Frugal Living Challenge 2011 - part 1

23rdspiral

SandraScarlett wrote: »

But we have! I was so pleased to read, um, er, someone's post about making their first pie. Well done you! Sorry I can't remember your name, but I remembered your success. There are millions of people in the UK, who haven't the first clue how to make pastry.

it was me! but sadly it was whoopsied pastry from the chiller cabinet. but it's a start. i want to try to make my own, and now i know i can cook it, that's less daunting too. (and we've enough pie leftover for dinner tonight too!)

Aril - congratulations on making your own runes. that is a grand achievement and i know they will serve you all the more since you crafted them yourself.

Sandra - that's a brilliant poem! wow! and just what i needed to hear...
i forgot to buy sandwich stuff at wknd so packed OH off with a 29p Pasta Mug Shot, fruit and a huge wedge of Xmas cake - he was a little bemused but it'll stop him getting fast food/Asda baguette. So i need to go to a supermarket, so i wont make my last NSD. So thanks for the cheerup!

Erme

minnie2 wrote: »

thank you ill give it a look

just had a look and our closest one is over 50miles away in skegness

So you live near my Ma who lives in Boston:j...Yay when I visit MaLand maybe we can meet up? I have to say Skeggy is bargain heaven....no wonder so many ebayers live there LOL

seriouslyfrugal wrote: »

Hi Everyone


Welcome to Morgan6 & Nicholette :hello:


today was a spend day for me as I went to the local farmers market


Erme: I think what I ment by my last post about the planters was for anyone who doesn't have a garden ( I personally do ) I remembered someone saying they had a paved area - so that was my thinking behind that comment but of course plants can be grown anywhere


have a good monday everyone :j

Och I wasn't meaning to offend hun...sorry hugs.... I was just doing an E about some of the quaint things I've planted and where (the cabbage actually flowered...but died because I left it for 3 weeks when unwell and even with a fancy hydroponic set up it simply ran out of nutrients. Hydroponics can be expensive at first but they are not just for illegal drugs and can be used to grow all sorts of things. And because the plant is getting exactly what it needs without having to 'hunt' for it the root ball is smaller...Anyone on a trip to the West Highlands - the Hydroponicum @ Achiltibuie (hope I've spelt that right - just up the road from Ullapool) is well worth a visit..)

Anyhow...suffering...suffering...late night - blah blah blah

E

glendam

SandraScarlett wrote: »

AN ODE TO ALL OF US
:beer: :beer: WELL DONE US!!! :beer: :beer:

xx

That poem was amazing love your posts.

Glenda

NualaBuala

Sandra - that's brilliant! :T:j:T
I wish I knew how to send it to Martin - it should go in the newsletter!

natnat13

Morning all
Sandrascarlett, that poem is brilliant, Nualabuala - I am friends with MSE on facebook, I could cut and paste it onto the page with sandra's permission of course?

I am sat here with my big fluffy dressing gown over my clothes because I am refusing to put the heating on! It is very cold here today but it's just me at home so seems a waste. Apparently people have started stealing oil from around where I live, glad my tank has a lock on it!

I have set myself a little challenge to have 5 NSDs in a row, I am ok for everything I think so we'll see!

Hello to all newcomers, it sounds overdramatic but this thread has really changed my life over the last few weeks, I hope you find the same xx

enjoyfinancialchallenges

flying_fresian wrote: »

Morning folks


Lunch plans for today involve the soup I made last night and I'll be snacking on lots of fruit throughout the day. I've bought a big bag of raisins and take a couple of handfuls with me to eat as a snack. I also have my free Graze box arriving today so can take that to work with me tomorrow. I would like to cancel it once the half-price one has been sent, does anyone have easy instructions about how to do this?

Have a good Monday all!

