What do you save the most money on OS?

sky_bloo

Hi all,

I'm about to move out with my OH in a couple of months. Having never lived away from my Mum nor him from his parents, I have been reading this forum with interest and fully intend to Meal plan and eventually grow my own veg/herbs. Our rent will not be very much luckily since we are renting from a friend of the family, but just wondering where people save the most money? Any tips or hints much appreciated, as I would rather be over prepared than thrown in at the deep end!

Hope everyones had a lovely day.

Sassers

Perhaps have a think about buying a big freezer and batch cook like mad to fill it with meal-planned meals? Oh and buy a slow cooker. Both are invaluable in my house. Eases some of the stress out of not just moving in physically with all your stuff, but also having to adjust being away from home to start with, if you see what I mean.

rozmister

If you have the time shop around. It isn't exciting but I go to Aldi, Sainsburys & Iceland every week. I live within walking distance of all three (on a high street) so I understand it's not as practical for everyone but I find it really helps. I get most fruit & veg from Aldi, the bits I can't get cheap there & milk from Iceland & my meat & other bits from Sainsburys. I also look at Sainsbury's special offers online when doing my meal plan so if I see something I like cheap I can work it into my meal plan rather than impulsively buy it as well as what's on my list. Poundland is also really good for toiletries & cleaning products. I may spend an extra hour a week shopping for bits & half an hour planning but I save myself at least a tenner a week, probably more as it makes my shopping more focused rather than just throwing stuff in my trollet manically in a supermarket!

LittleBrownFrog

Growing our own veggies is what saves us the most money. We're growing very little this year because we're hoping to move in the next couple of months, so I didn't want to be growing lots of things that we'd have to leave behind. I've really noticed my shopping bill edging up.

misskaytee

A sewing machine is a great asset, especially if you have a new home to furnish.... curtains, table cloths, cushions ect

MrsE_2

Sassers wrote: »

Perhaps have a think about buying a big freezer and batch cook like mad to fill it with meal-planned meals? Oh and buy a slow cooker. Both are invaluable in my house. Eases some of the stress out of not just moving in physically with all your stuff, but also having to adjust being away from home to start with, if you see what I mean.

Even if you don't want to batch cook, a big freezer means you can snap up meat bargains & save £££££

Meal planning is the key, you will save time & money in shed loads. If you stop off at the supermarket on your way home from work you will spend £20 on a few bits & waste at least a 1/3 of your free evening time.

Memory_Girl

My Storecupbard - doesn't that sound daft?

I play a game to keep our "weekly" spends to about £1 pp per day (me and 10yr and 3yr) BUT I have a "Magic Fiver" that I spend on storecupboard stuff that builds up and provides a cushion.

I currently have £65 in my Storecupboard fund (destined for an "Approved Food shop at some point), but in the last few weeks I have bought

21 cartons of passata at 23p = £4.83
20 tins of tomatoes @ 25p - £5.00
27 jars of tomato and herb sauce @ 18p = £4.86

For us that is the basis of one or two meals a week for almost a year.

Best bargain was 5kg of risotto rice or a fiver - which is 33 meals worth for our family when we top it up with fresh stuff from the garden.

I tend to roughly think forward a year in planning - I know how much we use of each staple so when I find a bargain I can take advantage.

It is saving me a fortune and means that our food for a year works out at about £1250 give or take.

MG

natlie

Hi

I find bulk buying things on offer helps me like yesterday the washing gel stuff I buy was reduced from £8 to £3.50 so I bought about 6 of them, I buy my tea, coffee and hot chocolate in catering size tins/bags, I buy flour in bulk. I find some value things are great like Tesco value dishwasher tablets £1.63 I do grow my own and I tend to grow things that I find expensive in the shops like potatoes, spring onions, lettuce, peppers, chillies, cucumber, carrots, beetroot, courgettes, strawberries, and beans - runner, broad and french and peas and fresh herbs.

Nat

purpleivy

Well, I bulk buy non perishables, but really, the way I save money (apart from the sewing machine!) is to start the week with a menu plan and buying to the plan.
I've got out of the habit of this and it's resulting in some wasted food. Not goood.

alec_eiffel

For me it would have to be the written budget. Telling our money what do do before payday means nothing goes wandering and everything works hard. Waiting is also great, gives you time to look around for a better deal, an alternative or to decide you didn't want the thing that you thought you needed.

jannyannie

Hi

I find I save money by never assuming something is such a good deal if it's on offer. Always look at the price per kilogram and see which works out cheaper.

Experiment with unknown brands from Lidl / Aldi. Large freezer is also a must to snap up bargains, store your own ready meals. Never feel pressurised to buy anything you don't like or want. I find i save a fortune in growing my own salad stuff, Suttons even do a variety of lettuce you can grow over-winter under fleece saving you loads over Christmas when salad is extortionate!