make do and mend for tougher times

Popperwell

I guess that's how i donate now by using the charity shops. I have to watch the cash. I'd love to win the lottery/Euro when I do it. I went for years not doing so and know that it will be a luxury in the future. I don't need millions but to live without penny pinching should I live for another twenty years or so(Boy will I be old:mad::()I'll need a fair bit to avoid needing help from the state and to pay for possible/probable care I'll need but I too like GQ would like to be able to help those less fortunate either on a personal level or to a charity I believe in.

Of course if I don't we all know who gets their hands on your money. In a way everything we own money, property or possesions, it is borrowed and usually goes back into the system. Whilst we live and after we are gone.

I don't have much to interest anyone...cs clothes, old furniture that has seen better days and by the time I go my electrical goods will only be good for the tip.

As there is only me and no family/friends I haven't even got around to arranging my funeral:(:eek::mad:

As there's only me I'm not sure I'm bothered...If I try and do a funeral plan they charge so much I haven't that kind of spare cash to find weekly. They don't allow you to vary the payments.

The only other way would be to save up at home until I think I have enough, it will pretty basic as a church service won't have anyone present to hear any eulogy.

Oh that's so sad...sorry(I don't feel sad even though I have written that)

smileyt_2

alltrustgone wrote: »

Is this glove pattern here, and the subsequent discussion, any use as a starting point?

http://www.threadsmagazine.com/item/8892/patterns-for-gorgeous-gloves

The original pattern creates these beauties:

http://www.threadsmagazine.com/item/8894/gallery-of-gorgeous-gloves-by-john-koch

Thank you for that but they are a bit complicated for me :eek:! I think I'm going to cut the sleeves off one of the coats and fashion something out of that. One of the hoods will do as a bike saddle cover and the rest are going to Ginnyknit for her to fashion something marvellous out of them!

Thank you for all your replies about charities. I have thrown all except two in the bin and will throw future ones in the bin. It sounds like everyone on here does their best, I wonder if the people who are loaded do as much? Widow's mite springs to mind! Eventually I'll get round to writing to the charities to stop them sending me stuff but I only have enough energy to get me through the day at the moment. I've been a bit low today and am worried about how I'm going to cope starting work this week. Oh well, it'll all turn out OK.

Right I'm going to put the heating on for half-an-hour to warm the bathroom a bit so I can have a shower.

kidcat

((hugs)) smiley - Hope all goes ok at work for you

Fuddle - good luck tomorrow

Am really pleased its October tomorrow and we have still not had the heating on yet, would love to manage another couple of weeks but cant see it somehow, it is getting very cold now and DS is starting to notice it.

the_cake

Big hugs and warm thoughts to my OS friends for a happy week, and indeed a happy October. Love all round, the cake xxx

monnagran

About charities. I finally had to write to a charity that I'd supported for years and tell them that although the spirit was willing the purse strings were weak, and as I was living on a very small pension I could no longer afford the DD every month. To my surprise I had a lovely letter back saying that they quite understood and thanking me for all the support I had given them over the years. Made me feel worse if anything. When my brother and I took over dealing with Dad's affairs, we discovered that nearly 50% of his income was going to charities. Mostly it was fairly small amounts but lots of them, but one was to a charity we'd never heard of and it was for £5,000! He was getting very confused by that time so we gently removed most of the DDs and informed the people concerned why.

PAH we all have different ways of dealing with the difficult times in our lives and respect your way of dealing with yours. Just know that you are surrounded by loving thoughts and that there is a wall of support around you. We are here if you need us.

All this talk about the C word frightens me to death. Our Christmas is rather odd. Living within a church environment means that we start with all the Fairs and Sales. Glide seamlessly through endless C.......s dinners, (last year we clocked up 11), every Carol Service in the area, Christingles, Tree Festivals, Nativity Plays etc. Then, when the time itself hoves into view we have a crib service on C....s Eve, a midnight communion, 2 services on THE morning, cooking a C.......s dinner for the old and lonely, and as last year IT fell on a Sunday, as soon as we had waved the last elderly person off we started again with doing a Festive dinner for the Drop-in.

On Boxing day we stay in our jammies all day and eat cheese sandwiches.

You'll note that none of this includes our own card writing, present buying, fanily get togethers etc.

No, I don't look forward to this time of the year with any great eagerness.

This is Scrooge signing off.

x

Popperwell

I have tried to do without heating but have given in a couple of times but if I see the bills are a lot higher I'll try and do without even more. But it does help. You can tell that it has been on.

Good luck with your plans Smiley.

As for altering things I do wonder if I could shorten the sleeves on some suit type jackets I purchased at the CS, it would be a pity to then have to pay a lot for the alteration...as they each only cost 99p.

At best I'd have to use that Wunderweb stuff and then move the buttons further back.

ginnyknit

fuddle, good luck for tomorrow

PAH hope you work everything out in the best way to suit you - yes you - thats the important person.

Smileyt, you already do your bit and cannot spread your finances any thinner. You are a caring and kind little person who needs cash yourself for emergencies, so you be good to yourself too. You could always make some cards for a local charity to sell to raise funds and if you need any bits and bobs to do them let me know - I have lots of odds and sods. You will be fine once you get back to work its just first day nerves, dont forget your lunch and to go for a wee before you leave :rotfl: wanted to sound like a mother hen :rotfl:

monnagran you must be exhausted by boxing day but very happy in knowing you have done a good job - are you serving lots of frozen baguettes this chrimbo, you must have them stashed away everywhere. talk about famine or feast, that was one if the tales I told OH and he loved it.

kezlou

Kidcat i know what you mean, i've had to put the heating on its simply to cold in the house at the mo. DS2's joints hurt like mine so put it on just to warm the place. Saying that its only been on for an 2 hours previously at 18c, tonight i've put it on 20c its still hasn't warmed up properly from 14c.

