It isn`t tough for us. We are OS and we COPE

ceridwen

ANNIE56 and SAMMY KAYE

No news from either of you two recently on either half of the Its Tough thread.

Any updates?:)

[Deleted User]

bellaquidsin wrote: »

kittie where do you buy your Alfalfa seeds? I used to be able to get a decent size pack from Mr. S. but my branch doesn't have them any more. All I have been able to find recently was a seed packet from the garden centre price £1.85.:eek: I did buy it but it only did me 3 'sproutings' so I won't be doing that again.
Bella.

as far as I remember it was goodnessdirect. I must have bought a kilo about 3 years ago and it is still going strong with perfect germination. Probably pricey but I only use 1 1/2 tbs in a litre sized jar (kilner type) so it works out very cheaply. They will be ready day after tomorrow and only started by soaking yesterday morning. Kept on the side of my kitchen sink, north facing and pretty darkish so will take darkish or light.

got it, the one on the left. I don`t much like sprouting mixes
http://www.goodnessdirect.co.uk/cgi-local/frameset/script/search.html?query=alfalfa%20seeds

[Deleted User]

I`ve been reading about the troubles in australia including furnace conditions in perth. I believe I would be getting coal in store sooner rather than later. Commodities of all sorts will be effected plus wheat so no more scoffing from me re stockpiling

modern_millie_2

Hi everyone,
loving the discussion on OS clothing/make do and mend. I would agree with longevity of duffel coats - had two in the past which have lasted about 10 years each - second one was a bargain, bought in the middle of a blazing hot summer, hence v. cheap! Often find you can get bargains out of season.
I don,t do much dressmaking now, but found in the past plain curtain fabric in reduced bins, about £3 for enough for a dress. Also find with good quality clothing (usually charity shop for me!) it really pays to look after things well - hang or fold properly, air if damp, repair promptly etc. I am such a skinflint now when it comes to clothes shopping ad rarely buy anything above £5 for myself, but still have a full wardrobe! Unfortunately it's often a case of all dressed up and nowhere to go these days. Even coffee out getting really expensive - think I will be going back to the flask in the car option except maybe for a once a week treat.

Winged_one

I have a classic black wool coat that I bought for a wedding 3 years ago but is fantastic and I can see me getting at least another 10 years + from it. I have a gore tex raincoat that I got from the factory outlet when I was in college (did a LOT of hillwalking at the time and it still gets loads of use year round) so that is 17 years old. And I have a lighter grey mac that I got at least 10 years ago that is good for warmer weather.

In general, I am a great believer in, for my main wardrobe, getting classics that will go together and last forever. I am currently wearing a skirt I got on sale 9 years ago and boots I got 4 years ago (that I have worn and worn, they've been reheeled loads of times and soled once too). And yesterday, I was wearing a pair of trousers I got on holidays 9 years ago (that I love to death and have had to get re-lined once). I know a good tailor near work, and 2 good shoemenders (1 near work and 1 near MIL house) which is great for the bigger things, and then my own sewing machine does smaller things that I am not scared to do (getting better at it over time) - like putting a new pocket into DH's trousers a monht ago.

DH had a couple of old shirts to get rid of that weren't great for charity shop last year - well, one was last year the other was actually about 4 years ago but had been a painting smock in the meantime . The collars were both worn through, so I used them to make 2 Christmas stockings this year, and they were great. I love using the good cotton shirts for something else. (I even used the 2 cuffs off one, paint stains and all, to make the cuff over the top of 1 stocking, just stitched them together for a real cheat!).

I am getting back to the plot this weekend, so I will be able to start re-stocking my extra fuel stores - I get coal and briquettes delivered, but I pick up large sticks and the large pine cones from the trees on our way between the fields to our plot, which are great for the fire. We often get a bag of logs from PIL too, as their houses are surrounded by trees and they trim them regularly enough and occasionally have fallers too.

FatVonD

GreyQueen wrote: »

What's the OS consensus on what is due to go up most?:)

Didn't someone say orange juice was a dead cert for going up? Coffee too maybe?

Primrose

Lavandula wrote: »

Agree that being OS is a whole way of life. It covers many areas. The main ones for me are:

• Don't get sucked into consumerism...my mobile is 9 years old, it still works so why buy another one??

I've just realised that both the mobile Nokia phones my OH and I have are now nearly 12 years old. We bought identical models around the same time and also had identical hands-free kits fitted into our respective cars. This meant that if we had to swop cars for work reasons, our phones would still fit into each other's car.

Since that time, mobiles have become tiny little objects (ours are like house bricks !) and the new hands-free kits won't accommodate our ancient phones, so we have all the more incentive to keep our elderly ones. I must confess, they are a bit heavy and inconvenient to lug around in pockets or handbags, but as they still work, it's almost a point of honour now to see how long we can keep them going. (I suspect the batteries are probably now obsolete if they needed to be replaced :eek:)

GreyQueen

FatVonD wrote: »

Didn't someone say orange juice was a dead cert for going up? Coffee too maybe?

I don't drink coffee or orange juice so that won't be any good to me, but it's relevent to a lot of people. Many thanks.

FatVonD

ChocClare wrote: »

I went to Lidl on Saturday ONLY for the offers. 1100 Typhoo teabags for £9.99 was the main reason I went - can't risk running out of tea :rotfl:

Tetley's extra strong are half price at Tesco at the moment so I'm thinking of stocking up on those, being as how I'm now using each tea bag twice

I've only ever been to Lidl once, I'm not sure if I've ever told the story on here but I didn't know you needed £1 for the trolley and had gone with no cash. I went in to ask if they had any hand baskets and the bloke offered to get me a trolley without the pound but he needed the contraption to take the pound out so I couldn't put it back and take someone else's pound. He couldn't find the contraption so he asked at the till, they didn't have it so he yelled across the store to ask for it. 'Has she got her money stuck?' they asked. 'No' he yelled, 'she hasn't got any money!' :rotfl:

Never again!

GreyQueen

=

ceridwen wrote: »

GREYQUEEN

If that dye has gone - then time for a "homebrew" perhaps? There are various "natural" ways of making your own dyes. I've not done any myself - but things like onion skins, nettles, blackberries, elderberries come to mind.

Ceridwen, I'm kicking myself, that Dylon had gone. Went to the store and those little tub Dylons haven't been made for nearly 2 years, they say. The repalcement product cost £2.99. Sorry, but I can get a whole shirt for that. Have plenty of h.g. onion skins, what colour will they produce? It's the wrong season for the rest of those natural products.

On the plus side, I made a killing at my greengrocers and got another 12 cans tommies at FarmFoods (4 for £1) to add to the storecupboard, so all is well.