2025 Frugal Living Challenge

missymoo81

Can I ask which supermarkets have the cheap veg, as Sainsbury’s don’t seem to?

mama67

missymoo81 said:

Can I ask which supermarkets have the cheap veg, as Sainsbury’s don’t seem to?

They  all have different ones

Latest Easter Vegetables  Prices  - ( prices subjuct to change )

Aldi UK 

Instore now

- Nature’s Pick White Potatoes (2kg) - 15p 🥔 

- Nature’s Pick Carrots (1kg) - 8p 🥕 

- Nature’s Pick Broccoli (360g) - 15p 🥦 

- Nature’s Pick Spring Onions  (100g) - 15p🌱

- Nature’s Pick Loose Garlic (Each) - 15p🧄

- Nature’s Pick Cucumber (Each) - 59p🥒

ASDA Now

- JUST ESSENTIALS by ASDA White Potatoes (2kg) – 8p🥔

- Carrots (1kg) – 8p🥕

- Parsnips (500g) – 8p

- Swede (Each) – 8p

- Broccoli (360g) - 8p🥦

LIDL now

- White Potatoes (2kg) – 15p🥔

- Carrots (1kg) – 8p🥕

- Parsnips (500g) – 8p

- Swede (Each) – 8p

- Spring Onions (Per bunch) – 15p🌱🧅

- Green Beans (220g) – 15p

MORRISONS Now - More Card Price

- Carrots (1kg) – 8p🥕

- Parsnips (500g) – 8p

- Swede (Each) – 8p

SAINSBURY'S (Instore from the 16th) - Nectar Price

- White Potatoes (2kg) – 15p🥔

- Carrots (1kg) – 15p🥕

- British Parsnips (500g) – 15p

- Swede (Each) – 15p

TESCO instore now- Clubcard Price

- All Rounder Potatoes (2kg) – 15p🥔

- Carrots (1kg) – 15p🥕

- Parsnips (500g) – 15p

- Swede (Each) – 15p

- Broccoli (375g) – 15p 🥦

missymoo81

Thanks so much, I checked yesterday! Didn’t realise it only started today! Off to Lidl I go!

Frugaldom

Thank you @mama67 - that's a really handy list. I'll check to see if any of these offers are available for home delivery. I very seldom get the chance of such bargains as I'm never near a supermarket.

On the topic of budgets and how realistic they are, the following is a loose version of what I'm following this year:

Annual household budget £7,000

Groceries - £1,200

Council Tax - £1,235

Heat & light - £1,200

TV licence - £169.50

Mobiles, landline & internet - £960

Insurances - £450

Clothing & Footwear - £50

Car costs - £1,200

Everything else - £535.50

Total - £7,000

(£134.25 per week or approx. £583 per month)

Council Tax is non-negotiable so there are no savings to be made there. We don't have rent, mortgage or debt. The car is a luxury I can't do without as we are in a rural location with no public transport. The above is my frugal living household budget but it does include some business-related expenses such as mobile internet, as I spend so much time working outdoors and off-grid. The budget will be juggled accordingly to allow for unexpected expenses. It is not so different from my £4000 from the early years as I didn't include council tax or a car or the extra mobile and internet costs at that time. I'd love to say we were still able todo the £1 per person per day for all meals but working outdoors 7 days a week while having no services on site means my batch cooking from scratch is sporadic and the meal plan non-existent. We eat whatever is available to avoid wasting food of any description and make the absolute most of Olio and sharing with friends.

Things I do to help cut costs:

Spend on needs, save for wants

Make do and mend

Reduce, reuse, recycle, upcycle

Collect firewood

Use the Olio app

Grow fruit, veg & herbs

Swap and barter

Only drive when it's necessary

Socialise with friends at Frugaldom, mostly outdoors

Online shopping via cashback sites

Use a cashback credit card, repaid in full each month

Play the free postcode lottery

Savings get put into Premium Bonds, 'just in case'

Use portable solar whenever possible for usb lights, phone charging and laptop

Harvest rainwater (not difficult in Scotland)

Composting (I've also got a wormery)

Gather sticks and scrap wood for log burner

Use fleeces and hot water bottles - if the logburner is lit then water for bottles gets warmed on that

No takeaways or fastfood

Make copious amounts of homemade soup

Only make what costs less than buying or it's false economy

Quit smoking (years ago - challenge is recorded somewhere and I still put away the money saved)

Daily exercise by working outdoors to try and keep relatively fit and healthy

Make the most of offers, cashback and money off coupons only when they are needed

We are a household of 2 and H pays for his own car and personal purchases. Our entire lives now revolve around Frugaldom and the project we are developing here and any of you are welcome to visit if you are ever in SW Scotland. 😊

mama67

Frugaldom 
I’ve got some of the Tesco ones on my delivery tomorrow if that helps. 

