economising

[popsycalindisguise]

My work hours are being reduced

Economising tips please?
Have searched the archives but I am doing something wrong - any links to threads are appreciated

apologies if this recipe has been done already but fish pie using tinned mackerel and salmon is very cheap and delicious. Unlike tuna, mackerel and salmon retain their omega 3 oils when tinned so it's a very nutritious meal aswell.

Also, switching any large credit card debts around to 0% can save a whole load. Motley Fool is good at summarising all the deals (watch out for charges on balance transfers).

Roast chicken
curry with left overs next day
Sausage and mash (no economising on sausages though!)
Chilli
veg, meat or fish lasagne
Eggs (omelettes, scrambled, egg and chips)

i make loas of homemade soup too. Use whatever is in season, v healthy and v cheap

lots of menu planning bits

Things i do to save money, some already mentioned:
packed lunches for all of us to work/school;
make loads of veg/bean soups/stew once a week & freeze them - they are cheap nutritious, easy (only prob is dd won't touch them, trying to tempt her though!);
plan meals a week in advance, do a list & only buy the things I need off the list for that week's plan;
use mobile only for essential texts (& let's face it, essential texts are v rare, so i save loads on this one!);
washing tablets - on the packet it says use 2 for each wash, well, I only ever use 1 & our clothes are perfectly clean!;
and probably the most important thing,
KEEP HUSBAND WELL AWAY FROM TESCO- supermarkets must LOVE husbands doing the shopping, they are so gullible, totally useless shoppers!!;
Oh, one more thing - keep treats as treats, e.g. having a takeaway, box of chocs or such things, once in a while not the norm. And you really do enjoy them more that way, too (oh god i sound like my granny!)

My suggestion would be to make sure you're making the best use of loyalty cards. I have nearly £100 on my Boots one and plan to treat myself to lovely new make-up etc when I reach that magic total! Also, Tesco reward vouchers are worth 4 times as much if you are using them for an offer - ie. instead of £2.50 off your shopping you could get £10.00 off a deal. Currently they have holiday vouchers, MFI vouchers and hotel vouchers. DH and I have about £50 in reward tokens (about a year's worth) which equates to £200 - enough for a 2 night stay in a Hilton somewhere. Now just need to persuade MIL to have DS!

Tesco offer a magazine subscription deal too, but even if you don't do it with vouchers it's a good money saving tip in itself if you're going to buy your favourite mag anyway. I'm addicted to a few glossies, so now have them delivered. Cheaper, and you generally get a really nice free gift as well. 'Red' for example, frequently offers stuff like Liz Earle skincare kits for new subscribers.

Sorry if anyone else has mentioned this but I watched a programme on BBC2 quite a few weeks back (possibly Pay Your Mortgage Off in .... something like that) the family on it decided to bulk buy non perishables at Macro and reckoned that over a year they would save something like £900 - £1000. Not to be sneezed at! It has impressed me and DH so much we are currently compiling a list of non perishables that we get through to do a price check and then off we go!

Definately agree with meal planning and portion controlling - when feeling disciplined I cook the recipe for four or six or whatever and freeze it in plastic take away containers that we buy in the 100's from Wing Yip in Birmingham. That way we only eat correct amount and not over eat - not good for weight or the budget!

shopping budget is my biggest problem (aswell as massive credit card to pay off - have just swtiched to 0% but still v daunting). Trying to slim as well and find that slimming receipe/meals can work out qutie expensive especially when using lots of fresh veg and fruit. Any ideas?

new one for my list - sweet potato and chick [ea curry
cowboy casserole

I know its not a recipe posting but this is the cheapest meal I know that is really tasty..Chop and heat over moderately hot hob whatever veg you have. I use 1 carrot, I stick clery, 1 onion, 2 cloves garlic and a bit of rosemary (grow yourself much cheaper), leave for 8 min. Add a pinch of chilli powder, Stir in some tomato puree and 1.5 lires veg stock. Add 125g chickpeas (soaked overnight), Boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1.5 hours while you do other things. Add some economy pasta shells and cook till al dente. Sprinkle with parmesan/cheese. It makes so much you can freeze half and once you have bought a bag of chick peas and stock cubes you get lots of meals out of them!

Look out in Tesco / sainsbury's / superdrug etc for all your favourites on buy one get one free or buy one get one half price. I save lots of money this way.

