Finally reaching out for some help...

Marty82

Evening Kerri,

Have read your diary as promised and have a couple of comments if you don't mind?

Now that you have cleared Vanquis you need to only use it to spend a little (say £50) each month and pay back in full each statement. This is a credit builder card with a high interest rate so should only be used as stated to try to rebuild your credit rating.

You mentioned Waitrose in one post. I hope you don't shop there regularly as they are more expensive than the big four supermarkets. I know they may fit with your ethical/environmantal/political stance but if you shop carefully at other stores then you may not have to compromise on your beliefs too much. For example Tesco Extra's usually have a large "wholefoods" section and Sainbury's are really good for things like Fairtrade, organic, FSC etc. Have you tried using MySupermarket if you do your food shopping online as it could compare your items at the different stores and now includes Waitrose.

You mentioned buying loose fruit and vegetables as it is cheaper than pre-packed. This is not always the case as value/basics pre-packed fruit and vegetables are often the cheapest option so I would double check the price per 100g on all the options before you decide.

Hope these few tips help. I can't really lecture, just look at my signature, but thought these few tips might help.

kerri_dfw

Charleyroo - thanks for stopping by, I'm so relieved the saga with lloyds is almost over.

Beanielou - I need to stop thinking "oooh I have money must spend it". Have just told Dad Lloyds are paying for christmas dinner this year and we can shop for the meat somewhere other than Lidl.

marty- thank you for subscribing I will try my best to use the cc for small purchases, be slap wrist for me not being able to do so.
With regards to food.... I go to waitrose because the veg lasts two weeks whereas tatco lasts just one week. With my OH being veggie I don't buy any meat, but need the veg to be of high quality so it doesn't go off too quickly. I do buy Waitrose own though and I have quite strong beliefs that I shouldn't compromise on food. However, I won't have to buy any veg soon onions went into my first ever allotment this weekend and garlic will go in this weekend. I'm so excited, free food in Spring/Summer.

One thing I did nothing was that tatco sold quinoa for £3 for 200g the other day, whereas Mr W sold it for £2.72 for 300g Tricksy very tricksy.

Cherryjack

Hi Kerri, hope you dont mind ..ive subscribed aswell :-) will catch up with the posts

kerri_dfw

Cherry - thanks for subscribing, I've found it a bit tough to put it all in writing so there's a lot there. Please slap wrists if I start splurging.

Cherryjack

look forward to reading :-) i love your line i must stop spending on other people... i do this all the time!! im too nice.. it can be coffee,s, dinner and all sorts...
Had to really curb it last maternity leave .. i went out for coffee and shopping with this other mum and in the end she would just sit back and wait for her free stuff (i realised then things had to change) her jaw dropped when i came back with just my own coffee lol.. i did feel bad but people do take the mick aswell

kerri_dfw

Cherryjack wrote: »

look forward to reading :-) i love your line i must stop spending on other people... i do this all the time!! im too nice.. it can be coffee,s, dinner and all sorts...
Had to really curb it last maternity leave .. i went out for coffee and shopping with this other mum and in the end she would just sit back and wait for her free stuff (i realised then things had to change) her jaw dropped when i came back with just my own coffee lol.. i did feel bad but people do take the mick aswell

I've had lots of people take advantage of my kind nature in the past so I now only spend on my family and my boyfriend, but only small amounts. Boyfriend called me at 8pm and was soooo happy with the big shop from Tesco that I had delivered to him, he was sooo chuffed. He wanted to pay me for it, but I told him no as £25 of shop with vouchers and codes only came to £10 yay.

Marty82

How much is your Vanquis credit limit? A suggestion would be to ask them to reduce it to £50 or £100 so that you are forced to use it for credit building only.

Since you buy a lot of veg then would a veg box service be cheaper? Would mean you are supporting a small business too! Aldi and Lidl are cheap for fresh produce but may not last or fit with your food beliefs. What all do you intend to grow? Will it be enough to live on next year?

I'm amazed that Waitrose is cheaper for Quinoa but just goes to show you that it pays to shop around!

