2012 Frugal Living Challenge (Part 1)

moneywaster-nomore

Hiya Everyone, I have just come across this thread. Hope to be able to join in and chat. Brilliant.

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dizzy_lizzie

moneywaster-nomore wrote: »

Hiya Everyone, I have just come across this thread. Hope to be able to join in and chat. Brilliant.
Subscribed

:hello:Hello and welcome to the thread. Look forward to reading your posts.
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WantToBeSE

Morning everyone.
its very quiet in here, i hope i havent put you all off?!

The kids are moaning there arent any snacks and biscuits, so i am making twinks hobnobs and almond cakes. I am trying not to spend any money until Friday (CTC day) so its a tight week.

The reason for this? The car is having an MOT and is in the garage as we speak. I cannot afford for it to fail, so am keeping my fingers crossed.

I have also been desperate to re-carpet my lounge, and carpet right have a 70% off sale on. So i am hoping to be able to get it done
Not sure what i'll do with the old carpet though, i wont want to chuck it away- obviously!!- so am trying to come up with ideas.
Its not good enough to use in another room either.

moneywaster-nomore

Hiya WantToBeSE, W
We have a shop in a town near to us and they bind pieces of carpet for you. Its not too expensive, they just sort of run around the edges on a carpet over locking machine.

Car, we are hoping to downsize our car in January, Its never given us any bother but it in a bit of a sad state, doubt we will sell it ? I'll be gutted if it has to go to the scrap yard, it is such a good runner but too costly for us now.

Thrifty_Sister

Hi all - been lurking but more life stuff got in the way of me actually posting anything of interest. However, been managing to keep to my self imposed shopping rules (buying at whoopsie time but only if its at least half price, using as many money off coupons as I can, cooking from srcatch a bit more and eating out less). Quite pleased to have been able to manage this under current circumstances:(:(:( but hope to be able to contribute something interesting asap

Savvy_sewing

Spent Friday evening making things that we could eat out of what I thought was not a lot!. I managed to make a chicken curry, Korma one out of the breast of the roast chicken that we had left over, and the BF and I had that for tea last night. I also made Blackeye beanburgers, using some very old APp Food stocks, and I had one for my tea with a toasted cheese roll that was lurking. They were really quite good, and DGD and I will have them tomorrow.
I did also make a rhubarb crumble out of a tin of rhubarb and some oats, flour and sugar. The crumble was tasty, but I didnt have enough rhubarb. Going to serve it with icecream anyway.
I really should be doing more and more of this kind of cooking. I always used to, but with ill health I got lazy.
My food shoppings are coming in 3 different deliveries. I did my months shopping spreading the load on 3, to get the best deals. Saving some £60 on the offers etc from what I would have spent if I had only shopped in one shop, and not downsized, and savvy bought etc. But it took me ages to do. Spent most of thursday evening doing it.
My aim is now to only buy the fresh that I have too for a month. (I know I am mid month).

Nargleblast

I, too, split my food shopping between retailers. I order an online supermarket delivery for payday (sometimes Mr S, sometimes Mr T, depending what offers are available). The day it is delivered, I do a run to Ald1 for some oddments that only they stock, and a nearby greengrocer for fresh fruit and veg. The next day I go to a wholesale butcher and sort out meat for the month. Having then crammed the freezer to bursting point, I sit down and plan the main meals for every day up till next payday.

It's a bit hectic, and I could cry looking at the horrendous sums of money going out in those couple of days, but it does work out cheaper than getting everything from the supermarket, and we eat a lot better now with this system.

Thrifty_Sister

Something that might help others as well is that I have been sampling some of the 'value' ranges that supermarkets stock. For eg Smart Price tinned veg from Asda is really quite good - the mushy peas are only 4p and I have used them quite a lot. I made a curry kind of thing with some tinned dahl the other day, I've also used the chopped tomatoes, garden peas etc and they are fine. Would never, ever have done that at one time preferring 'proper brands' lol. The biscuits and cakes are ok too, although sometimes they are a little smaller. I used to buy McVities rich tea biscuits but having tried the SP ones I really don't think that the cost difference is justifiable. hth

Savvy_sewing

Well I have had 2 deliveries, and one still to come this afternoon. But I am going to have trouble with the fridge and freezer as its full already. Looks like I will be emptying it, and i will be playing shape puzzles putting things back in. Meat etc will have to be re wrapped, to fit it in. The packages are always bigger then the meat by a long way.
Cardboard outer wrappers will have to go as well.!
The joys. I forgot I had given the chest freezer to the twins! Eek.

dizzy_lizzie

Thrifty_Sister wrote: »

The biscuits and cakes are ok too, although sometimes they are a little smaller. I used to buy McVities rich tea biscuits but having tried the SP ones I really don't think that the cost difference is justifiable. hth

And when you dip them in tea they all taste the same (not the cakes of course)
We get our mushy peas from Ald* They are 4p also on offer at the moment, normally 8p and they taste exactly the same to me as branded mushy peas.
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