Well i ended up staying at my friends house last night with the children while
OH worked on the bathroom upstairs. They was no toilet facilities to be had so off to friends we go.
Also went to the swiming bathsto get a shower, i lasted about 20 minutes and had to get out. I was in so much it was ridiculous, i'm getting to the point where think i may have to go to a&e.

Regarding rental prices where i am they range so much, yet were a small town trying to drag itself out of shadow of mining, iron and steel town. Jobs are virtually none existent yet rents are getting higher and higher, its unbelieveable. Hopefully they'll balance out soon, can see my children living with me for quite a long time.

Mar hope something gets sorted out soon, nothing like feeling like carp.

Regarding i ognore them all, i've had 15 this week alone. They go straight into recycling. Guess wha we get at least three time a week charity bags. Theres no way we can afford to pay them all.

The charities are tend to support are macmillan nurses (amazing people), great north air ambulance and i tend to use charity shops so at least i feel like i'm doing something.

Fuddle good luck with tomorro!

PAH you know where i am chick xx

SpikyHedgehog

Popperwell wrote: »

I have tried to do without heating but have given in a couple of times but if I see the bills are a lot higher I'll try and do without even more. But it does help. You can tell that it has been on.

Good luck with your plans Smiley.

As for altering things I do wonder if I could shorten the sleeves on some suit type jackets I purchased at the CS, it would be a pity to then have to pay a lot for the alteration...as they each only cost 99p.

At best I'd have to use that Wunderweb stuff and then move the buttons further back.

Pops, I did a quick google and came up with a few links on shortening suit jacket sleeves - amazing tattoos on the woman in the video! I found myself watching her arms rather than what she was doing
http://whatimaltering-blog.learning-alterations.com/2009/04/shorten-suit-coat-sleeve.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPfUPkXiiTE

This is about the adjustments that can and can't be made to suit jackets, the prices are all in US dollars, but I thought it's good for a comparison of the relativeness of which alterations should cost
http://mensstyleblog.blogspot.co.uk/2010/02/what-tailor-can-cant-do-part-1-suit.html

I quite fancy getting a CS jacket for DS1 & trying them out now to tailor it to him - better wait till I'm sure he's stopped growing!

As for the cost - I read somewhere to calculate the cost of clothes by each wear - so if you spend £100 for a coat and wear it every day over the winter for 5 years, it works out as 100 divided by 5 (years) = 20, divided by 90 (days, a quarter of a year) = 22p each wear.

Or, if you get a cheap jumper for £10 but only wear it 3 times becasue you realise it doesn't really fit that well, and actually, the colour reminds you of much hated school uniform, it works out as 10 divided by 3 = £3.33 each wear.

So, if a jacket cost you 99p to buy, £12.50 to have the sleeves shortened (as in this link, the first one google threw up http://www.dirty-laundry.co.uk/Alteration.htm) , and you wear it every other day for a year, that's 0.99 plus 12.50 = 13.49, divided by 182 (days, half a year) = 0.07 each wear.

It's why I try not to have too many clothes - I just wouldn't wear them all and then they wouldn't be cost effective to have. I'd rather have a few, wear them well and then replace as needed.

MrsCD

monnagran wrote: »

About charities. I finally had to write to a charity that I'd supported for years and tell them that although the spirit was willing the purse strings were weak, and as I was living on a very small pension I could no longer afford the DD every month. To my surprise I had a lovely letter back saying that they quite understood and thanking me for all the support I had given them over the years. Made me feel worse if anything. When my brother and I took over dealing with Dad's affairs, we discovered that nearly 50% of his income was going to charities. Mostly it was fairly small amounts but lots of them, but one was to a charity we'd never heard of and it was for £5,000! He was getting very confused by that time so we gently removed most of the DDs and informed the people concerned why.

PAH we all have different ways of dealing with the difficult times in our lives and respect your way of dealing with yours. Just know that you are surrounded by loving thoughts and that there is a wall of support around you. We are here if you need us.

All this talk about the C word frightens me to death. Our Christmas is rather odd. Living within a church environment means that we start with all the Fairs and Sales. Glide seamlessly through endless C.......s dinners, (last year we clocked up 11), every Carol Service in the area, Christingles, Tree Festivals, Nativity Plays etc. Then, when the time itself hoves into view we have a crib service on C....s Eve, a midnight communion, 2 services on THE morning, cooking a C.......s dinner for the old and lonely, and as last year IT fell on a Sunday, as soon as we had waved the last elderly person off we started again with doing a Festive dinner for the Drop-in.

On Boxing day we stay in our jammies all day and eat cheese sandwiches.

You'll note that none of this includes our own card writing, present buying, fanily get togethers etc.

No, I don't look forward to this time of the year with any great eagerness.

This is Scrooge signing off.

x

We get lots of charity requests too, but we send them back unopened with 'unwanted mail - return to sender' written on the front, and eventually they get the message. Apparently, if you don't open the mail, you can return it as unwanted mail and they have to take notice that it is unwanted. Or so I'm told.

I prefer to choose which charities I support, not feel pressured or 'guilt tripped' into supporting. The small charities often get left out because they can't afford to advertise, and charity shops are a great way to support without having to spend regularly with a direct debit. IMHO I think each person should do what they feel is right for them, and if they can't afford anything that's ok. It's their decision.

Oooh monnagran - I really feel for you! How on earth do you cope with all of that? You must be very organised to find time for your own Christmas. Hope someone helps you. Lots of love and rest by the end of the year.

PAH - I don't spend much time here, but I just wanted to send you some love 'n' hugs as well.