From memory f_f you can cancel the Graze boxes online. Did you know you can personalise them? Lovely nibbles but not good for the waistline . XX

seriouslyfrugal

Hi


Thanks sandra for the poem :T it was brill :A

Erme : I wasn't offended hun I was just explaining things I guess


Today will be a spend day for me


can anyone please remind me how I bookmark posts please


Have a good day everyone :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

never_too_old

seriouslyfrugal wrote: »

Hi


Thanks sandra for the poem :T it was brill :A

Erme : I wasn't offended hun I was just explaining things I guess


Today will be a spend day for me


can anyone please remind me how I bookmark posts please


Have a good day everyone :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Hi if you click on the post number in the right hand corner, it opens it up in a new tab then you can click your bookmark tab ( mines a star to the right of my browser , i change the name so i know what it is and then save,)hope that makes sense im not very techie and dont know proper names of things.:D

redglass_2

salski wrote: »

Hola Chica

Yes I have used Mr T's own frozen chicken livers and they are delicious!
I defrosted them and marinaded them in chilli and other spices, fried them over a medium heat and had them with a salad for lunches at work everyday. They were great cold the day after and so cheap and yummy! x

Hiya
I haven't bought these for years but when I did, you had to watch out for any yellow bits as these are nasty and bitter (contaminated by bile). :eek: Like I say, it was a very long time ago, so perhaps there aren't any yellow bits these days!

Last year I roasted sheep's hearts and they were fine. Some people I told went 'Eurghh!' but I was brought up to eat offal. I told them that if they knew what went into some burgers, they wouldn't worry about me eating hearts....:rotfl:. There's sometimes that reaction to charity shop clothing as well: 'Ugh, somebody else has worn it.' Which makes no sense at all when you think how many people might have tried on a fashionable dress in a high street store.

(((SandraScarlett))): thank you! :T I haven't done as well as some and your lovely poem puts it into perspective. We're all learning.

Erme

Well finally the workmen stopped and I got an hour's nap :j...though now feel like it's really time I got some fresh air and there's recycling to be done...want an NSD today if possible so like it's no doughnuts for me this am but a homemade pancake - the book I got from the discount book store (as recommended by someone on here about p.53) told me how to make them and they always come out different but they are a cheap carb and sugar fix....bit like a doughnut in effect but min 39p cheaper :j

salski wrote: »

These threads work so much! Last month I really over did the savings aspect of things so thought I would have to recall some - instead we just stuck to an even more rigid budget! We came in at the end of the month with money still left!! This is utterly unheard of for us! So we're very happy!
I have been given up smoking for over 3 weeks now and saved £190.38 so when it was payday - treated myself to some new boots (leather £25 from DP) trainers £15, joggies for after baba is born £6 and some PJ's for hospital £18 including a dressing gown

Thanks for the thread - makes me smile knowing I got pennies and Im paying debts off and Im not fritting money away!

I'm not at the stage of giving up yet but I hope to at some point so well done you. Am green with envy LOL....I'm just monitoring today(cos I'm tired) but on a good day reducing....(though only been doing it for 2.5 days)

SandraScarlett wrote: »

A big welcome to all our new Frugalistas! :beer: Well, as ol' Bruce Forsythe would say "Didn't we do well"! :j Just a few hours till the last day of the month, and we're all learning new ideas, and saving money in the process.

It's really important that we don't get downhearted if we haven't saved as much as we'd have liked to, or as much as others have. As I said before, we don't have identical lives, or even identical months in our own lives, so there's the risk of feeling that we haven't succeeded.

But we have! I was so pleased to read, um, er, someone's post about making their first pie. Well done you! Sorry I can't remember your name, but I remembered your success. There are millions of people in the UK, who haven't the first clue how to make pastry.

Cheryl's spreadsheet, or your own personal notes, will give massive pointers as to where the money is going. Some things can be changed. Others can't. I live in Greater London, I have a Freedom Pass, and the tube, rail and zillions of bus routes, so I don't use my car very much.

Others may live in the country where buses are few and far between, and have no option but to spend a lot on petrol. My DH's illness means he feels the cold, so I spend loads on heating. It's swings and roundabouts.

But the first month is almost over! :j I'm out on a Jolly with a friend tomorrow, and intend to treat myself to ........ a Costa Coffee! I know how to live. I was buying one (or more likely 2) every time I went out, and realised if I had 3 days out, at £2.10 a cup, that could be £12.60 a week on Costas, which, in a year is ................ £655.20, which is frightening! :eek: :eek: :eek:

Nobody is never too old to learn how to save.

xx

Has anyone else heard Martin on the radio this am? He's been on loads about the financial lessons for kids - sounded good apart from the 'good debt/bad debt' bit....Debt is to be avoided wherever possible surely?

redglass wrote: »

Welcome, Mogan6 and Nichelette!

