No Spend 19 - join us!

[NoSpend19]

Hi all

So yet another name change for the No Spend 19 thread some of us have been discussing (not a TAAT - juts a spin off)

The aim is to reduce the unnecessary spending on "stuff". We're almost at the end of the year and so 2019 is a good time to start.

It would be great if as many people as possible thought it was feasible for them so there are no hard and fast rules but to give you an idea my rules are as follows:

Food and drink purchases are permitted (although personally I will also be trying to grow as much as possible myself, reduce air miles and reduce single use plastics in the food we buy. In addition I will be avoiding being tempted to pay extra for brands. Meals out and takeaways are also on our no spend list)

Essential household products and toiletries are permitted. So it is ok to buy washing powder but personally I will be avoiding buying six different types of stain remover, fabric conditioner, ironing water and all the other stuff we are told we need to do to clean a load of washing . Likewise we will be buying soap, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo as essentials but will not be buying hair masks, face masks, make up, face cream, serums, body sprays, nail varnish, showergels, body scrubs etc. Perfectly acceptable to use up everything you have though.

essential clothing etc is permitted. DH and I won't be buying anything unless absolutely unavoidable but DC are growing and will need shoes, trousers etc. We will aim to keep this to a minimum though.

Fuel and other travel costs are permitted

Normal household bills are permitted of course

stuff is not permitted. So toys, books (library is fine), magazines, CDs, DVDs, random household items like cushions, candles, stationery etc are all on the aim not to buy list. This Christmas will be prior to the experiment starting but we are already asking for experience presents for the DC eg cinema tickets.

We are just feeling a bit like consumerism has gone mad and so we think we can probably do this. In our household it is me, DH DS1 (13) and DS2 (11, nearly 12). Anyone up for joining? We start at the beginning of 2019

Disclaimer: before we decided to do this we had already booked and paid for our holiday for next year. It is a bit of a cheat but I don't want to delay this just because we'd already done that.

I may need significant to get me through

Happy birthday hound

I've spent £40 on the weeks food shop, using up stuff in freezer so it's lower than usual. All essentials, except i got deodorant as its about to run out, then found i already had 2 in the cupboard!

Went to the library today and got books for the kids and did some decluttering.

£44 at Aldi for weekly shop. I spend so much less when I meal plan.

Making dds lunches for school. Made big pot of lentil/kale/lemon soup I've been having for lunch all week - i work from home.

£50 on second hand curtains for living room. I do need to buy some bits for house but am trying to buy 2nd hand items rather than new. I've been following curtains on eBay for some time and these are perfect for our living room and much cheaper than new or ever buying fabric and making myself. Can't wait for them to arrive and the ugly ones that came with house can go.

Sympathies to you with a January birthday as well sleepingbooty. It definitely isn't the best time to have a birthday. I managed to get four people to come out with me last night, all of them were drinking tap water or lime and soda!

It meant that the rounds were cheap though, which helps with the no-spend!

Today I will pay for my boot camps - £59 for month. I don't spend much on myself and this works out to £5 per session so good value.

Other than that I hope not to spend anything.

When I was thinking about my rules i realised that, as we are on a tight budget anyway, I follow most of the OP's rules anyway. It did help identify where spending is non-essential ( mostly takeaways and crap at supermarket) so my watch-words will be minimal, mindful.

Day 1 NSD
Day 2 £20 food and toiletries, £5 of which on diet Coke and sweets 😳 £2 on diary to track spending
Day 3 NSD - walked to visit Mum instead of taking bus, saving over £5
Day 4 ordered vape starter kit for DH for £25 which will save at least that in tobacco a week if he's successful in giving up.

Today is going to be tough. I left my lanyard at home which has my locker key on it. I didn't bring lunch as I have noodles and soup in said locker.

I can't get into the locker so can't get to my lunch....if I get really hungry I'm going to have to buy something. Going to try to resist though as I'm finishing early...
I knew this would happen.

Oh no Giggage!!
Will you have to use a work canteen, or is there a supermarket nearby where you can get something a bit better/cheaper?

