2016 - A year of 16 Challenges

takingcontrolatlast

Thanks for the ideas - i will also have a look in pin interest - i forgot about that site!

Keep up the good work :j

craftingmad

Update for 9th January. Not loads done but I suppose every little helps


1. Stash Busting - 9/365 days of no spending
Items made 22/2016
Another day of no craft spending added, more photos printed ready for project life and I have used some ribbon to help tidy up my craft room a bit more

2. Decluttering 117/2016
Not much on the decluttering front again today but I have thrown away a large piece of cardboard which was the packaging for a cutting board I bought ages ago

3. Make £2016 - £44/£2016
Nothing new to declare yet

4. Starting weight - Weight Now -
No progress apart from I did eat some dried apricots as a snack and lettuce, carrot and cumber with my dinner Really must start this tomorrow! (again)

5. Sealed pot challenge
nothing put in today

6. NSD 4/120
NSD today :j

7. Amazon Pot - £39.76/£200 (£29.76 left over from last year)
Managed to earn a few swagbucks

8. 16 outlets - 0/16
No progress made on this yet

9. Store Cupboard Challenge 0/52
Jacket potatoes tonight


10. New meals 0/12
No

11. Flylady Challenge 3/352
No new progress for me

12. Handmade Christmas 1/50
Nothing further to report

13. Save/pay off 16k - £104.84/£16k
Nothing new

14. Project Life 1/13
More photos printed waiting to go into pockets

15. Quality Time 2/52
Sitting in front of tv watching Saturday night tv

16. Phoning Parents - 3/52
Phoned today as my dad had to go to the doctors as his face had swelled .Luckily it is nothing serious and seems to have got better as the day wore on

Cutcostsandsave

Hi Craftingmad
I've just been catching up on this thread as I've not had time to log on for a few days. I have made some progress with my goals though so will update this evening :j

Saw you bit about broadband. I swapped mine a few months ago and got a fantastic deal. Also got £100 of love to shop vouchers and £94 cash back at the time. If you want a link to where I got the deal then let me know. It's definitely worth doing

Maximum_Saving

Good luck with your 16 challenges. I think that you have got some very good ideas. I began losing weight in 2011 and had excellent results by 2014. I am trying to stay slim and do this with plenty of exercise. I eat three meals and day and never snack. I have a vegan diet.

I am trying to use high interest Regular Saving Accounts and Current Accounts to make the best of the money I have. I am doing my very best to pay off my mortgage in September 2017. I had a slow start to my mortgage which I began in August 2010. I began overpaying it in 2012 and it has been very much worth it.

In 2016 I wish to make lots of progress paying off my mortgage. I want to declutter my bungalow and this will take lots of time.

Cutcostsandsave

Since going back to work on Tuesday I've not had time to post but I have been working hard on my goals

Update for this week is therefore :-
1. Make and take my lunch to work at least 18 days a month. - have succeeded in taking my own lunch every day this week In total I've saved £23.25 out of the £25 I would normally spend which is going towards my new washing machine. Packed lunches so far this month 5/18

2. Declutter 2016 items from my home in 2016 - no real progress on this but have a week off the week after next so intend having a real good clear out then. De cluttered 0/2016

3. Make £2016 in 2016. I am aiming to do this with de-cluttering sales, craft fairs, surveys (in fact anyway I can raise extra cash) - have had a really good week. In addition to the £15 I received earlier in week I have cashed out a further two Amazon vouchers (one for £10 and the other for £7.10) and claimed £21.33 from a shopping app that I use. I've also done lots of surveys and have worked a few hours overtime which will pay out in the future. Balance to date £53.43/£310 This isn't an average of £10 per day yet for the month but I'm confident that by the end of the month I will meet the target

4. Lose at least 2st in weight and get fitter. - bad news is that I've not managed any real exercise but brilliant news is that I've managed to eat at least 5 portions of fruit or veg each day and I've lost 3lb!. Weight loss 3lb/2st
5 a day - 5/362days

