How to Get Through The Tough Times The Old Style Way.

Hardup_Hester

Woohoo.
I went to the local charity shops to look for Fuzzy Felt for foster grandchild & I found some for £1.50, I also got a new bathmat for £1.99 all in all a sucessful trip.

Lavandula

budgetboo wrote: »

I think it's a mind set that leaves us old stylers so much better prepared for what's to come than some. Personally right now I'm finding so much inspiration in the Shabby Chic threads.

I'm firmly of the opinion that frugal living is only possible to do successfully long term if you embrace what I call "elegant simplicity" in how you add a few splashes of "luxury" in what can otherwise be an austere existence.

You can easily add a touch of luxury without breaking the bank if you are creative. It's the little details that make all the difference as any posh butler of a luxury hotel will tell you. Think "refined" as opposed to gaudy consumerism.

I spent £1.99 in Aldi on some Narcissi plants this week to cheer up my flat. (The bulbs will get put away and used again next year). I've also planted some nasturtium and sweet pea seeds on the window sill. (They almost grow themselves once germinated).

Edited to add:- As a lone parent I'm bricking it re changes to kids DLA and benefits.

A vase of fresh sweet peas on the table will add a wee bit of affordable luxury to my frugal home. The more you cut them, the more they grow. I use a few drops of lavender oil and white vingegar on my towels and sheets in the wash. DS loves the smell on his sheets. I made hot water bottle covers last year for my 99p hot water bottles and boy did we appreciate them when the snows came!

DS loves his homemade pizza and popcorn nights. Originally instituted when he was around 3 cos I couldn't afford the cinema and he's dairy intolerant (pizza take aways like his mates had were out!). The pizza topping uses up the last scraps of whatever odds and sods are left in the fridge. It's become a big thing in our house as friends love to join us, so I can entertain without feeling like scrooge in comparison to the "Jones".

Proper tea made in a proper pot with home made cakes or scones (& home made jam). It makes an "event" of something so simple for a generation raised on trays in front of the telly (or at least the Mums & kids in my neck of the woods, older people appreciate the return to old skool civility). A lot of the fun is in the "ceremony".

Window sill herbs make the simplest of meals taste gourmet, and cost pennies to grow yourself.

Freshly made bread or pancakes filled with stewed fruit (stew anything in the fruit bowl that looks as if it's on the turn) on a Sunday morning.

Add a few drops of perfume or essential oil or your favourite perfume to an unscented 99p body lotion.

Board games for "family night", rather than an evening out bowling etc. Nature trails with lively kids rather than expensive leisure centres - at the right time of year you can set em blackberry or rosehip picking

Homemade Xmas decorations on the tree. (Victorian Farm from the BBC was full of wonderful cheap ideas for this). A gingerbread house, a home made wreath on the front door.

Too much processed food is causing an obsesity and diabetic epidemic in the nation's children so getting them invoved in simple from scratch meals is a gift of good health they'll thank you for when they are adults after the demise of our NHS!

Generations before us had fun on far less than we've been used to and I think we forget that sometimes.

Fabulous post..!!! Your suggestions are brill!

PS I started a thread on Simple Living the OS way, and it was merged with the Simplfying Life II thread..

I am really looking forward to reading this tread (I'm only on page 5) and am very glad it is back.

I'm collecting a huge pile of seed trays this afternoon thanks to Freecycle! Can't wait to get sowing seeds.

maryb

Phew

Remembered just in time that my prescription prepayment certificate was about to expire and managed to get two items that I get on repeat prescription on a two months cycle before it ran out. Worked out that if I buy a three month certificate, get three prescription refills and then wait until the last minute before buying another certificate it will be cost effective (especially if I need any one offs), but it's not worth having an annual. However must check what is happening to prescription charges and if necessary I will make sure I get a certificate before April as that is when charges usually go up.

It made me feel I was really getting older when I had to start having things on permanent repeat prescription. But ye Gods we are so lucky compared with countries where people have to pay full whack. The price of my glaucoma eyedrops in the US would be a real worry

GreyQueen

hey, I'm at work and waiting for Excel to recover my document and a customer has told me to eff off because I wouldn't discuss somebody else's affairs with him........:rotfl:

cbrown372

GreyQueen wrote: »

hey, I'm at work and waiting for Excel to recover my document and a customer has told me to eff off because I wouldn't discuss somebody else's affairs with him........:rotfl:

I hope you told them you discuss your customer's affairs online instead.