Who was it asked for the day of an Oldstyler? Not sure that I qualify, but here is some of what I might do in a typical day:

Shower with soap on offer from Appr*ved Foods (they had some really cheap nice soap and I bought enough of it to wash an army - one of my best ever deals)

Porridge for breakfast (if feeling extravagant I use soymilk, if really economising it's Mr L's dried skimmed milk). To sweeten it, HM jam from japonica quince bush in garden, with a touch of chilli (grown on lotty) or dates (whoopsied).

Lunch and/or dinner: soup: mixed veg, some of it frozen from last year's crop, bulked out with a bag of 'meat ends' from the local supermarket deli counter. I'll either finish it or freeze some of it but nothing will be thrown away.

On the kitchen counter is a bowl of home-grown dried beans from last year, soaking.

Tea and coffee are nearly always bought (in shedloads) when on offer. Veg usually bought whoopsied or on offer. Lots of noodles, tinned goods and dried beans are bought from Appr*ved Foods.

Washing done at 30 degrees. No tumbledryer (this also makes the washing machine live longer, according to the man who used to fix my old washer-dryer). I dry clothes on the line or hoisted above my stove (sometimes if the stove isn't drawing well, they have the delightful perfume of woodsmoke...)

Drive to the gym using the brake as little as poss, instead using positioning and the momentum of the car (this really works to cut down on petrol). Petrol bought at Mr M's or Mr S's because they are cheapest locally and you get points. Once the weather gets a bit more clement I'll walk to the gym and back.

Gym membership is a special deal accessed via the GP.

On the way home I might call in at some of the local charity shops and scour them for bargains.

The heating is kept down; in the back of the house it never gets hotter than 17 degrees (that's in the bathroom and utility, because I have to undress there and because if it gets too cold and damp a mould problem develops). Most of the time it's set at 13.5 degrees . Lights all turned out as soon as they are no longer needed. I wear a beanie hat indoors if necessary and make sure my ankles are wrapped up in boots or long socks (surprising how this helps you to keep warm). Upstairs are two rooms heated with gas heaters. Only one is ever on.

To bed: the bedroom scarcely heated at all. Instead I have a thick duvet and hot water bottle.

Energy saving bulbs wherever possible.

There are days when I'm not nearly so virtuous. I'm bad about impulsively buying stuff when I already have food in the freezer, and am very far off my initial plans for grocery outlay. Also, I don't bake much though I have been known to make the odd pizza. I'm more for soups and stews.

Today some friends were eating oranges and I begged the peel to take home and put into the freezer (when i have enough, I'll make the hormone for cleaning mentioned by Ceridwen). When I asked for the peel, a friend told me that dried orange peel makes good firelighters, so I'll be trying that soon.

I'm not nearly as focused as some of the people on here, but I'm so much better than I used to be.

Och this is a journey for all of us. I have to confess I was a bit judgemental in December of some of the newbies justifying stuff like Sky etc but everyone has their weaknesses and we could all be MORE frugal. I do all bar the heating thing....maybe I'll try it cos I have some socks I made just before xmas and they're lovely and warm :T and I have a bright orange beanie I made a few years ago (you know when winter has come because E goes out in the orange beanie LOL). So yeah?

But back to what I was saying about the newbies....I was just as bad if not worse before I pulled my head out of the sand and I still have plenty of trip ups....So in my classic phrase - it's not going down that's the crime but staying down and I stayed down with my head buried in debt sand for over 5 years :eek:

Been sorting out stuff for the car boot @ AUSA on thursday and have 3 bags of sized 8-10 clothes for there (I'm now about a 12-14 for those who remember how skinny I got last year....:eek:...the only thing I'm hung up about is that I don't care much for processed food if I'm cooking for self).... So looking forward to the carboot though still to make cards and price my handbags...but that can wait for another day

So yeah...where is everyone today? The thread looked a tad manic last night (I had 3 pages to read when I got up this am) but now it's really quietened down ...

Just wondering on how much I should budget for 2 nights in shopper's bliss - Glasgow - next week... and how I should go about controlling my money. I think (accom is paid for but it's SC) £20 should cover 2 lunches and like teas - lunches being the expensive bit and then I have a wee bit to spend....just a wee bit

e