2021 Frugal Living Challenge

Shopaholic_no_more

@mumtoomany Thankyou for your introduction! 
I love hearing about how people have changed their lifestyles to fit a more simple living...be it necessary or voluntary and have ended up being much happier for it...although I am aware this is not always the case sadly. 

My true desire is to live a much simpler life (the first lockdown last year taught me so much about myself and what I can and can’t live with) and I have discovered that actually I can live without quite alot! 

However, my DP thinks otherwise so this is where I am trying to get him to realise he doesn’t need 3 tablets and a laptop 😳 all under contract of which I’m not sure I even want to know what the total cost of that all is.
 We have been together 8 years now and his outlook on all things financial are the other end of the scale to me.....to the point where I have now started to make little comments about how much more money he would have if he didn’t have all these contracts and then when his car fails to start he actually might have money in the bank to pay for it instead of putting it on his credit card ...not ideal. 

Budgeting is the thing.....something I don’t think he has ever done....much more of a spontaneous guy....which is great in other areas of life just maybe not so when it comes to money 😂. Joking apart, we need to knuckle down or else I fear we will still be having to work long past retirement and that is something that truly worries me. 

So, a good start....we have now set up a Xmas fund of £20 a month each which should give us £400 roughly for next year all being well. He seemed quite happy with the suggestion so onwards and upwards 🙌

Bluegreen143

@OLaney my husband isn’t 100% on board either. It’s tricky as I’m a SAHM so our finances are totally joint (otherwise I’d have no money!). This last few months I’ve introduced a little more separation of our finances than we used to have - I “control” the family pot including spending money for me, and I leave him an amount (usually £250-300 a month which I think is too much!) in his account and I no longer go into his account to track his spends in our budget, I just don’t count it in at all. This way seems to be working better for us as he has more control and autonomy and I’m not constantly nagging him about individual transactions. If he buys something for the household I just transfer him the amount to cover it. He’s a lot better than he was when we met 12 years ago and doesn’t have any expensive hobbies or anything, but he loves to “fritter” (go to a supermarket on a Friday and blow some money on junk food, alcohol, bits and bobs he fancies for the house). Every year he gets a bit better and I’m hoping to convert him further 😆

MazzieD

Goodness it's lively on here!.

I'm not planning to post daily but it's that time of year when most of us have a break.  I'm also looking at spending my time wisely this year, I've dropped a thread or two that I was posting on as using a detailed spreadsheet seems to be the best way for me to track my spending (particularly groceries).  In 2020 I estimated how much essential cleaning supplies and toiletries I would need for the year and just bought it all in one go when special offers/vouchers were available in January.  Just done the same, purely because I hardly spend on groceries this month.

Also need to start looking at veg seeds to buy.  Noticed they are starting to appear in local shops so must have a think about what to grow in the limited space I have. 

Mummy2cheekymonkeys

Hi everyone. I would like to join please. I dont really have a specific budget in mind at the moment. I just want to live as frugally as possible. Our house consists of me, hubby and our 2 boys. They are 4 and almost 3. Both boys are autistic. My main worry is for what the future will hold for them. My husband works full time and before covid was having a 2 hour commute everyday. We would like to pay off our mortgage as quickly as possible and build up savings so that if he needs to change jobs or reduce hours to be about to help with the boys then it will be a viable option. We have just spent christmas poorly with corona virus and it has really made me realise even more then before that family is the most important thing and that we need a rest from time to time.

Shopaholic_no_more

@Bluegreen143 this is something DP also likes to do....comes back from shops with little treats “because he knows I like them” and I love him to bits for it BUT I’d much rather he kept that money for himself for when he is in need of it. What is the best way to approach this though?! I am at a loss to find an answer at the moment. 

@Mummy2cheekymonkeys oh no! I hope you are all feeling much better now than you did. COVID has really taught us the importance of things that matter most to us in our lives hasn’t it?
@MazzieD that is a great idea regarding the cleaning supplies and toiletries...too late for me to do it this year financially but definitely something I will put in to action for next year. Thanks for the tip! 

joedenise

Alongside my grocery budget I run a pot for bulk buys.  I set aside an amount each month and then if there is anything left in the grocery budget then I transfer that across too and then when I see an offer on something that I buy regularly or need then the money is there for it.  For example I buy trays of tomatoes, beans and long life milk which I use the bulk buy fund for.  It certainly helps me and I don't necessarily need to use my grocery money when I need more beans.

cw18

willow_loulou said:

Oh I’ve also ordered a hand washing machine, it’s a crank handle thing. For smalls, masks socks etc. This is mainly to see if it would be useful long term and maybe for dd to take to uni. It’s like a large salad spinner.

I've had one of those for around 16 years (picked up in a Cash C0nverters type store).    Haven't used it for a while, but I used to take it with us when we went to the Lakes as a family (large estate car meant I had space to pack it).   It meant I could pack fewer T-shirts, pairs of shorts and underwear/socks which was great - I'd previously had to pack extra in case any of the children had 'accidents'.   It also got used at home when I had a large volume of washing to get through which included lots of small items.

cw18

Couldsavemore said:

Ohh please let us know how it works..
I've been looking at the caravan twin tubs, for my long summer trips.. As I live in hope.
Also for in house house as I often don't need to do a full load.

My OH has one of those - bought it when his washing machine died a couple of years ago.    Still hasn't bought a proper washing machine....

edit:  he's just checked his Amazon account.   closer to 3 years since he bought it (March)

Jazee

I have set DH the challenge of using the money not needed for council tax in February and March to cover all food for those months.  Having said that he's just spent £20 on a stupid game from eb@y.

ldee2111

Frugal living has never been more important to us now that we’re on one wage. Most of our budget is fixed expenses, but the areas we can still save on are groceries, transport, and fun money. 

With groceries, I will continue meal planning, making food go further by measuring out ingredients rather than pouring unconsciously (cereal, oil, etc), and controlling portion sizes. I’ll keep searching for best prices, and bulk buying discounted items - deodorant, shampoo, etc. Even though our weekly budget is £80, I’ll be trying to keep our weekly shop to £50 with £20 leftover for top ups. 

 I’ll be putting all underspends to mortgage overpayments.

I’m going to try out some extra frugal things  - old school tricks that would make my gran proud - dilute the fruit juice, dilute the laundry detergent, cut the exact amount of baking parchment I need instead of tearing off a whole sheet for a sausage roll, that kind of thing. Some things may not be worth it but I’ll enjoy trying them out anyway. I’ll have a search online for more ideas. And maybe some fellow frugalers have their own suggestions?