No spend January?

[corinewmoon]

After he festive blowout and considering ive got some big bills in January, (MOT, car tax, insurance) I have decided to try a no frivlous spending month. There is nothing i really need to buy, (apart from new school jumper and coat for DS) .
So I will be taking my lunch to work every day,
I will avoid costas,
and i will limit my self to one bottle of wine per week
I will aim to spend £200.00 on food shop for the month
I will not go for leisurely stroll to the shops during my lunch break.

Any one else want to join in. ?

The best way to save money on food without ending up with a backside like a small truck is to have a hot breakfast (eg porridge, boiled egg, baked beans), sandwich-based lunch on brown bread, or brown pasta salad, and home cooked meat/meat alternative and two veg at night time with fruit and yoghurt to pad it all out (basically the 1910 diet on my blog without the suet!) Buy value/essentials everything. Squirrel away apples, pears, other seasonal fruit when you can by freezing puree and slices, and make it be known you are up for any donations or surplus produce from people's allotments. Frequent the supermarket at about 5pm daily for cheap bread and dairy.

Let's all go Edwardian

MustControlFistOfDeath Yes, dont normally go to boots as usually pricey, but preg tests were half price plus I had a money off voucher and bonus points voucher to spend and was desparate for a wee and needed to do a test asap using first morning wee and this was the nearest place No wilko near us unfortunately, but plenty of other bargain places.

I have just bought all my christmas cards, wrapping paper and gift tags for next year for £3.50. Now, if someone can just come back in November and say 'behind the tall bedroom bookshelf' to me, I'd be very appreciative! This could be a new thread!

And I went shopping with an actual list and very almost stuck to it!

Bec I must have cross posted with you as I didn't see what you'd written. It will be expensive to shop unless you have the time to shop around a bit. I agree with what TheSecondComing says - wouldn't it be worth going to poundland or wilko's to pick up household/toiletries? I really like nappies from Lidl. Size 5 are £5.19(or thereabouts) for 44 good quality ones; likewise, Pampers Simple nappies are good. I only ever buy wipes on offer or own brand. I also like Lidl's for these.

Downbrand as much as possible. The value ranges for staples and veg are fine, or at least supermarket own brand.

Meal plan and have some cheaper/meat-free meals.

Also, revise what goes in the packed lunches.

I think, at the end of the day, it's whether you want to compromise on what you like, like brands, certain packed-lunch products, etc.

Surely the suet is all part of the fun though, BoffinMum? Hmmm... dumplings...

Am also liking the suggestion of boiled onions as a supper dish. I wouldn't be sharing a bed with DH if I fed him those in the evening .

Ladies-do NOT buy anything from Amazon or online until you have checked places like Quidco, Greasy palm and that pig place (check MSE for the right places).They are all cashback sites.

Hmm trying this menu for dinner for Saturday

allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/28/scottish-stovies.aspx except I am doing it with beef sausages-its yummy!

Left over food or bags of any half used bags of frozen veggies make delicious soup.I use swiss bouillon for stock and blitz it in blender. Buy part baked rolls/baguetes as well,cheaper than using fresh and you have that baked smeel in your kitchen. If you buy some salami or chorizo, and slice tomato and cucumber on it, makes delicious lunches, and a couple of baguettes will do a family of four easy peasy.

Day one of revamping wardrobe (see earlier post). Today I am wearing a pair of cigar cut trousers in brown (new Look sale), a brown vest top (primarni £1.50), a Ted baker chiffon top (that I have had for at least 5 years and bought at some outlet), a cardi and Primarni boots. The outfit looks great and the Ted Baker top has had a new lease of life instead of it going to a charity bin cos I had nowt to wear with it. :o. Which I didnt want to do as my finances dont usually stretch to Ted Baker.......lol.

I have to go to Tesco for sausages for dinner for Saturday and also dishwashing tablets. I will have to be good as I have no money till Monday apart from essentials.

I did a whole year without buying anything new and it really changed my life. I started with the idea that I'd try it for a few months, but then just kept going. I didn't realise how much I was spending on little things I didn't need and learned to look for secondhand items through charity shops, freecycle and bartering/swapping. I still use these methods today and I'll only buy something new if I can't find what I need used, or it's something my family really needs. Good luck everyone! I know you can do it!

bec Do you mealplan? Your spending sound similar to mine. I buy on offer and stopped buying particular brands. If I need washing powder I buy what is the cheapest or best offer rather than always stick to say Fairy. Obviously I do avoid products I know are bad quality and bad economy.
Plan birthdays and anniversaries well in advance. You know when they are, so if you see something your mum or whoever would like, buy it and keep it until their birthday. Doesn't matter if it's months away. Make a list of them and tick off the ones you've bought. For friends of the DC I tend to stick to a particular present all year. Boys in DS's class got a Lego helicopter last year. It was about £7 I think. Plus a card and wrapping it's near enough a tenner which is the most I would want to spend...
Buy birthday cards etc in bulk. Someone once recommended writing them in advance, putting them in time order and then putting the date you had to send them in pencil in the corner where you put the stamp. They will be on time too that way.

Some links

the kitchen revolution

How to feed your whole family a balanced diet with Very Little Money and Hardly Any Time, Even If You Have a Tiny Kitchen, Only Three ... - Unless You Count the Garlic Crusher...

the resourceful cook

drop the shops (a year without shopping)

superscrimpers

love food hate waste

India Knight's Thrift Book

stew my bread doesn't look very impressive, although I used all white strong flour as it was all I had in the cupboard. They just haven't risen. I will have to try again later. I'm still baking it as rolls though and forcing everyone to eat it for lunch. I am sure they will be delighted. I've made lentil soup to go with it, so at least they can dunk if it does turn out really badly.

