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Frugaleers chatting and saving into August...

990 replies

ipsogenix · 03/08/2016 21:40

Just setting up the new thread for the chatty Frugaleers.

Useful links copied from last year:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/other_subjects/1324074-For-those-who-cant-afford-to-use-central-heating-this-year-How-are-you-going-to-cope

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

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

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/credit_crunch/1628874-Gas-Elec-Bills-monthly-and-SKY-so-angry

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/mumsnet_classics/1911061-NO-MORE-COLD-MUMSNETTERS

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/2209167-Slow-Cookers-are-shit

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/2224969-saving-money

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/legal_money_matters/2258202-Debt-mutual-support-thread-number-6-start-the-new-year-with-a-clear-purpose-and-keep-moving-forwards-even-by-tiny-steps?

orchard.tesco.com/ Sign up to this.

www.topcashback.co.uk/home And this.

www.quidco.com/home/ And this

www.moneysavingexpert.com/ And this

www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub ditto.

www.checkoutsmart.com/ Plus this.

www.hotukdeals.com/all/deals/new?page=3 Check this daily.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
14
AGenie · 16/08/2016 03:02

I had the world's least frugal day ever, as I took ds for his Meningitis B vaccine. It cost £120 for the first of two doses. He was very proud of himself for managing it though, which was good. We tried some numbing cream that I've heard of on Mumsnet and it definitely helped.

Colliefeatures · 16/08/2016 04:28

Just thinking of Homeward Bound makes me laugh because I cried so much. Id love to watch it again after so many years. I've never seen ET! I'm a Lion King crier too. Mum used to find me in bits sobbing & it used to take me days to get over it. I was about 8 but still watched it loads. My poor mum! Grin

I need to start looking seriously at vacuum cleaners. I've been putting it off for months! Our Dyson is grinding, clunking, crap suction & is so loud (by being broken) that my neighbour thought I was doing odd DIY last week!

I also need to start looking at buying some new tops. I've dropped a top size and everything I own is swamping me. Going to try and build a capsule wardrobe. Which may not work as I am addicted to stripes. I think it's the sailor in me. But I'm going to wait until AW tops are out.

I'm going to meal plan tomorrow as I always rush it on a Wednesday. So I'll take it nice and slow and check the cupboards/freezer thoroughly. I won't buy more peas. I won't buy more peas. I won't buy more peas.

Does anyone know roughly how much % is applied to car insurance by choosing to pay monthly? We're paying annually for the first time ever in October - just interested really.

AGenie · 16/08/2016 06:11

Collie If you are thinking about vacuum cleaners then it would be well worth having a look at a Roomba. I use one for 90% of our hoovering and the stairs could be done with a hand-held one. The roomba saves me a huge amount of slog.

lifelongfrugaleer · 16/08/2016 06:41

25% off tu clothing has started at sainsburys

SnugglySnerd · 16/08/2016 07:18

I was thinking of getting a Roomba - would ut manage copious cat hair?
Thanks North.

8FencingWire · 16/08/2016 07:23

£25 last night in Homesense, but it was a voucher I got from an insurance incentive last year. I bought a big pot for a huge plant I have in my room, a tray for underneath the plant and some smelly sachets for the hallway cupboards (shoes and linen).
Not very frugal, but needed.

So far, I have about £2500 on the credit card and £4000 in savings. The savings are in a 5%interest account, the CC is on 0% till december. So I will do little payments every month from my salary and keep the savings where they are.

Today is admin day. It infuriates me no end when you close an account with, say, british gas, you're in credit, and then you have to call again to have the credit refunded. I have spent a lot of time on the phone this month!!! I am expecting about £150 refunded, water bill is still to be calculated etc.
Ah, and the joys of buying a newbuilt and dealing with 'the computer' : I am registered and have been billed for the council tax. To register to vote, however, the council (same one) can't find my address.

I think I'll get a good paycheque this month, I have done an awful lot of overtime.

