2017 Frugal Living Challenge

Little--fish

Hi dnms, yes I've applied for this year - almost talked myself out of it as my youngest starts school in September so it might be a bit hectic if I were to get on the course. However I decided not to delay the application until next year as the chances of getting on first time are so low that it will be a good practice for next year's application - and if by some miracle I do get on then we will just have to cope!

I haven't done the year as an AP as it isn't a requirement for the specific Uni I've applied for, but I have voluntary experience in the field and my job now is also related. I've only applied for one Uni (out of the possible four) because I can't move house at the moment while the kids are so little and so have applied to the nearest one (which I also like very much). If I haven't managed to get a place at this Uni in the next 2-3 years then I may apply further afield. And I'm mid-thirties so probably quite a bit older than most applicants - I'm telling myself that a bit of extra experience is a good thing though

I'll keep you updated and please keep me updated on your progress too - and good luck!

Frizzlef

Well I have finished my first full week of tracking out spending and it has been a real eye opener

£95 on fuel (2 cars)
£60 on food (that included a stock up shop so not all for this week)
£106 in stuff for the house (I mean paint, light switches etc- so stuff for the renovations)

And then another £40 on football club, medication, new coat for ds2, birthday cards Etc. so nothing awful but interesting to see how it quickly adds up to £300. I will have to see how next week compares!

Sold something on g**tree. Only £5 but it has gone in the pot.
Had roast beef for dinner and has some meat left over so have wrapped it in tin foil to have for sandwiches. Also had some veg left over so outburst in the fridge and will have it for my dinner tomorrow.

oH is very impressed with himself. He was out volunteering at a race today. Out of the house 8-3 and he didn't buy anything from the burger van. I did take him some sandwiches at 2pm though on his request. He is very proud of himself!!at work tomorrow so hoping it will be a NSD!

skint_chick

I'd love to join in, for the last few years I've just followed along as I've had a lot less time. I work 3 days a week and also have my own business. The last few months I've been focusing on decluttering the house and have made several hundred pounds selling stuff we don't need anymore (hubby's branded clothes, old electronics, shoes, bags, craft supplies etc). So I'm about halfway with that and will continue to hopefully make another £2-300 this year. I am also keen to put more effort into growing our own veg - last year we grew about 50% of what we need so this year I am trying a few new veggies and increasing production of my staple veggies. I have an autoimmune disorder and eat a specialised diet so everything is made from scratch in our house, which takes a lot of organising and means that there is rarely any waste.


Hoping to get a new kitchen installed, we have a tiny kitchen and it is heavily used so is showing wear and tear badly. We also need more units as I only have 3 upper cabinets, so we are getting 3 additional ones, and hiding the kettle and blender behind a door as well as reorganising how everything is put away.


Eventually the plan is to buy a plot of land and live in a tiny house that we build ourselves and have as sustainable and off grid a lifestyle as possible. So the more we can downsize and downshift our lifestyle now the easier the transition will be!

Frizzlef

Ooh I want to grow a few veggies this year. We just had some tomatoes last year as it was our first summer at this house. But this year I want to do lettuces again. I love the fact that you can cut them as you need them. We waste so much lettuce!!! Hopefully tomatoes but would like to get them in the ground- just don't think it was worth it last year after buying the grow bags.
Anybody know anything we can grow soon??
NSD today for myself and OH. Would like another one tomorrow!!
We used up veggies from yesterday's dinner. Hubby was not impressed that we had veggies with jacket pots!! Lol!

determined_new_ms

skint_chick wrote: »

I'd love to join in, for the last few years I've just followed along as I've had a lot less time. I work 3 days a week and also have my own business. The last few months I've been focusing on decluttering the house and have made several hundred pounds selling stuff we don't need anymore (hubby's branded clothes, old electronics, shoes, bags, craft supplies etc). So I'm about halfway with that and will continue to hopefully make another £2-300 this year. I am also keen to put more effort into growing our own veg - last year we grew about 50% of what we need so this year I am trying a few new veggies and increasing production of my staple veggies. I have an autoimmune disorder and eat a specialised diet so everything is made from scratch in our house, which takes a lot of organising and means that there is rarely any waste.


Hoping to get a new kitchen installed, we have a tiny kitchen and it is heavily used so is showing wear and tear badly. We also need more units as I only have 3 upper cabinets, so we are getting 3 additional ones, and hiding the kettle and blender behind a door as well as reorganising how everything is put away.


Eventually the plan is to buy a plot of land and live in a tiny house that we build ourselves and have as sustainable and off grid a lifestyle as possible. So the more we can downsize and downshift our lifestyle now the easier the transition will be!

Hi & welcome skint_chick oh my your plans are my dream! Have you seen the documentary "we the tiny house people"? If you haven't I strongly recommend you go on youtube and find it! You will be drooling I promise sadly while this is my dream it isn't my oh's so my grand plans for registering our land and building a small apartment on the land and not being met with warm reception!

