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Cutting Costs

15 replies

LouB76 · 19/04/2022 14:25

Just wondering if anyone has any ideas on how to cut costs. Cost of essentials going up and I'm not going to stop paying my mortgage, pension etc, so the increase in fuel, food, energy costs will be coming out of my disposable income.

Things I'm doing so far:

Food shop at Aldi

Lengthening time between hair and brow apps (these are my only 2 beauty treatments)

Taking coffee in a travel mug

Packed lunches rather than cafe lunches

Not upgrading car as planned, I have a 10 year old golf that I own outright and I'm hoping I'll get another few years out of it

OP posts:
Lightning020 · 19/04/2022 14:44

Buy an air fryer and use instead of an electric oven or hob. Reduce washing loads ie only wash clothes if they smell or stained. I think most of us are prone to overwashing. Go for a dry cut instead of a full wash cut and blow dry.

SpongeBobJudgeyPants · 19/04/2022 15:18

Just came on to say about air fryer/Ninja. I'm quite reluctant to put the oven on these days. Lots of recipes say put in the oven, when it isn't necessary. Did fish the other day, pan fried, and the sauce etc in a pan. No difference to taste IMO. I'm trying to get better about using up the veg we've got, but it does involve more effort, and I'm naturally lazy. I peg out washing as often as I can, trying to put it on wash overnight, so it can go out first thing. I also have the Lakeland airer.

LouB76 · 19/04/2022 15:20

I've stopped using the dryer. I just hang clothes on a rack and sheets / towels over the bannisters. Do you think the Lakeland airer is more economical than a dryer?

OP posts:

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

effoffyouseeyounexttuesday · 19/04/2022 15:34

@LouB76

I've stopped using the dryer. I just hang clothes on a rack and sheets / towels over the bannisters. Do you think the Lakeland airer is more economical than a dryer?

Hang them outside is even better value :)

PeepsAndSheeps · 19/04/2022 15:45

You're probably doing lots of this already...

Meal plan and make sure you're including a good few very cheap meals. We tend to eat nutritious but cheaper meals during the week and then have a roast (or BBQ/picnic coming into the nicer weather) at the weekends.
Some of our favourites are
Egg curry
Carbonara

Lentil Dahl
Eggs, beans and chips
Risotto using up any leftovers
Soup, bread and hard boiled eggs.
Sausage and bean casserole

Base your meal plans off things you have already in the house that need used up (if you have anything). Plan quicker/easier meals for the evenings things are hectic and be strict with yourself and stick to it.

PeepsAndSheeps · 19/04/2022 15:46

Check that your home is adequately insulated.

hamsterchump · 19/04/2022 16:05

Always think secondhand first for everything. Try to get things for free first on Freecycle/Facebook free groups/Olio. If you use these also give away items you don't need, you'd be surprised what you think is rubbish but people will queue up to collect for free, it's much more convenient for the IP not to mention obviously so much better for the planet and local community.

For clothes and shoes look at Vinted or eBay. For home/furniture items eBay end of line/seconds and Facebook marketplace. Toys and children's clothes from car boot sales. Charity shops are an option too although I find them a lot more expensive and much lower quality than the above options.

Don't upgrade your phone and switch to a SIM only plan, Money saving expert has all the best ones starting at about £3 a month.

Compare every year for things like insurances to make sure you always get the best deal (I set yearly reminders in my phone for this). Pick a comparison site with the best perk. We use compare the market because the saving on cinema tickets pays for our home insurance for example but the others offer other perks that might be better for you.

Break up with TV subscription sites when you've watched everything you're interested in and then go back when they send you a good deal. I've got two months of Now TV for £1 a month at the moment.

Use Olio (food sharing app) or a community fridge for food (they distribute surplus food for a small donation, not a food bank, open to all). Use everything, throw nothing away.

Sell anything you can that you're not using any more.

Give yourself some time before buying anything non essential to see if the desire fades, it often does.

Think about your priorities and switch/downshift/change to secondhand/reduce the ones that make the most saving for minimum cost to your quality of life. So for example I don't mind at all getting all my clothes and shoes etc secondhand, this literally increases my quality of life for no cost so I do that. But I use my oven every day instead of doing one pot cooking/using as slow cooker because I've decided that's worth it for me. I don't much like baths or long showers so I have a 2 minute shower every day. I like going to the pub most weeks but controversially I like Spoons so we mostly go there which saves minimum 60% on drinks prices. We don't like eating out much so don't bother with it, we prefer a takeaway or delivery so have one of those occasionally instead.

yoshiblue · 19/04/2022 16:33

Things we have done so far are:

  • Trying to wear clothes a little more.
  • Dryer not on, everything is going on the line/dryer racks.
  • Use air fryer/slow cooker
  • Walking/scooting to school rather than driving the car. Reducing other short journeys to on foot/scooting/bike where possible.
  • Shower/bath for us all every other day rather than every other day.
  • More mindful of food shopping, trading down a brand where possible.
emmathedilemma · 19/04/2022 16:41

-cycle to work once a week and try to reduce number of short car journeys

  • shower at the gym
  • use the George Foreman for chicken, fish & sausages instead of the oven
  • cook 2 meals at once if they'll fit in the oven together
I don't have a particularly frivolous lifestyle, I already shop at Aldi, get my hair cut 2 or 3 times a year, no other beauty treatments, the car is paid for and no plans to replace it.....
LouB76 · 19/04/2022 17:00

Thanks everyone. As someone said, I'm looking forward things that don't reduce the quality of my life.

OP posts:
SpongeBobJudgeyPants · 19/04/2022 17:10

@LouB76 I'm not sure about the dryer. It costs pence per hour to run, but stuff needs to be out longer than the tumble dryer. I tend to leave stuff on it overnight. So many variables with weights of fabrics etc. Maybe some one better at this stuff will tell us.

bellfrint · 19/04/2022 17:14

Tbh the pandemic really showed me how much money I wasted & I saved a lot.

More shopping in Aldi.
Completely cutting back on eating out, buying snacks & drinks for the dc.
Moved hairdressers & stretching the appointments
I've just canx netflix
Trying to do a pack lunch more

bellfrint · 19/04/2022 17:16

when my contract ends cutting right down on mobile date.

bellfrint · 19/04/2022 17:16

data

Ariela · 19/04/2022 18:14

There's another thread about someone wanting a compact oven and someone has kindly mentioned the energy used for each suggestion. I think the combi microwave was hands down a lot more efficient than most of the Ninjas etc

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