A mission to save as much cash as possible.

[stropicana]

Do any of you want to join me?

I going to start properley after christmas but just dipping my toe in now.

is it just me or is this entire thread in bold text?

yes i am starting on the first. have lots of stuff to seel and lots of things to do to get my own finances in order. i am looking forward to the challenge tbh.

Yes, this whole thread is in bold, but i am new (just joined today) so just presumed that some threads are like that (D'oh!)..obviously not!

My car Insurance is coming up for renewl on 5th Jan, so need to shop around for that too.

Not in bold on mobile

Wow! how odd.... BOLD

That was a test- it doesn't extra-bold the bold...

hello! would like to join too. will start on the 1st jan. although im proud to say that for the first time in years that i managed to save for christmas so didnt have to use cards or overdraft. but wil be saving to pay off the rest of student overdraft and credit cards...determined to do it by august when i start getting charged for it.

Well odne itshappenedagain- i did the same this year, was determind not to have a skint January because i'd overspent!

I am buying a second hand car in Jan (fingers crossed)that i have saved very hard for- its only £1200- so will be putting myself on a very tight budget from now on.
First bit of good news is that i didnt go into town to the next or m&s sales today...its killing me, but i didnt do it!

Just found out my increased fares will cost me about £60 per month - owch. Definately on the straight and narrow.

I got vouchers for my favourite shop for Christmas so I had a free spree today - which was nice

Ouch Q- thats a bit steep!
Oh well, less tat then!

Invest in a slow cooker. I had a big 6l Morphy Richards one for Christmas last year and it has been brilliant. I bung everything in and usually have enough left to freeze a couple of meals as well. Though I have learned to plate DH's up for him to eat when he comes in and then box the rest up and freeze it, as he tends to put too much on his plate if it is available.It's great if you know that you are going to have little time to cook and helps avoid the take away because you haven't enough time to cook. It also means that I can have a week of not buying any food at the end of a tight month because I have enough in the freezer for a week, even if we all have different meals.

Also get on to the Moneysaving Oldstyle Board The Grocery Challenge is good to follow plus there are numerous other great ideas.

Get yourself signed up to Topcashback and any transaction you do on the web, whether buying new car insurance or a toy check if you can get cashback, all the little things add up, I had £400 in there for Christmas present spending this year and I am already up to £50ish now.

RMP- already got a big slow cooker, and totally agree with you, its brilliant.
Thanks for the link to the grocery challenge should be interesting!

Hey rantypants . Thanks for link. I'm inspired. Going to start saving all my food receipts as of 1st jan. I'm inspired!

It helped me cut my food bill from £700 per month down to £350 over a year for 5. Though it has crept up again to £500 over the last 3-4 months but I think a lot of that is to do with the rise in food prices but some is due to the fact that I have slipped a bit.

Another good website is Approved Foods

Count me in as well as really would like to have a little savings pot and a xmas pot so that i am not always skint after xmas

Another thing I do is keep a tin on the shelf by the door and when I come home I empty any coppers and small change into it and sometimes bigger if I am feeling flush. The only way you can get into the tin is by opening it with a tin opener so there is no nicking money from it, last tin came from the Pound shop. When full it gets emptied and put into my holiday money account.

What I'd do for a holiday this year! Rantypants, you may become my mentor! Any other top tips?

Hello! Can I join please? (FreudianSlippery here) I was thinking of starting a New Year money saving thread but I'll just butt in here if that's ok :o

Ranty - so glad you like that slow cooker as that same one got delivered here yesterday and I can't wait to use it!!!

Anyway. We've agreed to reign in our spending majorly. We may try a month of buying nothing but food/bills/travel.

Am in extra trouble ATM - DH has been off with a back injury and due to slow NHS will be off for some time yet. Only getting SSP now :( I've also had a real shock as our lock broke and it struck me how little money we have for emergencies.

Thankfully we have no debt - did really well on Xmas shopping and got a few of the DCs birthday presents in the sales. Should be getting funding for my next OU course including a PC grant as I don't have one ATM.

No idea how else to save money - we don't smoke or drink or go out. We may have to withdraw DD from daycare (twice a week) and I may need to start working (which I'd really like TBH, but it's difficult due to childcare) - if anyone would hire me that is

Hello all, so glad to have discvered this thread.

Can I join as well please? - need to really tighten my belt as newly single and want to stop frittering money away on bits here and there.

Plus, I really need to build up a rainy day fund in case anything breaks, the cats need treatment etc. :)

Hi all can I join to please as really need to have a rainy day fund and stop being so skint after xmas and at the end of each month need to budget better.

You may find keeping a spending diary to start with helps. I wrote down everything I spent my money on as did my DH. It was amazing how many times he didn't just buy petrol at the petrol station in the morning but would buy a pasty and coffee and this and that for lunch, it soon adds up. So I got him a take away breakfast bowl from Morrisons. It has a pot which you put cereal in and the lid pops on top and then there is a bottom piece that goes in the freezer and then you put the milk in and screw on the cereal pot.He also takes in lunch, usually soup or a meal from the freezer from my batch cooking. He also has a flask now for his drink. Has saved a fortune.

I will join you!

Menu planning seems to be the way to go but it is getting DH onboard that is tricky, he will buy food to cook a meal (being helpful) but there is always food at home, just not obvious meals.

I try to go to the local supermarket late at night to get bargains and freeze them. Makes meat more affordable for a start.

I was given a slow cooker for Christmas so looking forward to emptying the freezer using that.

I like the idea of a spending diary.

I'm on a proper secret squirrel from
now on! Went to the bank last week and changed account to a better one and hoping to save and stop frittering it away.

Re: food, as well as a menu, i've started going to the supermarket just before it closes - often things are discounted and cheaper and can be frozen. I use this as the basis of the next week's menu

Right, I've started meal planning properly now. Am keeping all food receipts this month. Did a 2 week meal plan and it's going well so far. I'm finding the bulk meals which I'm making are streching to more meals than I'd planned. Bonus!

I have loads of work to do. Trying to get CCs on 0% find out if I'm entitled to any extra cash as DH stuggling for work.

Might try doing a house swap thing as we need a holiday this year!

I am emptying the freezer, big chest freezer lots of stuff in it, tonights meal is sausage casserole, which will do two nights.