Getting shot of the mortgage sooner than 2049!

badmemory

Ever seen a hairdresser howl with laughter.  Mine did on my first visit after lockdown that they were open.  There seemed to be a shortage of anything near the right colour, so I did it the next best.  She had to strip the colour & start over.  The cut didn't bother her but the colour!  It was so awful/funny that she didn't even charge me any extra.  I do however cut my sons hair & he says it is fine but I suspect that anything is better than havinig to sit in one of those places & get it done.

Bluegreen143

I suspect we can never go back to a hairdresser/barber again lest we get told off 😜 

However the cost savings are worth it, but most importantly the time savings as it takes me about 10 minutes to quickly trim my ends about twice a year versus having to travel to the hairdressers, sit there for ages making small talk etc 😂

I think this conversation has outed me as someone who is quite lazy with my appearance 🙈 I don’t dye my hair. So far I just have the odd grey (I’m 33) and I’ve not decided whether I’ll start dying it as they become more prominent, but my current inclination is not to. About two years ago I decided to give up nail polish and dramatically declutter my makeup collection - not that I ever wore nail polish much, but it felt oddly freeing and validating of who I am to get rid of all the nail polishes and remover. Before I had residual guilt for not using them every time I saw them on the shelf. It feels nice to just admit I’m not a nail
polish person. 

I did keep some make up - my make up bag holds:

- tinted moisturiser (the only item I use daily)
- eyebrow pencil (if I’m feeling fancy)
- mascara (ditto)
- black eyeliner (I have to be feeling VERY fancy) 
- a selection of lipsticks in different reds (because my friend decluttered her collection recently and I took a dozen to try - previously I just had one! I do like a red lip on those very fancy occasions 😉 over time I’ll pare down the ones I like less)
- a pack of eye make up remover wipes which rarely get used 
- a manicure set with tweezers, nail clippers etc etc
- DKNY be delicious perfume, again only in use for the very fancy occasions 

Previously I had a bunch of powders, blushers, eyeshadows, concealers etc but who was I kidding?! I don’t actually wear makeup to work or the park or at home or to visit family/friends or even to go to the pub for a casual drink 😂 

Anyway, the above explains why beauty is not a line item in my budget 😇😂 (needless to say I groom body hair at home too, no salon visits for me). Of course I have endless other vices to make up for it 🙄 

Frugal wins

1. Took the kids to the temple of frugality known as the library. Swapped all our books over and also got a free chocolate from the nice librarian! 

2. Took unlabelled freezer surprise bag out hoping it could be served with pasta for dinner 🤞🏼. It turned out to be meatballs in spaghetti sauce so that was a win! Trying to rationalise and declutter older freezer contents so earlier I had also gave the kids two muffins from there for snack.

Spending

No actual spending except a couple of direct debits coming out. Woohoo! 

QueenJess

I’m not a makeup person either. I like painting my toenails. Other than that I don’t wear any makeup on a daily basis. On nice occasions I wear eyeshadow (use it as eyeliner as well) and mascara and that’s it. I never use tinted moisturiser/foundation as it feels really fake on me and I’m so pale it looks silly. Plus I have very sensitive skin, so it just feels nicer not to have anything. I’ve never got on with it. I hate perfume as well… never found one that didn’t either make me sneeze or bring my skin out in a rash. Saves me a lot of money though!

My drawer contains one mineral eyeshadow and a single refillable mascara. I have a few nail polishes, but I decluttered a bunch ages ago and now am determined just to finish the rest and just have about 3 in there. I have finished a number of them in the past, so it’s definitely possible!

I do love a good moisturiser though.

Baileys_Babe

I haven't worn makeup for decades. In my 20's I used to regularly have my eyelashes tinted. My hair is starting to go grey, mainly around my temples but I have decided I'm not going to dye it. 
Normally my sister trims my hair, but last time I asked my teenage dd to do it for me, mainly so she when she is responsible for a household budget she thinks of doing her hair at home 😉

KajiKita

I do wear some makeup every day for work (mascara, concealer, lipstick) but I’m of a generation where full slap was expected! 😉). I like the way it makes me look (brings out my eyes) but I don’t bother at the weekends for my husband, the cat and the garden! 😂 I also can’t stand anything on my face like foundation or tinted moisturiser - makes me feel like I’m suffocating or can’t move my face, very odd. Unfortunately, I do find that Tropic do the best moisturisers etc for my skin, which is not cheap! But it does last. Never wear perfume any more since Yves Rocher stopped selling into the UK 😢

My major vice is my haircuts. £40 per time now 😳 (every 8 weeks) I have very fine, wavy hair and it took me forever to find someone who could cut it in a way that means I can put it up for work but when I wear it down it’s literally wash it, dry the roots, sleep on it and then get up and got the following morning. I’ve actually known my hairdresser for longer than my husband …. So 20+ years now. Also going grey, decided a long time ago not to bother dyeing it but do use chamomile shampoo in the spring, summer and autumn months to bring out the blond streaks.

KK

Bluegreen143

@KajiKita my main issue is my natural hair colour is very dark, almost black so the greys do tend to show quite a lot compared to those with light hair 😂 I think I will look fairly witchy if I don’t dye it (my hair is also waist length, and generally very wavy as I let it dry naturally, though I do sometimes straighten it for variety). But I could probably get on board with looking a bit witchy 😂

Baileys_Babe

Embrace the witchy if you can, it will save you both time and money.

joedenise

@Bluegreen143 - definitely embrace the witchy!  As @Baileys_Babe says it will save you both time and money!  I had almost black hair too but decided around the age of 40 not to dye it any more because it was getting too expensive!  I used to have long hair but when I reached about 60 decided it was time to cut it short - big mistake!

I now need to get my hair cut every 6 weeks, fortunately it doesn't cost me too much as I have a hairdresser come to my house to trim it for me and only charges £7 so just over £1 a week - can't complain about that.  Would hate to have to go to a hairdresser in town as would probably be at least £25 just for a thin and cut!

Bluegreen143

Currently having an email fight with Justeat 🙈

Normally when my papa comes to visit he generously takes us out for lunch. But it’s raining heavily and our car is in the garage so rather than trekking out in taxis I ordered a takeaway from an Italian restaurant (which I’ve ended up paying for as it came off my card, didn’t think that through!!) - just a meal deal for two - pizza, pasta and two sides.

One side was chips but they sent sweet potato fries which the kids won’t eat 😡 and everything was stone cold. I just accepted it being cold but complained about the missing chips to be told “we’ve issued a credit to your account for the missing item”

Now I’m sorry, I know it’s only £4.50 but I think it’s COMPLETELY unacceptable to issue a credit instead of a refund for a missing item 😡 it’s holding my money hostage, I don’t want to order another takeaway to use it up!! Which will cost more than the £4.50, of course.

Anyway I’ve now had a flurry of emails between us and Justeat are adamant that as they can’t take the credit off my account I’m
not getting a refund 😡 even though I never requested the credit and it’s not my fault they applied it.

I’m in that kind of mood and have told them to delete my account and I won’t use Justeat again 😂 in fairness we only get about 3 takeaways a year, but from now on I’ll call with the restaurant direct. Now I know they only issue credits for mistakes I’m not taking the risk of poor service again knowing I won’t get a refund 🤷‍♀️ 

beanielou

Dire. 

It is cheaper actually to order direct.