... to ask your money savings, frugal tips and tricks?

[bingsulaflop]

Hello all,

A little bit of background...

Me, my partner and our 2 yo DS are moving out of my parents house (we originally moved in to save for a house deposit but cannot cope not having our own space and the controlling nature of my mum)

The place we're renting is affordable but with only one income and my student maintenance loan, we are making a conscious effort to be more frugal and mindful of our spending (we both can waste money on silly things and with a fast growing toddler he's always growing out of his clothes etc)

As a note it's not possible to only have sim only phones as we both are tied in a contract for the next two years..

Please share your money saving tips, what you've found works to be more frugal, advice on how to cut costs here and there any and all suggestions welcome!

Thank you x

A very tight budget and meal plan.
Top item on budget is money towards debt/savings. Do not try to save what is left at the end of a month as there won't be any... make it something you do early in the month.

Have a read of “The no spend year” by Michelle McGagh. She basically decided to spend no money for a year! Budget of £30 a week for food. It’s quite an eye-opening book, she was very frugal (rode her bike everywhere, no hair cuts, lived off freebies) but she saved about £30k! Simple stuff like making packed lunches, thermos for hot drinks when going out saves money. I also buy in bulk like loo rolls, washing liquid, dishwasher tablets from a local cash and carry because it saves money.

I follow thepennypal and myfrugalyear on Instagram and have found some tips useful, as well as their general philosophy about facing your money head on and not burying your head in the sand.

There are some long running threads about this in Credit Crunch.

Look up MSE forum

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/credit_crunch/3937039-is-penny-pinching-worth-it

Have a read of this thread. Very enlightening and enjoyable. The key is a change in mindset which involves finding the joy in stretching your money and making it go further, rather than feeling deprived.

Reading the credit crunch board changed my attitude to money and how I spend it.

In terms of food: buy supermarket own brand everything (it's normally just as good); reduce the amount of meat you eat; get friendly with batch cooking and freezing portions; find some store cupboard recipes using things like beans, pulses, lentils etc; learn how to make pizza dough and chips/wedges so you have takeaway alternatives; keep snacks in your handbag and car; start making soup with any and all leftovers.

Food is my biggest saving thing, planning properly, using leftovers, being inventive and realising that not every meal needs to be a full song and dance; beans on toast or a jacket potato is just as satisfactory for dinner as anything else.

(I'm trying to instill the above in DP at the moment. He loves to cook but when he finds a recipe he'll just go buy every ingredient down to jars of herbs, without checking what we've already got in the house, or considering what we could substitute or do without. Drives me bananas)

Otherwise my best tip is to walk away from impulse purchases for as long as you can. If you still feel like you want/need it in 2 days then fine, chances are you won't. And don't go into retail shops at all unless you specifically need something; shopping as a 'hobby' is the way to an empty bank account .

What is your typical spending ?