2019 Frugal Living Challenge

stirchleygirl

WooHoo!!!! Congrats to those who paid off your credit card - very well done to you - that's such a DF achievement.

Sorry to hear about the loss of your chickens - that's a real bu**er - though you made me laugh (again) with the 7p sprouts that you don't like.

In my efforts to stop food waste I finally decided (after reading on these threads) to do a food inventory so that I know what I've got. I already had a small 'write on wipe off white board' (mine's actually blue though) so the last few days whilst downstairs waiting for the microwave I wrote on it what I've got in the fridge, freezer and shelves and cupboards. I can now have this in my bedroom so that when I do my online shop I can easily look at it and see what I don't need to buy any more of. Due to my disability online ordering takes me a long time and I no longer have the energy to do whilst downstairs whilst checking what I've got. So next time I do online I can see what I have from the comfort of my bed. This will help to improve my orders (though it won't stop me ordering wrong sizes when my brain mis-reads things).

I got my PA to find my yoghurt maker (bought years ago as it was half price but never used!) and she has set a batch going that will be ready tomorrow - I'll let you know what it's like. I'm hoping this will save me money in future as I get through a fair bit of yoghurt.

She also got down my dusty old soda syphon and cleaned it up has I'm hoping to use it as a replacement for pop. We eventually got the 3rd gas cartridge to work (they are decades old) then nearly soaked us as there was too much pressure. Result was flat cloudy water. A quick g00gle showed me where we went wrong (as neither of us had done this before) so we will have another go tomorrow - I'll let you know how that goes.
Does anyone know what to do with the empty metal gas cartridges as g00gle didn't give any answers (that I could find)?

Frugaldom

Hettyhound wrote: »

...started new job nearly 2 weeks ago and it looks like an extra £30 in salary this time round, got £43 from TCB and £20 back from utilities so overpaid mortgage by £63. Also should pay off balance on cc this weekend then start building £1k emergency fund.:T

:beer::T Well done, Hettyhound! Here's to your CC being cleared and never paying interest on those things again. At this rate you may succumb to FAI Syndrome _ Frugaldom Interest Aversion! Since entering debt freedom some years ago, I haven't paid a penny in interest to anyone or anywhere, even although I do use my CC to pay as much as I possibly can. It gets repain in full every month no mater what the amount and then the tiny bit cashback each year gets invested in something. Tiny steps: £15.00 is a whole year of pasta & spaghetti in our household. :rotfl:

stirchleygirl wrote: »

...Sorry to hear about the loss of your chickens - that's a real bu**er - though you made me laugh (again) with the 7p sprouts that you don't like.

I will buy a £1 pack of smoked bacon from the local village and make that bubble & squeak this weekend using the whoopsie potatoes brough by friends. The second bag they brought, I have them chitting to plant at Frugaldom. :rotfl:

In my efforts to stop food waste I finally decided (after reading on these threads) to do a food inventory ... Due to my disability online ordering takes me a long time and I no longer have the energy to do whilst downstairs whilst checking what I've got.

I sometimes work from bed and I don't have a disability - its normal for frugalers to do this as it saves a little on heating in other rooms.

I got my PA to find my yoghurt maker (bought years ago as it was half price but never used!) and she has set a batch going that will be ready tomorrow - I'll let you know what it's like.

Enjoy your homemade yoghurt. You reminded me that I should look out my 'easy yoghurt maker' and get back into the habit, as I also really like making soft cream cheese and adding garlic to it.

She also got down my dusty old soda syphon and cleaned it up has I'm hoping to use it as a replacement for pop. We eventually got the 3rd gas cartridge to work (they are decades old) then nearly soaked us as there was too much pressure. Result was flat cloudy water. A quick g00gle showed me where we went wrong (as neither of us had done this before) so we will have another go tomorrow - I'll let you know how that goes.
Does anyone know what to do with the empty metal gas cartridges as g00gle didn't give any answers (that I could find)?

That's a good question - I would do a search (I don't Google because it doesn't pay me, I use SearchLotto) for buying the cylinders and then contact your nearest branc and ask if they have an exchange policy.

GOOD NEWS

• I entered Frugaldom into the free Wild Flower Seeds sowing programme and am now awaiting the free seed kit we were awarded from 'Grow Wild'.

• We were awarded another tree pack by the Woodland Trust, so I'll be inviting helpers on a free treeplanting weekend in November.

• The elderly horse with Cushings Disease that we rehomed to Frugaldom (we now have 5 ponies there) looks to be improving on his herb-based diet

• I've entered Frugaldom into this year's 'Big Dig' project and hope to find some willing vlunteers to come and spend the weekend helping create a new food garden

The above are the positives that I hope will balance out the negatives.

stirchleygirl

wow Frugaldom those are amazing achievements
I pray that all those ventures go well and flourish for you as you are doing such amazing work

Shopaholic_no_more

Here here Frugaldom you are a great inspiration!!
Sorry to hear about your chickens also


Thankyou Stirchleygirl.
I need a wipe on/wipe off board as well!!
Great idea because I think I would remember to wipe things off a board more than crossing them out of a notebook. Sometimes, I forget to do that and think I have more things in the freezer than I have ...oops!!


