Keep saving and keep smiling

evo5819

Hi everyone

I'm currently saving for a big trip and wanted somewhere I could jot down some daily thoughts about how I'm doing it and how much I'm saving. Whilst this isn't going towards debt per say, booking the flights etc is going to cost and would get me otherwise in debt so I thought a savings diary would be justified here.

So, here's what I'm hoping to save from now until next december:

Target = £4000
Currently at: £470

The above target isn't including flights, visas etc :eek: so is going to be a challenge. However, I made my first major move today which was quitting smoking! Day one had just been completed and I'm feeling good about it. Got my e-cig which is helping majorly. Saving me around £25 a week so it's a huge help.

Looking forward to updating this and feel free to jump in if you fancy a chat

NSD's in a row:

Rosie_D

Hi

It sounds like you have a good plan. If you go over to the saving & investments site, there's a thread called save £12k in 2016 where everyone is trying to save, you don't have to save £12k, you can set a target for any amount you'd like.

Good luck on your journey!

evo5819

Thanks Rosie! I'll definitely check that thread out. I'm one of those who will just get confused if everyone is writing in the same thread so my own one if better suited for me haha but I'll go and have a look anyway. Thanks for the good luck!

evo5819

So day 2 of no smoking didn't go that well...feel very down that I've messed up already. Had a stressful day in work and someone offered me a cigarette outside on my way home (they didn't know I had quit) and I stupidly accepted. But hey ho, i'm home now and back on my e-cig so will just try and forget about it.

Potted 3.70 in my sealed pots today towards savings which is a good feeling. The tins are feeling heavier already. Need to to to the bank and put £60 in from my wallet that has been sitting in there...any longer and I'll end up spending it so best that it goes in ASAP.

evo5819

So my savings have gone down by £100 today �� Turns out I owed my mum £100 from a few months back which I had completely forgotten about. Aah well, no point crying over spilt milk it's out of the account now and I can focus on saving again.

Had my refund from M&S today for a faulty item I returned. Took them long enough but £5 is going in to my sealed pot and the rest into my savings.

chanie

Good luck with your challenge.

Sorry to hear you are £100 down, that's annoying, but at least you had the money to pay it and that you've now got it out of the way, so that you can focus on saving.

evo5819

Hi Chanie! Thanks for popping in.

You're right that I can now focus on the saving instead. December is just such an expensive month. Partly due to me leaving my christmas shopping until last minute and partly because there are so many 'christmas nights out' that I'm invited to and don't know how to turn them down I would usually just say no but one is with work, one is with some old friends I haven't seen in years and one is with my family so it's kinda hard to say no to any. Just going to have to be careful with what I spend.

chanie

It's too late now, but I buy Christmas presents throughout the year so it means I'm not skint in Dec/Jan.

Sorry to digress,but how do you plan on saving the money needed and where are you going on your trip?

evo5819

I've got a saving plan set up for each month and how much I plan on saving out of my wages. I'm also doing the sealed pot challenge which will hopefully have a good amount in by the end of the year. I have a couple of things to sell before I go too such as my iMac and iPhone (will be using a cheap one out there) so will hopefully get a good amount for those.

I'm going to australia/new zealand/fiji for a year if all goes to plan. Then maybe over to south east asia for a few months before heading home. I'll be working in Aus to fund some of my trip too and I luckily have some friends over their already who are kind enough to put me up for a month in their apartment so if it all works out, I should be away for a good year and a half

On a completely random note: I'm really not liking halifax's new 'cash left until payday' feature on their online banking. Just because looking at it right now is making me feel a bit ill ha ha

evo5819

Just decided I am going to put the amount of NSD's in my first post daily too. Hoping to try and do 7 in a row. I'm not including christmas nights out/meals with that because I have put that money in another account so that is budgeted for. I just want to avoid buying lunch at work etc. Made a nice sweet chilli chicken salad for tomorrow

chanie

Your trip sounds amazing.

Over the last couple of years, I've made lots of changes to cut down on my 'work' spends. I try and regard them as a negative and a waste, so I try and spend as little as possible where I can:

Commute - I found a new route to work which is about £100 a month cheaper as I essentially get off the train a few stops earlier and walk the rest of the way.

Coffees/magazines etc - I sometimes bring a travel cup with tea if I want a warm drink. I'll browse online or read a free newspaper instead of buying a magazine.

Lunches - I bring these from home. If I fancy something different, I sometimes get a supermarket ready meal, which is cheaper than going to pret a mange etc. A colleague buys multipacks of fizzy drinks and brings one in every day as they are much cheaper than the local shops.

Anyway, that was just a few of my tips.