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

storm libraries tend to do ebook lending too - no bus-fare required!

ooh, I didn't know that Vintage. Thanks, I'll look into that.

Count me I. I have just given my notice in at work as I cant manage it with disabled DS any more so will need to cut back drastically in the new year.

Will post my rules later.

I’m in.

My rules are -

No driving when I could walk. I have got so lazy driving to the allotment and to the shop when they are only a 10 minute walk away.

No brand new clothes apart from underwear and socks. I am currently loosing weight and I will be taking a lot of my clothes in. This really only applies to me and the husband. The teenage dc are growing like weeds so they won’t be included in this.

No pointless spending on magazines, a new vase, cushions etc. I’m in the middle of decluttering and I want to be more mindful of what comes in to the house too.

Not visiting home bargains, b&m, Wilkos because I’m bored.

No craft supplies apart from glue and blades for my trimmer. No new wool unless it’s to finish a project. No new fabric.

The food shopping will still be the same but I would like to cut back on our meat consumption

I'm in!
For me in 2019:

• no new clothes (exc underwear and tights if absolutely needed)
• no new makeup (must use up what I have)
• no new shoes
• no more new yarn, cross-stitching kits (again, must use up what I have)
• no new stationery

The books. Well. That's hard, but I will try. Very much.

In general - I will use up what I have before I buy something new, and even before that I will seriously reconsider if that new thing is really needed (most likely not).
Enough is enough. I need money more than I need stuff.

Fruit/veg from greengrocers and meat from butchers is a good idea. We've cut meat consumption quite a bit already. DD was veggie (vegan mostly) for about 6 months before going to university in Sept and we've carried on eating many more vegan meals. I love lentils & vegs anyway so it's quite easy.

I will not be including books. I've got two on my list for Christmas I get 90% via the library anyway - I don't consider them frivolous extras and they always get recycled via charity shops or giving to people I know.

I'm in the process of sorting out a few skincare items/shampoos I have hardly used and will give to our local domestic violence support group (have done it once already and they're ok with slightly used items).

Not really sure what else I can minimise, I don't buy many clothes but I'm sure I'll get some ideas from this thread 😬

I'm in! Thanks OP for this brilliant thread. 《Waves to everyone 🖐》

I don't have any rules other than those already mentioned. I've been becoming more concerned about having so much stuff, wasting money, food, time and resources for a while now.

I'm not buying any new clothes, will only get essentials and cut back on food shopping so we eat more seasonally and local if at all possible. I will NOT be buying stuff (cushions/candles/decorative crap) for the house and before this starts properly in January, i will avoid the tsunami of glittery sh☆te being pushed at us for Christmas. Gifts will be experiences not things.

As a PP has said, I need money more than I need things.

Bring it on! 😁

I'm in. I'm a stress purchaser so I really need to curb it as it's ruining our budgeting too but I find it difficult to step back.

So starting before Christmas but with a definite 'on track' for 2019...

• no new yarn/needles/accessories (unless needed to finish a specific item)
• no new clothes for me (I've already had a purge and I don't need anything)
• no middle aisle purchases in Lidl or Aldi
• Amazon purchases to be discussed with DH before buying, however small.
• Ignore the 'sales'
• Save monthly for Christmas 2019 (instead of buying throughout the year and probably spending more!)

Waving to fellow yarnie types ;) I also have that aim:

• books should be OK as we are big library users, as a PP said most libraries can order books in. I do this online and get notification when it’s ready - 70p adult/10p child
• clothes - only to replace outgrown or worn out.
• toiletries - use up what we have, bars not bottles of soap. Unfortunately DD2 has OCD (she is having therapy) where hand washing is an issue, she freaks about bars of soap. Not ideal, but we try to buy larger bottles and obviously recycle them.
• cleaning - minimum necessary, use what we have first
• food - always take reusable cups just in case we stop for coffee to take away, or else sit to drink in.
• DVDs - we have stopped buying DVDs except for new Disney releases as we have a collection of the classic Disney and Pixar films that are regularly watched and likely to be for many years. Others are either good enough to watch at cinema or else wait to view on Netflix etc

I'm in too!

Not sure of our rules yet (the family will be delighted when I tell them!) but lots of interesting ideas here.

houseman you had me at minimum house-cleaning!

We also use bar soap here as it's cheaper, no plastic and ta-da - actually cleans you better. I'm trying with bar shampoo but yet to find one I love except lush - and I hate those bastards. I don't need conditioner as my hair is super-fine and I've got boys so they don't require dozens of bottles.

I'm going to make more of an effort with packed lunches with home-baking. Cheap as chips, you know what's in the stuff and little waste.

I also need to get my polytunnel up properly as right now it's in its box in the stairs cupboard.

Eek... I can see myself wanting to spend how to make things easier next year. Eg I've somehow managed to wedge the bread machine paddle on upside down so it doesn't mix... And I can't get it off again. Thankfully I'd bought it secondhand anyway. Must keep my eyes peeled.

Ok. My goal - keep it simple, stay away from the consumer madness but have plenty good times with family and friends.

There's me, DH and DS9.

