To ask you for your 'living well for less' tips

[meatbawls]

Maybe this philosophy has a name that I don't know, but I've been doing some thinking recently about how not to fall for all the tricks of the modern world and how to live a good, even luxury, even slightly flash(!) in certain ways life. I wfh in a good job, we have plenty of money so it's not about that, we have kids. It's not about austerity measures (not a boast, just clarifying so you don't ask to see my outgoings and help me budget).

What I'm trying to achieve is I guess a watered down version of FIRE (financial independence retire early) except I don't mind working for now, I just want to actually have something to show for it at the end and not just a load of crap I bought or conveniences I paid for.

My personal list is as follows, i'm interested to know what other people's look like! I am not looking for judgement particulary on the below, these are the things that for me represent value for money, or don't and any money that would have been spent on it should be put directly into savings instead.

IN:

healthy cheap food, lentils, beans, etc to promote health and long life
home workouts, mix of free and streamed
biking / cargo bike commute to school
second hand toys and clothes for all
antique jewellery which might hold value not decrease the minute I buy it.
proper coffee but not takeaway and no pods
very occasional facial for a treat.
highlights and haircuts, but only 2 times a year.
botox, because it actually works
effective cheap skin products (for me tret, sunscreen, moisturiser and not much else)
occasional file and polish pedicures
nice holidays
nice meals out on occasion
good wine, delicious cocktails!

OUT:

takeway coffee/lunch
pretty much any beauty products that are not listed above
eyebrow threading - they always take too much and I've bought a magnifying mirror for fraction of cost.
gel manicures/pedicures that require upkeep
pretty much any salon treatment that can't be seen on my face
clothes in general. certainly new clothes not on sale - i've been shopping my wardrobe and the rest on vinted
new furniture, as above
meat when eating alone
taxis unless strictly necessary
new phone or any other tech upgrade until current one is either broken or stolen
new glasses until frames actually break (I only use them for work and don't see people in person often)
new gym wear - see above re exercise mostly at home.

My OUT list feels too short. What can you add that are just a con of the modern world and don't need to be purchased either because they are completely unnecessary or because you can easily DIY it.

God you lucky thing!

I’ve finally come to the conclusion that I like the simple things in life and get most my enjoyment from spending time with my loved ones instead of buying expensive tat that other people make you think you should want. Based on this, I’ve basically stopped buying practically anything other than what I need, and even that I’ll try and get second hand if I can. I’m also enjoying owning less possessions as I realised that being surrounded by clutter made me feel claustrophobic so I like the minimalism of not having loads and loads of stuff.

I’m now trying to base buying decisions on what brings good value for money. I can afford to eat out, but it’s no longer the value for money it used to be so I’d rather cut it out and focus my energy on making really nice dinners at home with supermarket ingredients and the odd treat in the weekly shop. I love coffee and used to buy one out practically every day when I worked in town years ago, but now it’s crossing over the £4 mark which is just totally ridiculous and not something I can justify more than about once a week.

On a slightly random but related note - last night I watched They Shall Not Grow Old, and it really struck me how simple life used to be without all the consumer distractions we have today. I found that inspiring.

Walks, hikes, museums and art galleries on free days. Board games.

We send out our ironing—life's too short, and the woman in the sewing shop does a much better job than we do, for very little money.

We have occasionally had a cleaner when work's been very busy, but I've found that luxury hit and miss. Every cleaner we've had starts cutting corners and leaving fifteen or twenty minutes early after a while, and it always feels too awkward to deal with. We don't mind cleaning (other than dusting, which I hate, so my husband does it), and it doesn't take long to do, though our standards are probably shockingly low for some MNers.

I don’t have much that drops seeds in the garden, as I never get round to sowing my seeds 🤣 I have quite a few bulbs for colour. I have started bravely dividing some of my plants, I was sure I’d killed the red hot poker, but all four clumps flowered!

Oh, one thing that is definitely out for me: mid-price restaurants.

We have some great cheap and cheerful bistros near us, which are a nice treat now and then. I've also been lucky enough to go to a handful of Michelin starred places over the years, which were a wonderful experience (this started back when I was 19, working in a fancy restaurant, and dating a chef).

I've learned that anything in between down-home bistro and Michelin star is invariably a bit of a disappointment, and doesn't feel worth the money when we can cook as well, or better, at home. The only time I go to those places now is if someone else is paying!

I reviewed all my bills/outgoing recently and found the below helpful:

1. Shop around for the best deals. I basically cut my home insurance, car insurance, pet insurance in half.

1. If its not broken, you dont need a new one. My phone contract was up and I was eyeballing a new phone. Thought to myself -why?! Got a new battery for my phone at £10 instead.

