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House is fully back to normal now, started taking inventory of the household sundries, on the last pack of toilet rolls but still have quite a stash of toothpaste, shower gel and the likes that should see us through to April, I'm keeping a count of pretty much everything this year to adjust my stock levels, I will need bread and fruit but good for a week on fresh, and going to try to the Jan 25th before I have to do a supermarket run.
Downside house is turned into a hotel laundry as lad at home cleared his floordrobe, and eldest provided another 3 loads and a polite request to use the washer, then forgot he had to be elsewhere and would I mind. I have half a mind to Bill them both for the service wash, so the electric is taking a hammering today with both the washer and dryer going.
So feels like I'm not saving much at the moment.0 -
tori.k - I know the feeling!!
All the visitors have left, OH is Out, and here I am with a load in the tumble dryer, a load round the radiator, a load in the machine, a load on the floor of the utility room waiting to go into the machine, and a load that hasn't even made it out of the laundry basket yet...
Oh, and a bed that's still made up, that needs to be stripped and washed.
And I was completely up to date washing-wise on 23rd - everything washed, dried, ironed and put away. I swear people come in the night and bring washing.No longer a spouse, or trailing, but MSE won't allow me to change my username...0 -
We all used to have and use vacuum flasks for work, never bought coffees or teas out unless once in a blue moon eg on a tiring day out. I am just wondering if people don`t use them any more. I still have some flasks and would pack a small one if going out in the car, rather than stopping for a coffee in a disposable container. Two birds with one stone ie saving money and not polluting
I managed to avoid 2 temptations yesterday, a book from amazon and a renewal of a weather programme. It was almost automatic to get them, just shows how not paying with cash makes it not feel like money flow.0 -
I do have flasks but again I haven’t used any in years. OH and I used to do car boot sales and antique fairs. We always took a flask and some food. Saved a fortune,
I am going to join the NT after my holiday. I will take a flask for if I’m just walking around the estates or parks but when I visit the houses I will probably treat myself in the cafe......
I don’t mind paying to sit down in a nice cafe and eat and drink from proper crockery but I have to admit I am a snob and won’t drink out of cardboard. As for bought sandwiches,, well it’s like eating cardboard, I’d have to be desperate........:rotfl:
I’ve paid off my credit cards, and front loaded the one I will be using to pay my onboard account. I’m sailing for 42 days and they tend to issue interim bills, hence the front loading to avoid interest charges. I have also transferred some from my easy access savings to my current account “just in case”. I probably won’t need that extra funding but better safe than sorry. I can always transfer it back later.
I did succumb and buy a pair of velvet evening trousers yesterday but at £10 in the sale they were an absolute steal. I am afraid I did buy a book from Amazon.....but it is a sort of text book and it was second hand so I think I can justify it. :rotfl:0 -
I've just unpacked our thermos flasks, one little one if it's just for me and a large Stanley one bought a while back (when I was carznine😉 and it was recommended by another poster) We are going to put them into use when we start our longer walks exploring the lovely countryside we have moved nearer to. I do try to keep one by the kettle and pour any remaining boiled water into it.
Yesterday was a lovely family day and as usual I had put out too much food, the table was groaning :rotfl: so For the first time ever I froze away some of the leftover sandwiches, just cheese and ham, to have with our home made soup lunches. Fingers crossed it works.
Today I will make more soup and freeze away anything I can. I have a surfeit of mince pies so maybe try freezing them but also have an interesting recipe for three mince pies and leftover dark chocolate, thanks to Angela on Tracing Rainbows blog
Are we to record the extra savings we make on here? Or just the ideas to get the savings? I've found the love food hate waste thread and am working my way through it as it's full of good advice too.Some people are so poor all they have is money
Jan 2018 GC £165.74/£200 = £34.26 left
Feb 2018 GC £54/£200 = £146 left0 -
It's funny how we all have our individual no-go zones.. what we will do to save money and what we absolutely won't. I spent many years being dead poor and used to look in hotel and restaurant windows like Oliver Twist looking at food - so now I don't take flasks or sammiches ever, I pick a nice place and eat in. But then I wouldn't ever buy Costa coffees or made up sandwiches.0
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It's funny how we all have our individual no-go zones.. what we will do to save money and what we absolutely won't. I spent many years being dead poor and used to look in hotel and restaurant windows like Oliver Twist looking at food - so now I don't take flasks or sammiches ever, I pick a nice place and eat in. But then I wouldn't ever buy Costa coffees or made up sandwiches.
Last time I went dow the Kings Road in Chelsea I felt like a poor relation Mardatha, soaps were something like fifteen quid :eek: I grew up a short walk from there across the river, and all the old locals entirely priced out of the area, pretty much for everything not just housing. I've always been strapped for cash, Mum was a single parent in the 60's, and when the kids were small I was a SAHM by being uber frugal, but it becomes a way of life in the end - sigh!
I honestly can't choose what I want to eat anymore unless its from the reduced section, I've spent so long doing it, I;m overwhelmed by choice otherwise. Can't eat out in most places anyway because of my wheat issues now, but it's a timely reminder to take a flask to the market with me instead of buying tea in the cafe. My flask doesn't stay hot for long outside, even if I pre heat it (Its one of those small stainless steel ones) are they all like that now?0 -
Last time I went dow the Kings Road in Chelsea I felt like a poor relation Mardatha, soaps were something like fifteen quid :eek: I grew up a short walk from there across the river, and all the old locals entirely priced out of the area, pretty much for everything not just housing. I've always been strapped for cash, Mum was a single parent in the 60's, and when the kids were small I was a SAHM by being uber frugal, but it becomes a way of life in the end - sigh!
I honestly can't choose what I want to eat anymore unless its from the reduced section, I've spent so long doing it, I;m overwhelmed by choice otherwise. Can't eat out in most places anyway because of my wheat issues now, but it's a timely reminder to take a flask to the market with me instead of buying tea in the cafe. My flask doesn't stay hot for long outside, even if I pre heat it (Its one of those small stainless steel ones) are they all like that now? The steel ones, even pre-heated, don't hold the heat as well as the old style glass lined Thermoses but they're unbreakable.
What my rellies who worked outside used to do, back in the day, was to take two smaller (i.e. 1 pint) Thermoses rather than one big one. This retains the heat better as you don't have to open the second one until you're ready for it.
I have a 1 litre Thermos in steel and two 1 pinter ones with glass liners, used on the allotment. The big one I 'stole' off Mum, the smaller ones were bootsale bargains for pennies.
One thing I have noticed over the years is that you can easily spend as much on light refreshments (coffee and cake) as on a pub lunch when you're out and about all day. I guess if you can eliminate even one cafe stop during a day's excursion, you've saved several £££.Every increased possession loads us with a new weariness.
John Ruskin
Veni, vidi, eradici
(I came, I saw, I kondo'd)
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A man in our walking group puts his flask in an old walking sock to keep it a bit warmer. I have one of those thermal sleeves meant for keeping wine cold on a picnic-might try my flask in that to see if it keeps heat in.0
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I still use a flask , I take soup to work most days and it stays hot enough. I also have one of those bottles (I've forgotten the name ) that keeps cold drinks cold and hot drinks hot and I find that is really good as well.
I tend not to buy sandwiches out as I find the bread hard and the fillings bland so I make my own or I'll buy a jacket potato
I don't tend to go to c0$ta et al either but my girls love it and every time we go out we end up in one of them and the prices :eek: they are shocking !0
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