Can we start a general frugal tips thread please?

[poshsinglemum]

I tried starting this on the money forum but no-one took it seriously.

General money saving tips very welcome. Am on benefits and struggling. Very hand to mouth.

My tips;
Buy second hand baby clothes on ebay/nct sale.
Sell stuff on ebay.
Turn off lights.
Make sure appliances aren't on standby.
Cook a bit too much and freeze.
Am really getting into charity shops.
Make Christmas decorations/presents.
Lentils with everything.

Don't pay for Sky it is rubbish!

Do online shopping so you only get what you need. When I walk around a supermarket I inevitably put more goodies and luxury items in my trolley.

Walk as much as possible in order to save on petrol.

Don't bother with expensive gym memberships when you can walk or go for a run.

Get a water filter jug and stop buying bottled water.

Use energy saving lightbulbs.

Only boil as much water in the kettle as you need. People always fill up the whole jug when they are only making a cup. My Dad drummed this one into me when I was growing up!

What a bargain Boots Vitamin E gentle eye cream SPF 15, about £2.40 and fragrance free!!

I've used this fab product for ages, it's supposed to be an eye cream but I use it over my usual eye cream and moisturiser to reduce dark circles and to illuminate cheeks or sometimes all over mixed with a little foundation.

It's such a good price I always keep one at home, one at work, one in the car, and one in my bag - great for lightening up your face at any time or for extra spf protection on a sunny day.

They are 2 for £4 at present. Check out the rest of the Vit E range as well though beware some products aren't fragrance free.

really liz, Harvey's furniture PR woman??

Have to admit I'm appreciating the benefits of frugal living. My partner has got all the spreadsheets sorted so we know to the last penny where everything is spent. Have already made good savings on the weekly shop and are now not wasting unused food. Don't buy extras like crisps and biscuits, cartons of juice, cooked meats. meal planning really helps and have just made my own flapjacks.Adding lentils to chillies, stews etc pads out the meat.
Walk more instead of using the car for little trips.
Knock on benefits: less waste in the bins and less inches likely to go on our waistlines!

Havent read all the tips but second using half of things esp clothes washing liquid.

I always use the chicken carcass from a roast to make risotto even a pretty bare carcass can have lots of useful meat if you hunt for it. Use the bones for stock and add the meat to risotto (arborio rice is 83p from tesco - i use half a packet for 2 adults and 2 small children) really nice with a tablespoon of creme fraiche but have used plain yog and it was fairly ok or leave out altogether and add a little butter when its finished cooking. If you have left over splash of wine or half a lemon use that before adding stock. bulk it out with defrosted peas right at end and if you grow herbs parsley is great.

Have tried washing my wavy hair with conditioner today it didnt work very well but I will try again using the wavy hair method on bitoffun's link. oil cleansing sounds very interesting. I have been using liz earle and my face is dry unless I moisturise. (The no face washing method isn't so bad either but obv means no makeup)

If you already have a magazine sub consider swapping with someone once you have read them. I always mean to do this but dont get round to it

oh and use white vinegar and bicarb instead of mr muscle or whatever it seems to be just as good.

I have 'watched' this thread and I hope it continues to grow.
I am a terrible spender and spend at least £50 a day on stuff i never need. My freezer and store cupboard is full and me and the kids have enough clothes to dress an army.

I shall be putting into practice a lot fo tips from here. Thanks.

Super tips!

A day Titsalina ? What do you buy

I do quite a few of these things especially freezing extra portions, getting 2 meals out of a chicken and have just started the lentil thing -see if it passes the dc test.

One more never buy stuff on offer to freeze unless you know you are organised enough to rotate your freezer otherwise you just end up chucking it all out 6 months down the line

Make your own wine from cartons of grape juice. 4 litres from Lidl, mixed with packet of yeast (99p) and after a month you have 5 bottles of lovely red wine. Works out about 70p a bottle. Recipe here. Am enjoying a glass or two this evening

thank you sherlock will note that down,i'm a white wine fan (have you every tried making white,any good?)

Not white, but the red is very light (almost a rose) and this one is slightly sparkling so quite refreshing (I chilled it so it was very unlike red). Here's another link which has some useful recipes on too here.

Also, if you don't want to buy demi-johns, then those 5 litre water bottles that supermarkets sell can be used. I think you just put the tops on very loosely so that the air can escape, but you'd be best to Google that I think.

HI

If doing on-line food shopping go via My Supermarket here it compares the 4 supermarkets.
Use Cash Back sites Quidco / Top cash back if online shopping

Havent read the whole thread so sorry if this has already been mentioned

Buy reusable nappies: will save you a bucket of money in the long run. Most councils run a cashback scheme so you can get a refund of about £50. Even better: ask for a NapNap Gift Voucher for your birthday/Xmas/baby shower....so you can choose the nappies you like in a selection of online stores. Cost of disposable nappies is between £600 and £1000 for 1 child so that's pretty much how the amount you could be saving.

Hi I have found that the best way to save lots of money is to have a meal plan! I found this site that lets you download a shopping list meal plan www.frugalfoods.co.uk There is also a Frugal food forum where verious topics are discussed. Try it! I found it really helpful

This is a fab site love martian

www.moneysavingexpert.com/