1. Planning meals for the week ahead along with shopping lists - and sticking to them.

1. Any miscellenaous activities or items during the week that are non essential need to come out of my budget. I withdraw the cash weekly and use this for those purposes so I dont use my card.

1. No takeaways/eating at restaurants unless its a special occasion, e.g. date night, birthday, anniversary etc.

1. Buy a picnic bag (I got mine for £12) and saved me so much money on food when out on day trips etc and DS loves it.

My tip for saving money: don't have children. It's not the only or even the main reason I don't have children, but it certainly helps.

I have a Baggu lunch bag that I use every day (with an ice block)

I pack a really nice lunch for work and really look forward to it. If I go to the canteen I spend too much and end up getting a pudding which my waistline can not afford.

I buy nice wine when it’s on special offer at the supermarket.

I do like a nice loo roll but can bulk buy at the cash and carry.

I also like a good toilet roll, but the kids do not notice. So I have good toilet roll in my en suite and the other three toilets have who gives a crap recycled.

@SerendipityDiamondid be interested in what you ate taking for lunches?

I love charity shops for my clothes, though it helps that the ones where I live are more like boutiques. After a huge declutter a few years ago I now have a ‘capsule wardrobe’ of clothes that look good and I feel comfortable wearing.

I go for classic quality labels plus a sprinkling of ‘just for fun’. The former I keep for ages - if I get tired of a garment but I still like it, it fits and is in good nick, I hide it at the back of the closet for a while until I ‘rediscover’ it.

Ooh love this! Some that come to mind:

IN
Using the local library (including ebooks read on a Kobo)
Hand-me-downs and Vinted for baby things
Charity shop for baby toys and a few bits of home decor - latest find was a huge load of Duplo for a tenner
Furniture from eBay when we moved house
Reusable nappies and baby wipes - can’t stand the disposable wipes, so useless!
Church hall baby groups in term time - £1-2 for hot drink and biscuits, yes please
National Trust membership as we go a lot
Embracing the cottage garden approach by accepting plants from everyone who offers! Also some new plants (love me a David Austin rose!)
Rehoming stuff on the neighbourhood WhatsApp group

OUT
Redoing kitchen and bathrooms for the sake of it, ripping out internal walls etc - it’s very much the trend round here, but it’s rubbish for the environment to skip all that stuff, and I’d rather keep the cash and retire earlier!
Hairdresser haircuts - since the pandemic my mum trims my hair 😂
Buying anything first hand unless really necessary
Subscriptions except for Spotify and a few Substacks

IN - gift cards. TopCashback give cashback for buying gift cards, so before you buy anything check if you can buy a gift card on there (or wherever) and get cashback for it. The % may be small but it’s something and you can do it for supermarkets like Tesco and Morrisons

IN - cashback sites. I use them whenever possible when shopping online and they give decent cashback when purchasing insurance. TopCashback often do days where you can get £2 if you spend £5, which is great if you’re buying gift cards as you get £2 for nothing.

IN - buying in bulk or buying the ‘big pack’. It’s usually cheaper to buy the bigger version and you may as well if you’re going to use it.

IN - taking food for lunch whenever possible

OUT - takeaways, coffee. I get the free coffee from Waitrose instead.

I cancelled all the streaming services and watch DVDs. In the charity shoot they are 5 for £1, so 20p each. I also struggle to find anything I really want to watch. When Slow Horses is out I'll pay for a month of Apple and watch it all.

Paid for a subscription to watch the Olympics then cancel it.

Vegetarian so use green lentils as a mince substitute ( chilli, shepherdess pie etc). Picked blackberries this weekend and made crumble, birds eye custard (the tin you mix with sugar and milk kind).

Just got borrowbook.

I do pay for fitness but go a minimum of 3x weekly.

Hobbies and gardening to keep me busy and prevent me from drifting to the shops.

I use my NT membership to visit even for a cup of tea.

I don't go into the town centre hardly ever.

I cut my own hair and don't do the other elements (nails, facials) except moisturiser.

Oh well done!

I’ve got a Shasta daisy (I think?), lavender and a smoke bush I might try and divide or propagate next. Have to be a bit brave a they are taking over so need a good hack anyway!

Nothing particularly unusual but I take the time to make it nicely.

Sometimes different berries with Greek yogurt.

Or rice/pasta salad with roasted veg.

Or a really good thickly filled sandwich.

One that I recently discovered. Meeting people for lunch instead of dinner. Lunch options in nice restaurants are cheaper and delicious. And having a nice lunch just makes the afternoon nicer.

