£365 a year challenge

culpepper · 6 January 2018 at 3:53PM

if you cant find scales, you could look up the measurements in spoons and cups. Its what lots of people did if they didn't have them. A lot of american recipes are written this way too.

ma-ri-ella · 6 January 2018 at 5:41PM

ooo some good ideas. my inventory list is coming along nicely..even doing checks between supermarkets :)just hope they all stock what they are supposed to lol

Spendless · 6 January 2018 at 8:30PM

When your guests came did you serve them tea? If so, do you have a teapot? Mine broke years ago, so with only usually myself and DH drinking it (kids didn't tend to bother with hot drinks) I just used tea-bag in a cup. Then in Oct DS went on his first hol without us, and had afternoon tea near the British Museum. Came home raving about it and wanting his own teapot.

I bought him one for Christmas:p If you are serving for several people it will knock down the cost as you can get away with less than 1 bag per cup/mug by letting it 'brew' for a bit.

ma-ri-ella · 6 January 2018 at 8:45PM

spent 1.53 today bringing my totals up to 2.97 for week . I did save 13.80 on rrp though lol so as follows
1xkidney beans 30p (27p) for cupboard
2x garden peas 46p (42p) f0r cupboard
bacon and cheese pasta dish was 2.47 now 13p - 2 portions in this so 6p a portion and will do 2 work lunches
1 x cous cous and pepper salad was £2 now 10p
2x tex mex party food was £3 each - 15p - this has 3 servings in this so 5p a serving -1 is tonights dinner
1x choc fudge teacakes - 5p - 4 servings - 1.25p per serving
warburtons bread was 1.30 -6p - not sure what to put per serving its so low!!
chicken and chorizo slice was 1.20 now 10p (9p) - will go with either beans or possibly on its own
2x sausage rolls 1.90 now 6p - 3p each
1x large apple pie was 2.50 now 13p

A lot has to be said for reduced items. I do have more basic cupboard items which would be under £1 but i may as well buy the reduced when i can get them and keep the cupboard items for when reduced items are low. biggest part of my spending was on stockpile at 76p. The diets not looking the healthiest - few salad pasta pots will cover 3 days lunches at 23p altogether with 5p teacake treat. Finish at teatime over next few days so will keep looking at reduced produce section rather than bakery :P

[Deleted User] · 7 January 2018 at 2:19AM

Day 6 and purse still firmly closed

weather wasn't wasn't indusive to go out anyway so knitted and watched catch -up TV so no cash spent at all so far

:)

JennyP · 7 January 2018 at 12:00PM

I second the tip to read How I lived for a pound a day .... It was an inspiring story with a lovely happy ending which I won't spoil.

Just read The No Spend Year. Less inspriring - anyone on this site would know all the tips already. I liked the Moneyless Man though - it did make me want to go and be a hippy living off-grid in a caravan in the woods!!!!

The Miguel Barclay £1 a meal books are good as they're one person portions. £1 a meal though but not per day. I would be happy to spend £1 a meal as our spend is terribly high!!!

Just found this blog which am hoping will help me with planning: https://eatnotspend.wordpress.com/2-people-vegetarian-day-7/

Good luck with your challenge! Looking forward to reading more about how you get on!

Have you seen

MissKaur · 7 January 2018 at 12:21PM

At university when I was living by myself and cooking for one a lot of the time I'd freeze pretty much everything I'd only used half of if I knew I wasn't going to use it for a while such as jars of half used pasta sauce, curry paste, pesto, and even tinned cannellini and kidney beans I'd half used. Easy to defrost them all. I think you can even freeze bread, and chopped bananas which make a great healthy dessert.

[Deleted User] · 7 January 2018 at 6:17PM

I gave a copy of 'Grub on a Grant' to my DGS Ben when he set off for Uni just over two and a half years ago and he said it was brilliant in getting him through on very little money. I think I paid 10p for it at a book sale Its by Caz Clarke and had some good ideas for him to utilise

ma-ri-ella · 7 January 2018 at 8:33PM

Summary of week 1!! - £2.97 spend saved 16.38 with reduced items
Today was quite a low value day as well. Super happy i do have a few bits bought for this week . Food wise its just milk and maybe bread later in week,. As always whatever bits i can pick up for the week after

Need to get into the town for a few bits though for stockpile stock :P

breakfast - toast 1p (technically just under but will include the homemade jam i got for xmas)
lunch -1/2 a salad and pasta pot - 6p, chocolate teacake -1.25p
dinner- 1/3 tex mex pack - 5p

so 13.25p for food plus cups of tea - 16p spend - plus any further cups of tea and maybe 1/2 apple pie still under 25p!!
healthy ? In terms of a previously bad diet not bad. The bread was a healthy 1- high fibre,seeds etc . Salad and pasta -

.teacake-well i need a treat haha and much better than going to Greggs. Dinner - oven not frying pan or chippy. Balanced - not amazing but it wasn't before either- if anything I'm probably being better on the budget

Only on my 2nd cuppa though (1.25 per teabag) and have felt more tired recently. I just think this is caffeine withdrawals

ma-ri-ella · 8 January 2018 at 9:59PM

massive spend at morries !! £6.75 however i got

20 tins beans
16x400g tins beans
16xsoup
milkx1
packet spaghetti x1
rice pudding x1
strawberry tarts and i am due another points voucher for £5..
Will do a breakdown of cost per tin once the points offer is over.
thinking 10x beans and 10xsoup will cost me 6.30 .1.30 after voucher (and £6 worth of loyalty points) so £5 towards next spend. So say 7p per tin of soup and 6p per tin of beans. Marvelous . I think the above might be even cheaper per tin

I don't mind stockpiling and being slightly over when there are deals like this cause i will use it all and its super cheap

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£365 a year challenge

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