I haven't spent anything yet since the day before new year's eve.
Dh went to Tesco yesterday for a small top-up shop (mayo, bread, lemon juice, cereal and his blood pressure prescription) and spent about £15.

There's a work canteen in which we get a heavy discount, but it's always packed and the queue so long, lunch is nearly over before you've sat down.

Anyway, turns out I'm not hungry do it's not an issue anymore anyway

Expensive day today - £104 log delivery for stove. Should last until mid March though. £92 split between Amazon pantry order (monthly supplies of heavy stuff) and Aldi weekly shop. Still got a few bits to get tomorrow - will probably go to Home Bargains for those. Still haven't bought any banned items though

This thread is such a good idea. I'm on the frugaleer thread, which has helped me immensely, making me accountable for my spends. But as quite said, it's a bit batshit and off topic over there at the moment!

My weakness is stocking up at the supermarket.
Rules:

1. Meal plan.
2. Shop with a list.
3. Top ups (we get through a lot of milk and bread, family of 6) to be cash only, drawn out at the start of the week.
4. All change under £1 to go into a jar at the end of the week. I never respend 50p's or £2 coins...I cashed £238 in in december.
5. Only spend on replacement things. All dc are well equipped for the year, dp and I rarely buy clothes anyway. Obviously shoes for dc will be bought as needed, ditto growth spurts.
6. No more yarn!! Unless needed to finish a project (I will need 2 balls of navy to border a blanket soon).

I am on a mission to declutter, so I have been spending on cleaning stuff this week, and storage boxes/feed bins etc. But I start in earnest on monday, which is back to work day.

I am aiming to save enough cash to get the front garden tarmac-ed over. Sounds hideous, but it is north facing and nothing grows. I have tried. Plus we have to park on the pavement, which isn't ideal.

Renewed both car and house insurance - called both companies to negotiate renewal quotes - those 2 phone calls saved me £90. Boiler needs service - jan is expensive.

£4 in charity shop - cardigan for dd and some books for dc.

I did get in and out of Superdrug unscathed (just med I needed).

NSD 🏅

Just £6.83 on some bin bags and a few bits of groceries today. 👍🏼

£85 on passport

£10.41 at Lidl again on more forgotten bits. Obviously
My shopping list system still leaves a bit to be desired. No extra spending though

Nsd but not by my achievement, the corner shop had its back in 5 mins sign on the door and I wanted crisps! So I thank the counter guy who needed to do something at that precise moment

Did it! Another NSD. I've also realised, there has been £40 in my purse for over a week now.

Before this it would have been spent on shit a long time ago.

Oooh I'd like to join please! I'm trying to build up a deposit to buy a house this year so need to save save save!

£25 today on an impromptu 'welcome our new colleagues' lunch. Ah well. Was tempted by a takeaway tonight but thought of this thread and cooked instead with leftovers: roast chicken pasta in a lemon and yoghurt sauce. Was actually quite nice!

Also very nearly went for a takeaway (would have used 18 miles worth of fuel as well), instead we had a pot noodle, 2 tins of ravioli, a tin of soup, and a frozen soup portion. Toasted up the tag end of a tiger bloomer (usually goes out to the chucks) too, so an impromptu cupboard tea.

Will do a freezer audit tomorrow (huge larder and chest freezer both full), and we'll meal plan and do an online shop then. I don't think we will need to buy much for quite a few weeks, but might have some odd combination meals.

lonely well done! It’s so easy to just order takeaway and waste money that doesn’t need to be spent.
50 in Aldi today,didn’t browse around my local town like I normally do,so that’s money saved.

I managed to go into a stationers today and only buy what I went in for (a pen) despite being sorely tempted by the diaries and notebooks which I don't need.

I also stuck totally to my shopping list in Tesco and came out with only what I needed (ignoring bogofs and the reduced shelf and sale things and doughnuts)

NSD two days in a row

Good job as spent a fortune on Wednesday in supermarket and on an activity for my daughter.