Cherryjack

oh bless ya, ive caught up :-) good thing is your only doing this with family.. but would be best now to save for your future (you will probably want a mortgage one day)? so yv plenty of time on that wage to get deposits saved.. its nice to have a back up plan xx get some ISA's set up etc.. you could put yrself in a wonderfull position on the future. Fab news about the lloyds payout.. you must be over the moon :-)
I would wait until january sales for the mattress and bed.. they will be much cheaper and you will kick yrself..(im waititng to buy baby stuff and a new sofa) the springs are going in mine-getting really uncomfy..
Your the queen of ebay..well done with that :-)

Lula-Hula

Hiya kerri,

great to see you have your own diary going now :T.

I'm a renowned Waitrose shopper & wholeheartedly agree with you re the fruit & veg, ethics, fair trade etc . I also often find stuff in there that's cheaper than Tatco & like you, I agree that food is too important to compromise on ... however I do tend to now use the dreaded Tatco for bulk buying tinned / dry groceries & household stuff.


Brilliant news on the PPI refund :j .

When you feel able to, it might be helpful to start saving up towards things such as car tax & mot & servicing.

Best wishes & I'll pop in again soon
xx

kerri_dfw

Marty - my credit limit is £500 which is going to be my intended monthly maximum allowance when I've paid everything off, this will be for food and crafty bits that I decide to buy. But crafty bits will be used to make things and then sell these things. I have my own folksy shop with an oyster card holder and toiletry bag that I made at the weekend on there at the moment. I want to sell soap once I've moved house and got my finances a bit better off.

I did have Abel & Cole for a few weeks, but I am a bit picky when it comes to what I will eat so it ended up more expensive. I'm going to grow carrots, parsnips, onions, garlic, blackberries, gooseberries, raspberries, rhubarb, tomatos, lettuce, cucumber, courgette. In my new flat I get a whole fridge/freezer to myself so lots of batch cooking, I will be thrifty.

Cherryjack - My boyfriend is 35 and in his 3rd year of a 4 year uni course. He's thinking about going on to do a masters and then maybe a PHD, so I have awhile to save for a house. I've considered saving up £80k so that I can buy a small do-it-up in Wales, where my OH lives. He hates London and doesn't want to raise children there, it would be amazing to stay mortgage free. I hate the idea of paying 4x the amount for a house, especially if it's going to some bank manager pah! But we will see.

I'm definitely going to wait, I have a good airbed and half the month is spent with family so no rush. Oooh babies, don't get me started my sister is due on February with her second and I'm a little broody... but obviously I have several years to wait yet hmph.
Thanks about ebay, it took ages but I already have people watching my items, yay I might find some more things to list after work tomorrow.

Lula - thanks for stopping by I have recently discovered amazon for bulk buy, 24 tins of branston beans for £0.42 a tin, with free delivery. Waitrose also have some of the best reduced end of day items I've seen. Nephew is getting a tommy tippee cup from santa (me) which cost £1.50 instead of £4.50 because the cardboard label was a it scruffy.
I'm going to start a "things I don't think about fund" and this will indeed pay for, well mostly the car I guess. Thanks for that great tip from your diary. I realised I already have my car tax in my emergency fund, which is a huge relief.

I'm really looking forward to this journey, and so glad I'm not doing it alone. There's going to be some peaks and troughs, but thanks for stopping by the nudge me on the way.

15th November Summary
* Today I paid £150 into my Vanquis account, and brought my Lloyds account back within it's limit for the first time in 5 months.
* Listed 31 items on ebay with some already being watched.
* I am not 14% of the way to being debt free, a whopping £730 since my LBM in October.
* My boyfriend thinks I'm awesome for his £25 worth of shopping, I only paid £10 for thanks to multibuys and voucher codes.
* Had a panic moment when I realised I only have £20 to last until next Friday
* Overcame panic by realising I don't need to buy anything as I already have enough food to last and don't need anything else
* Had an email from lying tyrant scum bags to say they are finally paying me my money and interest calculated until today, so happy I could cry

Things to do tomorrow:
1. Pack up books on bookshelf ready for moving
2. Finish sorting through paperwork
3. Find some more things to list on ebay
4. Take pasta bake into work for lunch instead of buying from fast food places
5. Try to decide how best to pay off debts
6. Decide on a weekly food budget
7. Decide on a weekly "me" budget
8. Have a NSD