What are you adjusting to save yourself money?

[flyingdream]

I'm hoping we don't eat go out to eat as much as we do or order food in. It's just a really bad habit. But we can never stick with it it. Paying 8.50 for a pizza (12 inch from local takeaway) is a large amount and I'm ashamed it's taken recent price increases to make us think.

Also hoping we don't turn on the radiators as much as we do.

I avoid using a tumble dryer because I haven't got one.

No recreational shopping. When I do want to buy something I pick it out then leave it for 24 hours to see if I still want to buy it. Using the food in the freezers, working through cans. Shopping more often but for much smaller amounts so I don't waste food. Less eating out, movies, theatre etc. Never had a tumble dryer, use a heated airer. Use a heated throw if I am cold during the day. Cut down on how long the heating is on for.

Serious LOL at a fish finger sandwich being nicer than a takeaway.

We've been doing a lot of the things mentioned anyway because we don't currently have any income (one of us is going to have to find a job soon).

I don't really want to turn the heating down because the reason we put it up to 19 was because of our damp problem.

@LadyCatStark

I turned the heating off in disgust when I found out how much our bill is going up by! Apart from in the mornings, we haven’t missed it and I put it on for half an hour on the morning so that DS wasn’t cold when he woke up. Eating out/ takeaways are already a thing of the past and we’ve both taken on second zero hour jobs which is ridiculous as DH is a high and I’m an average earner but our outgoings are insane. I want to get rid of Sky as a priority but DH won’t just because of stupid sports.

He could get a NowTV Sports pass for £25.00 a month......

I'm really dreading insurance renewals in the near future. The rule changes meant that we would be charged more anyway but one storm after another will give them carte blanche to slap on extra!

@Kirst26

Well I have decided that for Lent I am going to give up paying for stuff. Just the luxuries though like food, electric, heating, petrol...

Seriously though I am cutting takeaways right out. Shockingly expensive now.

Our local Greek takeaway ( which is delicious) has put their prices up form £7 to £9 for the meal we usually have so dh is refusing to buy now. So for five of us the cost of the take-away has gone up £10.

I've cancelled my Apple Music and a few small subscriptions. Total saving £26 a month. Having sausage and beans on toast once a week for an evening meal. More veg based meals like pasta in a simple tomato sauce and veg curry with rice. Home made pizza has been a win and is delicious . Saving around £50 a month doing those food changes. Reduced my sky package so saving £27 a month there too. I've not renewed my phone contact, gone to PAYG and kept my iPhone XR. Saved £31 a month. Ah these little savings are being eaten up by the cost of food increases though 🤷🏼‍♀️.

I'm not running my hot tub full time anymore, so the money I've saved in electric is basically off set by the rises in price. Now I'll just refill it from the hot water for special occasions despite the fact it really helps my auto immune diseases.

So I've saved money at around but I'm not actually better off at all 😂

Tumble dryer use has been cut right down. Heating only on for half of the time I'd usually have it on. Stopped ordering from local milkman - feel bad about that one but he's too expensive. Wearing clothes more than once before washing them. Buying the 'wonky' veg. Eating less meat.

Got rid of tumble dryer
Bulk cooking to get maximum value out of having oven on ( 2-3lasagnes, cottage pies, cakes all baked at once)
Cutting down on amount of meat and bulking it out with pulses or oats and vegetables
Buying own brands for some things, like peanut butter, cereal,ketchup, mayo, salt , vinegar ( I do miss maldon salt though),
Our heat is set to come on in the morning and evening so I have reduced each pre set by 15 minutes
Buying standard moisturisers , shampoo etc

Cancelled magazine subscriptions too... it was a lovely little luxury but can't justify it...

when washer drier died, replaced with simple washing machine.
use outside line if able
slow cooker regularly used
vegetarian meals, lentil based, regularly,
very few takeaways or cinema trips

@tkwal How do you manage to dry large amounts of washing? I think I'm slowly picking up tips and tricks. Like bake some cakes when the chickens on in the oven at the same time.

I need to portion out my bulk prepped meals otherwise if I have a curry in one container, it doesn't always get finished up between DH and I. Do you cook the lasagna's and cottage pie before freezing?

If you bulk out with oats and lentils what ratio do you use? I've never tried oats but will do (to bulk out). What sort of recipes do they work good in?

I'm another one who could do with turning on the heat less.

