Champagne Lifestyle on a Lemonade Budget - 2021

helensbiggestfan

I am sooooo envious - in a nice way. 😁 I really miss l living by the sea and have given it serious thought but I want  to stay near my family. 

Lovely day here. Have been for  a mooch round one of my favourite chazzers. Picked up brand new Roman originals dress, still with tags, for £10. Perfect for my youngest grandsons christening in a couple of weeks. I've already got a choice of jackets, shoes and bag so I'm all sorted for a tenner.💃

Do not panic about the spending.  It always happens when you move. There's always those extra must haves which we can't always predict. Im sure it will slow down. 

I'm at the other end, buying some new accessories to dress the house nicely for sale.  A gorgeous duck egg wool bed throw  today.  Another chazzer bargain £5. I'm not worried because I will be taking them all with me.  So not as extravagant as one might think.  Lol. 

helensbiggestfan

Whenever  I move I always budget for a dodgy boiler, just in case.  If I don't need a new one then I'm quids in.  😂🤣

sugarbaby125

My Champagne moment yesterday afternoon was going to the Shepherd's Bush Theatre to watch the play House of Ife with my son and daughter. All 3 of us really enjoyed the play. There are serious, sensitive themes being explored in the play, yet the play is also full of laugh out loud moments. For me the play is 9.5/10 

sheilavw

My champagne moment yesterday was going to see Gilbert OSullivan at our local theatre. Took me back to my childhood when music was on vinyl!

Wednesday2000

I do really love living by the sea as I have been wanting to live there since I was very young. When I came home from the concert in London the other night it did finally hit me that I have permanently moved away. I was waiting for my train and standing opposite the tube station that I used to wait at to go home to east London and it hit me that I will never be in London again to live.:)

I did have some champagne moments the past few days, thinking about it. We went to a second hand furniture store and we bought a small sideboard for our living room. Only £15. I also saw a £1 shop nearby as I had been saying that I hadn't found any where I live now. I will definitely be going back to both shops as I saw some lovely vases in the second hand shop too.:)

I also got a compliment the other evening while I was out. A woman came up to me and said I really suited the colour I was wearing - red. Pretty random, but a nice thing to say.

liberty_lily

Great champagne moments everyone 😃

Helen, we also always budget for a new boiler when moving, but have never really bought a house that wasn't a fixer upper! I think we've had to replace 5 or 6 over the years 🙄 Even when we purchased a house with a new boiler (but still considered unhabitable by most!) we had to move it because the vendors had it fitted in a dilapidated outbuilding that needed to be demolished, lol! At the mill, not only was the floor-standing boiler ancient (not to mention some obscure, unheard of brand), but was in a wholly inappropriate location being in the extension which they'd built as a third reception room 🤔 

Not too many champagne moments here as DH is currently battling with two non-paying customers who between them owe in excess of £1000 ☹️ One in particular can easily afford to pay (he's a multimillionaire with a 50+ acre estate), but despite being unable to fault the quality of the work which he admitted is of the highest standard, is nonetheless finding all sorts of excuses - mainly because the fixed price job took longer than expected - not to pay £600 😠

Otoh, we're cracking on with stuff here - the outbuilding floor is almost complete and we'll soon be ready to remove the old extension frontage....gulp!

I can't complain about the garden either as it's looking lovely with lots of fat rose buds opening and the white allium mount everests too....

sugarbaby125

Phoebe, how frustrating for your husband having customers who have to be chased for payment. 

Gorgeous photographs of blooms in your garden 

helensbiggestfan

Sadly non payment is a common problem when you are self employed, especially in the construction industry. I've seen It happen so often. My plumber was ripped off for £14k. He took the offender to court, won his case and still the customer never paid up. 

Same with rental properties.  He's just had one of his properties trashed.  I used to be an EA as you know.  I could tell some stories about tradesmen and landlords being badly stung by customers and tenants.  

My husband was self employed but he sourced his contracts through an agency. They took their cut of course but at least it meant he was guaranteed prompt payment for his services. 
 

helensbiggestfan

Phoebe.  Gorgeous pics. Aren't the gardens looking wonderful, bursting with colour.  My peonies are about to explode. 😂Perfect garden weather. Just the right combination of daytime sunshine and nighttime rain. The countryside is in full boasting mode, lush and verdant. 

Lots of quiet little champagne moments of the domestic variety. One of them is I'm about to tuck into fish and chips. With a salted caramel ice cream for later.  Last night it was a nice big juicy steak with lashings of mushrooms.   Why not.  I've been working like a demon all weekend. 😂🤣

carolbee

What Rose is that please? It’s beautiful