Oh, we're getting a kitten soon!!! What do I need to have/know? All my furniture is brand new, I'm kissing that goodbye, aren't I? Do I cut it's claws like I do with the guinea pigs (half joking)? Do I need fleas thingy, or would it harm him being so small? I've always had dogs, so I don't know about cats! What do they eat, do I cook for him?
Is a moggie I think they're called, just an ordinary street cat type. It belongs to my DD but I'm expected to KNOW how to mother a kitten.
God, if you only knew me, you'd realise getting a cat is the supreme sacrifice I do for my DD. I'm the type that hoovers and dusts daily after a 10h shift, all my bedding is white and ironed and I spend half my income on bleach (again, only half joking). Oh well! It will make my DD happy and I'll have another responsability. On The plus side, I'll be halfway to single middle aged lady with cats scenario.
Might need some stamps today.

8FencingWire · 16/08/2016 07:26

collie, dyson part exchanges, might be worth checking. I have a hand held dyson, it's brand new but very noisy!!

AGenie · 16/08/2016 07:49

8 I keep thinking about getting a pet for ds, with all the worries that you have mentioned. It's a different business thinking about this as an adult.

I have no idea if roombas do pet hair. I've never had both a bet and a roomba at the same time.

Fluffycloudland77 · 16/08/2016 07:56

Miele vacuums do a pet version. It depends if you have hard floors or carpets though. You don't need the pet version one if you have no carpet.

8 Yes your kissing the furniture goodbye. It will need prescription flea control and worming. You can't skimp on flea control. You can ask the vet for a prescription (£10ish) and buy it online for half price plus get cashback on it. It will need a cereal free kitten food, wet not dry and a water bowl. I use cheap side plates as food dishes. Easy to stack in the dw and it won't bend it's whiskers while its eating. You don't need to trip claws routinely, kittens can't retract theirs though so will out a bit.

If your in a newbuild have you asked the developer if it has a soakaway? No point paying surface water when you don't need to. The water company will have set you up as a standard account.

Unescorted · 16/08/2016 08:12

My parents were charged for water - even though they are on a spring with a septic & no surface drainage.... took ages for the water company to stop asking for money.

I am aching all over from my gardening - 10 ikea bgs of weeds taken to the tip & then filled with slate. I now have a day of finishing the quilts we started last week ( having a friends dog meant that we couldn't finish them off), breaking the slates up to make a patio covering and building a wall. I suspect I will need to pick up more slates.

Unescorted · 16/08/2016 08:13

snuggly hope it goes well today - you are in my thoughts. xxxx

Fluffycloudland77 · 16/08/2016 08:17

God what a nightmare. I hope they got a refund in full.

Unescorted · 16/08/2016 08:22

They did - doesn t stop Severn Trent / United from asking again every now and then.... they live in an area covered by both - each couple of years they must do an audit of the addresses not currently on either's books.

allthebestplease · 16/08/2016 08:23

Agenie - can you tell e what numbing cream you used? I've booked DD in for her meningitis jab at Boots.

Ememem84 · 16/08/2016 08:30

I'm excited. On Friday/ or Saturday once were back I'm going to the cat sanctuary. Eeek!! providing my bathrooms finished that was the deal with Dh

I cannot wait to get a kitty cat!

Colliefeatures · 16/08/2016 08:39

8 I bought a new build last April. Water took 2 months to sort. Council Tax took 6 months to sort as they didn't have the new houses valued for ages but we estimated the amount we should pay and put it aside so when we got a bill we had the money to pay it. Was the best thing we did as various neighbours ended up with a £800+ bill.
Gas / Elec was the worst! It took 8 months for them to sort it out. I had to keep escalating it until eventually I emailed the CEO and it was sorted within 6 weeks. I got £150 compensation for it taking so long but it was so frustrating. Again - I put £60 a month aside so I had the money waiting for the bill.

