Chanie fabulously looks after her pennies...

chanie

I learned a lesson today about not spending before I've checked at home. I nearly bought some Christmas cards for DS classmates, but when I got home, I found a stash of cards with the Christmas decorations. i also found another item I thought I was going to have to replace. I'm very pleased with myself.

chanie

Dear Diary,

I don't have much to update - I've been keeping on top of my frugal activities, so that's good.

Xmas is pretty much sorted so its nice not to have a stressful (and skint) December. Luckily, we are going to family for Xmas dinner, so we haven't had to sort that out.

chanie

I have a test off willpower coming up tomorrow.....

I need pop to the shops tomorrow as I have a few things I need to buy and I will be going to Home Bargains. I always end up spending lots in there, so I need to be careful with my spending.

I have written a list of what I need to try and keep me on track.

maddiemay

Hi Chanie
Recognised you from the "Fab" thread, just thought I would drop by and say hello.

I live at least 26 miles from a large town and sometimes feel I really miss out on B&M and Home Bargains and the like, but in reality I am sure that it must save me a fortune:)

Good luck with reducing the overdrafts, you seem to be really thinking about your spending:D

chanie

Thanks for dropping by Maddie.

My trip to Home Bargains was rather successful in that I only spend £13!!! I only needed a couple of bits and I wrote a list to keep me on track.

Kitten868

Glad to see you're back on the horse and it's all going well. December is a scary month for finances so be proud that you're getting through without issues
I think what you say about being time poor is true.
eBay you can do it!! Bet the kids have outgrown loads of toys and clothes and it's good to clear the space ready for their new stuff! Also all the stuff making space for Christmas decorations. We live in a flat with no storage so it's given us our flat back. Hubby doesn't notice but I feel so much lighter for it x

chanie

I really do need to have a clear out - clothes aren't too bad as I do this fairly regularly, but we do have lots of toys to sort through. We don't have much storage either.

a 2016 challenge

I've decided to set myself a challenge to see if I can save £500 through:
Claiming back travel delays on my train ticket for work - this is out of my control, but if delayed I SHOULD claim it back as its 'free' money

Using discounted shopping vouchers - I can get these through work and save 5-10% on purchases, so not a huge saving, but I guess it adds up. I need to be organized with ordering the vouchers during sales to maximise the discounts.

Loyalty card spends - I'm not loyal to any particular shop, but I will collect points when I can.

Freebies and offers - any freebies I get will count, as long as they are 'useful' e.g. something I would have bought anyway.

EBay - a step outside of my comfort zone. I have a couple of 'brand new, with tags' items of clothing. They were given to me, so would be total profit.

General frugalness - e.g. if I bake a cake instead of buying one, the difference counts.

I estimate I saved £200 in 2015, with minimal effort, so £500 is possible, as its about £40 a month.

Kitten868

Ooh starting with the resolutions! I'm too scared to work mine out yet lol. Sounds like a good plan to me. Rather than sales wouldn't it be better to get them in time for birthdays? So is it just not to spend money or are you going to use these 'savings' to pay debts? X

chanie

Thanks kitten, you have raised some interesting points. I do want to cutback on my spending and reduce my overdraft. However, OH and I have high outgoings e.g. nursery for Dd, running two cars, mortgage, plus we have big families so lots of birthdays etc. I guess what I'm trying to do is meet my commitments as cheaply as I can, which will reduce my overdraft. For example, if I budget £20 for a present, but get it for £10, that's a saving.

I do walk on the fine line between finding a bargain and spending for the sake of it, so that's something I need to work on. However, I am time poor due to working full time so don't always have the luxury of choice.

I think with resolutions, they should be started right away, so that's why I'm thinking about them now, but I don't expect anyone else to.

chanie

I've updated my signature to allow for my challenge to save £500.

For now, I've broken down my challenge into two parts:
Direct savings - these are savings on items I need/want to buy, so they represent a genuine saving
Indirect savings - these are on 'extras' e.g. 'nice to haves'.

Ideally I want to save £500 on necessary spends, but I'll see how I go.