Or grate cheese on it.

If it doubt, grate cheese on it .

Yes, I do plan meals to an extent. I get a weekly organic veg box and buy all the pulses and grains I need in bulk which makes them much cheaper. I have an online subscription for cards so I rarely use paper cards unless the lil' one and I make them ourselves. We save all the interesting cards we get throughout the year and then we can cut them up and make new ones. I also save wrapping paper if I can. My lil' one is only two and just discovered what presents were this Christmas so we'll see what the future holds. He's my first and last child so I'm new to parties and such. His birthday party was more about good food and friends this year than pressies and I always ask for people to regift things from their kids or pick up used books or puzzles from Oxfam if possible. We did buy him an easel from Ikea and some paints and brushes and stuff.

Also, I worked in a shop in a huge shopping centre over Christmas and the way the shops do their marketing and trying to lure you in with their deals and loyalty cards and layout... It was an eye opener. On Christmas eve we had to take down all the Xmas signs and prepare for the sales. It was not sentimental, it was business. It's like now: everything is to do with losing weight, stopping smoking and new year new you. In a few weeks we will be targeted with Valentine stuff. It makes me not want to fall victim to it and be the smartypants who sees through it :)

Is there one day a week when the grocery stores do a big mark down? How do you find out when?

reckoner thanks for book link. I really like 'How to feed...'

Apart from un planned spends this morning, feeling pretty good about spending so far. Using up lots of stuff in our kitchen, back on track with healthy lifestyle, buying less crap and de cluttering the house. I am now going to make this a 2012 life style for sure, not just for january with the intention of clearing a debt of £1000. This simply means I need to spend £85 a month less. I will also be selling lots of un wanted stuff that is cluttering up our house. I would be sooooooo happy if I got to december and this debt was cleared with the minimum of effort :)

Lots of great tips on here, I've nearly read the whole thread.

I regularly cook with vegi mince, although I prefer the Asda own brand or Realeat brand to Quorn. Asda always has a 2 for £3 offer on vegi mince etc. Sometimes Quorn is £1 a bag, so then I buy Quorn.

This New Year I have used one 454g bag of meat free mince to make 8 portions of spag bol - using lots and lots of vegetables, tinnned tomatoes etc. I've frozen six portions. Also I made 16 mini shepherds pies with pastry bottoms, vegi mince with onions and celery and gravy, topped with mashed potato and cheese. They are really delicious. I've frozen 10 of them. And out of the 454g I still have enough left over to make a vegi chilli.

For me keeping food bills down has been a way of life for a number of years now. Being a vegetarian really helps.

Sundays are often the best day for supermarket reductions, after lunch. On other days of the week 7pm seems to be a crucial time.

hmph. Bought a set of Zumba videos and 'toning sticks' from someone at work for £25. Still, that is equivalent to the current Amazon price before delivery charge, and probably equivalent to play.com with delivery. I just have to actually get off my arse and use them.

Nondeprune - Great idea, never thought of making cards, they do it for parents etc at b/days and christmas but never thought of doing it for friends.

Today I have so far 40p on ds1's milk money, kids and dh gone off with packed lunches so no spending there. Got to post a parcel/present to dad later but that should be all (I'm ignoring the £260 car tax, thats already accounted for, bah humbug)

Can I join too please? Im sort of living in a constant worrying about money bubble. I'm not sure where I can cut back anymore though :( we have the radiators on for an hour in the evening and an hour in the morning and I REFUSE to turn them on any other time, even though it's just so cold. We don't go out, ever, I don't drink. We do have sky but it's the best deal we could for Internet + phone line as well. I had my hair cut twice last year. I don't drive anywhere but to work and the supermarket, which I only go to once a week. I can't get public transport to work as it's so far off a bus route it's not even funny and it's certainly too far to walk. I don't but clothes, make up... Anything. I do wear contact Lenses but I have six months worth of them so nothing to help there.

The only thing is food really. I want to spend no more than £30, but I cant see how it is possible. There are only two of us in the house, plus a dog and a cat. I went to tesco yesterday and spent £48. No cakes, no chocolate, no fizzy drinks. Off the top of my head I bought: bananas, nectarines, grapes, a turkey leg, a pork fillet, a cucumber, a pack of tomatoes, a pack of beetroot, tesco value humous, three peppers, one pizza, one bag of chips, a jar of mayonnaise, a 16 pack of toilet roll, three bags of quorn mince and a bag of rice. Now, I know we can get maybe five/six meals out of that, but I just can't afford £50 a week, and I didn't even buy pet food and cleaning products. I fail to see how we can shave anything from our weekly shop - the fruit I suppose. But I eat the fruit as breakfast/lunch if I'm not at work.

It's just so frustrating, I can hardly bear it. We both work, him full time and me over twenty hours and as many as I can, when will it end?

Can you tell I'm having a bad day

RoyalWelsh, you'd probably shave a bit more off it with root vegetables, lentils and seasonal fruit rather than some of the things in the list. But not much, tbh.

Royal - if you live near an Aldis that shopping list would probably have cost a lot less. If there is no Aldis nearby but one within a 50 mile radius it is probably worth the petrol once a month so you can stock up.

Yes please to turkey mince burger recipe!

Ooh do you know what - there is an aldi somewhere here. I would very much enjoy giving my money to someone other than tesco!