2019 Frugal Living Challenge

CapricornLass

Nicki_Sue, - yeah!!!!! So glad you've got something that suits you, and I hope you will all be very happy there. Glad to hear about the recommendation about Bulb as well, as I have been considering them for when our current contract expires.

Frugal journey for me - well it all started when the car we had needed a service and work done to it, and in came to over £1400! (this was in the 90s). That was the start of my money problems, and I slowly crept deeper into debt. Not that I realised this at the time, as both OH and I were in well paid jobs. Fast forward to 2006. In that time I had been made redundant twice, DS1 was going to uni, DS2 was going away to college and OH came home and announced that he had packed in his job. He got another one very quickly, but it meant that our income dropped by over half over night. That's when I started looking properly at all our debts and outgoings and finally realised how bad things were. The only good thing about this was that it happened before the Credit Crunch in 2008, although we wouldn't have know that at the time.

The next five years were really tough going, my cc had over £5 on it, we had existing loans and my OD was at its limit, and I was also having to pay accommodation costs for both sons, and having to bail DS1 out from time to time. (He really learnt from these experiences, though, and is now paranoid about getting into debt and budgets for everything). However, around 2007 I discovered this website, which really made a difference, and I started getting the debts down and getting rid of them. However, it wasn't until 2016 that I finally became debt-free, when I was made redundant and paid off the final debt and the rest of our mortgage with redundancy money from the third time of being made redundant. I have done some fixed term contracts since then, but retired at the end of last October. OH had retired in July.

We have at least got used to living on a lot less money in the meantime. However, I need to keep this up if I want to have the money to go and do the things I want to do and see. I also need to plan ahead a little for a couple of major jobs to be done around the house.

One thing I DONT need is more clothes - I can hardly shut the wardrobe door!

little_green

OLaney wrote: »

hi everyone

I have been having trouble getting on the forum so have had to re-register so just so you know I used to be MarineBee. I am now OLaney haha 😁. Sorry for any confusion in advance!

Thank you Chocolatelover. I am finding the same tbh. The only veg that seems to last any length of time fresh is carrots! I buy my blueberries in powder form. It can seem like you are paying a lot up front but it lasts for absolutely ages so I think it is worth it. I put it in my yoghurts and in my porridge. You only need half a teaspoon as it is very sweet.

As to how I came to be going down the frugal route....well, about 10 years ago now my marriage (after 23 years) came to an end. Ex decided he wanted to be elsewhere so that was that. There is a lot I could go into on here but it would take me forever and quite honestly I have been there and done that lol. So.... while I was on my own getting used to being single again (I have no children ...maybe if I had have things wouldn’t have got so bad!) I kind of went off the rails a bit where money was concerned. I had seriously hit rock bottom as regards my confidence and had a very low opinion of myself. I can see that now it was a very bad phase I went through as I needed anti anxiety tablets in the end to get me through. So, while all that was going on I went a bit mad, shall we say, and thrashed the credit card (s) and suffice to say things spiralled from there and I am only now, 10 years later 😕 realising I need to sort this out. No Excuses.
I am now in a fabulous relationship with a great new man and I don’t want this hanging over me any more. Hence the joining of this forum and all you lovely people. It is MY debt and not my new OH so I need to get to grips with it and coming on here has already helped me start to get my finances in order. But poor OH is having to eat frugally but he is ok with that thankfully!

So there we are...looking forward to kicking *rse and getting rid of the CC’s!

thanks for sharing your story it's helpful in breaking down stigmas to "mental health" that people feel able to share. I put mental health in inverted comma's by no means to undermine your experience of feeling low & anxiety but also as I don't want to nesc label it as a mh issue. I mean based on the circumstances I think how you felt was an entirely appropriate, natural & expected response. Anyways we all have times of feeling bad about ourselves it's just that we are trained nowadays to only portray the best especially on the likes of social media. Problem is when we only share the good stuff we end up living in a world where people feel isolated like they are the one with bad stuff going on. Instead of hiding it we should be sharing it so people know they are not alone in those feelings.

