The Magnificent May-pole NSD Challenge!

marmiterulesok

Welcome to The Magnificent May-pole NSD Challenge!


We are a happy (and some might say mildly insane) bunch doing battle with those retailers - and there’s plenty of temptation out there at the moment. We are seriously committed to saving money, but nobody said it can't be done with a smile on your face - so we organise riotous nights out and gatecrash any function going - all without leaving the comfort of our own imaginations or armchairs!

On a slightly more serious note, we are here to help each other avoid spending for the number of days we feel we can manage to try to take back some control over our hard-earned money. What you class as a "spend'" is entirely your choice; some people will try to shop on the days DD/SO etc are paid, whilst others will not include essentials such as rent. Have a look for a post from our sponsor (and godmother of this challenge) BigMummaF, this contains some guidelines and ideas for starting you off on the challenge.

It’s amazing how inventive you get when you’re determined NOT to spend - from weird menu ingredients to surprising DIY solutions - but you know what? 99% of the time those wacky ideas work.



Check out the prizes.....






1st target




2nd target


3rd target






target exceeded

marmiterulesok

Click here for April's thread

marmiterulesok

Some helpful suggestions and ideas to follow below from our sponsor and godmother, BigMummaF :A

NO SPEND CHALLENGE.

1. Have a good, long think about what YOU want to include in your Spend & Excluded categories.
Some of us count everything from Direct Debits & school expenses, while others do not include things like essential Bills or emergency medical costs. If you plan what is or is not a Spend for you now, it will help you decide on a realistic Target.
2. It is NOT a race!
We all have very different demands on our time & bank balance, so please do not think you have to buy everything on 1st January & make it last till 31st December! A few of us have been following this Challenge for a long...long...LONG time so have developed plans & ploys to help us along the way
3. Most important of all, WE..DO..NOT..FAIL!
Sometimes we can't quite reach our Target, but that is fine Everyone knows how Life will try to trip us up, & that is when you will find us here to help you back on to your feet.

OK, an idea of how some of us do things.
1. What you will or will not include as a 'Spend'.
Some people are doing other challenges too, & don't include the money spent on those for this one.
Some will try to shop for other bits on the days their direct debits etc go out of their bank accounts; they're the real hard core of the bunch & have been l-o-n-g time NSDers so don't panic
Some won't count those annoying last minute demands from school & collections as you can't plan for them in advance, likewise emergency prescriptions or visits to the vet
Personally speaking & providing I don't buy anything else, I don't count parking for hospital appointments.(..but then I usually do my shopping because I'm already out :whistle:)
General thoughts on €bay sales is the buyer has paid P&P so no cost to you
2. It takes Time to reach mega-numbers!
The First suggestion is the first, because a bit of planning will work wonders on your road to your Target. Have a look at thefirst posts each month for a hefty list of other threads that may be of help. For example, there's a few giving ideas for packed lunches so you can avoid standing in the queue at the bakers for 45mins of your lunch hour! A good incentive to tweak your healthy eating & the pounds you save will show in your bank balance AND your waistline
It helps to have various 'money pots' for the different costs that happen like Scouts, dinner money, yoga, window cleaner etc etc. The idea is you "spend" all that money in one hit by..:think:..let's say **putting the week's bus fares into the pretty coffee jar, Jo's tumble tots [Weds mornings] in the cracked teapot & Ben's £1 coin for the gym locker [Friday lunch] in the pocket of the changing bag, on Tuesdays every week when you've got some change from doing the food shop, so an already spendy day. At least four 'spending days' condensed into one (**mine's jam jars for windows, milkman & a bit towards the bills!)
3. Any day the money stays in your pocket is a bonus!
If you look at it as a day you beat the system, you can't help but :j so don't fret it--ENJOY! If nothing else in here, we do manage find something to make us smile

We have virtual outings to wonderful places that never cost us a bean :rotfl:New York, Edinburgh & Brighton have been a couple & nargle usually pilots the Tardis but you can use your own transport; my personal favourite has been a sit-on lawn mower borrowed from the cricket club The only thing to be aware of is Hubert the donkey who is partial to anything remotely edible but is not yet house-trained

And Remember;
there are no silly questions, so don't be afraid to ask us anything!

Pippin12

Thankyou for sorting us out Marmite! I'm going for 14 NSDs this month - it'll be a stretch but I'm game for a laugh! I'm trying for 4-in-a-row too - I only made it to 3-in-a-row in April.

marmiterulesok

Oops,the prizes haven't worked,and I'm having problems with colour.:o

We'll put that on the back-burner for the time being.Once you've posted your target,I'll add you on to the list.

Here's the list of the challengers:

beanielou 15/15 Target increased 19/19 Target exceeded 22/19

blubella 0/12

Butti 1/8

Cheery Daff12/12 Target exceeded 13/12

cw18 15/15 Target exceeded 19/15

DeafLeopard 1/15

Debt reducer 6/10

donna dynamo 12/15

dottysbird 7/12

ETO 3/10

fedupandskint 24/25

Happy Torty 0/5

IrishRose12 18/20

jaxsmar 16/16

kerri gt 7/11

Knit Witch 15/15 Target increased 20/20 Third target 25/25 Target exceeded 28/25

lovefullshelves 18/21

marmiterulesok 19/19

moby1980 8/18

Nargleblast 10/16

Pippin12 11/14

Saver-upper 9/11

slowlyfading 18/20

supersaver1000 4/16

Thrifty Fashionista 0/12

tooties 5/18

trev79 0/25

marmiterulesok

The 'in-a-row' challengers:

beanielou 5-in-a-row achieved!


DeafLeopard 3-in-a-row


Knit Witch 4-in-a-row achieved!6-in-a-row achieved!


lovefullshelves 3-in-a-row


marmite 4-in-a-row achieved!


pippin12 4-in-a-row


Saver-upper 3-in-a-row achieved!4-in-a-row achieved!


Don't be shy!

marmiterulesok

Pippin12 wrote: »

Thankyou for sorting us out Marmite! I'm going for 14 NSDs this month - it'll be a stretch but I'm game for a laugh! I'm trying for 4-in-a-row too - I only made it to 3-in-a-row in April.

I'm the same.I only got 3 in April.

Onwards and upwards!:cool:

Knit_Witch

going for 15 and 4 in a row please!

Nargleblast

ROCK ON marmite!!!!!!

The May thread is now officially launched for NSD gang members to sign in with their targets for May - come on, everyone, let's party! kerri is providing the maypole and Igor's doing the hogroast and...I think I will just sit in the corner and sample the Mayday cocktails.....

but not before I have signed in and declared my target is 16 NSDs for May!

donna_dynamo

Would like to try for my usual NSD 15.

cw18

I'm in for 15 again please

I'm extending my 'allowable' spends to include cooked meat for sandwiches, cottage cheese to have with jacket spuds, and cream for my coffee. None are items I buy on a regular basis, but all are ones I'm picking up on spend days in case I fancy them and then throwing at least some away because I didn't. Also yoghurt for breakfast when I have muesli - something I either fancy when I've no yoghurt in the house, or don't fancy when I have!! I'm going to try another month without allowing bread as I really should be making it, but I'll look at that one again going into June.