Need tips on switching the family from frivalous to frugal please!!

leandygandy

Quite honestly, I just haven't discussed it with my husband!

I did say I was going to start buying the next brand down on all our products, and that he should let me know if there was anything he didn't like, but so far only two products havent passed the test (Sains basics caramel wafer bars instead of Tunnocks, and Sains own Weetabix).

I am playing the long game - I started maternity leave this month, he is going to be paying all the bills and I am going to be buying the food. Once he starts to run low on money - which WILL happen as he's too used to having spare cash to fritter away while we've been living on two salaries - I'm pretty sure he's going to come to me and ask 'what can we do to reduce our outgoings' at which point we will have the discussion about how much of the Sky subscription is really necessary etc... Yes it means paying over the odds for a couple more months. but when he has the lightbulb moment it will be worth it as he will feel like he is making the decisions rather than being forced to do so.

Mwahahahahahahahaha I'm so conniving!

ETA : We've been eating cheaper cuts of meat and leftovers etc. for months, he just doesn't realise it! I just made sure that after every meal that's been 'cheap' I've done a 'normal' meal the following day so he hasn't noticed we've had chicken three days in a row after a roast lol

Mrs_Arcanum

leandygandy wrote: »

Quite honestly, I just haven't discussed it with my husband!

I did say I was going to start buying the next brand down on all our products, and that he should let me know if there was anything he didn't like, but so far only two products havent passed the test (Sains basics caramel wafer bars instead of Tunnocks, and Sains own Weetabix).

I am playing the long game - I started maternity leave this month, he is going to be paying all the bills and I am going to be buying the food. Once he starts to run low on money - which WILL happen as he's too used to having spare cash to fritter away while we've been living on two salaries - I'm pretty sure he's going to come to me and ask 'what can we do to reduce our outgoings' at which point we will have the discussion about how much of the Sky subscription is really necessary etc... Yes it means paying over the odds for a couple more months. but when he has the lightbulb moment it will be worth it as he will feel like he is making the decisions rather than being forced to do so.

Mwahahahahahahahaha I'm so conniving!

ETA : We've been eating cheaper cuts of meat and leftovers etc. for months, he just doesn't realise it! I just made sure that after every meal that's been 'cheap' I've done a 'normal' meal the following day so he hasn't noticed we've had chicken three days in a row after a roast lol

If you have a Waitrose their Weetabix version is nicer then the original (at least according to my children).

pigpen

if you check the pices tunnocks caramel wafers are usually cheaper than the value brand anyway!

We have tesco value weetabix which is just as gross as normal weetabix but square!

Have a look over on the old style board there are loads of ideas for bulking out meals and cutting costs there.

Old style

Bumpmakesfour

Wow thankyou so much!! Some really really helpful tips there :beer:
We have seperate bank accts for bills and shopping..hubby just got a pay rise and for the first time his wages cover all the bills in the house which is good.The second acct we use for everything else and I opened an internet acct linked in where I put the extra money each month over what we "plan" to spend but as yet I haven't actually managed to end a month with anything in there :o

I tried to sneak in different brands.eg tescos own choco snaps instead of coco pops and my 8 year old noticed straight awa but I'll persevere with that idea.Need to meal plan as I'm terrible and if I go in to tescos each day to get dinner I end up spending £60 on impulse buys

Liking the envelope idea with the months budgeted amount in... sounds like a very visual idea and those kind tend to work with me.Will also use a notebook over the next few days to jot everything down..see where we're at.
Hadn't thought of ringing Sky,will get hubby on the case later plus our virgin phone/net etc!

Off to check the old style board,sounds like it'd be well worth a go Need to come up with ideas on saving pounds on the pets too because the cost a fortune.Loads to think about,thanks again everyone!
Feeling quite motivated really and up for the challenge:T Main worries really are getting baby kitted out and christmas sorted...

Bumpmakesfour

ohhh just checked out the cinema £1 showings on a sat too..GREAT idea thankyou!That could be a once/twice a month outing.We went to see a film 3 weeks ago..cost £46 to get on then £18 on popcorn.I'm not tight but DEF begrudge paying £64 on the cinema :eek: Question..how do you keep "extras" costs down?Take your own popcorn??Are you allowed to do that??