Butterfly_Brain

GreyQueen wrote: »

I'm feeling a bit down in the dumps today. Went to bed at 11pm last night and Idiot Boy (the guy whose flat is immediately above mine) came in at midnight with his mates and has proceeded to keep me awake all night. It's the third night on the trot. I have ME and really struggle if I don't get at least 7 hours sleep, and I haven't had that in the past 72 hours. Yesterday at work was hell on wheels as I kept transposing numbers, making me a menace with the customers' mobiles. I was glad to end my shift without having made a major goof-up, IYKWIM. Also got so exhausted a couple of days ago that I lost the thermostat and just had the cold shakes, even in a warm room with blankets and hot water bottles. I hate it when that happens, feels like going back to the bad old days.


The police will not come out in this area but we do have Council run "enviromental police" patrols - They are not out all the time but there is an emergency line to a council official who is on call day and night and they do come out if called.
Keep a log of dates, times, incidents (loud music, shouting, banging etc) and make an official complaint to the council or HA.

We had a lot of trouble with neighbours from hell 3 years ago and we had to keep a log.
They were eventually served with a noise abatement order - they moved soon after:j It took us a long time because the houses are privately owned but we got there in the end.

ChocClare

maryb wrote: »

Phew

Remembered just in time that my prescription prepayment certificate was about to expire and managed to get two items that I get on repeat prescription on a two months cycle before it ran out. Worked out that if I buy a three month certificate, get three prescription refills and then wait until the last minute before buying another certificate it will be cost effective (especially if I need any one offs), but it's not worth having an annual. However must check what is happening to prescription charges and if necessary I will make sure I get a certificate before April as that is when charges usually go up.

It made me feel I was really getting older when I had to start having things on permanent repeat prescription. But ye Gods we are so lucky compared with countries where people have to pay full whack. The price of my glaucoma eyedrops in the US would be a real worry

DH asked if he could have a double prescription last time as he was going to be away and - as he hoped - the repeat prescription was also a double this time :T

GreyQueen wrote: »

hey, I'm at work and waiting for Excel to recover my document and a customer has told me to eff off because I wouldn't discuss somebody else's affairs with him........:rotfl:

Try working in a nursing home. Residents feel that it is perfectly acceptable to come and sit at my desk while I am on the phone having quite confidential conversations about financial and/or health matters with someone else. The number of times I have had to interrupt the caller and ask my "visitor" if they could just excuse me a moment while I finish this phone call... to be greeted by great harumphs and "well, I am in rather a hurry" or worse, I won't keep you a moment, dear, I just wanted to know... and then they're off on a great long explanation and I am waving frantically at my colleagues to see if they can head them off at the pass.

Still, if you're 97, why the hell SHOULD you wait for anyone else? :rotfl:

GreyQueen

Know what you mean, ChocClare, know what you mean. My heart sinks with those calls which start; "I'm calling on behalf of.....". 9 times out of 10 we don't have an existing authority on system to talk to them and they get soooooo rude when we have to explain that we can't go into A.N. Other's affairs with them. The other killer is those people who ring up the payment line to pay one of their own bills with their partner/ mother/ brother/ son's debit card and are astonished that we aren't allowed to take payment from anyone other than the card holder. I mean, do you think they'd go into a shop with someone else's card and expect to make a transaction? And there are those callers (several dozen a day) who assume we have only one customer (THEM) not that we have a whole cityful of bodies out there......:rotfl:

Then we have a customer who is so rude and so nutty that he thinks our switchboard can ID his number and stop his call coming thru (if only......). We have injuctions against some of these residents, y'know.

flowertotmum

Hi all..phew what a day..i'm am frazzled..had my older girls and grandchildren over for lunch..bloody heck..i forgot how much they can eat..i did HM spaghetti bolognase..and lots of it too..it all went..so did my choc/fudge muffins and a majority of the hobnobs...nevermind it was lovely to have a houseful again..but i'm glad they have gone home now..my daughter and her chap did not get paid ..even though the recievers guaranteed his wages..she was so upset ..her mortgage payment is due out in the next day..she has enought for that but no more..felt so bad for her..as i am in no postion to lend her it..gave her some bits out my freezer and a bag of nappies..told her they can come for lunches if no money goes in..i can't bear the thought of them going without..hubby went to allotment and got leeks and cabbages plus the very last sprouts..gave her some of those too...my other daughter gave her £30 for her gas and electric meters...i'm going up on friday to help her sort out her cupboards and freezer and mealplan with what she has...think she has quite a bit but no idea what to do with it..thats where i come in lol...
Going to spend rest of day cleaning up the carnage..and do some sewing with fern..iris is spark out on the chair..hubby is cooking tonight..think we having a stuffed chicken joint(farmfoods special) with the trimmings...rhubarb crumble out the freezer for pudding...delicious..
back later
ftm

flowertotmum

Sorry hi to happierdaystocome..welcome to the thread of all threads...best one around.
ftm