Marching into a miserly march with the mumsnet frugaleers

[Fluffycloudland77]

Newbies, helpful tips & lurkers always welcome.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/credit_crunch/1600030-Small-money-saving-habits-petty-even

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/credit_crunch/1543785-your-top-tips-for-money-saving-and-a-more-frugal-life

Enjoy it, spotty :) ooh I could murder a sushi delivery right now!

Welcome kazza.

NSD for me and will have another tomorrow, all going well.

Spent £73 today. £50 on bras (had an audit, had some Christmas vouchers - actual bra spend (£250 -yikes!!) but only £50 cash. Old bras out. New ones in. Was wearing completely the wrong size too. Oops.

£23 on top up groceries following freezer audit. Tomorrow we are going to cook loads of dinners and freeze for the next few weeks.

I need to go bra shopping too, as I only really have one that fits well (and it fits perfectly) - I think I'll just order a duplicate online TBH, I hate bra shopping.

Had a shop at Wilkos as they were half price cleaning stuff. £7. And £57 from aldis. Had lots of food including meats so I reckon we can have enough meat for 2 weeks.

NSD! My first in a long time!

NSD

Bit of a spendy day with frugal accessories...
Bus ticket into town to buy birthday presents and did some food shopping. In the afternoon we visited a farm shop (six eggs only 1.15 and cheap veg) which also has animals for kids to see - free - so was a frugal children's farm trip

Our luxuries this month are wine (but I don't drink often or when I'm out) and a dozen creme eggs for 3 quid (terrible addict!).

Chinese takeaway isn't bad at all if you go for a set meal. I made mine last 3 days at 13 quid (and DP had half my veggie chicken balls!)

NSD today, I've not been out.

Ds2 (16) needs new trousers and a shirt as he is playing in a music festival next week and and a concert next weekend. Sadly he has outgrown last years (they were tight for his concert in October but I managed to ignore it). luckily he says he has enough to pay for them himself yahoo! Just as well we waited. Better still his shoes still fit.

Nsd for me thx to crap weather and not leaving the house. Am like you, Blue dog... Smp starts this month so have to get serious. Am going to have to get more serious - hoping to save petrol by walking to pick my DD up from school every day vs driving. Praying the rain subsides...!

Also just had to send dh out for emergency lemsip honey and brown sugar. My cold had come out and we only have half the ingredients for the cold busting hot toddy.

What is this thread about ? I get its trying not to spend money im very interested need to save some cash for dds birthday... sorry im new only been on mumsnet a couple of weeks

We're down at my dad's for a long weekend. Got the bus into the train station but wasn't charged. I feel guilty about not saying anything though My dad had paid my ticket so no cost there. Got tea on the train at 1.95 due to lack of organisation. No other spends though.

Thanks for explaining. Brilliant idea im in. Today I saved money by stocking up on mince from lidl that was £1. Last saturday they had pork loins for £1.39 I think its a thing they are going to do every saturday. Good fresh meat too.

Place marking. We are fucked financially and I now have to go back to work 2 months early . And the childminder wants a month upfront so I need to win £800 on the lottery this week.

TheNightIsDark, we are too

Have you got anything you can sell? Clothes, CDs, DVDs, electrical goods, furniture, baby items? I've sold a few things on a local Facebook page for selling stuff and raised a few hundred. I've also saved a lot of money by shopping at Aldi and chopped quite a lot off my weekly bill.

Good luck.

Sold a few bits. Owed 10 days annual leave so going to see if I can get that on March payslip and pay childminder 2 weeks upfront instead of a month.

Have just meal planned for 3 weeks based on what's in the freezer and cupboards so going to try and keep shopping to £40 a week for fresh bits/lunchbox bits/baby milk. Going to make DS's purée from frozen veg and fruit

Have a few events this month (sell usborne books) so praying I sell some bits and make some extra cash!

Thinking of signing up to a babysitting agency (I'm a nursery practitioner anyway) to see if that's viable.

Just for once I would like us to be solvent for longer than a month.

thenight you could give your childminder two cheques and ask her to bank the second one in 2 weeks time? That way she has your commitment of paying (in her hand!) but gives you breathing space.

Sounds like the cash flow crisis I hit at least twice a year especially around tax bill time!

Good luck.

Hoping for a No Spend Day today. We bought half a tank of petrol yesterday (to save money rather than use up fuel transporting a heavy tank full) - it's taken a while to get DP to remember to do that.

Anyone observing Lent? This year I'm doing something different - a friend and I are making up 40 challenges and doing one each day. Lots are to do with saving carbon which means some of them have a frugal pay-off e.g. Having a technology free day (less elec), or a day without the car.

freelance that's a lovely idea about 40 challenges! I'm going for no chocolate, cake, biscuits, pudding etc! I only developed a sweet tooth whilst pregnant and it seems to have continued! I'm also considering no use of the ipad it's just so instantaneous I spend far too much time browsing, so I will be checking in here on phone or laptop.

£2.50 yesterday on softplay, £60 tank of petrol (must try the half tank next time).

Hoping for a NSD today.

This week I plan to call in some quotes for the leaking roof. I figure if we have an amount in mind it will be easier to save up for and the reduction in stressing about it will be priceless!

Does anyone have any good recommendations for DC shoes? We have got into the habit of going to Clark's as one has fat feet and the other has really thin feet but it's so pricey! Especially as DS needs school shoes, trainers and football boots every time he grows so you're talking £70 minimum.

Looking for half-decent quality - especially school shoes. I don't mind paying a bit but I really feel that Clark's are milking a captive market.

We always go to independent shoe shops. I loath Clark's. They're shit as measuring and their shoes are poor quality. It's not cheaper though I'm afraid. Dd has issues so we have to get decent shoes for her the European ones are the best so although not cheap (£36 ish) I feel better knowing that 1, she has decent supportive shoes and 2, we are supporting a local independent shop. They have good sales too.

Should be a nsd for us.

YES, I have a shoe recommendation! Toughees which are a brand from South Africa now available in the UK, from their own website www.tougheesshoes.co.uk and through amazon.

We have these ones Toughees Christine and I am absolutely blown away by them - dd has worn them since September, played football and climbed walls in them, and they honestly look as if they were bought a week ago. It's quite spooky, tbh. And they don't need polishing, you just wipe them wiht a damp cloth. They are the only school shoes I've ever encountered that would not need to be replaced until they were outgrown (and I have lots of experience, dd is the youngest of three).

I am really evangelical about them, I wish I'd discovered htem years ago. Clarks and Startrite are overpriced delicate little snowflake shoes in comparison.

frogs these look really robust which is great. I went into Clarks yesterday and all the girls shoes were really prissy and impractical. They don't do width fittings though - how do you think they come up?

spotty it's a good point, we do have an independent shoe shop in town so while not saving at least I might get better quality.

And yes, shit at measuring. They measured DD as a 9 yesterday ( she is wearing a 7.5) and then concluded that her current shoes still fit!!

Not a frugal day today - we want to go to the cinema but our independent (and half the price) cinema is only showing the film in the upstairs bit so disabled DH wouldn't be able to come. So we have to to go to the multiplex and pay twice as much. Grrr

Toughees look great, I'll try to remember them next time! Although we've never had any problems with Clark's (not yet anyway!)

What film are you seeing Mercedes?

We don't go to the movies much but when we do I book online (at cineworld you save 10%)