Weekly Spend Challenge W/C 12th June 2011

elsiepac

Hello everyone . Welcome to the weekly spend challenge. This challenge is open to anybody, no matter what financial place they are in.

On this thread please post an amount of money you wish to stay below within the week (Sunday to end of working day on Friday). This can be pennies or thousands it depends on the individual. Then next Saturday report back and pledge for the following week. The challenge runs from Sunday to Friday so we don't include Saturdays but feel free to change the rules to suit you and include Saturdays or start on a different day.

Feel free to update this thread with daily spends if that keeps you on track. We colour code the results as below:

Green - within budget
Red - overbudget
Purple - zero spend
Yellow - made money over the week

This is a little bit of fun but for many it highlights the fact that maybe that magazine/chocolate bar isn't needed. Hopefully your spending habits can be changed forever.

Moozie was the founder of this challenge and here is a quote taken from her:

Originally Posted by Moozie:
"Good afternoon lovely DFWs Now for anyone looking in, please feel free to join - the more the merrier! Basically, decide on the amount you want to spend up to from Sunday until the end of the working day on Friday then pledge it here and off we go! The challenge is about incidental spending and not for stuff that should be budgeted elsewhere such as bills, groceries, debt repayment etc but you decide what to include at the end - this is about changing your habits and improving your recording of your spends more than anything else. Have a great week everyone and keep it low!!! Moozie x"

Good luck everyone.

W/C 5th June Challengers / Pledges /Total Spent
Pointypenguin £40/£30.50
elsiepac £40/£56ish
bellkat £20
laisbojar83 £200/£400+
chris81418 £80/£75.21
Sparkerly £80/£82.75
psychopathbabble £10

link to last week's challenge

W/C 12th June Challengers / Pledges /Total Spent
elsiepac £30
Learning2Budget £30
chris81418 £45
Sparkerly £50
rdchick £10
pointypenguin £30
laisbojar83 £50
Southernman £5
debtfree future £30
psychopathbabble £15
cloudatlas £30

elsiepac

Hello little poppets! :hello:

Is it as wet and windy with you lot as it is here? Feels like mid-winter, it's freeeeeeeeeeeeezing! :rotfl:

Well, a new week and a new start (I say this to myself every week!).

Last week I went over a bit, not too bad considering £12 of the £16 that I went over was 2 drinks for my friend on Friday as she didn't have any cash on her.
I've taken a bit of a risk as normally I wouldn't ask for money back (she is the type to always buy you a coffee etc and never expects paying back which is why it's awkward!) - and I've just texted her a very awkward and bumbling message basically asking if she could give some back as normally I'd have happily bought them for her but I'm really skint at the moment etc etc.
I wanted to get the point across that it's not like I offered to buy her a drink - the first one was because we were going to do a round each, and I got the first round. The next time was her round however she didn't have cash and it turned out to be a cash bar, and I'd gone up with her card, so I ended up paying cash again. So I bought 4 drinks instead of 2! Feel a bit mean sending that text but it's £12! I can get a week's shopping on that (it's only me)!!!

Anyway, budget this week is £30. Have already spent £7 today on coffee and breakfast on the way home from my friend's house as I stayed for her birthday meal last night (so that I could drink).

Today I need to do a small food shop and I'm seeing the friend who had the drinks and the friend who had the birthday for coffee later, so better hope she says she'll give me some money back! Most of my budget will go today, but that's ok

Have a great day all, sorry for the ramble through the woods there!

LC x

Sparkerly

:wave: Morning and thanks Elsiepac for starting the thread.

Miserable morning here with heavy rain, but that has been good for the DFW journey as there is a French market on that we were planing to go to and that always results in a fair bit of spend as they have all the nice biscuits and cakes to buy which the kids love. As you pay by the weight and not per item it soon adds up and I always get a shock when they tell me the price. They also do the most delicious sausages in french bread which smells so lovely as it cooks that we normally get one each. So with the miserable weather we are giving it a miss and saving around £25 :j

Last week didn't go to plan but I am gonna give it another try this week. Not got much to get this week so I'm going to go for a budget of £50 for the week.

Already spent £10 on kids karate lesson and another £13 on lunches for DS for the week.

Have a good week all.

rdchick

Hello wonderful people!

Need to get back on the wagon... Spending zilch this week other than £10 fuel today to get me to my folks and then to little ones 1st birthday party, then go to my second job which I was meant to do Friday but you can come in over the weekend so that'll be good

Made over £10 on ebay so far today and putting some things in musicmagpie too so that'll be nice.

My friends hen do on Saturday so will be spending loooooads that day!

It's mid month tho and only 2 weeks till payday!

pointypenguin

Afternoon fellow budgeteers,

LC I think you are well within your rights to ask for some of the cash back from your friend, I hope you get it sorted. Thanks for starting the thread.

I am going for £30 this week as we are on the down slope to payday and funds are diminishing rapidly.

laisbojar83

Good Afternoon everyone.

Here we go again lol.

Thanks Elsiepac for starting the thread

Today is NSD for me.. yiippeee :j Cold, wet and windy! At least saves me some money lol.

I dont have much to do this week, so I am going to budget for £50.00.

Lets hope I can make it this time.. two red weeks in a row!! :eek:

Have a lovely week everyone.

L x

Southernman

For me i'm hoping to spend no more than £5 this week on things like chocolate bar at dinner at work etc etc. I've stocked up on my food and i go on holiday on Friday [already sorted out my Euros] and i pay £0 on transport expenses as i'm walking distance from work!

This £5 is my shrapnel in my purse. Payday is Friday and i'm refusing to dip into savings/overdraft for extra expenses.

All about saving at the moment for me though.

Edit- just noticed that newbie alert thing <

---

lol @ mild embarrassment!

elsiepac

Hi all,

Have updated first post with all the latest pledges - please give me a virtual kick if I've missed anyone off or got it wrong in any way!

Sparkerly - good luck this week, I keep going red as well so need to be disciplined!

rdchick - hope I got yours right, wasn't sure whether you wanted me to put £10 or £0?!

pp - I got my whole £12 back, yay! She was fine about it, she didn't realise I'd paid in cash, thought I'd used her card! hehe

L - I'm sure you can do it too, I'm determined to have a green week!

Southernman - Welcome! Your very first post on this forum and it's on this thread...brilliant! Goodluck with your £5 goal, that's a toughie! Are you off somehwere hot on holiday?

Update for me:

Spent £12.99 on my food shop, so very close to my goal (which by the way was a figure pulled out of thin air! Did it in ten minutes flat too...powered around with my list!!! Must have looked a bit mental!!!

Have a great money saving week all

LC x

debtfree_future

Hi

Please put me down for £30 this week. I plan to do a small shop including jam, fresh fruit and veg. This week is my first week of taking lunches to work as this is where I spend a lot of money by buying extras eg chocolate when I buy lunches.

elsiepac

debtfree_future wrote: »

Hi

Please put me down for £30 this week. I plan to do a small shop including jam, fresh fruit and veg. This week is my first week of taking lunches to work as this is where I spend a lot of money by buying extras eg chocolate when I buy lunches.

Hi DFF, welcome to the board and this thread! Glad to have you here, and a great idea to take lunches to work, it's amazing how much money you can save, and usually it's healthier as well, so no drawbacks!! Good luck with the challenge and feel free to pop on during the week to let us know how you're getting on!

LC x

psychopathbabble

Hello.... Can I please have £15 this week. Thanks!