Also joined a special needs swimming club so we can go as a family on a sunday night for £1 for the 5 of us instead of it costing £12...fab

I have a feeling this whole money saving lark can become quite addictive :rotfl:

balletshoes

Bumpmakesfour wrote: »

ohhh just checked out the cinema £1 showings on a sat too..GREAT idea thankyou!That could be a once/twice a month outing.We went to see a film 3 weeks ago..cost £46 to get on then £18 on popcorn.I'm not tight but DEF begrudge paying £64 on the cinema :eek: Question..how do you keep "extras" costs down?Take your own popcorn??Are you allowed to do that??

Also joined a special needs swimming club so we can go as a family on a sunday night for £1 for the 5 of us instead of it costing £12...fab

I have a feeling this whole money saving lark can become quite addictive :rotfl:

I reckon if I'm getting 2for1 on cinema tickets etc, I can afford popcorn, and don't feel bad about it - just think of what you have actually saved. Oh, and everyone doesn't need their own popcorn, you can all share a large one (maybe the kids would prefer to take a sweetie with them instead? I just pop them in my bag, so its not noticeable at the cinema until we're seated).

moneysaving can get addictive - and a good thing too!

My main 2 tips are limiting myself to a budget every week, and doing the noting every spend down in a little notebook and then totting it up. I pay cash a lot too for my shopping, its easier to budget and resist temptation to spend if you haven't got your debit/credit card with you.

plzhelpmesave!

£64 for cinema????????

If we pay full price (which would still be the cheapest family ticket or orange wednesdays), then we always take cans or bottled of drink and popcorn from home bargains. - just take it in a largish handbag or get the kids to put it in their pockets.

We watched Rango on Saturday - £6.25 for all 5 of us and £5 spent in home bargains on popcorn, pepsi and choccies. DH wanted a £4 slush - but luckily the machine was broken!!! We then went to a chinese buffet restaurant and all 5 of us ate and drank for £28 - so under £40 for a film, snax and lunch...

However, bump I am gonna take inspiration as we start the new school year, and CUT RIGHT BACK on non-essentials (e.g. £28 lunch would have paid for my son to do his activity weekly for 4 weeks)

Good luck on your journey....

newworld_2

i have only ever paid for popcorn and drinks at the cinema once. i always take me own and it has saved me a fortune.

Bumpmakesfour

balletshoes wrote: »

My main 2 tips are limiting myself to a budget every week, and doing the noting every spend down in a little notebook and then totting it up. I pay cash a lot too for my shopping, its easier to budget and resist temptation to spend if you haven't got your debit/credit card with you.

Def agree on the debit card thing!What I've been doing is moving all cash over to the linked acct then moving what I need to buy my list with a tenner or so buffer so literally all there is on the card is bare minimum.Like yesterday I needed wipes,milk,bread,cat food and pasta..about £8 ish with normal brands so I moved £20 over and even then bought different brands to usual,spent £6,no impulse buys,mission sucessful :jWill deffo be doing the notebook thing,thankyou

Bumpmakesfour

plzhelpmesave! wrote: »

£64 for cinema????????

If we pay full price (which would still be the cheapest family ticket or orange wednesdays), then we always take cans or bottled of drink and popcorn from home bargains. - just take it in a largish handbag or get the kids to put it in their pockets.

We watched Rango on Saturday - £6.25 for all 5 of us and £5 spent in home bargains on popcorn, pepsi and choccies. DH wanted a £4 slush - but luckily the machine was broken!!! We then went to a chinese buffet restaurant and all 5 of us ate and drank for £28 - so under £40 for a film, snax and lunch...

However, bump I am gonna take inspiration as we start the new school year, and CUT RIGHT BACK on non-essentials (e.g. £28 lunch would have paid for my son to do his activity weekly for 4 weeks)

Good luck on your journey....

Wow you paid less for all that than we did just for tickets It was a 3D film..£10.75 per adult x 2 plus £8 per child x 3 then £18 for the kids pack of popcorn/drink/magic stars and a sharer tub for me and hubby.Total total Rip off!!To add insult to injury we then went to Frankie and Bennys and spent another £50 on dinner :o:o
Am feeling a bit daft looking back at the cash we've wasted over the years.Gosh we could have a really lovely savings acct balance..but have zilch