Come tell me your top three tips for saving money that work for you please

[graceinabundance]

trying to learn, in this must needed area

Waiting with baited breath

Heres my 3:

1. I go to hotukdeals and check if there are any bargains if I need something in particular (ie have a wedding coming up and need to buy a gift)

1. Have started to shop in Lidl / Aldi - learning whats good there (any recommendations most welcome!)

1. I have started a budget sheet (wish me luck!)

1. I do my shop on-line, which has almost halfed my bill and stopped impulse buys, the cost of delivery works out cheaper than driving there and back.

1. I got one of those digital piggy banks at xmas, almost £120 in there already from silver and coppers and its been quite exciting see the balance rise!

1. I bulk buy toiletries and cleaning stuff that are on offer, saves running to the expensive co-op when i run out of washing liquid, loo roll etc

Good thread! Lots on here I already do but have picked up some tips so thanks OP for starting the thread.

1. I have been sticking old clothes that I can't sell on in a bag (not fashionable/ small stain on them/mishapen in wash/ bit faded, etc) in a big sack - sack is now full so will be taking it to the 'cash for clothes' shop. They basically pay you a small amount per kg. Not much but better than just binning stuff!

2. Look out for offers, even from places you can't afford. For example I went to the clinique counter in Debenhams yesterday, gave them my old, empty avon mascara and they give me a new little clinque one for free. Didn't buy anything and there was no pressure to.

3. Don't be embarrassed. Tell people money is tight, that you can't do a,b,or c but can do x,y,or z (free or cheap things rather than costly stuff) as it would be nice to meet up/catch up. Wap your loyalty card and all your coupons out in boots or tesco, stick your copper in the self service till when you've had to scrape some cash together. Times are hard for a lot of people right now and it's nothing to be ashamed of.

Why did I never think of putting coppers in the self service tills? DP hates change so it ends up in little puddles all over the house, which I then put into a couple of coin jars as I'm tidying up. We did take a load to the bank but it was a pain in the rear end bagging them all up.

1. mysupermarket.com shopping online means you have instant comparison and best deal from most supermarkets.
2. Froogle compare before you buy large items.
3. Camping holidays take time to find the better campsites.

1. Get children to make cards for birthdays for their friends & rels. They look a bit crap but you can pretend it's all part of the charm. Pack of envelopes is pennies on ebay. Meant to get them to do prints on brown paper for xmas wrapping paper too but didn't get round to it.

1. Decant economy handsoap into a nicer bottle to leave by your sink. Don't be taken in by radox on 1/2 price or whatever, it's never as cheap as the basics one at 27p or something.

1. Wait until tesco vouchers are on offer to get the best deals eg now for days out, December for toys.

packed lunches instead of school dinners
avoid shops where possible - this is really important
have something on toast one night a week and baked poatotes with beans/cheese/tuna another night
buy less meat
where possible pay in cash - it's much more painful and so you are less likely to spend
carry cheap drinks/snacks in the car for kids' days out
transfer money owed to cheap rate credit cards
use the washing machine less - school uniforms don't have to be washed every day
try to have days where you don't spend at all if possible

1. Meal Plan
2. Buy birthday cards and wrapping paper in bulk from the card factory. Birthday cards are 7 for £1! I normally buy books from Amazon with free super saver delivery for birthday presents. They are almost always a couple of quid cheaper that the RRP on the back, and add something else like a pack of pens.
3. Never buy takeaway food when you are out. Take coffee in a thermos, and a packed lunch. (I make an exception for the odd ice cream for DS though)

1. charge your phone when you get home, then unplug it when it is fully charged, rather than leave it charging all night

2. switch off the kettle when you know it is almost ready, don't wait til the point where it turns itself off

3. surveys on populus live...I got a cheque for £50 a couple of weeks ago :)

What a fantastic thread! I might print it off an use it as a handbook!

You are all marvellous!

Do a meal plan and shop for it (don't get derailed by special offers!)

Don't buy anything that is not very much needed or wanted. My friend this week was delighted with a window vacuum thingy which cost about £50, for me that would be a gadget as I know I would not use it enough to get my moneys worth. I'd be happier with a scented candle for a few quid.

Definitely don't buy anything you can't afford.

Secret Santa for all the adults in the family. All names go in a hat, everyone draws one out, you buy one present for that one present. Budget is agreed beforehand and, hey presto, you have one £30 gift to buy instead of ten or twelve at £15 each for example. Saves over £100 instantly.

Having the family or friends round? Get them to bring a dish eg the pud, a salad, the wine etc

Drive more steadily - less braking required and therefore less acceleration, therefore less petrol consumption.

Bake flapjack instead of buying the expensive packaged treats for kids in the supermarkets. The oats cost next to nothing and you can liven up with raisins etc.