Take a packed lunch to work.

BT Option 3 is free calls to landlines up to one hour for a fixed fee.

Buy clothes etc on Ebay - my DD gets most of her stuff on there. I also buy in sales for the size she'll be in a year's time. This saves a fortune.

Books / CDs / etc on amazon and play.com saves a packet on what's in the shops.

Lastly - keep a present box. Every time one of us gets a present which isn't right or we already have it, it goes in the box and gets recycled to someone else. Helps to keep a list so you don't end up giving it back to the person who gave it to you, but it stops you having 4 copies of the gruffalo on the bookshelf .

Where do you find codes for food shop delivery? This is a great thread. We are trying to buy a larger home and are going to be seriously strapped for cash. Need all help I can get. Thanks.

moneysavingexpert.com has codes (I have recently found out)

Go shopping late afternoon/evening to get all the reduced stuff. Meat/fish, bread, cheese all can go straight into the freezer. A lot of the stuff lasts a few days anyway as the date 'best before' just means most fresh, it doesn't mean it goes off immediately the day it states on the packet.

We save a fortune this way

don't have time to read all the posts but one simple idea is to put off food shopping until you're REALLY stuck... for example I was going to go on Wed but held off until tonight, and last night managed to make swede and apple casserole (had to use up that half swede!), pork chops and potatoes, and tonight will make fish cakes using a leftover potato and a can of salmon!
It's amazing what you can sometimes find in the storecupboard that will make an OK meal.

Sorry, a little late in the discussion. My top tips for saving money are real nappies - they have saved me so much money, plus I wash with normal wash at 40 degrees. Washing is put on at night-time to save a little on power costs too. Energy saving bulbs - sometimes you can get them free from your power supplier, and also shop at Lidl. What a bargain place to shop it is, and I can buy 'luxury' items like mozzarella and ham, at very cheap prices. I got some frozen tuna there last week which was as good as Waitrose would muster. Good luck with it all - I am a single mum with two small children, and about to be out of a job, so appreciate this thread, and have learnt many good tips from reading others comments too.

we do real nappies already part time and already have plans for full time. Lidl is on my 'to do' list

this thread has been relly helpful - thanks to all contributors

Watch out for supermarket "special offers" that are any but special. Its not uncommon for the fruit on offer in a bag to cost more per kg than the same fruit loose in a box next to it. Of course the scales are well hiden so there is little incentive to check what the weight of the bagged offer is.
This can also be true of the so called "value" or "class2" fruit and veg, tho at other times that can be well worth buying as its simply non standard size items. compareing weight for weight isn;t always quick, but can save quite a bit each week if you chose carefully.
Of course this goes for other items besides fruit and veg too.
Unisarah.
ps- don't forget baked spuds make a cheap base for a meal. My fav at present is baked spud, home made coleslaw and tuna. Stick a cake in the oven at the same time and you get a cheap sweet thing for packed lunches/pudding as well.

This is such a timely thread! Dh and I had a bank statement this month which made us faint with fear. We sat down and have today:
1: menu list for week
2: applied for working family tax doo-dah (we didn't realise we qualified -doh!)
3: Rang sky to cancel our package - £21. They were so keen to keep us, they have offered us a package of favourites (similar to freeview) for £7.50 a month!
4: Dusted down breadmaker and made 3 loaves and frozen them
5: Gone through freezer and store cupboards and found about a week's worth of meal materials [blush} saving us the weekly shop.
6: Next week it's the big guns - tackling our mortgage providers to see if we can negotiate a better deal. And switching home insurance. It's just laziness which has prevented us before.

i am doing mortgae on mnday - remmembered we are on standard variable rate with is a whopping 6.49%
shocking

Bit late seeing this.

Have a look at Tesco Value sim cards - texts only 5p to any network.
Also if you live somewhere rural(ish) look in local rag - got a sack of spuds for £12 (Think it was something like 15-20kg) cos they are still in mud and dry and dark they don't sprout. Would also agree with Lidl/Aldi.

Glad to have found the moneysavingexpert website - thanks

I pay £4.50 for a huge sack of spuds.
Having trouble getting the budget spreadsheet to work, anyone know why?

Only buy stuff you need! so boring and unfulfilling but would save a fortune.

I need to stop buying Cappucinos.With the savings i think we could have a holiday!

hi notasheep!hope you well now