What is the most drastic money making or money saving thing you've done?

PoorKat

I was at university for 5 years, always living on borrowed money so I ate dried pasta and potatoes for the majority of that time. I always 'borrowed' loo roll from the campus toilets and would grab a load of napkins and ketchup packets whenever I was lucky enough to go out to eat. My roomate and I only ate one meal a day which we called blinner. This was often a meal provided by his mother because she felt sorry for us.
I used to have a 2 bedroom 2 bath flat in the US, but when I moved to the UK to marry my partner, I sold everything I owned except for about 10 boxes of personal items. Now I'm in the UK and unemployed, not able to get any benefits, and now I realize what it REALLY is to be poor. With 25k+ in debt and no job/benefits, no one's getting a Christmas present from us! Depending on family and friends for food while I was at uni didn't seem so bad but at 27 it is just plain embarassing.

lynzpower

PoorKat wrote:

I was at university for 5 years, always living on borrowed money so I ate dried pasta and potatoes for the majority of that time. I always 'borrowed' loo roll from the campus toilets and would grab a load of napkins and ketchup packets whenever I was lucky enough to go out to eat. My roomate and I only ate one meal a day which we called blinner. This was often a meal provided by his mother because she felt sorry for us.
I used to have a 2 bedroom 2 bath flat in the US, but when I moved to the UK to marry my partner, I sold everything I owned except for about 10 boxes of personal items. Now I'm in the UK and unemployed, not able to get any benefits, and now I realize what it REALLY is to be poor. With 25k+ in debt and no job/benefits, no one's getting a Christmas present from us! Depending on family and friends for food while I was at uni didn't seem so bad but at 27 it is just plain embarassing.

poorKAt,
Welcome - why not start your own thread so that we can help that way- sounds like you guys are in a right state at the mo
hugs xx

immoral_angeluk

Sold the majority of our cd/dvd collection on ebay
Sold my bass guitar and amp, and Dh's guitar and amp *sob*

sick_of_being_skint_2

i darent say what I used to do|!!

bucksliz

"I've also stopped buying presents for DD's little friends when she's invited to a party - instead I make cookies and ice the child's name on them, one letter per cookie." quote OneSpike

Fantastic idea! I'll start straight away!

DD's 7th birthday party next weekend. I decided that as guests arrive they will decorate fairy cakes which I will make and then we'll stack them up in a pyramid and put candles on them for her birthday cake! No cutting involved either, just take a cake from the pile!

natlie

Hi
I didn't eat fr 4 yrs but that was just stupid, try living off a packet of crisps a day it was not nice, have recently given up buying veggie meat replacement type things and am now cooking all my meals from scratch old style.

I have sold everything I had of value on ebay except my house and car, last year I sold nearly all my christmas pressies on ebay on a 5p listing day lol



I have cut our food budget from a £100 a week for 4 of us to £50 a week.

I have stopped buying things, haven't bought make up etc for ages now, I either ask for it for christmas and birthdays, or I get freebies on boots from the adv. card machine.

The thing I am most proud of though is resistin ggetting sky to watch season 3 of Lost - that was the most evil thing ever, god knows when I am going to be able to get it now??? boo hoo
Nat
xxx

Aril

Does having the same wellies since you were 12 count?!!! I had ahem my 40th birthday in September!! I have to say I don't wear them very often but they are still water tight and my feet haven't grown since then!
Aril

James240

most drastic thing ive taken up is matched betting lol didnt know how to bet until i went over to the gambling board :rotfl:

CathChat

At one point last year I had 4 jobs.

My main fulltime job 9-5
A bar job in the evenings
Waitressing on a Saturday
and Gardening on a Sunday.

That was exhausting.

Just doing my full time job and the gardening now.

purplestar1uk

I used to live on a can of KwikSave Irish Stew a day. I thought it was probably the most 'balanced' meal (i.e. meat and veg!) I could get for a few pence.

I was constantly hungry and miserable, as you can imagine.

Thankfully (though after about 8 months of that) my benefits situation was eventually improved, and though i'm still on benefits it's not as dire as it was then. I still can't stomach the thought of Irish Stew though!