Hedgesparrow stretches her wings again

EssexHebridean

Allowing for the fact that your £100 a month covers toiletries, entertainment etc and clothes, it sounds pretty reasonable to me. Nobody would turn a hair if you turned in an SOA with £10 accounted for under toiletries, £30 under clothes and £60 entertainment, so why - bearing in mind your level of debt - it all being lumped into one like that has caused a reaction is a bit odd!

As for the £80 a month for gifts, yes that does seem high to what most people would allow, but if you have a big family/circle of friends who all gift for every occasion, I can see how it would mount up like that! If I'm reading right, you're also intending that anything left over from that in a given month will be paid as additional payments against the debt anyway? We put £35 a month into a savings account against presents we buy jointly, and I also stash £20 against MrEH's birthday and Christmas presents - and those amounts should cover the entire spend this year, I think.

Allowing for the fact that you have been here before and know what caused you to fall off the wagon on those occasions, putting the lessons learned into effect now sounds like a sensible and mature approach to me - you can cut things as close to the bone as you like, but the more you do so, the harder it is to keep that level of scrimping up and the more you end up feeling hard done by.

hedgesparrow

EssexHebridean wrote: »

you can cut things as close to the bone as you like, but the more you do so, the harder it is to keep that level of scrimping up and the more you end up feeling hard done by.

Yeah that pretty much hits the nail on the head for me. If I don't spend money even though I tell myself I could I feel resourceful and clever. If I don't spend money because I tell myself I'm not allowed I feel resentful. Thanks Essex Hebridean.

hedgesparrow

So I was checking my account today and I realised I have no more direct debits to come out before the end of the month and I have all my personal spending out in cash already. I checked my balance to see how much more I have (which is all backwards as I'm in my overdraft) than the end of last month. I had £274.

This seemed weird but great. I'd hoped to have £200 to pay off the debt this month but I've got more. I then realised it's because my medical treatment this month was less because I've got one less appointment due to the holidays. Also, my fuel cost less than I budgeted for but I definitely have enough fuel to last me until I go back to work in the new year. Yay!

The interest on my credit card is due to go up this month to more than my overdraft so I've paid the £274 off that. This feels weird to me but I think it's the right choice. It's all debt but my brain sees paying money out of the minus money as very strange. Either way I'm £274 less in debt than I was at the end of last month. I'm very happy with that!

Off to update my signature

hedgesparrow

Okay. Missed a week I think? Somewhere in amongst mince pies, some Baileys, Christmas telly and lots of family and friends. It's been lovely but it's back to reality this week

I had some money left on my December personal spending (£9 odd) - the rest went on meals and drinks out I think. I managed to resist the sales completely (wasn't that hard when other people put photos of queues on facebook). I've randomly stuck the £9 something in a jam jar for now. I'm not even sure what I'm doing with it but I'll worry about that when I need it? Glad I didn't overspend my personal spending in December.

Oh and there was also one £2 coin which I've put in a moneybox. Gonna start collecting those.

I did a lot of overtime coming up to Christmas and I got paid some of it in my December pay packet. £276. I've put it straight on the credit card so that's reduced nicely to £360. I've never done this - paying money off at the beginning of the month. It feels good.

I realised just after I'd done this that I'd made the mistake of forgetting my minimum payment would come out of the credit card last month. So my overdraft actually increased by £25. I'll sort it out at the end of the month.

Hope anyone who's reading made any sense of that!

hedgesparrow

Forgot to say I haven't spent any present or personal spending money this month yet! Haven't even got the cash out of the bank.

hedgesparrow

I got my personal spending cash out today. I've already spent a bit online. When that happens I put the money into my fuel wallet from the cash (as I normally pay for fuel by card it all works itself out in the end).

I bought a replacement for a broken knitting needle and some needle coils to try to sort my knitting needles out for under £7 and a second hand book for £3.

I've got a meal out with a friend coming up (it's her birthday) a weekend with friends coming to ours (though that should be able to be cheap as we can play games etc), and I need to pay for the annual subs for a group I belong to in our town. So I need to save my personal spending cash for that and not waste it.

I wanted to remind myself how lucky I am and how much I have. I don't need to spend much money. Here goes:

* I have a freeview tv box that I can record onto. I recorded lots of lovely Christmas telly so can watch that over these winter months.

* I think we have at least 20 DVDs that I have never watched and plenty I've seen before that I would love to rewatch.

* I have lots of books. Lots. I can resist buying more for a while surely.

* Similarly I have lots of craft materials. I can knit and sew myself up a storm.

* I got given plenty of bath stuff for Christmas. I love to have baths and this (like everything above) is a cheapish activity.

*We got given lots of treaty food for Christmas too. If I eek this out it should last ages.

That seems like enough entertainment for the next two months doesn't it?!

EssexHebridean

Here's a suggestion for you. Get yourself a savings tin or pig - one you already have, DON'T go and buy a new one! If you don't have anything suitable then find a plastic tub for now, that'll do.

Each week take your spending money out as planned. At the end of the week, before going to the bank, put anything you have left from your week's money into the tin and leave it there. Repeat. Once you have enough in the tin to cover a week's spending budget, use that for that week, and transfer the usual sum from your bank to the CC debt.

I do this - albeit my transfer is to savings rather than debt - works a treat and gives you a real sense of achievement!

hedgesparrow

Thanks Essex Hebridean,

I have loads of piggy banks and that sounds like a great idea. I seem obsessed with moving money about in different wallets and jars at the moment!

hedgesparrow

Got an email from Natwest Rewards today saying I have £9.23 in my rewards account so I've transferred it to my bank account. When it properly arrives I'll pay it off the card. The reward thing is for cashback from using my card. I've had a look on the rewards website and realised I get 1% cashback for paying by contactless. I guess they are trying to encourage people to do that. Because I get cash out I don't use my card that much but I do for fuel and groceries and both of those weekly are less than £30 each so if I make sure I pay by contactless I will get the cashback. Every penny helps I guess.

Remembered today that I agreed last year to go to a hen weekend this spring! Eek! I have already paid the deposit and they said they are going to try to keep costs down but I better get saving my personal spending for that too.

hedgesparrow

Weekly update

Personal Spending this week - £63.70!!!! eek!!!

£2.50 - craft club
£20 - yearly subs for another club in my town
£2 - into £2 saving pot
£39.20 - night out for friends birthday

Present spending this week £0

So you can easily spot the guilty suspect here. I had a nice night out but am regretting spending that amount of money. I don't normally go out out with that group of friends as they have more money than me but as it was a birthday I conceded.... I learnt my lesson I guess.

I now have £26.30 to last me till the end of the month personal spending wise and I'm confident I can make this last and hopefully save some towards the hen do costs.

Natwest rewards money still not through (grrr... they say it takes five days - this seems silly) but when it comes through I will pay it off the card.

I'm still on track so I need to keep my chin up and not let my splurge get me down.