2022 Frugal Living Challenge

RateTartExtraordinaire

Sweetlittledaydreams said:

Tried a big coffee chain magic bag last night, for £5 got 2 toasties, a muffin, a cookie and a croissant. Had one of the toasties for my tea last night and it was really bland and stodgy, the cookie was nice though and will have the croissant this morning for breakfast. I think it was ok as an occasional treat and I was lucky there was no meat in there but I don't think I'll bother again. Going to keep an eye on olio this afternoon and see if anything nearby pops up.
I met up with a friend from uni earlier this week and realised I was wearing a dress I used to wear back at uni, so it's somewhere between 6 and 9 years old, which isn't even that old but society has told us that fast fashion and buying things you know won't last long is the norm, crazy really how much that costs both the consumer and the planet.
Had a quick look at the rota yesterday and it's a bit complicated but by my rough calculations I think I should be getting around an extra £400 from overtime this month (before deductions) so I'm very pleased with that. Also have an interview next week so that I could do extra hours at another place too, I dont plan to always work all these extra hours but I think at the moment I'm making a good path to financial stability, so keep going for now! 
 

@Sweetlittledaydreams I haven't tried magic bag yet, but I keep an eye on it. Sometime vegetarian options come up from local restaurants. I think I would only get into bad habits
I did some get a good Olio haul this week which I shared out with family. I made a smoothly with the over ripe mango whizzed up with sliced frozen banana and orange juice, sprig of mint from my garden to garnish! Tasted amazing on a hot day.

I know what you mean about clothes. I don't go out much but I hate that everything is posted on social media these days. Even meeting up for a coffee and then everyone sees what you are wearing!
I think it is great that you are getting good use out of your dress. I wear what is comfortable these days and keep stuff until it wears out.
I hope that the friends I value will not care too much what I'm wearing but just be happy to see me.

Well done on getting the extra income. It seems the best way to beat inflation at the moment. 
 

Bluegreen143

It’s just as well I don’t use social media (well except on here!) as I only currently own two outfits suitable for going out and I go out reasonably often 😂 a lovely floaty maxi dress which doubles as my summery dress for hot days (I still wear it for nights out in the winter but with tights and boots) and a long skirt/top combo. So far none of my friends has commented that every time we’ve met up in the last year I’ve been wearing one of those two things 🤷‍♀️ It’s almost as if other people don’t really care what we wear… but don’t tell that to the advertisers! 

Aside from my going out clothes and my two office outfits (which I rotate for my once a week visit to the office) and activewear, all my other clothes are suitable for my lifestyle as a work at home mum who is usually on the school run, at the park, cooking in the kitchen, digging in the garden etc. So leggings or jeans with a variety of comfy tops and trainers, or if I’m going to the gym that evening I wear my active wear all day 😜 not winning any style awards here but never mind!

cw18

With regards to clothes - I'm currently trying to decide what I'm packing to spend a week with my Mum on my next week off work, and it's proving to be a nightmare.

I live in work uniform (clearly not packing that) or active wear (leggings, capris, shorts in three styles/lengths, matching or co-ordinating sports bras that can be worn as top in their own right, vest tops/T-shirts and sweatshirts).   I ordered two dresses from a company I've had leggings from which looked great (the casual look/feel I like, but not trousers which I know my Mum would approve of) but, despite being the smallest size they do (which I'm at the top of the size range they're meant for), they're much too wide across the shoulder - so they're being put back into the post this week for a refund.    I think I *might* have found one fairly smart dress in my wardrobe just in case I need something (need to try it on yet), but other than that it looks like activewear as I simply don't own anything else I'd be comfy in !!!

It's high time I went through my wardrobes and cleared out all the stuff I'll never wear again - most of it hasn't seen the light of day for over 10 years

I took a look at TGTG as I kept reading good reviews on it, but there wasn't anything for miles around me.   Then I joined a couple of FB groups where people regularly share pictures of what they got - and I decided it's definitely not for me, even if there were somewhere nearby.   I don't think I've seen one yet where I felt it justified the cost   I've not actually seen many where at least a third of the contents wouldn't end up straight in the bin, due to it being something I wouldn't eat and that fact I've no-one to share with.   And those where I might eat most of it are all treat type foods I shouldn't really be eating (full of sugar and/or dairy - and most definitely high calorie) and don't budget for - so even a 'good' bag would be a large chunk of my £30/week grocery budget gone on rubbish I don't need.