Frizzlef wrote: »

Ooh I want to grow a few veggies this year. We just had some tomatoes last year as it was our first summer at this house. But this year I want to do lettuces again. I love the fact that you can cut them as you need them. We waste so much lettuce!!! Hopefully tomatoes but would like to get them in the ground- just don't think it was worth it last year after buying the grow bags.
Anybody know anything we can grow soon??
NSD today for myself and OH. Would like another one tomorrow!!
We used up veggies from yesterday's dinner. Hubby was not impressed that we had veggies with jacket pots!! Lol!

Frizzlef I would say it's a bit early for sowing. I know chillis can be sown from the end of the month. But to be honest the things I started early last year didn't produce any quicker than things I planted in spring. so I did sow toms early and then again later and they both produced at the same time so I won't bother this year. Can you build a cold frame? Not that difficult and means things can go out slightly earlier. There's a great thread on the greenfingers board called growing your own veg. Last year was the first year I got into growing my own and produced about £360 worth of veg!

Frizzlef

Determined- thanks for the info. I will hang fire on the seeds! Just itching to get started!
Another NSD today and used up food from the freezer for dinner.
Batch cooked meatballs tomorrow night!

cw18

Well I've given myself a dilema.....

I mentioned earlier I've decided I have to watch 2 DVDs before I can buy 1 to try and reduce the size of my 'for watching' pile.

DD bought me 18 films for my birthday (all second hand - she's been well trained ), and as they were presents I easily decided they're exempt from the ruling (so I don't need to watch 36 before I start earning credits for buying more myself).

But my OH gave me an Amaz0n voucher he's clearly expecting me to spend on DVDs, and I'm can't decide whether or not my rules apply to spending this. If he'd bought some and given them to me then they wouldn't require me to watch any to 'earn' them, but because I'm going to be doing the ordering I can't help feeling I should be applying the 'watch 2 to buy 1' rule...... I've been pondering this one for 48 hours whilst watching the price of a set of 6 drop to a new all time low, and while knowing I've not yet watched enough to be allowed to buy it (only have enough credits for 2).

Off to sleep on it for another 6.5 hours or so in the knowledge I may get up in the morning and find someone else has bought it - I've already missed out on a 24 DVD set while pondering




Generally speaking things are going pretty well.

I've managed to get half the contents of the freezer that's conking out into the other one now, and a lot of what's still in it is low value stuff (includes frozen veg, chips, cheap ice-cream, stuffed pasta and yorkshire puddings). Feeling a lot happier now I've moved out the pork steaks, lamb steaks and breaded chicken portions I had in it, but still trying to get as much as possible of the rest used or moved over before it gives out completely.

My grocery spends are well down because I've been using up a lot from stock (and not just from the freezers), and even adding on the replacement costs of things used from stock it looks like I'm under budget so far this month (need to try and calculate what it would cost me to replace the 3 portions of stew and 1 portion of chilli I've had from the freezers before I can tell exactly where I'm at).

I've been sent to different offices quite a bit this month (I've done 10 days at 'my' office out of 16 working days), so have a fair amount of mileage money coming in to offset my petrol spend. Tomorrow is another day away from my base, so more mileage pennies to be claimed for that

But the 'fix' to my exhaust hasn't solved the problem, so I may still be looking at a nasty spend there

Miss_D_Meanour

I think the voucher is a gift and not part of your budget. Also, he has bought the DVDs for you already - just leaving the content selection up to you, so definitely outside of the rules you set. Select, order and enjoy!

determined_new_ms

Frizzlef wrote: »

Determined- thanks for the info. I will hang fire on the seeds! Just itching to get started!
Another NSD today and used up food from the freezer for dinner.
Batch cooked meatballs tomorrow night!

now is a good time for preparing, washing out pots, repairing/obtaining anything needed - bootfairs are starting again now going through seeds and working out schedule of planting. Patience grasshopper it will soon be sowing season

Miss_D_Meanour wrote: »

I think the voucher is a gift and not part of your budget. Also, he has bought the DVDs for you already - just leaving the content selection up to you, so definitely outside of the rules you set. Select, order and enjoy!

good call Miss D Meanour, good call

I've added a new line to my sig to record the amount of money we save by me only working p/t. Really for my own interest as I want to know in monetary terms what all my frugalling effects contribute to the household - makes me feel less guilty for oh who works so much! - so far this month we're talking about an extra £350 to the pot (that and my wombling total) Be good to tell him at the end of the year

determined_new_ms

I love my days off! Today took madam for her preschool injections and as it is so miserable outside we decided to come home and make some fairy cakes as a treat for being so brave have iced 1/2 and will freeze the other half.

I whipped up a batch of brownies that have just come out of the oven so will slice up and freeze the majority when they cool for sweet treats over the next couple of weeks.

And I also made a big batch of spicy squash soup using up a kilo of squash grown at my allotment.

After all that activity I think sitting down and watching a film with madam and having a brownie is in order