Lastly what shampoo, moisturisers do you use? Are we talking Aldi own brand?

@JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn we use wonky veg too and it's perfectly good. It would be cheaper to go to the food market in our town but then that adds up to another routine that I don't have time for. How often do you have meat and how much do you buy?

@McScreamysGhostPants home made pizza sounds great. Do you have a recipe?

@Ragruggers what do you do for picnic food? And thanks I'd never have thought of taking hot chocolate in a flask!

Stopped - using the electric fire so much, turned heating to 19. Cancelled Netflix, Amazon music and films on sky package.
Swapped internet provider, stopped swimming lessons, takeaways, branded food/drinks
Started, taking packed lunch,selling clothes, switching plugs off and walking to school on days I’m not working.

We are cutting back on eating out, takeaways and buying random shit we don't need.

I do use the tumble drier a lot .However dont have Takeouts .Do have Sky because of football! Try to get anything I want from Ebay if possible. Still have coffees out and lunches .Pisses me off that MPs got their 2K rise today while we are forced to cut back more and more!

Turned the flow temperature on the boiler down.
Thermostat is set at 16, up to 18 for an hour in the morning and two hours in the evening.
Meat free three times a week.
Stopped buying lunch when I’m at work, take it with me.
No tumble dryer.
Shorter showers, no baths.
Replaced all the bulbs for super efficient led bulbs.
No more takeaways.

Trying to leave the house less. Every time I leave the house I seem to spend money on something that I wouldn't have had I not seen it.

[quote flyingdream]@McScreamysGhostPants home made pizza sounds great. Do you have a recipe? [/quote]
The base is 750g Bread flour, 2 heaped tea spoons of yeast, 50ml olive oil, tea spoon of salt and enough warm water for it to come together into a non sticky dough. I prove it at room temp for 6 hours and then cover and fridge it for 24-48 hours ( can go up to 72). Then bring it room temperate and ball it up. I hand stretch and part bake the bases and get 7-10 pizza bases out of this. You can then freeze the extras, or put a sauce on and toppings on and finish cooking them right away. You want the oven hot, at least 200-220c for a decent crust.

The sauce I do is a cheap 40p passata, 1 inch tomato paste, a pinch of sugar and salt and a little oregano and basil. Simmer it for a few minutes. Then add to your base and put your toppings and a sprinkle of cheese on. I love it because you can add any of those random bits you find in the fridge . Stray onion, last slice of ham, cheese that's give a bit dry on the edges, last few slices of Jared pickles. Also delicious if you drizzle honey on your cooked pizza too. Or put a teaspoon of Chipotle in a jar of cheap honey and use that for spice/bee sting honey. It really lifts it.

You can also use that base dough to make cheese stuffed garlic dough balls. Just wrap cubes of cheese in the dough and bake. Melt butter with a squidge of ready made garlic purée and a 1/2 tea spoon of dried parsley and drizzle it over the top when they are done. My kids go crazy for them.

Not turning heating on during the day, walking rather than driving when I can and eating through the freezer.

@whatwasIgoingtosay

My greenhouse is my luxury. I did have the thermostats set for heaters to come on at 7 degrees, but have switched to 6.5 and may take it down further. Luckily it's been a mild winter, so the heating doesn't come on in there every night, but if I let it get too cold I'll lose some of my precious specimen plants.

None rotted Horse manure or a hay bale peed on apparently gives off enough heat to keep a greenhouse frost free.

I’m looking at a solar panel and battery set up for mine too.

Got rid of Virgin. Every tv that's regularly used has a fire stick or free view anyway. I have sports on one app but we watch it loads so I don't mind that (I'd only be at the pub if we didnt)

Have always meal planned so not much to cut back on there - although I'm veggie the rest are meat eaters and ive had to cut back on cuts of meat/go for cheaper options even though internally I hate it.

Used the log burner more and been more thrifty with making own fire lighters, used central heating less.

More mindful spending "do I really really need this" Started to sell or pass on stuff we don't need

Go to bed earlier!!! Makes loads of difference. I sleep better and it's warmer

We don't really have takeaways and no cleaner but i do have a gym membership with the dc which I'm loathed to give up as its good for my mental health but I do have a reasonably good home set up now too so it could go.

I've had a nightly bath for as long as I can remember, but have switched to a 5 minute shower instead. Estimated gas usage will be £1200 a year, I'm not having that! Not had a takeaway in ages seems such a waste of money now.