2018 Frugal Living Challenge

Buffythedebtslayer · 10 April 2018 at 9:15PM

I made vegetable soup for dinner, which will also cover me for lunch tomorrow. I used half a pepper, 6 sticks of celery, 1 carrot (!) 3 potatoes and some interesting looking sprouts. Plus three slices of bread (I skipped lunch) I seasoned with dried onion, oregano, black pepper, ooo and added sour cream and some cheese. I am very happy.

and full. And the kitchen is a mess!

Also is it cheaper to have the heating on all the time?

And CW18 - what do you eat with the chicken nuggets? if anything? I need some decent lunches.

XX

cw18 · 10 April 2018 at 9:32PM

Buffythedebtslayer wrote: »

And CW18 - what do you eat with the chicken nuggets? if anything? I need some decent lunches.

Nothing! I cook up a bag as I buy it, then refreeze in small bags with 7 in each. As I head out to work I pull a bag out of the freezer and pop it in a cool bag. They're normally fully defrosted by the time I get peckish, but sometimes I have to put them in a pocket for 10 mins or so to finish them off. I needed something I could eat whilst walking that didn't make my fingers greasy or leave them with stains that could transfer onto the mail I'm posting at the same time, and also something without a strong smell.

FrankieM · 11 April 2018 at 7:05AM

Morning

I'm hanging on in there with the NSD's. Though it seems it was a big eat day yesterday. All from the freezer but I still didn't need it..lol

In regards to the heating: I tried to leave it on all the time and just control by the thermostat but unless the thermostat was on 18 it didn't turn on at all an then it was on all the time. So, I'm guessing that might be a little broken.
I have it on timer and I'm thinking I could probably drop the morning and just have it come on in the evening and see how I get on. It seems to take a while for the house to heat up so it'd probably only just be getting warm as I get into bed if I turned it on manually. But I'll see. I really want to get the gas/electric DD down as much as I can so I might just bite the bullet, turn it off and see how cold it really feels.

Another NSD planned here. Breakfast and lunch organised and I'm at my DD's tonight.

I need to give this laundry gloop a go. I only use Tesco's own for washing powder and softner but a saving is a saving.

I currently use pantene shampoo and conditioner. I love it but it's one of the more expensive things on my shopping list. I've tried Aldi but not liked it. What does everyone else use?

cw18 · 11 April 2018 at 7:37AM

When I say I leave my heating on all the time, I mean that I never turn off the controls. It is on a timer as well as the thermostat, so even in a cold spell it only runs for an hour in the morning and 4 or 5 hours late afternoon to bedtime. (Unless I over-ride it, which I sometimes do on my days off during really cold spells, but when I do that I also tend to drop the thermostat from 18 to 16 then put back to 18 before I turn in for the night).

Shampoo & Conditioner - my favourites are Tresemme moisture rich, but I only have them at the moment as I stocked up when Costc0 had an offer on them (and I've been switching between those and others I already had in stock - slowly working my way through my personal toiletries mountain!)

frugalish · 11 April 2018 at 6:10PM

I've been thinking I need to try the laundry gloop too... Is there a recipe somewhere? I got two YS bottles of Arial gel today for £1.38 each instead of £5.95, then when I got home I realised its biological, so I can't use it on my clothes due to eczema

But I can use it for soaking etc, so it won't go to waste.

cw18 that's what I meant with our heating too - it comes on at 18.5c in the morning, but it's on a timer and drops to 14 while we're out, then back up in the evening for a few hours. But I do turn it up if I'm home all day, as well as wearing all the woollies!

With Shampoo, I buy the cheapest I can get that doesn't irritate my eczema. At the mo it's Simple shampoo when it's on offer. But with Conditioner I use a good one, because it helps keep my curly hair under control. It's an Argan oil one that usually sells for £7 :eek: but I buy it on offer at £5 when I see it. One bottle lasts me ages, and I've found cheap conditioner really doesn't work for me so I don't begrudge the money.

datlex · 11 April 2018 at 11:18PM

Re shampoo, I use Boots coconut shampoo and conditioner. It was on a money saving program and was said to be as good as the premium brand person had been using. At 90p a bottle (less with discount for having contacts) it is definitely saving me fortune.

Frugaldom · 12 April 2018 at 1:11AM

Frugaldom wrote: »

.... Copy/pasted from an old post...

Homemade laundry 'gloop' as it is called, is easy to make. I use the following recipe for my LAUNDRY 'GLOOP' and this gets diluted to between 5 and 7 litres, depending on what's being washed.

1 bar of soap, grated
1 cup of washing soda (or Soda crystals)
1 litre water
A few drops of essential oil (if required)

Laundry 'gloop' - the above, once dissolved, gets watered down to between 5 and 7 litres, depending on how you want to store it, but use a wide mouth tub or a bucket as it can set.

FrankieM · 12 April 2018 at 7:04AM

Morning

Thanks for the laundry gloop recipe frugaldom I've saved it to my desk top and will go hunting for the ingredients and give it a go. I may go for a quarter portion though cause I'm not sure where I'll store it.
Howe much do you then use in a wash and does it need to be dissolved before putting it in? I'm sure you've said before but I'm a bit more focused on the answer this time. Sorry

Thanks also for the shampoo and conditioner info. I'm going to give the stuff in Boots a try datlex. 90p sounds like a bargain.

Coffee is also a big spend here. I currently guy Nescafe Gold. I've started getting the refils which brings the cost down but I could save more by getting Aldi coffee, which I know I also like, so that's another saving I'm going to incorporate.

I've had my water bill in today. It's over 8 months though so I'm going to ring up and see if I can get that changed to 10 or 12 months instead to make budgeting easier.

Still on the NSD, though I did end up paying off my cc that I'd bought fuel on the other other week. I had intended to pay it off when I got paid at the end of the month but then thought actually I'd rather start with a clean slate. So, my £70 budget is now £56. I need to get fuel today and a few salad things and some toothpaste but I'm going to Aldi so it shouldn't be too much.

stoozie1 · 12 April 2018 at 7:20AM

Just delurking to ask DawnW how far apart to put the Olbas oil teabags?

Hello all. You are very inspiring.

P.s we are a family of 6 (children are 9, 8, 5 and 3) and laundry gloop has saved us a fortune over the years.

[Deleted User] · 12 April 2018 at 8:37AM

Hi, following thread and picking up some good ideas. Due to ill health I am unable to work and my income is very low. It's so Frustrating. It must feel similar for those of you who are working flat out but still not earning enough. In that situation I think i would be looking at a way to increase my hourly rate eg. Does accounts admin pay more than general admin? If so then it might be worth investment of evening class.

2018 Frugal Living Challenge

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