2Scratters

This is what is good about being in here. No one judges and it is good to feel normal.
We have all been in such places at sometime in our lives. It all goes hand in hand too.
Money mess. Mind mess. Managing mess.
When it gets sorted the rest generally falls into its own place. When we moved here we had a surplus of funds to do jobs. Needless to say they aren't done yet. The money drifted away again. Got no debt though so that's an achievement . Just need to spend the retirement funds wisely!!;) Been on here a few years and have learnt lots.
Our shopping game is the bill aim is to pay no more than a pound an item. It always sets a challenge being frugal and still being able to work it into the budget. Taught my son this too.

Shopaholic_no_more

Thanks little_green. The strange thing is while I was going through this insane compulsion to destroy my financial stability it felt like I wasn’t doing anything untoward..it’s only now that I can see how utterly wreckless my attitude towards money was then. Plus at the time I had a fairly easy life financially (before the split) we had no mortgage and didn’t have any debts but then I had to start again so now have a bigger mortgage than I had the first time round ...you would have thought that would have been enough to make me see what I was doing but oh no, I’m ashamed to say it didn’t. However, I do now see and I will be on here as long as you will have me ��

Kerry_Woman

Today was a spend day. Went for a dental checkup, luckily there were no other issues. A tiny food top up and tv mag. Saw a retreat about grief on a priory website. My Mum really loved going there, I also love going there. Paid the deposit and it is in March.

ecoelle

Morning all. Did some baking the other day and used up some brown bananas in a vegan banana loaf. So tasty! That has satisfied my daughter and hubbys pack ups for the last few days and left a bit for me to have with my after work cuppa. Been quiet on the forum as migraine has been kicking my butt. Frugally we are doing ok. I made a batch of toothpaste the other day and it is proving a hit with me and the OH. Little one not so convinced but i might let her make a batch with me and choose her own flavour as she hates anything too minty.

Aiming for a nsd today and going to use up some veggies in a hm soup later for lunches over the weekend. LO has a party to go to tomorrow and i am taking the opportunity whilst we will already be in town to take a diffuser back for a refund. Alreadg had it replaced once and now the replacement has the same fault.

Anyway. Happy Friday to all xx

skint_chick

We're frugal because I left an abusive relationship in 2006, sold house of my dreams to buy a cheaper house and decided I would never be financially dependent on anyone again. Met OH who came with debts from being made redundant, then lost my job and could only get lower paid positions. Went back to uni in 2012 so got a better paid part-time job and started my own business. Together we've paid off £26k of debt and renovated the house from top to bottom. I'm frugal so I can afford a holiday and have a safety net in case my business doesn't work out. Everyone I know has car finance, huge mortgages, credit card debt and is stuck in a vicious cycle of working to pay for 'stuff'. I love my simpler life, but we've built in a budget for fun activities and little treats, although it's based on experiences rather than buying stuff.

I managed to find a bra online reduced to £25, they're usually over £40 so I was pleased with that. Also got a discount code online for 2 new pairs of leggings for £6.80 each instead of £8. I wear them pretty much every day with skirts as I hate tights and needed a couple of new pairs. Also got some new trainers that were £60 :eek: but I wear them almost every day too and they will last over a year and avoid me having knee and back problems and spending £35 on a visit to the physio. Apart from a couple of t shirts in the summer hopefully that's my clothes shopping done for the year, although I did budget for a couple of new skirts, another bra, and some socks as well. Spent £122 on groceries in January, had to stock up on a lot of pantry staples after eating all the leftovers in the freezer and using up all my staples. I also got a Simply Cook trial pack for £3 to see if it was any good. Got 4 recipe cards and all the sauces and spices to make the meals for 4 people, so there are now 8 leftover portions in the freezer for this month's lunches. Probably won't bother again though as it was easy to follow and delicious but I prefer to find recipes online and use fresh ingredients rather than pre-made sauces.

