Wobbly Jellie looks for balance!

*Jellie*

What a year! Thanks so much for all the support on here.

In the last year we got married and managed to keep to a low budget. Having gone through the DFW phase I moved over to here and we started on our mortgage when we bought our house in May 2010. We have moved very slowly in the right direction but nowhere near as much as we hoped.
Today our figures are 4.7% of the mortgage is paid. 9.1% of the mortgage is currently being offset and the daily interest is £34.37.

I have learnt so much in the last year. Times are tough as my health has not been good. This means our top priorities are to pay off the mortgage as quick as we can. Ideally once this is done I can go part time. However, there is a chance I will have to do this anyway, or even give up work so I also need to be on the look out for other ways I can make money. So we need to maximise on our opportunities and put every penny we can into the offset!

On a personal level emerging themes are seeking balance and simplicity. For me this means trying to learn the difference between wants and needs. I have been learning to sew and am now really into cardmaking (you might want to keep an eye on my blob to see what I'm up to- at the moment it is where I write crafty stuff but I may expand it!). Together with regular walking this has really helped me to deal with my health issues in a more positive way.

I'm going to avoid an annual target this year and just focus on making little changes and challenges to keep on track.

Challenges for 2012
1. Keep a spending diary to reflect on whether money is being used for essentials or luxuries!
2. To limit clothing spending to replacing essentials and buying work clothes. Apart from that I will use only items from charity shops or those I already own to repurpose or I will sew from scratch.
3. Crafty spending to be kept to essentials e.g. card, glue etc.
4. Get back to meal planning
5. Keep gift giving money neutral

In the posts below I will regularly update my long term goals and annual goals.

*Jellie*

This post may change as it will be updated to reflect any changes in long term goals so the are easy for me to find and keep in mind!


Overall goal is to have enough money in the offset to be able to pay off the mortgage in 10 years (during 2024).
If we are on track for this at December 2014 we will be at point where we are offsetting everything above £200 000. The actual mortgage should be below £250 000 in May 2015.
Target for the MFiT challenge £36000 (which will mean offset accounts will have £66 081.49)

*Jellie*

Annual
£12000 into offset this year.
Budget below £ 8225.

January
1. Keep spending in budget.
2. Track spending.
3. Grocery challenge £100 and have a storecupboard January
4. NDSs 0/20
5. Continue 9 steps to financial freedom by doing inventory of bedroom
6. No new clothes and make or refashion 1 item of clothing each week
7. Making gifts and keeping gifts money- neutral where possible. This month try making washer necklaces.
8. Craft stash ban- 20 days done in December.

museumworker

Welcome Jellie, and wishing you a very successful 2012. Sorry to hear your health has not been great, I hope it improves this year.

newgirly

Hi Jellie, congrats on the new dairy. I have just been having a nose on your homepage and your cards are fantastic, do you sell them or just make them for your own pleasure?

Anyway best of luck and heres hoping for a happy healthy 2012.:D

CathT

Hi Jellie, welcome back. I was reading through a diary recently and noticed a comment from you and wondered where you had got to. I hope your health continues to improve.

*Jellie*

newgirly wrote: »

Hi Jellie, congrats on the new dairy. I have just been having a nose on your homepage and your cards are fantastic, do you sell them or just make them for your own pleasure?

Anyway best of luck and heres hoping for a happy healthy 2012.:D

Thanks for that feedback. At the moment I make cards for pleasure but have been paid to make a couple for family members. In my desperation to make money and possibly find a career where I can work from home I'm wondering if I could sell them. I'm not sure if I could make any money or the best way to go about selling them!

CathT wrote: »

Hi Jellie, welcome back. I was reading through a diary recently and noticed a comment from you and wondered where you had got to. I hope your health continues to improve.

Thanks Cath- I hadn't realised how long it had been since I posted! Things got a bit hectic for a while and the blogging took over a bit in the run up to Christmas with all the card making! I'm looking forward to catching up with everyone!

Being very MSE tonight. A night in with OH. We got new towells for the wedding so tonight I'm dyeing the old ones to use for guests! I had been about to buy some new ones but stopped myself- make do and mend as they say!

newgirly

I suppose its like a lot of crafts, its hard finding people who apprieciate the hours that have gone into something and are willing to pay a little extra.

[Deleted User]

Hey Jellie
I definitely think crafty cards may be something people would buy- even if its just friends and family to start with I would definitely go for handcrafted things if I could!
Sorry to hear you health hasnt been great, I know it can be awful when health affects your ability to work and I hope you find a balance that feels do-able soon! Interested to hear how the idea of working from home works for you- I think its amazing how money can be saved when it needs to be- and combined wisdom on here should definitely help!!

Happy new year and here's to an MSE 2012

pavlovs_dog

not sure whether it would work in your workplace, but one of the girls I work with makes cards and she has a box of stock covering most common occasions and an honesty box on the table in the staffroom. That method itself doesn't make her a fortune (she covers costs with a little extra added for her time) but she gets tonnes of commissions from it because people know she is crafty and have seen the standard of her work first hand.

yukkibear

Happy new year x