Great 'Embarrassing MoneySaving tips' Hunt

nelliekins

crazyolday wrote: »

Shock, horror I hear you screech! :eek:

However stop right there with your mouth open and read on!

I dropped by our local recycling centre who have their own resale shop area inc a clothes section.

I got my whole christmas party outfit from there for £3! :xmassmile Brand new pair of smart trousers (with price label attached marked at £12) for £1, :snow_laug a lovely blouse £1 :santa2: and a great brand new glittery scarf £1.

Lots of people commented on my new outfit and asked where they could get the same! :think: Took alot of thinking to come up with a good answer to that one!

I washed it well as I would items from the charity shop in a bio powder with a splash of disinfectant, then gave a final rinse in some lovely smelling fabric conditioner! The most expensive finish to the outfit I was wearing was the tinsel round my wrist at £1.15 a strip!

Now that was the best bit of savvy shopping I've done all year!:T

Where is this place and where can I find one in my area!! Sounds like a great idea!!

LolaLemon

NualaBuala wrote: »

Very eco-friendly! One of my American online friends told me they are called "family cloths" and they are becoming quite popular in the same way as the Mooncup and washable nappies.

i looked into this too after my son was born, i thought - im washing his nappies so its no added extra work-
i cut up old towels into squares/rectangles, some i added old fleece blankets to the back (like these http://www.minkinappies.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=36&products_id=188)

gradually over the past 2 years these have fallen by the way side, should look them out and get started with them again.

LolaLemon

lilnell wrote: »

I wonder if any one else Knows about 'Mooncup'? It's reusable, if you buy one it will probably last you your whole life and will save a fortune in tampax etc.
I've had mine for a year now and I wouldn't swap back although it was a little tricky getting the hang of it.

they wont last your whole life, but do last at least 10 years - with good care they can last 15 years

NualaBuala

Good on you LolaLemon! That's really impressive! :T:T:T

kitschkitty

re. plastic bags from the supermarkets fruit & veg section. I thought most of them changed a few years ago to ones with holes punched in them so that less people would take extras as they were no longer suitable for storing things in the freezer or to be more precise that needed to be kept airtight.

LolaLemon

thanks, they arnt fantastic like the minki ones (i have those as well) but they do the job, to begin with, it was to take out with me for nappy changes ~(i cant/wont use 'baby' wipes on a child when they practically strip a leather couch, if thats what they do to that, then what are they doingto a babys skin!) and gradually moved on to me too... still had toilet roll in for when i had visitors, but as i say, i got lazy

I did travel accross the water (i live on a river lol) to go to a material shop that someone told me had PUL material, i wanted to have a shot at making my own nappies, sanitary towels and some breastfeeding pads, but when we got there, the shop was gone, only thing left was a pile of rubble! seen someone elses post about using an old umbarella... wonder how that would work as a sanitary towel, as i got the coil (regret but its for medical reasons) i cant use the mooncup, and ive been bleeding every blimmin day, and its driving me insain wasting money every week on this. ok its only 22/44p a week, but they irritate me too.

kitschkitty

Superdooper wrote: »

Well, most of these 20 are just frugal ideas and I am sorry if they do not embarrass anybody here. But, hopefully, they might be of interest, nevertheless:
16) Wifie picks up lots of clothing from the charity shops and inserts the labels for elusive brands like Wallis, Gap etc, ready to answer questions when the other girls ask about it.

19) When we get bottles at Christmas (scotch/vodka etc), we check the local supermarket to see if they have the same one, so we can exchange the bottle(s) for food. (We don’t drink much at all.)

20) A girl at our Christmas bash explained that she had bought her dress for the doo, and would be returning it the next day as an unwanted/wrong size etc etc. Not sure if it was an on-line purchase or a Markes+Spencers type shop that would accept returns with receipt.

Um wow, considering the uproar over postage stamps, I'm surprised no-ones bothered to comment on these points (maybe I'm just feeding the troll, but hey still feel it's worth my 5 mins so here goes).

1. why bother - who are showing the labels to and more importantly where did you get them from in the first place - also you leave yourself wide open to ridicule if someone knows/realises you're lying, and I don't understand why it matters in the first place. If someone compliments your outfit, why would kn0owing where it came from/the brand suddenly change their mind?

2. Trying to return an item to a shop when you didn't buy it there is illegal and wrong, and I doubt most stores would accept it back without proof of purchase.

3. I wouldn't try this unless you are willing to keep the dress, (not to mention it's serious deception) a. you could damage the dress while wearing it making it unreturnable anyway. b. most shops will check condition of returned items at least to notice smells, deodorant - even if it's been washed they may notice the smell of washing powder on it!

NualaBuala

LolaLemon wrote: »

thanks, they arnt fantastic like the minki ones (i have those as well) but they do the job, to begin with, it was to take out with me for nappy changes ~(i cant/wont use 'baby' wipes on a child when they practically strip a leather couch, if thats what they do to that, then what are they doingto a babys skin!) and gradually moved on to me too... still had toilet roll in for when i had visitors, but as i say, i got lazy

I did travel accross the water (i live on a river lol) to go to a material shop that someone told me had PUL material, i wanted to have a shot at making my own nappies, sanitary towels and some breastfeeding pads, but when we got there, the shop was gone, only thing left was a pile of rubble! seen someone elses post about using an old umbarella... wonder how that would work as a sanitary towel, as i got the coil (regret but its for medical reasons) i cant use the mooncup, and ive been bleeding every blimmin day, and its driving me insain wasting money every week on this. ok its only 22/44p a week, but they irritate me too.

I haven't got to this stage yet but I really feel I ought to do more, mainly for environmental reasons but could do with saving money too. I've switched to cotton hankies and that has saved me loads on tissues. I'm looking into a mooncup and will seriously consider the "family cloths" if I can figure a way to make it work. I know I've read loads about making your own sanitary towels and someone on another thread mentioned using folded cheap face flannels - she said they worked fine. I begrudge paying money for something that gets flushed away or goes in the bin - AND we have to pay VAT on it as if it were a luxury!

kitschkitty

Etherelda wrote: »

Don't know if this is just plain devious, but once went to very snobby MILs for christmas, we received a M&S luxuries hamper from work, we unwrapped the christmas pudding, shortbread etc, and filled it with generic value equivalents, kept the nicer things for our more valued friends and family that were not so rude. Don't think they ever guessed.

lol, it is a bit mean, but still I must admit it did make me giggle too. (Bit like when people pass of shop bought things as home made).

The only issue I'd have with rewrapping things for other people is if they have (or could have an allergy) probably not something I'd worry about within my own household or family, but if it were for other people then I wouldn't ever do it.

kitschkitty

Just a point on hankies and tissues though - I think people forget that they have just filled something with germs and it should be binned or put in the wash very regularly(rather than continually reused) for a reason.