5. Sealed Pot Challenge. At the end of each week I shall empty all of my loose change into a sealed pot and not open until the end of the year - did this today. Currently 1/52 weeks

6. NSD Challenge - I am going to aim for at least 15 no spend days each month - haven't done too well on this but have managed 1 this week NSD 1/15 in Jan

7. £200 Amazon Pot - Get £200 in Amazon vouchers by Christmas this year. I am hoping to gain these using Swagbucks, GiftHulk and Superpoints and any other ways I come across. - Have received 2 vouchers this week from online earnings which have been added to balance.
Balance £23.62/£200

8. Make at least 3 evening meals a week that cost less than £1 a portion. - been using up lots of leftover this week so have done really well on this one. Two nights we've had veg curry at less than 50p per portion. One night we had a potato bake with onions and bacon (used bacon that I'd bought reduced for 30p a pack so meal cost just 40p a portion) Total to date 3/156 meals

9. Store Cupboard Challenge - Use only store cupboard items for at least one meal every week for the next year. See number 8. Everything already in cupboard 1/52

10. Keep grocery bill down to an average of less than £50 per week for the whole of the year. Did a pretty big top up shop for fresh foods yesterday. Lots of fresh fruit and veg but also included 2 bottles red wine (need some treats at the weekend?!) Spent £52.72 which is over weekly budget but shouldn't need much in next few weeks.
Total spent in 2016 = £79.64/£2600 - need to try harder with this one!

11. Fly lady challenge. This year will be the year I get a clean and tidy house - kitchen cupboards, fridge and freezer all sorted. Not had time to do much more

12. Handmade Christmas - if it can be made then I shall make it and not buy it. This includes presents for people, decorations, food (if it works out cheaper) etc. I am determined that at the very least everyone will get at least one handmade gift. - no progress as yet

13. Save / pay off £16k in 2016. - £21.33 claimed from shopping app has been paid into emergency fund
Goal £61.33/£16000

14. Home improvements - will do some much needed work in the house, including bedroom and kitchen renovations. Will make at least a small amount of progress each week so that by Christmas 2016 they are completely finished - no progress as yet

15. Grow some of my own food - make full use of greenhouse, grow lots of herbs and other veg. Go foraging for free food. Record savings made and save the money it would have cost to buy in supermarket. Aim for a fruit and veg savings pot of £500 by end of 2016 - no progress as yet

16. Phone my parents at least once every week - phoned them on Friday evening and had a long chat
Goal 1/52

Feel like I've had a good week but need to try harder in some areas going forward. Still feeling really motivated. Hope everyone else is too?

Philliper

Hi - can I add myself into the challenge, please? I've was inspired by craftingmad's post and wrote my 16 challenges down in my journal. May as well go public and have some accountability. So:

1. Read 16 books this year
2. Save £1 a day in the Xmas challenge
3. Declutter 2016 items from my home
4. Have 16 no spend days a month
5. Keep up with the Fly Lady challenge
6. Have a handmade Christmas (we did this a couple of years ago and it was well-received)
7. Save in the 365 Xmas accumulator (not sure what to call it - 1p on 1 Jan, 2p on 2 Jan, etc throughout year)
8. Make at least £16 extra per month (Ebay, writing sites etc)
9. Make a meal from store cupboard/freezer etc once per month
10 Try a new recipe once a month
11 Create 16 items (knitting, sewing, artwork)
12 Lose 2 lb a month Jan - Jun (I don't have a lot to lose, but need to drop a dress size)
13 Pay off £1600 of debt
14 Write 16 blog posts this year (my blog has been neglected to the extent that I've unpublished it for a while)
15 Write 500 words on book at least 16 times per month
16 Eat at least 5 fruit/veg each day

So far, I've made a fairly good start. I'll share how it's going tomorrow.

craftingmad

Cutcostsandsave wrote: »

