Frugal Living Challenge 2011 - part 1

never_too_old

SandraScarlett & dizzy lizzie

brilliant absolutley brilliant

slowlyfading

This thread has made me chuckle successfully made homemade curry this evening, so I'm a happy bunny definitely one for the menu list!

Not much else to report to be honest, just plodding along

23rdspiral

wow those poems are briliant! more to tell Martin about i think!!

needed bread and sandwich stuff so went to supermarket... and again got whoopsied bread! WOOP! But i've nearly spent the food budget for the week and it's only Tuesday! oh well, there were some good Spaves, so freezer shopping it is!

ooh, Mr M has own brand SR and Plain Flour at 1.2 price so 57p (only 4p more than value), Sharwoods chinease / tai sauces for 79p and there was a 9 pack of a posh loo roll brand for under 3quid, sorry didnt buy so cant remember.

I'd like to share 2 surprising foodlie stories if i may?
Last night i tried Mr A's value frozen pork chops 2quid for 4 - i've never seen a less inspiring bit of meat - they were obviously frozen then sliced and looked Grim. but i popped them in a shalow casserole dish with sharwoods Kung Po sauce and a chopped carrot and whoopsied monge tout, cut the meat off the bone after defrosted, and it was lovely. And OH was none the wiser that it was ropy looking cheap meat!!
But my BIG NEWS of the day is that i found a tin of pineapple last night and decided it wouldnt move house with us, so opened and realised how huge it was... but fancied cake... and a quick search of MSE Old Style provided the MOST AMAZING RECIPIE I'VE EVER MADE!!! i mean, seriously. 1 egg, small amounts of flour and baking soda, some tinned fruit and 5 mins in the microwave made the Most Lush steamed pudding/upside down cake ever!! we were both gobsmacked. and very full!

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=5098707&postcount=5

minnie2

mr M. has triple velvet 9 rolls half price at £2.29 - you can only buy 3 per visit. But works out 25.4p a roll!

but in the same visit - whoopsied chicken two packets £1.49 a pack - but they have massive stickers on them that says two packs for £3 anyway when its fresh!!!!!!!!! you have to be so careful!!!

LolaLemon

2wildthing2 wrote: »

Hi Guys,

Another lurker here, I haven't had the time to post very often but do try to read and keep up with everyone's post. Just thought I would share this, just been to Mr T to do the weekly shop and ALL pet food is on 3 for 2 offer - yes that's right ALL pet food, including tins, bagged up food etc. We used dry dog food so I bought 6 months worth and got 5p of a litre of fuel.............every little helps.

they are also doing 3 for 2 on all breakfasts. everything from kellogs, nestle (evil lol) to specialist and value stuff....
went in to pick up sons prescription and get the essentials - milk, bread, meat for lunch boxes etc... Lyle reminded me we needed toilet roll - been using kitchen roll for past day or so lol. picked up lots of woopsies and as i went through i was thinking, yeah these are great but im not going to use them, so put them back!
i am getting better at this
picked up 3 bottles of expensiveish olive oil - Nearly £4 a bottle down to £2 each, got the 3 as they are differnent 'versions'?, extra virgin, light n mild and something else. But that will be me for well over a year, so dont mind.

bought my son a magazine to perk up his spirits as he got eye drops to go with the horrible penicillian he has to take, got myself one too

ended up spending £49.18!!! was raging, not at what i spent (well, not much) but that i was 82p away from the 5p off my diesel!!!! if i had realised i would have put a bar of chocolate in my basket too!

jade86123

loving the rhymes
I haven't done too bad today, spend-wise.. needed some toiletries so popped to Boots to stock up and paid on my advantage card so no actual money to part with Lunch at a friends and frozen leftovers for dinner tonight..

Only down side was receiving invites to Hen Do's and bdays of the next couple of months, which will of course require spending.. anyone think of any thrifty 30th bday ideas or hen do pressies???

SandraScarlett

slowlyfading wrote: »

This thread has made me chuckle successfully made homemade curry this evening, so I'm a happy bunny definitely one for the menu list!

Not much else to report to be honest, just plodding along

Slowlyfading tells us, that she's a happy bunny

Cos all her curry was home made - so she's saved lots of money!

Dizzylizzy - cheers:beer: my friend, your verse was so unique
I laughed and laughed hysterically, so much - I couldn't speak

If we can share our problems, and also have a laugh

The problems aren't so massive - well, at least, they're cut in half
So, girls, we'll strive together, (and any Lurking Misters? )

We'll get there yet - and cut our debt - here's to The Frugalistas!

xx

Aril

Evening fellow frugallers
A couple of money related puns that found their way into my inbox over the weekend
You feel stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.
A lot of money is tainted - Taint yours and taint mine.


Firstly sorry to hear your news 23rdSpiral...hope something turns up soon.

All been going on quite well on the frugal front...I've spotted some pretty scarves in our local £land so think I might purchase a couple and put them in my gift box. All this talk of Hobbycraft.....I find our local £land often has some craft goodies aswell. Ours has had goodly sized bags of mixed papers over the last few weeks.

Thanks for the link to the zen site..I've recently read a book on simple pleasures [from the library] written by various bodies in the public eye. A suggestion by Lucinda Lambton particularly stood out for me...she suggests looking up whilst you walk along as you might see all sorts of treasures higher up on buildings. The fellow on my Avator is high up on our local church and I only discovered him at Christmas...only lived in the town since I was 10!

Frugal snippets...found another 10p pavement money, swapped seeds with my SIL yesterday as we've decided to have a crack at just growing a couple of veggie plants from seed but all others will be bought as established plants, finished my hm slippers:o and discovered that you can make rag rugs from old woollen blankets. Said SIL has bought a load from the CS, is dyeing them and cutting them into strips for precisely this purpose.

Enough of my waffle!
Aril

rising_from_the_ashes

The flash caught my eyes: I had to stop
It was luscious and floaty: way over the top

I sauntered over: no thought to resist
The changing room light blinking through a mist

Once on, it fitted like Bonnie & Clyde
(or Jude & Sienna or Wilma & Fred)

I look in the mirror: it really is “me”
And the devil inside me is reeling me in

The cupboards are bare & payday is far
I have to have it but have no money spare

I think of the comments on the MSE threads
Will I sleep if I buy it, when I go to bed?

So what have I learned in my month on the boards?
To budget and meal plan and avoid shops when I can

I have made progress: steps forward but many more back
It's not a quick fix that I need but to get my life back on track


Sandra and Dizzy have put it so well
& I don’t want to fall down Diddly’s steps



So ....... do I buy it or walk away...

springdreams

jade86123 wrote: »

loving the rhymes
Only down side was receiving invites to Hen Do's and bdays of the next couple of months, which will of course require spending.. anyone think of any thrifty 30th bday ideas or hen do pressies???

You could maybe try making survival kits for them:

http://www.budget101.com/frugal/fun-thoughtful-survival-kit-156/

this one is for a 30th birthday

http://www.budget101.com/fun-thoughtful-survival-kit/30th-birthday-survival-kit-2342.html

and this engagement one can be adapted perhaps for the hen do?

http://www.budget101.com/fun-thoughtful-survival-kit/engagement-survival-kit-2367.html

I got my soon to be SIL on of these memory boxes for her hen do:

http://www.lifememoriesbox.co.uk/keepsake-boxes-13-c.asp