Hettyhound keep up the good work!

Frugaldom

Listmaking and message boards... this is a photo from a blog post I was updating, I thought it was apt for the current discussion. A small tin of chalk board paint costs much less than buying a new message board and it can be used for so many different projects. I have these everywhere - home, caravan, holiday cottage we let out... I love chalk paint.



Tried to resize photo but cannot see an option for that.

Frugaldom

Oops! Apologies for massive photo, I didn't realise it was so big and am not sure how I can alter it in here. anyway, hope it helps. Mine are always in use.

Frugaldom

Another idea I have used in the past is using cork tiles. You sometimes see them in the cheap stores in packs of 6 or 10. Doing 4 square or 9 square on a wall or board somewhere handy makes for a great pin board. I store my drawing pins around the edge of the one I made years ago, will try to find the photo of that as an example.

Edit - found it (ignore the text on it as it's from 2013)

chocolatelover93

Hello

Busty - That's so horrible!! Single mum's have such a bad name I even had one person tell me that no one really wants to be with a single mum and they are all too "easy" because they don't get any attention!! I thought how rude!! And single dads are worshipped. To me all single PARENTS are amazing!!

Davesaver - Personally I think that just leaving it at paying for your share or half I was with someone who was in debt and he would often want to buy me things and I would feel bad that he wasn't spending the money clearing off his debt. Another free activity (I think it is anyway) is geo caching I used to do it when I was younger with my family and loved the adventure!

stritchly - fingers crossed for the pip they have done that to so many people and it's not fair Hope you're on the mend!

DS had his op on Monday all went well then 12.00am Wednesday he had a temp and fit so we ended up in A&E he's got another infection so yet more meds but hoping this will be the last one!!

Started meal planning again this week and trying to use up all my "naughty" bits as seeing a nutritionalist next Friday to help with weightloss and some health issues.

Actually been keeping on top of my bills spreadsheet as well, not looking too good atm but HB has been messed around with move so once that is sorted and I have deposit back it should be looking a bit healthier.

Had to get a new phone the other day (DS threw mine on the floor and broke the screen) got it on Arg0s card which yes I know is bad but didn't have the money and needed a phone as he has just had an op. So today I am at work and would usually be buying snacks and having a mooch around in my break but I have left my cards at home and because I haven't set up my pay bits on my phone I have no way to pay for anything (much to my disgust have been craving crisps). Have eaten the snacks I bought in with me and have got lunch ready in the car. I would probably save about £5-£15 per day I work so £10 - £30 a week :eek::eek:

C xx

Crafty_Lisa_Hampshire

Its a while since I have posted anything (or at least it feels like it). I was paid on Tuesday and I had a bit of a review of the last month's spends. Last month I asked you lovely people for your views on grocery and household budgets. After considering the various tips made I decided to try and bring my budget down to £200.00 for the month of March and I was really pleased that I managed to reduce my spend to £179.00 on groceries - much better than I ever thought I would manage. As a result of me being more frugal and mindful of what I have spent money on this month I had £100.00 left over which I used to pay off my last instalment on my holiday I have booked in July (first holiday for 3 years). I am so proud of myself.


One thing I did notice though from looking at my spreadsheet is that I only had 5 no spend days from 26 February to 26 March. I wasn't spending lots of money (it was usually just a couple of quid to buy a loaf of bread or a birthday card) but I am sure I can improve on that. That will be my challenge for this month I think.


I agree with those of you who try to support local businesses and buy quality sometimes rather than cheap. I am trying to be more ethical and environmentally friendly in my purchases as well as reducing waste and keeping costs down. I have certainly made progress on reducing the packaging/rubbish I throw out.


I have also changed my diet to the planetary diet (it was on telly a few weeks ago). It has made a positive difference on the quality of the food I am eating and has definitely reduced my food waste.


I have to say I am really enjoying this journey.

cw18

I'm not counting NSDs anymore, as I find it much more benefial (to me) to shop little and often.


The main things I need fresh are bread (for toast at breakfast), bread rolls (for pack-up lunch), and cooked meat (also for pack-up lunch). As I don't get more than 4 days on the bread, 5 days on the rolls and 5 days on the meat, that means at least 2 trips a week. One pack of rolls only does 2 or 3 days (depending on the type I get), while the loaf of bread does 4.5 or 5 (depending on which loaf I get), and the cooked meat can do 5 or 6 (depending on how thinly the 'value' packs are cut), so I'm not always picking up all the items on the same day. And I normally try and time my visits so I stand some chance of reduced to clear items, which I can't stock up on due to lack of space in my freezers. Whilst there I also check for reduced stir-fry veg packs (I have no problems with having stir fry 2 or 3 times a week - I use chicken, pork or Qu0rn and have 5 or 6 different sauces in the house, so I can have different every time ) and reduced to clear chicken or pork to put in the freezer for future stir fry meals.......