That’s a good thought! If we are going to eat out with the family it’s dinner but lunch is more likely to have a set menu and have more affordable options.

In: get an allotment, grow as much of your own produce as possible. Freeze and preserve.
veganism: so much cheaper, loads of dried beans and pulses. You’ll save so much money.

In my experience the frames have been the cheapest part of getting glasses and there has been very minimal price difference even if they agree to use the old frames. This is of course a personal preference, but the only fun thing (hate the process) about getting new glasses is getting a new look.

That being said, if just got laser surgery so fingers crossed that I won't need glasses for quite a few years 🤞🏻

In: a cost per wear for clothing. I’ll spend a lot on something I’ll wear a lot so a brand new raincoat I love is fine, less than a £ a wear by the time I have to replace.

Out: buying lunch out. It’s expensive and prohibitive, I’m in the habit of packed lunches now, can eat when and where I like for a fraction of the cost.

Such a good thread idea OP! And I really resonate with the sentiment of trying to reduce spending/be more frugal while not resorting to a completely bleak existence. Some of mine are:

IN - taking lunch and a canned coffee to work instead of buying out. I realised I was spending about £30-£40 a week on buying food and drinks when at work, which is ridiculous considering I can't afford it and also often don't even like the lunch I buy. Instead, I've switched to some Costa iced latte cans for my morning fix, which are currently £1 per tin on Amazon, and have bought a pretty lunch bag to take homemade meals in. The iced latte cans won't do me once we go into colder weather, so when that happens I'll switch to taking coffee made from my machine at home in a flask. The pretty lunch bag and flask make this money-saving effort seem less bleak and more enjoyable for me.

IN - learning to sew so I can fix small issues myself and make my clothes last longer. Related to this, I bought a subscription to Skillshare and am taking the Bernadette Banner sewing course. So much useful content on there so well worth the money for me. Am also learning to do small house DIY jobs myself from this.

IN - vegetarian meal days. Saves a fair bit of money and vegetarian food is genuinely very tasty once you've mastered some recipes to rotate.

IN - started a herb garden. Fresh basil is pretty expensive but something I use often; having my basil plants has definitely saved me money. I also have endless mint for blending up and putting in cold drinks (it's so healthy for you!)

OUT - getting my nails done every month. My lifestyle doesn't even allow for it anyway as I use my hands a lot and find a professional gel set only lasts me two weeks on average, so now I get gel nails every once in a while as a treat or if going on holiday, and most of the time instead do my nails at home with either clear or light pink polish, refreshing it once a week so chips aren't noticeable. Much better suited to my lifestyle, saves me so much money and means my hands still look pretty (I've also learned how to do cuticle care myself).

OUT - Netflix. There's rarely anything on there that I like anyway and I already have Amazon Prime. Any movie or series I want that isn't on there, I buy second hand on Ebay. Never had anything come that's been too scratched to work perfectly. I store all my DVDs in DVD holders and throw the cases away, so it doesn't clutter my home. In a similar vein, I'm enjoying watching older series and movies that I never watched when it first came out. A lot of cinema was significantly better back in the day.

Will stop there so as not to clog the thread.

I keep thinking of more!

I have a sodastream as I love sparkling water, and take a bottle with me in my bag whenever I go out, even if it's just a quick trip to the shops. As well as meaning I don't buy drinks as much it has also reduced my use of plastic bottles.

In 2018 I bought myself National Trust life membership for £1800. It includes entry for a guest. So we can have as many days out as we want for little extra cost, especially if also take a drink and snack or picnic lunch and a flask. In fact I'm going to my local place today with a friend, and as she will get in free she has said she will buy me a coffee. 🙂

I'm a big fan of cooking double and freezing - saves time and money. I also freeze leftovers to make lunches to take to work - so maybe some rice/pasta/quinoa left from one meal, and some curry/chilli/stew/roasted veg left from another. It also means that I sometimes accidentally create delicious combinations!

I have a plastic bag in my freezer that I fill up with carrot, onion, garlic skins, celery root, tough herb, broccoli and asparagus stalks, cores from peppers etc. When it's full I boil it up with water and peppercorns to make stock. I either use it straight away or freeze in small tupperware containers. It's delicious, fresh tasting, free of any nasties and practically free. The boiled veg scraps are then composted.

I do realise that some of my ideas do require time and planning so wouldn't work for everyone, but thought I would share.

At the beginning of the holidays I got my kids to make tray bakes and we froze them, cake freezes and defrosts really well and is such a treat. Also it’s portion controlled and no waste! So making ahead and freezing definitely in.