Since going back to work on Tuesday I've not had time to post but I have been working hard on my goals

Update for this week is therefore :-
1. Make and take my lunch to work at least 18 days a month. - have succeeded in taking my own lunch every day this week In total I've saved £23.25 out of the £25 I would normally spend which is going towards my new washing machine. Packed lunches so far this month 5/18

2. Declutter 2016 items from my home in 2016 - no real progress on this but have a week off the week after next so intend having a real good clear out then. De cluttered 0/2016

3. Make £2016 in 2016. I am aiming to do this with de-cluttering sales, craft fairs, surveys (in fact anyway I can raise extra cash) - have had a really good week. In addition to the £15 I received earlier in week I have cashed out a further two Amazon vouchers (one for £10 and the other for £7.10) and claimed £21.33 from a shopping app that I use. I've also done lots of surveys and have worked a few hours overtime which will pay out in the future. Balance to date £53.43/£310 This isn't an average of £10 per day yet for the month but I'm confident that by the end of the month I will meet the target

4. Lose at least 2st in weight and get fitter. - bad news is that I've not managed any real exercise but brilliant news is that I've managed to eat at least 5 portions of fruit or veg each day and I've lost 3lb!. Weight loss 3lb/2st
5 a day - 5/362days

5. Sealed Pot Challenge. At the end of each week I shall empty all of my loose change into a sealed pot and not open until the end of the year - did this today. Currently 1/52 weeks

6. NSD Challenge - I am going to aim for at least 15 no spend days each month - haven't done too well on this but have managed 1 this week NSD 1/15 in Jan

7. £200 Amazon Pot - Get £200 in Amazon vouchers by Christmas this year. I am hoping to gain these using Swagbucks, GiftHulk and Superpoints and any other ways I come across. - Have received 2 vouchers this week from online earnings which have been added to balance.
Balance £23.62/£200

8. Make at least 3 evening meals a week that cost less than £1 a portion. - been using up lots of leftover this week so have done really well on this one. Two nights we've had veg curry at less than 50p per portion. One night we had a potato bake with onions and bacon (used bacon that I'd bought reduced for 30p a pack so meal cost just 40p a portion) Total to date 3/156 meals

9. Store Cupboard Challenge - Use only store cupboard items for at least one meal every week for the next year. See number 8. Everything already in cupboard 1/52

10. Keep grocery bill down to an average of less than £50 per week for the whole of the year. Did a pretty big top up shop for fresh foods yesterday. Lots of fresh fruit and veg but also included 2 bottles red wine (need some treats at the weekend?!) Spent £52.72 which is over weekly budget but shouldn't need much in next few weeks.
Total spent in 2016 = £79.64/£2600 - need to try harder with this one!

11. Fly lady challenge. This year will be the year I get a clean and tidy house - kitchen cupboards, fridge and freezer all sorted. Not had time to do much more

12. Handmade Christmas - if it can be made then I shall make it and not buy it. This includes presents for people, decorations, food (if it works out cheaper) etc. I am determined that at the very least everyone will get at least one handmade gift. - no progress as yet

13. Save / pay off £16k in 2016. - £21.33 claimed from shopping app has been paid into emergency fund
Goal £61.33/£16000

14. Home improvements - will do some much needed work in the house, including bedroom and kitchen renovations. Will make at least a small amount of progress each week so that by Christmas 2016 they are completely finished - no progress as yet

15. Grow some of my own food - make full use of greenhouse, grow lots of herbs and other veg. Go foraging for free food. Record savings made and save the money it would have cost to buy in supermarket. Aim for a fruit and veg savings pot of £500 by end of 2016 - no progress as yet

16. Phone my parents at least once every week - phoned them on Friday evening and had a long chat
Goal 1/52

Feel like I've had a good week but need to try harder in some areas going forward. Still feeling really motivated. Hope everyone else is too?