RateTartExtraordinaire

Good morning all,
I've not posted much this year so I thought I would give an update and share my frugal wins and also the wrong moves, in the hope that it is useful to others. 

I've been bank switching for years to get the cash on offer.
Last year I sw1tched a four times, and I ended up with 3 bank accounts simultaneously. Now I am organised but...I've discovered that three is too many  Stressful to keep a track of and not a good use of time. Last week I got the final monthly payment from the C0-0p and so I'm sw1tching it to my main acc. for a simpler life.

Now I have 2, the main one that I've had for years and one that I opened in Jan 25 with NW for the cashback initially, but will stick with due to the current saving options it offers and the ability to set up standing orders between them. 

Other frugal things done:
Winter boots mended instead of buying new, will see me through next winter hopefully.
Replacing elastic that has perished with washing overtime in some pyjamas.
Purchases in several CS purchases for the summer. Lots of CS have had half price sales post Christmas. 
I'm still on a mission to declutter and have made sold some books and knickknacks to clear space.

I had to dip into my emergency pot in January as I had used money I'd put aside for the January expenses to pay for car repairs last November. I had to watch my spending carefully and have managed to put the money back in the fund. With the cost of everything going up, my emergency pot should probably go up too! I have now set a new target, to add monthly to the emergency pot so that it is 10% more than it was last year. 

Off to see if I can get some cheap veg  
 

startin_again

Hi all, I’m stepping out of the shadows as I need some help. I’ve  just recently moved back home with my DD  after spending  a number of years looking after a close relatives kids.

I worked full-time as well as managing houses, house work, bills etc. I spent money mindlessly. Everything was bought for convenience.. I over spent on everything…food, lunches in work, parking fees in work, utility bills to name a few. 

Now I’m back in my house I’m trying to get everything in order. I have so much work to do. Storage is limited and I’m now in a situation where I’m having to buy things that I previously owned but had to give away or sell. Like curtains, mats rugs, cutlery. The list is never ending and money is limited. 

I need to start somewhere, I’ve made numerous to do lists which I will tick off as I go along. I just need to keep moving forward by doing a small job every day. 

This week I have saved money by not parking in car park in work. I brought lunch to work every day. Picked up YS food at the local shop. Batch cooked a Bolognese. Picked up free fruit in work. 

I’m off to hang some pictures and empty a box or two. 

Nonnadiluca

Check out your local Freecycle and Gumtree. On one day a few weeks ago our local Freecycle had the following: an entire kitchen including appliances; dining table and chairs; bedroom furniture including a bed, wardrobe, chest of drawers and bedside tables; curtains and mirrors. We were saying it was amazing that you could furnish an entire house for free! I recently got a bistro set which has been getting a lot of use in the recent lovely weather.

Gem-gem

Good luck @startin_again in your quest. Are you looking for big items or just the smaller items? 

Which region of the country do you live in eg Surrey, Northumberland? 

We have bought two lots of the cheap vegetables: carrots, swede, potatoes, parsnips and broccoli. We had some time tonight for tea and I have started to chop up and freeze the carrots and swede. The potatoes and parsnips will be blanched and frozen. 

Also bought a large gammon for 1/3rd off. This I will cook, slice and portion up before freezing. 

We have stopped using gravy granules and oxo cubes. I am getting there with making a tasty gravy. It looks a lot paler. 

DH and I walked into town and back, saving petrol / bus fare. It is just under a five mile round trip. We went to the gym and then checked the shops out for bargains. We found a couple of 5ps and a penny on the floor plus £1.06 in a coin changer. I did go up to a lady who had forgotten to take her 2p change and gave it to her. She thanked me and promptly put it into a charity donation bucket. A few years ago, I found a wedding ring, an engagement ring (both in Tesc0) and both were reunited with their owners. One wanted to give me a reward but I told them to make a donation to a charity. I was just happy that they got the ring back. 

Spent a lovely late afternoon watching Foyle's War and added a couple of rows to my blanket. 

Gem-gem

missymoo81 said:

Thanks @gem-gem I would love the instructions, I’ve just been following along in the back ground, but my daughter would love to craft something like this. 

I'm having trouble finding the instructions but luckily my DM has previously cut out some templates, so on Sunday, when DM is over, I am going to make one with her and write instructions / take photos of each stage for you (and me).