No

• clothes, shoes and stuff for me and DH ( excluding work shirts)
• toiletries beyond basics, make up
• books or mags ( have pile of unread books and great libraries,

I read mags on Readly but am going to cancel this as they just induce dissatisfaction!)

• house/ garden crap
• last minute, run to the shops presents , I Will Plan!
• charity shop or gift shop browsing as I can't be trusted - in fact just

staying out of shops

• supermarkets, coffee chains, eating out (will fail)
• negative, pointless internet/tv/entertainment stuff

Yes to the necessities of course ( food, clothes for DS), switching off the screens, getting out walking and cycling, mending and repairing, cooking for friends, finishing craft projects, playing games, growing some more veg....

Thank you NoSpend !
Waving back to Faery

I'm in.
Really trying to start thinking of the environment too.
We don't really buy too much anyway but will read the full thread later for some more tips.
Couple of things spring to mind;
Buy larger bottles of things we need ie. washing liquid and shampoo rather than more smaller bottles. Saving money too.
Use soap instead of shower gel.
Don't upgrade small 1L car - more eco friendly, lower petrol costs and no tax.
Christmas cards for smaller number of people (recycled charity ones and NO glitter).
Money instead of silly presents to people for Christmas.
Only advent calendar for child (not us!).
Hmmm to think of some more.

I was thinking of getting a gym membership for when I finish bfing, (which has been my stock excuse for not exercising ).

But, I’ve got several good yoga / workout DVDs, a yoga mat, a pair of trainers and a perfectly good park nearby which I can run in. Let’s face it, I am no more likely to use the gym than I am to go for a quick jog 🤷‍♀️. So, cutting a long story short, I’m not joining the gym. Hurrah!

A big yes to @BagelGoesWalking . I'm going to have a big declutter before and after Christmas to find things we don't use for our local women's refuge. I did this last year and felt really good to be able to help and that items weren't going to waste.
If anyone is interested in doing this you can probably find something local on Facebook.
Also someone told me earlier that people collect unwanted bra's fit a breast cancer charity - something to look into.

I'm in! The only other thread I subscribe to on here is Christmas bargain hunting, having difficulty reconciling my drivers but I definitely want to try. Shopping for tat makes me happy unfortunately but it also makes me ashamed. You are all providing some good insight and motivation and I am going to give this a damn good try.

hmslfc loving the picture of that inner turmoil - to purchase the fantastic bargain or to reject it in favour of no spend!

All welcome here. Whatever the motivation. Could be that you're sick of the consumerism, sick of the wasting of money or sick of the jam packed house. For me its a bit of all three. I know for a fact that I have more eyeshadow than I can probably use in a lifetime - but still that lovely pot of overpriced Mac sparkle calls to me....

I tried and failed to do that this year, so I’d love to join for the mutual support!!

I've just spent a few minutes unsubscribing from Wowcher, Groupon, Wayfair so won't now get bombarded with emails showing me pictures of tat and stuff I dont need. I rarely buy from them anyway but I waste time looking at all the stuff, especially home decor items, but I don't need anything. My home is perfectly nice, or wou9kd be if I decluttered it, tidied up a bit more and actually appreciated what I've got. 😁 I'm going for a walk now in the time I would have been online window shopping. Crikey, I might even loose some weight as well as saving money. Thanks OP x

oh yes, we've switched to bars of soap, seems okay, just using up the last of the liquid bottles. Also, when I've used up all the shampoo and conditioner in the house (quite a lot of part used bottles!), I'll be getting some shampoo and conditioner bars instead. I've already bought the soap dishes

Also a good decluttering needs to happen, to discover what we already have, sell what we don't need and put that towards new kids' clothes and shoes. I do try to buy shoes in the sales though. DD has the next size up school shoes in our bedroom as she'll need them some time this year! She's nearly in adult sizes so slower growing and unlikely to outgrow them just in the summer holidays!

Good idea @Biscuits, will do the same later

I've also arranged a refund of a recent Amazon purchase that was a bit spur of the moment. Ok, need to pay for the return postage, but still getting the bulk of the money back.

We’re using reusable nappies and wipes part time. We still use a disposable at night and when out and about / travelling. I might start using them more though. I don’t think we’ll give up the one disposable at night time yet. But actually, we could probably manage to take them out with us more.

Love how you’re going for a walk instead of shopping biscuits! I wonder what I’ll actually achieve while I’m not shopping for stuff I don’t need.

Also was about to buy a juicer to make healthy juices and then saw an article saying it’s so much healthier just to eat the fecking fruit and veg! I mean, I knew that, so why was I even considering buying another gadget? And a book to go with it no doubt. Stupid.

Can we buy "stuff" if it's of practical household value? Reason I ask is that twice this morning I've tripped over the laundry basket in the kitchen as it's in tatters. Standard plastic bought from Tesco 5.5 years ago. Both handles are gone and it's ripped. I've been meaning to replace for months and months but have resisted because it's a huge hunk of plastic which will of course need replacing in a few years with the same...

So I'd like to replace with something more sustainable along the lines of "buy less, buy better" ethos. Does anyone have any recommendations for a container to lug wet washing around in?

@vintage would you have an old ikea bag lying around?