Saving pennies to make pounds

[Deleted User]

Thought it would be good to share some money saving tips and would love you to join in.


My first tip is something I have done this morning, I have stopped buying mint tea and just have a cheap pot of supermarket mint in the kitchen window, just snip, use and it keeps growing and growing.

MrsStepford

Snip some longish sprigs of mint, pinch off the bottom leaves so that they aren't underwater, put in a glass jar of some description, change the water so it doesn't get murky. Be patient and you should get roots. When the roots have roots, transplant into wet compost. The longer you can wait, before planting, the better. 

Growing herbs from supermarkets can be transplanted into planters outdoors. Basil will grow outdoors late May to early October and will possibly flower if in a warm sunny sheltered spot.

Pop a fig into a pot, resting on top of compost or soil outdoors in a sheltered spot.  Sometimes they will produce a baby fig plant.They can get very big so not for a small garden. 

PipneyJane

[Deleted User] said:

Thought it would be good to share some money saving tips and would love you to join in.


My first tip is something I have done this morning, I have stopped buying mint tea and just have a cheap pot of supermarket mint in the kitchen window, just snip, use and it keeps growing and growing.

Ooh… I’ve got thousands of ideas @[Deleted User], most of which boil down to a) how not to waste stuff and b) how to get the biggest bang for my buck.  

Here’s one for you: if you have the freezer space, double up or triple up when you prepare a main ingredient.  For example, a lot of my recipes start “Fry onion with garlic, add…”, so I’ll double up when making this base, decant half into a small container and freeze it for those nights when I’m late home from work/not up to cooking much.  Then I can throw a tub of base, a tin of chopped tomatoes, a splash of red wine  and a teaspoon of sugar into a saucepan, simmer it while I’m cooking some pasta, grate some cheese over it and bingo, instant dinner.  Or instead of the wine and sugar, stir in a teaspoon of garam marsala, add a tin of tuna and a cup of frozen peas, cook some rice and there you have “Quick Tuna Curry”.  See what I mean?

I usually cook dried beans, lentils and chickpeas, instead of buying tinned.  Since it takes the same amount of time and effort to soak and cook the equivalent of one tin of kidney beans as it does, say, five, I’ll soak and cook a 500g batch, divide that into 5 and freeze the portions I don’t need for dinner that night.  If I forget to defrost them, it’ll take a minute or two’s zapping in the microwave before I can turn the beans out of their tub and into whatever I’m cooking for dinner that night.  

One thing I did when I first joined the MSE Forum was to challenge myself to read the entire Sneaky Ways To Save The Pennies thread and its successor Lots More Sneaky Ways To Save The Pennies.  It took me months but it was well worth the effort.

- Pip

[Deleted User]

Great tips so far, I was trying to find that old thread and couldn't remember it was sneaky ways to save the pennies.

I am on a serious money saving mission, so frugal all the way for me.

[Deleted User]

I had a terrible cold which lasted 10 days, only just finished, I was blowing my nose non stop. 
I don't use tissues or toilet roll but old fashioned hankerchiefs, I know many people think it is hygenic and you have to wash them, but they barely take any room in the washing machine, and better than going through loads of toilet roll and tissues which would be costing money.  So bit of penny saving there, it really does all add up.

MrsStepford

My husband had a horrible habit of folding his handkerchieves after blowing his nose, so I had to unfold the dried crusty things when putting them in the washing machine. Ugh. I revolted and threw them all out. The NHS recommends tissues anyway, I just stock up whenever I see offers. We both have hayfever so we get through a few. 

Katiehound

Instead of tissues I use kitchen roll.
It's a lot stronger if out with the dog in soggy weather! & also mops up nose bleeds far more efficiently. I don't have any fabric handkerchiefs anymore.

PipneyJane

[Deleted User] said:

Great tips so far, I was trying to find that old thread and couldn't remember it was sneaky ways to save the pennies.

I am on a serious money saving mission, so frugal all the way for me.

Glad I could help.  Please come and join us on the monthly Grocery Challenge.  There’s loads of useful money saving links, tips and frugal recipes at the start of the challenge, which is pinned to the top of the Old Style Board.  (June’s should be put up shortly.)

- Pip

[Deleted User]

Thankyou PipneyJane will do, I have always watched the pennies but I need to up my game, I have dreams and goals and every penny does count.

[Deleted User]

I have gone back to use a bar of soap instead of shower gel, I can get so many more washes out of bar soap, I am happy to make swaps and changes to save the pennies, that is what my personal challenge is all about

YorksLass

I'm with @MrsStepford, I can't abide fabric handkerchiefs and much prefer paper tissues that I too stock up on when they're on offer.  I remember as a child being told to tuck the hanky up my sleeve - that might be OK when it's clean and dry but ugh, horrible wet germ-ridden things after being used!

When it comes to saving pennies, I literally do just that at the end of each week.  Any loose change under 50p that's left in my purse goes into a jar to eventually be counted, bagged up and paid into a savings account.  It probably only works out at a couple of pounds each month but it's still a saving.