The Other Way, or the MSE Way: My Personal Challenge

nu1isit?

cha97michelle wrote: »

I must be an absolute tightwad, as i am female and do cut my own hair. I was fed up of not getting what i wanted and being charged at least £30 for the privelege of sitting listening to inane chat for an hour.... So, someone on the frugal living thread told me they did theirs and how they did it, and i gave it a go, and haven't looked back for about 18 months.

The wife does her own on and off. She had tried getting it done of trainees, and college students so it was cheaper ...She was never happy, whether they were fully qualified or not - said she'd ask for one thing and ended up getting another (or their 'interpretation' of it:eek:). She eventually ended up shelling out for one 'good haircut', then she 'worked' from that,using it as a guide, trimming it down as needed ....

cha97michelle

millionaire_in_training wrote: »

WHere do you get the free patterns ? WOuld love to know that.

You have to make yourself a free member, but there is ravelry.com, and lionbrand yarn website to start you off. The patterns are for their yarns, but i just use what i find that is a similar weight and take it from there. I am lucky too as my mum has a shop and sells wool, so she got me some free from the place where she was getting the wool from knowing i would like them.

There are a lot of free resources out there if we take the time to search them out and share. Have you seen the knitting thread on the OS board too. I have seen lots of support on that thread, but i read more than post.

I just google free patterns and follow my nose and see what i like.



I am so glad i am not the only tightwad. It is certainly more essential than ever to be one for sure, so i am glad i came across this thread.

elfen

Oooh, also, the cheapo baby nappy bags are also brilliant for TOTM or for cat poo, they block the smell really well.
I also love poundland, they had my favourite shower gel in (the only one I will buy from now on) for £1 so I got BOGOF (they're usually £2)
Am I even more of a tightwad cos I don't have a TV license and I pick up coins all the time (have found a £5, £2 and a £10...nearly got a £20 but the bloke picked it up)

nu1isit?

elfen, you should have said' "Jesus what's that...." (while pointing in the opposite direction), snatched the £20 of the floor, and ran like Usain Bolt :rotfl:....

Right I'd better update you on how we're doing...

Clothes: Been to the second hand stalls again. Looked for a few bits of clothing I need....Found myself a nice Next shirt, for smart casual nights (if me and the better half ever get out alone for a 'date' - it's been a long time ). It should be around £25-35 new, I got it for 50p:T. I also managed to get myself a fruit of the loom 'hoodie', should have cost roughly £12, it cost me 50p....;). Taking the bottom end cost of the clothes new (that's £37), and the fact I paid a pound in total for them, I've saved myself £36.
I also found what could only be described as leather pockets, sewn from remnants, got 3 for a pound. I can use one as a wallet for my licence, library card etc, plus when it curls up and dies I have two replacements. How much does it cost now for a cheap wallet anyway, £3+. £3 x 3 wallets = £9; that's £8 saved in one sweep....Kerching .

Food: Bought a piece of ham for £4. We've had two sets of bulky sandwiches (x4 us and two kids), and I made two large pizzas with the remnants. I only had to pay 76p for the dried yeast....The rest of the ingredients for the meals were pulled from the cupboards. Say £4.76 spent. To buy a cheap sandwich while out and about roughly costs £2. £2 x 8=£16. Two cheap pizzas with scimpy toppings from some shops equals roughly £2+. That's £18 for 'shop bought' stuff, I spent £4.76 - so that's £13.24 potentially saved.:D

This is where we went off the tracks last year...it wasn't with the 'big stuff' (not into showy off, sparkly new things anyway), it was the little things that got us. Bits of clothes, food from shops, journeys in the car...
Hope we can keep this up for the rest of the year, the choices we've made so far, have made a difference . I'm actually starting to enjoy it too :rotfl:....

millionaire_in_training

N1 I am the same. I dont spend much and rarely have money in my purse as I tend to switch. I hardly ever go to shops mid week as I buy what I need at the weekend. My problem is that I hate cheap food. I found that even if I bought it I was adding stuff to it so wasting the cheapness of it. So I no longer do that but I need to make huge efforts to meal plan and ensure I use everything up, rather than binning wasted food . I also need to plan in advance for birthdays etc or I end up spending a fortune on pressies as I panic buy. I'm going to try really hard this year to think of things that folks will love and then do them cheaply.

Cha 97 thanks for those sites. I'll check out the knitting thread on get on with my knitting again.