PS eBay for 'bundles' of kids clothes. Although only dead cheap if you're not too worried about trendy brands like Boden etc

I am rubbish at budgeting but a few ideas

1. If you use cards then get a cashback credit card, but paid off every month in full - earns me about £250 per year for doing absolutely nothing

2. Tesco vouchers for days out - just got Legoland tickets for £7.50 in vouchers each!!!

3. Deffo online shopping - better for meal planning and avoids temptation

4. NCT or similar sales for kids clothes, books and toys are amazingly cheap

5. Have stopped buying all newspapers except one on a Saturday for a treat, and don't feel like I'm missing anything

Oh and

6. Price limit of £15 on Christmas presents between adults in our family (kids get a bit more but still try to keep it reasonable). Though I quite like the Secret Santa idea to save even more money!

1.Use Quidco- cashback for things you were going to buy anyway. I got £24 in my first month

2.If you are a diet coke fiend, buy it from Lidl at 2.34 for 12 litres (6 x2l) Passes the blind taste test in our house.

3.Agree with meal planning- it saved us £30 the first week we did it. Stick to it and don't let the family pull faces and says "doe we have to have shepherd's pie?"

1. If you have less than 50p in change in your purse, empty it into a jar. We get about £25 a month from doing this.

1. Buy clothes off eBay then sell them on eBay when you're bored of them. It's almost like "renting"

1. Keep egg boxes and bits of packaging to make a "craft box" if you have kids. My DS has spent many a free hour at the table in peace.

1. Don't buy expensive foot cream and cracked heel cream- sleep with Vaseline and socks on your feet. Miracles happen.

1. I buy my sons identical socks- all plain grey. That way, if one gets lost, you've still got a pair and don't need to keep replacing them.

1. Learn or carry out basic repairs and alterations on clothes- they last so much longer.

Shop at Aldi

Each week I draw out £xx in cash - it goes on DCs' activities that are paid in cash (dance class, footy etc) and otherwise on random stuff. I have reduced this from £60/70 to £50 lately and it seems to be enough. I think that means I am spending £10 less on me as DC still do footy etc. When it is gone it is gone.

Buy birthday cards at that incredible cheap card shop - card factory? and little gifts at Poundland.

A fourth one - walk wherever you can - this has worked well for us for years tho people give us this look when we are walking home from Cubs (three-quarters of a mile) at 8pm.

I love this thread and didn't think I had anything to add but this morning our first water bill came after switching to a water meter and it's half what we paid before!

Water meters are free from most water companies, and the man who came to fit ours also replaced our dodgy stopcock for free! They have a radio transmitter in so nobody needs to come into your house to take the reading, and this month we're only paying £17 instead of the £32 per month we paid before (and if by some chance you do end up paying more you have a month to switch back!)

How many in your household misslaugh?

Ah, should have said there are only 2 of us (will be 3 in November so we'll see how that affects how much water we use). Still think a family could be better off with a meter though!

I read through the whole thread, every tip I've got has already been more or less covered! Great minds, eh?

But anyway;

1. Have a 'no present pact' with friends and family at Christmas. Maybe have an arrangement where only the children get gifts?

For the presents you do buy, shop for them all year round. It spreads the cost and prevents panic buying at the last minute, which inevitably costs more £££. Buy Christmas cards in the January sale (or just don't send them anymore! I stopped 2 years ago and have never looked back )

1. I do the Oil Cleansing Method and it's really working for me. I've also started using coconut oil on hair/body, bicarb mixed with shampoo to make it go further, using dispersible aspirin as a face mask, etc. I'm majorly cutting down on toiletries.

1. I stopped buying squash, juice and fizzy drinks. I drink tap water and tea/coffee.

Just thought of more;

When I make lasagne/chili/bolognese I use less meat and add grated carrot and celery. Once it's really cooked down you can hardly see it. Cheaper, tastes nice and helps towards your 5-a-day.

I use half the amount of washing powder/detergent that is recommended on the container. My clothes are just as clean. I've also stopped using fabric softener, I think it's a con.

When I've got some extra cash, I stock up on dry goods - tins, pasta, rice, etc. Means I've always got food when I'm really skint, like now :(

Another one that I've started doing, which saves chucking fruit out when it's past it's best, is just to buy one or two types at a time eg apples and grapes in one shop, and once gone, bananas and satsumas etc.

Recycle wrapping paper and Christmas cards can be cut to make labels. Get the kids to decorate blanks bits of the card as labels for birthdays or Christmas. I never throw anything away if I can help it, even nail varnish goes in the craft box.

Avoid shops. EBay anything you don't wear and outgrown clothes. Some 2nd hand bookshops will buy books off you if they are in ok condition. There are lots of ideas in old house keeping books too, like using lemon boiled in water as a cleaner esp for fridge and microwave m

Great ideas on this thread. I think most of my tips are things that have gone before, but

1. Shop online as much as possible - compare prices using Froogle, and get cashback on www.topcashback.co.uk - I personally think this is better than Quidco, as Quidco take your first £5 and topcashback don't. Also buy on e-bay wherever possible. Always pay off the credit card bill every month in full though.
2. For day to day stuff, use cash.
3. Put a set amount into a savings account each month on the day you get paid. If it's not in the account you usually use, you're less likely to spend it.
4. Meal plan -not very good at doing this one, but it does save money
5. Buy cards in bulk at Card Factory