I've had a few bits from Olio, but there's rarely anything within easy walking distance of home.  My latest haul was from near work, when the lady kindly held onto some bits for me to collect after work the following day.   But I've used it so rarely that I keep forgetting to check it out!!

I've been doing pretty well from a local community pantry type of place.   £2/membership gets you access to the shop, and then you select and pay for the goodies you want (mostly just beyond/on/about to hit best before dates).    I've had quite a few loaves of bread (free), and recently got half a dozen eggs that were on their final date (great for bread & butter pudding made with some of the free bread, and still passing the float test).    I also manage to pick up small amounts of veg for a nominal amount, instead of having to buy big bags I'll never fully use!  A 1kg tub of hummus cost me 50p a couple of weeks ago, and I still have some for lunch-time butties this week (not sure it'll do all 5 days, but I'm going to give it a try) - doesn't seem worth trying to make it when I can buy at that price, although it's a 'get it while you can' item and not something I can expect to dfind every visit.   I'm currently stocking up on wholewheat pasta from there - 500g bags (repacked from larger sacks, and slightly out of date) for 25p each, whereas I'm looking at £1.40/kg in the supermarketss (which makes it 70p for 500g).    I get through a LOT of pasta, so I'm picking up a couple of bags a couple of times a week - that should mean there's plenty of opportunity for others who want to get some.

Primrose

We,re retired now so the timing of household tasks can be more flexibly planned and big washing machine items like sheets and bed linen are delayed according to the weather forecast.
thus we can now dry stuff outdoors instead of using power of some kind to dry it indoors. 

Small lightweight  items can be handwashed and drip dried outdoors.

Primrose

With food prices rising so rapidly, anybody with a garden, borders and especially a lawn can grow their own. Even with a small amount of land trimmed off a lawn  you can enlarge a border to grow lettuce, salad crops or even a few items like carrots, onions or dwarf beans.

nmaria

Primrose said:

With food prices rising so rapidly, anybody with a garden, borders and especially a lawn can grow their own. Even with a small amount of land trimmed off a lawn  you can enlarge a border to grow lettuce, salad crops or even a few items like carrots, onions or dwarf beans.

A bit of lettuce growing in a hanging basket looks good. I even have planted a strawberry plant in them so I am using most of my growing spaces. I have put a length of guttering up on the side of the shed to grow radish and spinach. 

Wraithlady

cw18 said:

I A 1kg tub of hummus cost me 50p a couple of weeks ago, and I still have some for lunch-time butties this week (not sure it'll do all 5 days, but I'm going to give it a try) -

You can actually freeze hummus - it changes the texture a bit, but a splash of oil and a good stir and it's fine.

cw18

Wraithlady said:

You can actually freeze hummus - it changes the texture a bit, but a splash of oil and a good stir and it's fine.

I could if I had freezer space  LOL

Didn't actually have enough to last all this week - but I'd already had 2 weeks of packed lunches out of it, so that was a well spent 50p

Frugaldom

Hi fruguys and gals. I've been unable to keep up with all the posts as I'm relying on mobile phone with intermittent signal and solar charger but I am still here so please tag me in @Frugaldom to alert me to any questions or queries.

Just been trying to catch up on inflation rates and what's being worst affected from a frugal living persoective. Pretty much everything, by the looks of it, as water, food, shelter, fuel and clothing are all absolute essentials. However, staples such as rice, pasta, salt, sugar, flour, tinned tomatoes, beans, tuna, sardines and lard are still fluctuating quite favourably for us, after dropping back down in price. Adjust your diet accordingly rather than go without a meal. Try one pan cooking to save gas or electricity, and use flasks to keep water hot for longer if you enjoy a cuppa through the day.

Whatever you're doing, don't panic. There are frugal ways of doing most things. Stay safe, stay solvent, we can (hopefully) beat any crisis. 😊👍

zafiro1984

Plasterer here today, doors open and it's cold so I've lit the woodburner/oven and will make full use of it hopefully able to freeze some batch cooked meals as well.
I'm also freezing eggs, the little dears have been laying overtime and I've almost 150 eggs to deal with but it should stand me in good stead for when they start to moult in about 2 months time.