Just hang in there. I spent quite a lot of money chasing various people on my mobile (as BT took about 8 weeks too!). And everyone on the new build estate had the same issues.

My best advice is to put aside money so when the bills come in - you have the money available. And don't get as frustrated / angry as I did! GrinBrew

I'll have a look at spare parts! I was looking at Miele too.

Girliefriendlikesflowers · 16/08/2016 09:34

Morning all Smile

Collie I have just replaced my dyson with a Henry, it was recommended by lots of people as being very reliable and apparently lasts for years. Cost £100 and so far so good, it is really useful now I have stairs and carpet/ hard floors to deal with. I had similar issues with council tax, they honestly don't seem to be able to add up! The figures they sent me were so wrong and they didn't add the single person discount either, I haven't actually paid any council tax yet as they have taken so long to get it right Hmm

8 Kittens are so cute (pic is mandatory btw Wink) yy to everything fluffs has said, it might be worth checking if your local vets do a pet plan. Im with Companion Care which is based at Pets at Home, I pay £10 a month which pays for all the prescription flea and worming treatment plus an annual booster and vet consultation. This works out very good value.

Also look into plans for neutering, kitten jabs etc - this will cost you in the region of £100. As well as insurance, I took out pet insurance with Argos which has saved me £££££££ so much money, my younger cat was very ill in her first year and if I hadn't been insured would have cost in the region of £800 Shock My older cat is now diabetic and likewise the insurance has been a God send.

Otherwise just some kitten food, some toys and a bed maybe and yes be prepare for your house to get trashed, the cats make more mess than dd kittens are great fun.

Fluffycloudland77 · 16/08/2016 13:27

We got off quite lightly by the sounds of it. Electric etc all got set up and the council had their shit together.

We even had a full set of bins etc two days after ordering them off the refuse dept.

£1 morrisons, bread and yeast.
£6 aldi. Flour, ice cream, painkillers, batteries, smart price tin tomatoes.

Frugal win £2.94 coming back from shopmium for the sausages I bought last week.

Frugal fail. Bought yeast in morrisons not aldi, bought bread flour when I already have bread flour.

lifelongfrugaleer · 16/08/2016 13:51

£50 in sainsburys on the last of the uniform, just shoes now after holibob.

ItalianWiking84 · 16/08/2016 13:52

Just checking in, in hospital with dd who's poorly Sad hoping we will be home soon again

CremeEggThief · 16/08/2016 14:14

Oh dear, Italian. I hope it's nothing serious and they won't keep you long.

Collie, if you can't stretch to a Miele, I second a Henry. Well, a Hetty in my case. I've had mine about a year and a half and no complaints. Slightly better on hard floors than carpets, but that's it.

It's so lovely and sunny here for a change. I'm going to read in the garden for a while.

AGenie · 16/08/2016 14:26

allthebest it was emla www.chemistdirect.co.uk/emla-cream-5/prd-jt

Sorry to hear that Italian. I hope it's a quick one.

Tryingtosaveup · 16/08/2016 14:35

Collie, I part exchanged my broken dyson in Tesco . And they had an offer on £20 off and an extra 1000 points. I went in and ordered it one day and collected next day. Took my old one in and handed it over.
I am looking to get one of those big bulk carriers for liquid ( IBC) to collect rain water to save money on my water bill as I have a meter and a large garden with a veg patch which I plan on expanding.
And buying Harry Potter Lego on eBay for DGD for birthday and Christmas.

WreckTangled · 16/08/2016 14:38

Nsd. Dc swimming in my parents pool. Quite idyllic swimming next to the chicken run and woods Grin

Frugaleers chatting and saving into August...
Frugaleers chatting and saving into August...
SnugglySnerd · 16/08/2016 14:48

Hope your DD is ok, Italian.

Thanks for kind messages this morning. The scan was fine, turns out BOTH of the babies are doing ok. That was a bit of a shock!