Fab effort cutcosts


Massive respect to you :j Keep up the great work

craftingmad

Philliper wrote: »

Hi - can I add myself into the challenge, please? I've was inspired by craftingmad's post and wrote my 16 challenges down in my journal. May as well go public and have some accountability. So:

1. Read 16 books this year
2. Save £1 a day in the Xmas challenge
3. Declutter 2016 items from my home
4. Have 16 no spend days a month
5. Keep up with the Fly Lady challenge
6. Have a handmade Christmas (we did this a couple of years ago and it was well-received)
7. Save in the 365 Xmas accumulator (not sure what to call it - 1p on 1 Jan, 2p on 2 Jan, etc throughout year)
8. Make at least £16 extra per month (Ebay, writing sites etc)
9. Make a meal from store cupboard/freezer etc once per month
10 Try a new recipe once a month
11 Create 16 items (knitting, sewing, artwork)
12 Lose 2 lb a month Jan - Jun (I don't have a lot to lose, but need to drop a dress size)
13 Pay off £1600 of debt
14 Write 16 blog posts this year (my blog has been neglected to the extent that I've unpublished it for a while)
15 Write 500 words on book at least 16 times per month
16 Eat at least 5 fruit/veg each day

So far, I've made a fairly good start. I'll share how it's going tomorrow.

Welcome Philliper


I'm loving your list. Good luck meeting your targets. I can't wait to read your progress

craftingmad

Quick update from me today as not achieved a great deal:-


1 no craft spend day added (taking my total to 10/365)


2. decluttered 3 more items (a bag of rubbish found in my study and two empty boxes which toys came in at Christmas
Total now 120/2016


6. A NSD for me taking my total to 5/120


Hoping to achieve a lot more tomorrow

craftingmad

Hi all,


Been mainly focusing on decluttering today and I have to say my hallway looks a lot better for it, even though I still have piles of my craft bits everywhere


So here's my progress:-


1. Stash Busting - 11/365 days of no spending
Items made 22/2016
Nearly got tempted to buy an alphabet punchboard today as I happened to tune in whilst I was sorting through a box of clutter but I stayed strong so another day to add to the total
Nothing new made yet though

2. Decluttering 240/2016
Had a good go in the hallway today and decluttered a further 120 things which doubled my total :j I'm a happy bunny on this front today and you can actually see the progress I am making

3. Make £2016 - £44/£2016
No actual money made today but my car boot box is getting fuller as I keep decluttering so hopefully by May time I may be able to convert these boxes into some extra cash for the total

4. Starting weight - Weight Now -
Bad day today. I found some animal bars whilst I was decluttering the hallway and managed to eat a whole 4 pack of them. Plus its pie for dinner tonight so definitely nothing achieved for this challenge today

5. Sealed pot challenge - money started to be added
£1.22 loose change found whilst decluttering so added to pot

6. NSD - 6/120
Yes -another NSD clocked up

7. Amazon Pot - £39.76/£200 (£29.76 left over from last year)
A few quick swagbucks and gifthulk coins earned and still waiting for outstanding amazon voucher from gifthulk

8. 16 outlets - 0/16
No progress yet

9. Store Cupboard Challenge 0/52
No not today - pie, mash and peas for tea using a pie I bought on Friday

10. New meals 0/12
Definitely had pie before so no new progress here

11. Flylady Challenge 3/352
I have done some cleaning but not the Flylady challenge

12. Handmade Christmas 1/50
No new progress here today:(

13. Save/pay off 16k - £124.84/£16k
Returned a spiraliser which did not seem to work today and decided not to get another one so £15 saved and transferred to savings and also credited postage costs of £6 from Create and Craft regarding orders I had problems with so also transferred into savings

14. Project Life 1/13
No new progress

15. Quality Time 2/52
Hoping to read Enid Blyton with the kids tonight after their guitar lessons and dinner. We got it out of the library and its a choose your own adventure version so should be fun

16. Phoning Parents - 3/52
No phone call tonight as Monday night is their club night