Jabeezah

Just like to add that with regard to most personal care products. Liquid hand soap is the same as shower gel and bath foam.In fact when I was a student I used washing up liquid as shower gel lol!! They all contain a surfectant called Soduim Laureth Sulphate (this is a degreaser) I know this from working in the industry.Some companies will reinvent new products from old and just market them differently Also hair shampoo is good for cleaning make up brushes and hair conditioner can also be used as an alternative to shaving cream. Whilst clearing my drawers I found loads of small shampoo and shower gel bottles from my hotel stays. I then decanted them in to my hand soap dispenser in the bathroom as they were just taking up room so saved money and cleared clutter!!

PipneyJane

Thank you, everyone, for sharing your stories. A lot of us have walked the same, lonely, flat-broke path. It’s good to discover we aren’t the only ones.

Jabeezah wrote: »

Just like to add that with regard to most personal care products. Liquid hand soap is the same as shower gel and bath foam.In fact when I was a student I used washing up liquid as shower gel lol!! They all contain a surfectant called Soduim Laureth Sulphate (this is a degreaser) I know this from working in the industry.Some companies will reinvent new products from old and just market them differently Also hair shampoo is good for cleaning make up brushes and hair conditioner can also be used as an alternative to shaving cream.

Yes, true. Often the only difference between liquid hand soap, shower gel and bath foam is the smell/colouring. Shampoo, too.

A tip I picked up from one of the Sneaky Ways threads (current or original) is to use the cheapest bath foam to refil your pump-action hand soap bottles. I use Tesco’s cheapest and scent it with a few drops of eucalyptus oil. (The Value version wasn’t heavily scented. No idea what the replacement brand smells like.)

Jabeezah wrote: »

Whilst clearing my drawers I found loads of small shampoo and shower gel bottles from my hotel stays. I then decanted them in to my hand soap dispenser in the bathroom as they were just taking up room so saved money and cleared clutter!!

I do something similar. I’ve recycled liquid soap bottles as dispensers for shampoo, conditioner, body lotion and shower gel. When the stash of hotel-freebies gets too big and the corresponding bottle is low, I’ll use the little hotel bottles to top it up. A funnel helps, because it means you can empty more than one bottle at a time. Most don’t have much scent, so I’ve been known to add a few drops of Lemon Verbena essential oil to them. I like L’Occitane’s Lemon Verbena Shower Gel, when I can afford it (only ever buy it on an offer); when I can’t, I’ll use my “home made”.

(To make this even easier, my bathroom drawer is divided up into sections for each freebie, using the boxes mushrooms come in.)

- Pip

Shopaholic_no_more

Jabeezah wrote: »

Just like to add that with regard to most personal care products. Liquid hand soap is the same as shower gel and bath foam.In fact when I was a student I used washing up liquid as shower gel lol!! They all contain a surfectant called Soduim Laureth Sulphate (this is a degreaser) I know this from working in the industry.Some companies will reinvent new products from old and just market them differently Also hair shampoo is good for cleaning make up brushes and hair conditioner can also be used as an alternative to shaving cream. Whilst clearing my drawers I found loads of small shampoo and shower gel bottles from my hotel stays. I then decanted them in to my hand soap dispenser in the bathroom as they were just taking up room so saved money and cleared clutter!!

Thanks for that that is really good to know!! I have some old hair conditioner knocking about somewhere so will give it to OH to try out!


I would like to add my thanks for other peoples stories on here also as sometimes you do feel you are the only one walking down this debt path trying desperately to get off it.


I do have some really good news which I am mega proud of ...I have just had my latest CC card statement through (the only one that actually used as the others are just for paying off debt) and for the first time in many many months I have no recent transactions!! This is a massive achievement for me as I nearly always end up putting my fuel costs on there because I don't have any money left by the end of my month :eek: to get me to work and back because I have spent it on "unnecessary items". So, I am well happy. This is going to be my first challenge and hopefully things will get a bit easier each month.
Slowly, slowly catchee monkey as the say! :rotfl: