i need to start economising, where do i begin!

[milkgoddessmakesthefinestmilk]

any ideas

ive thought of food and shopping

Depends where you think your money goes - our biggest thing is buying stuff while out ie. grabbing sandwiches from a petrol station and ending up spending £15, not bringing enough water somewhere on a very hot day and spending £2 a bottle on it etc. etc. Or I guess (to a lesser degree) grabbing toiletries at supermarkets - be better to set a "things I don't really need" budget and go with that. That's me anyway.

Cleaning products - so so easy to spend £20 a month stocking up, whereas a £20 outlay on bottles, vinegar etc. would set you up for months and months. And one big outlay on good quality but washable cleaning cloths etc. - so tempting when they are really dirty to throw away and buy new again, but it all adds up. Stocking up on nappy wipes when they are BOGOF also. I buy washing powder from Costco aswell, I think my mum and I get 3 between us (although have never worked out if we save any money on that). Although if you join something somewhere like costco from time to time you get vouchers that are like buy 3 for 2 on bulk items like that, so you make massive savings (but spend alot).

low what is a things i dont really need budget? i do that throw away dirty clothes
right thats the 1st thing ill change, thankyou.
we do have a ntto near us i could try there washing powder
i can hng clothes on the line more rather than tumble dry
im not sure if there is a costco near me ill look it up on the web, ive never heard of costco before
i already make sandwhickes to take out with us so i cn't save anything there
what i do do though is spend with out thinking

thankyou for taking the time to post me your tips

Look at the big stuff too, it really really really tedious, timeconsuming, and requires you to talk to utter morons often, but you need to make sure that you have the cheapest possible:

Electricity
Gas
Telephone
Mobile deal
Broadband

If you have any loans, mortgage, see if you can consolidate, reduce rates, reduce payments, move company.

Check out moneysupermarket.com, or similar, he has a good priority list of what to deal with to reduce outgoings.

Shopping, bulk buy at Lidl etc for basics, write a list for other stuff and DO NOT BUY ANYTHING ELSE. Do not go to the supermarket hungry. Make packed lunches for work etc. Picnic in the park now the weathers good, avoid the cafe. See if there are council schemes for activities you do regularly, like a swim card etc.

Do you have a mobile phone contract? Magazine subscriptions? Cable or satellite tv? Gym membership? Get rid of them all! Check all DDs coming out of bank account and be sure you know what each one is. Do you have any loans/credit card debt? Check to see if you can transfer these to 0% or lower interest deals. Check that you are on the lowest rate gas and electricity supplier - if not, switch. Check insurance policies and ensure that you aren't paying anything superfluous like credit card insurance. Shop online from a defined list. Should I go on or am I now looking like a draconian harridan.....?

Deffo check for crap insurance, eg on phones, thats a great idea. We were inadvertently paying 6 quid a month.... Bastard sneaky phone company.

Increase the excess on car insurance can reduce payments, but then youll have to be careful!

am assuming you;ve thought of clothes? charity shops/ebay? making do and mending?

wow thanks for all the great tips!

yes i love that phrase making do and mend, this is what i need to learn about.
im really slack and don't really keep tabs on my direct debits so i must be more vigilant
i will look into
Gas
Telephone
Mobile deal
Broadband

we do also have the full sky package with sport and movies, which im happy to get rid of but dh won't want to, although he doesnt really go out much so ive gotta let him have some enjoyment i guess!
he also has a gym membership, i dont i prefer free excercise

janinlondon, if you have more tips please share!

we dont have any loans or ccs just the morgage

dd is 11 months

thanks guys, you really make me feel, right i can do this !!