Brilliant when you see money saving making a difference to your pocket

nu1isit?

millionaire_in_training wrote: »

I also need to plan in advance for birthdays etc or I end up spending a fortune on pressies as I panic buy. I'm going to try really hard this year to think of things that folks will love and then do them cheaply.

Brilliant when you see money saving making a difference to your pocket

You're right, it's nice seeing your choices make a difference .
We're seriously thinking about starting to look out for Christmas Pressies now, or plan for them at least (hand made gifts etc.). Things that we know they'll still like in December :rotfl:. Did really badly this year, last minute rushing around and wrapping :eek: (ridiculous fiasco is one way to describe it). Don't ever want to do it like that again - normally we're at least 'slightly' organised.

Right better let you know how we're all doing...
Linux machine/DVD Player: I've sort off, got the sound working now , and it does play dvds. Hurray :rotfl:. I managed to get a keyboard and mouse at the car boot for a grand total of £1.00 :dance:, a cheap keyboard from A**A is £5, a mouse is £7.50 that's £12.50. So I've potentially saved £11.50.

Housework: I know, I think I look rather fetching in a pinny too :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:....Stardrops, we're going to start using it again, as a one stop shop for most household needs. It seems to last for ages too.

Sealed Pot Challenge: We have an 'undetermined amount' in the pot tonight...the lovely wife scraped out the bottom of her purse for me tonight, for shrapnel (she then looked at me, like a schoolteacher does, when your about to question them; you know the look , it's the one over the top of the glasses :rotfl:). I then added £1.10 of my own car booty money (it was spare, as my pc spares etc. cost less than I thought :T). All good stuff ....

Hope you've all had a good MSE weekend :beer:.

MatyMoo

I buy presents through the year, just little bits that I know are exactly right for someone, usually adults as children can be a bit fickle. Especially if they are cheap!!! Amazing what you can find when you are out and about anyway. I keep them in one place so they are easily found.

ZarZar1990

This thread is amazing, and motivating, hope you won't mind me tagging along and reading your progress?

I'm currently trying to get back on the MSE wagon! x

dizzypink

Well the good thoughts have worked. I am now the proud owner of a new to me fridge from freecycle. It was in perfect order as well, so chuffed:j There was just no way we could buy one at the moment.

I am starting to look out for some ideas for presents as well, I managed to pick up a mobile phone for my son for his birthday in August, as new , from freecycle. Gotta love freecycle.

My family have really bought into the idea of making gifts, they keep giving lots of ideas. I keep trawling through the charity shops for old duvets and sheets so I can use the fabric for things.

I have started my own sealed pot. Hubby bought me a massive coin tin which I am using for £1 and £2coins. Also have a jam jar for coins which I am going to take to the bank each week and pay towards a credit card.

This thread is actually making money saving seem a bit of fun as well. Well done N1 for starting it:)

Dizzy

nu1isit?

dizzypink wrote: »

Well the good thoughts have worked. I am now the proud owner of a new to me fridge from freecycle. It was in perfect order as well, so chuffed:j There was just no way we could buy one at the moment.

I am starting to look out for some ideas for presents as well, I managed to pick up a mobile phone for my son for his birthday in August, as new , from freecycle. Gotta love freecycle.

This thread is actually making money saving seem a bit of fun as well. Well done N1 for starting it:)

Dizzy

I'm glad you managed to get yourselves a fridge at last dizzypink; that freecycle gremlin must have been having a day off :rotfl::D:rotfl:. That's fantastic about the mobile phone too...

Thank you too ZarZar1990, the more the merrier :beer: .
Hopefully MateyMoo, we'll be able to spot some good things for the adults throughout the year too .

Update time...

The Sealed Pot Challenge: A stunning 60p today :j...shockingly, no roadkill . It seems to have dried up! Maybe I can create a magnetic shoe (of sorts), that specifically attracts coins :rotfl:. That'd be great, I wonder if I'd end up having feet like those old fashioned penny slot machines in the arcades (the ones that pushed the coin across a surface) :rotfl::D:rotfl:.

I've also started on physically creating my masterpiece . There's lots of masking tape, paper, gaffa tape, and other 'things' lying about on the table :rotfl:. The loving wife laughed, when she saw the first part of the 'framework' stage....I think I should have 'unveiling' of it once I've finished :beer:...

Hope you've all had a good MSE day :T.