It's getting tough out there. Feeling the pinch?

Florenceem

No food spending today. I got a pair of winter boot style slippers - Next - bnwt at the table top sale ticket price £22  - I paid £5. Will keep my ankles warm. My jumble table was very popular - I sold coats for 50p, jumpers for 30p and warm hats for 20p. We raised £561.30 for the Salvation Army Big Collection. I help to organise the table top sales - at our next event in October - we are having a table of designer clothes for sale.

sammy_kaye18

Afternoon / Evening all 
Just checking in to prove I am still here. 
Had a busy few day's around the place and decluttering my daughter's bedroom so she is more comfortable and has a bit more space for her and her bedroom bestie Ron (hes a guinea pig dont worry!) 
It did turn up a scarf and hat she never wears, 2 hot water bottles with covers and a spare cover though so that was productive and I will try and find a bottle to fit the other one and then thats 3 of 4 bottles I need for the winter.
She also wanted to get rid of a load of clothes that she no longer wears or that doesn't fit her and some are fluffy so I am considering using my new sewing machine and making them into a lap blanket or jumpers for the dogs so they can be repurposed to keep someone cost. 
Also found an old duvet in the attic the other day and a sleeping bag so I am thinking I will hand stitch the duvet together to make a sleeping sack for the dogs because they sleep in our bedroom. 
Looking for a cheap heated blanket for the husband because no doubt he will start to feel the cold soon and he has arthritis in his knees and ankles so I want to avoid him turning on the heating for as long as I can. 
Need to also find a nice thick blanket to go on our bed to add extra weight and warmth for him. Not so much me as Im peri menopausal and Im sure that ship will sail me through winter with no problems at all. 

Still havent faced the odd sock bags but I will get there. They will become stuffing for draught excluders - I would turn them into heated rice bags etc but I dont have a microwave to heat them in so that would be a bit pointless for me. I really think I should invest in one though as it is a much quicker way of cooking. 
I did realise as well though that myself and my daughter ran out of hair bobbles the other day and we had a broken sock lying around so I cut the cuff of it with the elastic in and it has made a perfect hair bobble for ponytails etc (I use it at home, I dont send her to school with it) but I think I might make a few extra with some of the socks that are broken or have holes in if I cant darn them and give them a bit of extra use. 

We are on prepayment meters here. the electric is a smart meter and can be topped up online but the gas isnt but will be changed at the end of October. Im hoping then I will be able to keep track of what Im using on my phone or on a little screen but as yet we dont have one. I did top up with £20 gas at the beginning of last month though and it ran out yesterday so that was good. Its only used for baths and heating in our house, and we dont have the heating on and its only really my daughter and husband who likes baths - my daughter perfers a shallow quick bath but husband is the deep bath culprit but I get him to save his water to water the garden with so thats not a problem but I am surprised it has lasted so long and done so well. 

Floss

@sammy_kay18 one of the sherpa / teddy type fleece blankets over him under your duvet might help your hubby, I find mine really cosy. Also, a large, lightweight blanket over your duvet will help keep the warm in by trapping air but not squishing the duvet.

weenancyinAmerica

@sammy_kay18  I found that if I knitted a blanket with two skeins of yarn at the same time, it was enough to become a weighted blanket and keep me warm.  Good luck with keeping your bills down this year. 

Rosa_Damascena

YorksLass said:

Yesterday I walked up to the local Co-op to get some bits and bobs to put us on over the weekend/Mon BH and got a couple of ys items while I was there.  I walked a different way as I had a letter to pop in the post box and discovered we have a Little Free Library outside one of the houses.  Not sure if anyone else has come across them - I think it's a community initiative - but it's basically like an oversized bird box with a door, attached to a pole or fence where you can donate and borrow books, free of charge.  

We have 4 x official Little Free Library boxes locally and quite a few more DIY ones. When I looked into buying one, it costs a couple of hundred pounds that I don't have. I'd much rather given that amount to charity!

Rosa_Damascena

Wednesday2000 said:

ZsaZsa said:

Wednesday2000 said:

I spend quite a lot on books on Amazon and thought I would try to cut back on that as it can work out quite an expensive hobby as I read very quickly.

I have 11 books on my kindle left at the moment and I was going to read them but then use the local library after that instead.

Someone told me about Z-Library which has loads of free ebooks. I just thought I would put it on here in case anyone else was interested. This will save me a lot of money over time.:) Z-Library. The world's largest ebook library.

Have you heard of BorrowBox? It’s an app that most libraries are linked to (if your library isn’t, there’s bound to be something similar) and you can borrow ebooks via your library. Your library website should have the info. Ours also has “Libby” to borrow magazines too

Oh thanks. I have put that app on my phone.:)

I've always been an avid user of Southend libraries, they have a good range but I am disappointed when I cannot borrow one because it is "academic" or when I see the list of new books to discover it is cluttered with Mills & Boon rubbish. The main library used to be open until 10pm and on Sundays but those halcyon days are long gone. There may well be a resurgence if people find they have to huddle in public buildings to keep warm this winter.

Back to the mention of hot food as a warming mechanism: I used to love cornflakes with hot milk, they would taste delicious and malty

strawb_shortcake

My Son started uni last week, I went up to visit and take a few bits and pieces. What a change in a week, he's gone from it has to be heinz baked beans to I'm shopping in lidl. 
He's also been touring the charity shops for the extra bits he needs and his aim this week is to find the secondhand tool shop. 

He does also likes gin now so I can see where his savings are going...

ladyholly

Car boot sales are often the best place for tools. They may need cleaning up but are usually fairly cheap.

strawb_shortcake

ladyholly said:

Car boot sales are often the best place for tools. They may need cleaning up but are usually fairly cheap.

We often do a car boot sale so keep an eye out. He's in a niche trade and having just paid £120 for 2 pairs of tongs we will be looking at all options for secondhand tools

threepenny_bit

SIRENS said:

threepenny_bit said:

newlywed said:

Have a stash of wool, so treated myself to some lovely looking slipper and slipper boot patterns. I did go through a load of free patterns but the patterns on Etsy just pleased me more so I went for it. £3 and £4 for patterns isn’t bad when I already have the rest of the supplies and can make multiples… and for gifts too.

I have looked at knitting my slippers but worried they will be slippery underneath on my hardwood floors - do you add anything to stop them slipping? I have seen some patterns with an attached sewn on sole but they are expensive to buy here

This is the one liv is talking about, I've also used it and it works well

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sock-Stop-100-ml-Grey/dp/B007QNJXPM/ref=asc_df_B007QNJXPM/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=255964520112&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8146411248461485076&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9044975&hvtargid=pla-391078441879&psc=1&th=1&psc=1

Thankyou so much!!