WHY are you old style?......

camNolliesMUMMY

It was a choice but we now have a new addition to our family as well as saving for a house.
So I'm stocking up on things for the big save! I have cupboards full of things, after following the stockpile thread I've managed to build a decent sized one with things we will need.
I try and make from scratch including snacks for dh and ds to take to work n school.
Leftovers always get frozen, and the sc is always getting used to save on my gas oven.
At first it was about how much we could save but now it's getting tougher so I'm having to hunt for the best value for that goal.....our own home.

Kitchen_Garden

Wow. Thanks for all the replies:) I know that even if I came into money I would still grown my own fruit and veg. I might also get a few animals and a bit of land.

Being frugal and living as simply as possible gives me peace of mind and reminds me what is actually important in life....

pinkieminkie

Necessity for us.

Like a poster above, we also live in the countryside and womble any roadside veggies dropped by the tractors - it doesn't take long to know where all the sharp bends in the local roads are! A couple of days ago I managed to fill bag-for-life with dropped potatoes. That is a weeks worth free for us (7 of us). When caulis, cabbages and lettuce are planted the local farmers use plug plants and these fall off the back of the tractor when they go over bumps in the road. I follow their route and collect the ones that look healthy (not run over by passing cars) and plant them - it is quite exciting to see what we will get! We grew several free lettuce and 12 caulis from plugs I wombled this year and I have planted some unidentified veg plugs that I picked up a few weeks ago (think they are cabbage).

We keep chickens, grow a lot of our salads and veg, collect wood to burn on the fire (no central heating), the kids live in hand-me-downs (my youngest is wearing clothes that his four siblings, and two cousins have all grown out of and passed on), and we know where every penny goes.

It is hard work and there is a lot of worry about money but, other than the odd day when I get a bit wobbly and feel sorry for myself , it does feel quite satisfying knowing that I can do this. On the wobbly days I remind myself that it is not that much different to the way that previous generations lived - and it is much, much easier for me than it was for my Nan in the war.

If I won the lottery I would pay off our debts and move to a bigger house - I don't think my lifestyle would change too much, but the wobbly days would definitely be behind me as there would be no more panics when the bills came in.

flubberyzing

Frugal by choice in my every day life, so that I can afford my occasional extravagances! Like my yearly trip to Ragdale Hall day spa! Just one day there, with a couple of treatments, plus traveling, you don't get much change from £200.

tessie_bear

we were skint when we joined this site and wanted to pay off the mortgage...after hard week we did and now we try and live frugally so to save for the kids to go to university with no debt and have nice holidays

snowleopard61

Necessity - but I also quite enjoy it. I’ve always (as an adult) been pretty frugal, in the sense that I’ve always been happy to buy secondhand and actively prefer old things to shiny new ones, but for various reasons I have had to be more careful now than ever. I’d have a long way to go to be as OS as many people on this thread, however, given that I passionately hate gardening, and the thought of growing my own seems like a complete penance – I would have to be truly desperate before I considered it! I do really resent wasting money though, and just tend to think people are very silly to do it rather than envy them for having cash to splash around.

The reason I found this board in the first place was that most of MSE seemed to be about being savvy with personal finance (for which there is certainly a place) when what I really wanted was something to do with plain old-fashioned economising. On the other hand, I’ve learnt a lot about the other stuff as well from this site, and found some really good deals and cheap treats.

If I won a really big amount on the lottery (which is pretty unlikely as I don’t do it – don’t want to waste money on the ticket!), I’d give most of it away to charities until it was a more manageable sum. Then attend to financial security for my young adult children, without making life excessively easy for them and without making it possible for them to be silly with money or putting them in a position where prospective partners would be interested in them for their money. I’d like to live somewhere nicer, but not necessarily bigger, and I don't drive and don't want to, so it would still need to be accessible by public transport. I could happily occupy myself all the time without working for money, so I probably wouldn’t. Ideally I’d keep more rescued animals as I’d then be able to be around all the time for them. I haven’t had a proper holiday for years, so that would be good, and I’d like to make the first one a really good family holiday (not necessarily somewhere exotic) and a holiday with the lovely man in my life would be high on the list too.

ETA: Like several other posters, the extravagance I would think well worth having if I could afford it is using the heating more. I haven't put the heating on this year yet and am trying to hold out at least until November, but I would dearly love to be warmer! Fortunately, as I work full-time, I'm at least as warm as I could want to be during working hours.

optimistic-mummy

atm im trying to be OS/Frugal to pay off our debt before the interest gets slapped on next year. once the debt is paid im hoping we can still continue the way we are (just maybe not be as tight with money) to save money. i actually feel guilty now when i waste money on stuff we dont need,,,,,,ive learn't alot and its amazing when you want/have to what you can learn to live off...... this site has gave me lots of great tips and there's wonderful and very helpful advice xxxx

savingqueen

Like some others, both necessity and choice. We planned for me to be a SAHM until children started school and I am still one for now, not sure how long to be honest, depends on all sorts of factors. So choice for me to be a SAHM and because of that necessity to be mainly OS on one average salary.

Having children has made me more aware of cooking from scratch and baking etc though still a way to go and lots to learn, hope I never stop learning! So in that way again a choice. I don't think I can ever go back to my old way of life (I could hardly boil an egg when I met DH at nearly 32!) but I don't know how I would/will cope if I begin paid work again. Hopefully by then I will have more skill and experience which will save time, I still peer endlessly at recipes and check them whilst cooking apart from a few meals I have never used a receipe for or I have learnt to memorise.

Both DH and I are environmentally aware/active and more so with age but again still a way to go. Rome wasn't built in a day I guess! That's another choice but not much of a choice really, we all have to take responsibility for these issues. Makes my blood boil to see all the recycling bags lined up neatly and far less bin bags on bin day and then always a couple of bin bags split open to reveal food waste (we have food waste collections too) and tins and packing that can be recycled.

sq:)

Going4TheDream

I had been thinking about taking a job that gave me a better life balance when I was made redundant from a well paid job. This gave me the push I needed and I consciously took a lower paid job closer to home and binned the rat race, no more European travel and several nights away from home, the local job is a bit boring and 30 odd % less salary. I had to cut back and make the most of what I had.

I lost a good few grand but gained time. I upcycle my clothes, buy 2nd hand, mend and make do on things that I can repair etc, cook from scratch and grow my own veg now. I do have to watch the pennies so always look at bills and ways of reducing them, as the cost of living has gone up hugely in the past 3 years but overall my work life balance is so much better and I feel I have gained so much more, time being the big one

WantToBeSE

I am just wondering why you are all OS?
Is it because you are clearing off debt? Saving for something in particular? Or is it just the way you are?

I started being OS about 3 years ago because i was in debt, and being OS helped me to clear the debt off quicker. I have now cleared all of my debt and am carrying on the OS lifestyle because i want to move house so am saving for rental deposit etc.

I think i actually enjoy being OS!