2021 Frugal Living Challenge

angela110660

I know that when you are near stinging nettles you are usually near dock leaves and would rub them on skin if stung. Great that you can make a salve from them.

Tightpants24

@willow_loulou thank you for your energy saving tips.  You have inspired me to put a chilli in the slow cooker today!  Now to start nagging DH and DS to turn off switches ......;-)  

Frugaldom

@Tightpants24 a few of other things we have done to improve insulation and keep warm include cheap fleeces made into window blinds or as detachable curtain liningd using velcro,.bubble wrap over glass as extra 'glazing', long curtains over doorways or stairwells, extra layers under the bottom sheet on the beds, hot water bottles, extra blankets over chairs and couches, utilise the kitchen more as a room when cooking and most importantly, keep the place well aired whenever you can to prevent the build up of condensation that leafs to dampness. We tried the terracotta pots with candles as mini heaters as a cost comparison but they were neither frugal nor effective enough to make a difference in a room. Keeping everyone active is also one of the free ways of helping keep warm so an extra lap of the house with an extra layer of clothing also helps. 😊

AnimalTribe

Siebrie “debating getting divorced”

I’m sorry to hear that, but at least you seem to be managing to stay on good terms”

Asparklyblonde “I have made the somewhat life changing decision to hand my notice in at work”.

Good luck. I’m sure the whole family will feel the benefit. Forgive me if you already know this, but income tax is paid in advance so you should be due a refund. You have to apply for it, but the forms are on the Govt.UK website. If you haven’t left work yet, and it won’t offend your colleagues, you could suggest that any leaving present (if they are usual) comes in the form of shopping vouchers.

Tightpants24

I charge solar lights during the day and use them to light the passage and bathroom when it gets dark. They are not bright enough to do any work by.

A couple of small wins for me. Going through Quidco netted me £30 cash back on my home insurance. I’m trying to use up some out of date stuff I found lurking at the back of the cupboard, so last night was a powdered milk base pizza – not the best pizza base I’ve ever made, but not bad either. Tonight I’ll be using up some tinned kidney beans in a vegetarian chilli. So 2 things I've not wasted.

Siebrie

@AnimalTribe I have a thread on the Family Board, called 'Divorce, slowly'. We get along, we have started talking again (insisting on both sides that we actually talk and share, which is good). Miscommunication and cultural differences led to no communication and to him taking a mistress he spent around €10,000 on last year. They have broken up, he has more or less apologised for behaving stupidly last year (he doesn't know that I know), and I have the feeling of a 'trial period'. I'm not sure this is salvageable, but at least we are both trying. For the purposes of this thread: we have done the math and cannot afford to separate/divorce just yet. It would make both of us poor, which is what we both do not want. I have started saving money in a savings account he knows we have, but cannot see (which I'm okay with to share in case of divorce) and in cash at my parents' place (the €500 we agreed to each take out every month to spend on ourselves. He spends it on his African relatives and investments there - constant source of debate before.) Mortgage, household and children's expenses still come from the joint account.

Frugaldom

Banana Bacon

I'm not too sure who introduced the topic of banana bacon or how many others were mind blown by the idea but thank you! I have just tried it for the first time and WOW! I had left the banana out until the skin was quite black but I still ate the banana. I did as described - scraped the peel clean of banana flesh, marinaded it in soy sauce and then fried it in a little oil. I will admit to slightly over cooking it to make it crispy but I'm amazed at how it tastes. How could I not have known this? That's 2 new foods I have learned about this month - dock leaves and banana 'bacon'. With a little practice, I reckon I could eat the 'bacon' on a roll or sandwich and convince myself that I was eating a bacon buttie. Next, I want to try cleaver seed 'coffee', dock seed flour and rosebay willowherb flower syrup, which can apparently be used like honey.

Foraging

More foraging today - picked enough for another couple of jars of jelly and a fruit crumble.

Recycling

I posted a list of wanted items to see if we could salvage or redirect anything that anyone had potentially earmarked for the bin so we could make use of it at the project. We have now been offered an old sink, some pallets and some empty 80-litre buckets with lids. Not sure if I mentioned the pond we made but it now has fish in it and a friend is bringing me some marginals to plant around the edge; we'll no doubt be doing more goat-proofing this weekend. 

Frugaldom

Sorry to read about the impending divorces. As a divorcee, I know how tough things can be when it's a messy break-up and it can take many years to recover financially, and otherwise, so kudos to those who are managing to work things out enough to delay the inevitable and make it more amicable.

Mummy2cheekymonkeys

Went out this morning to take my youngest to nursery and the petrol stations we passed were gridlocked with queues everywhere. Everyone has gone crazy thinking there are going to be shortages. 
The apples from the tree don't keep very well so with what was left I covered them in water and boiled them to a pulp which went into the jelly bag overnight. I have just made 10 jars of apple jelly and as an experiment a apple and cinnamon syrup which smells like autumn in a bottle which I thought might make a nice change drizzled on porridge or pancakes during the colder months. 

Frugaldom

Apple and cinnamon syrup sounds good!

Wet day here so getting soaked isn't something I can avoid. Still, we need the rain and there has been so little of it here over the past few months (SW Scotland). I boiled up all the foraged produce last night and it's been filtering overnight, ready to make a couple of jars of jelly tonight. I'm running out of sugar so can't make anything else until restocked but do have more bananas to use up so I'll maybe dehydrate them in the oven rather than switch on a heater tonight. 😁

Siebrie

We have reprogrammed our central heating thermostat to blink to life between 6 and 6.30am, just to get the temperature to 17C and get the chill out of the house. DD1 has to get up at 6.15 and leaves the house at 6.45 to go to school (so I get up at 6.15, too, and then back to bed for 45 minutes before dd2 has to get up). It's enough to last us through breakfast and until the last person leaves the house at 8.15. If husband or I work from home we wrap up warm and do not turn the heating on.