get stuck away from home

I pointed out that you could have a lot of 'big bills' before getting anywhere close to the cost of a new car:rotfl::rotfl:...... so now he is sulking!

Primrose

nualabuala - If your coat's a plain dark colour, why not just brighten it up with a gaily matching hat, scarf & gloves. Having something bright on a miserable day will cheer everybody else up, even if you can't see some of the items yourself very well.

maryb

Hermum
Primark do very cheap gloves in a pack of 2. One set is fingerless, the other has fingers. But they are so cheap you can cut the fingertips off - use the fingerless set as a guide and cut them a little bit longer. They fray a little bit but then they curl up and that hides it and stops it unravelling further

lambanana

hermum I've seen fingerless gloves at poundland before, maybe have a look when getting your socks?

I knit all my own hats/scarves/gloves now so I can have real wool without paying a fortune and have noticed a difference in how much warmer that is than some shop bought stuff...I know not everyone is able to do that though

kidcat

lambanana wrote: »

Oh yes kidcat our wedding was also an afternoon/evening thing, the ceremony was at 4:30pm so people weren't bored of a long drawn out day! It also meant only one meal and some little snacks and cake later which saved.

Well after all my complaints about our useless, freezing cold utility extension thing I got a call today saying the landlord wants to replace it! Half of me is happy because it's in a state and needs replacing but I'm concerned about the disruption and where we'll put the fridge freezer and washing machine whilst they do it and how we'll actually arrange to move them. Also the door that goes into there isn't a proper outside door and has a big gap, I fear both security and THE COLD whilst they're doing the work!

Hi lambanana - not sure exactly where you are but seem to think its Liverpool way? If so and physically moving the stuff is a prob, can ask Oh to give you a hand if that helps or if you want to bung your wash machine in our garage while you are having the work done I reckon I could prob squeeze it in for you, we are not far away from lIverpool.

flowertotmum

Hi all...hope your all well today..i got 2 very poorly little flowers today..coughs that the royal navy would be proud of(foghorns):D...they laid on sofa all day which is not like them at all...
Annie56..wow you got a real man there..had to laugh at your ex..maybe the grass isn't greener on the other side after all...congratulations on being a free woman..hope it went well for you..
Can't remember all the newbies names(i'm tired)..but welcome...the ladies are wonderful on here...
Had a day baking as girls are asleep...cookies,tarts,sponge cake...yummmy....
Don't know about anyone else but i have an awful sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach about all the cuts ...my son goes to college and gets the EMA..he has to buy his bits for the course and then has just started to get his own personal things..and of course thats being stopped,so is child benefit for 16 yrs and over..what do they think he lives on fresh air and that he floats to college...o and of course all the things he needs are free in most shops:mad:..i think not...
Honestly i think this new government have conned everyone and we will all be in the poor house before long...its going to come down to the have and have nots...i feel sick with worry..hubby reckons i'm over-reacting but i don't think so do you...
On the news now they are reducing the armed forces by 17,000..no new aircraft,no new tanks,no carriers, i might not be the sharpest knife in the drawer but doesn't that leave us as an island vulnerable to anyone who wants to waltz in and take over...daft idea but you never know...sorry over the top...just worried...
Gone off topic i know but i worry how folks will manage,food prices rising and wages being frozen...folks just can't afford the basics already without things being cut...
Better go and get dinner ready...
take care

NualaBuala

lambanana wrote: »

NualaBuala it's true, they charge so much more for lower quality materials. A few days ago I looked at a chunky hooded scarf with a red and white fair isle design in M&S, they were charging about £30 for it and when I checked it was 100% acrylic I genuinely could have knit it using real wool for cheaper, shocking!

I'm not against paying more for genuine quality (finances allowing) as my grandma always said "you get what you pay for" and if it's something you want to last get the best you can afford as cheap stuff that falls apart is false economy. Now it seems that the expensive stuff falls apart as well or is made of nasty and cheap materials :mad:

Grrr, I agree. I have found M&S's stuff to be quite poor in recent times. I used to find them good And £30 for an acrylic scarf, ah come on now! At least you can knit your own!

icelandic_queen wrote: »

Thanks NualaBula for the tips re the greasy floor! I have vinegar, bicarb and stardrops but I think I was in such a state of shock I forgot!! My leg isn"t very red but feels as though I've been slapped, if that makes much sense! We were talking about it at breakfast this morning and how I trailed the clothes off as quick as I could and my middle DD said "I can"t believe you were wearing a thong at your age"!!! I'm not dead yet!

:rotfl: well as long as you know you're not past it! Hope the leg feels better soon. x

Primrose wrote: »

nualabuala - If your coat's a plain dark colour, why not just brighten it up with a gaily matching hat, scarf & gloves. Having something bright on a miserable day will cheer everybody else up, even if you can't see some of the items yourself very well.

Thanks for the suggestion Primrose, it was actually Lambanana who was looking at coats (although I did check some out today). Funny you should mention hats, scarves etc - mine are always nice bright colours to cheer me up when it's grey and wintry!

flowertotmum

Primrose wrote: »

nualabuala - If your coat's a plain dark colour, why not just brighten it up with a gaily matching hat, scarf & gloves. Having something bright on a miserable day will cheer everybody else up, even if you can't see some of the items yourself very well.

Great idea..i have a lovely black coat that i adore..i brighten it up with a broach..and bright scarfs..

lambanana

kidcat thank you so much for your generous offer! Unfortunately we're not in Liverpool anymore, we used to be and that's where DH is from (hence choice of username!) we're in Leeds now. I am pretty sure DH will be able to get help from friends with moving the heavy stuff but think it will have to live in the dining room for a while. It's just so annoying to have to move everything around and even more annoying that they'll be leaving us exposed to the cold when this could have been done in the summer, I know summer wasn't that warm but it was still better than it will be in mid November!! I just hope it doesn't take too long as the letting agency woman didn't indicate and I don't know whether they're fully re-building from scratch or they're just replacing the door, wood frame and single glazed bits with UPVC. I should have asked but I was just in shock that they're actually doing some work on the house without us complaining 50 times first!! We didn't even complain about the extension!