No need to go mad just because it's Christmas

No need to go mad just because it's Christmas

budgeting shopping cheap food food personal finance vegetarian

Hello and Good Morning. I've just had a good laugh. There is an article about me and how to save money at Christmas, in iNews, a budget daily newspaper. The journalist Katie Grant rang me yesterday for a chat. I usually get requests at this time of year asking for my money saving Christmas tips, but when I reply, I don't do Christmas, they usually give up and look elsewhere for their story. Katie stuck with it.

Click on this link and see the story yourself.  Britains stingiest woman offers her advice.

Anyway, let's press on. I did my Christmas shopping last night at Tesco. The yellow stickers cost me £6.21, and it's all good food. The total shop was £40.78, and with a voucher for £8 off this brought it down to £32.78.

There were only two of us waiting for the final reductions so we got the pick of the crop. Tons of veg as usual, broccoli and spinach my favourite. I will be cooking some of this up later today and putting portions of stew in the freezer. I might not have to go shopping again until after Christmas. In fact I could stretch what I have in my freezer and cupboards until the New Year.

I had it in mind to write something here about Christmas spending, or not spending, but Katie beat me to it, so I will add a few more thoughts on what she has already written.

Utility bills go up in winter, heating and cooking cost more, to budget for that savings have to be made elsewhere. Budgeting is an all the year round activity, there will be peaks and troughs throughout the seasons. Think about what you NEED, what you WANT, and what you will NEVER spend your money on. Compile your own lists on what is important to you, and what you can do without.

I can do without Christmas, not important, but I like a nice car, need to pay for my pets, and I like to go away on holidays and day trips. What I don't need is to shop at Sainsbury's Waitrose, and Marks and Sparks. I don't need a television set, don't need a licence. Don't need to eat out, don't need takeaways. I could list whole rafts of things I don't need, and my do need list will be very short.

If you have a partner, you should sit down together and do this exercise, you need to be singing from the same song sheet. No point in one person frugally saving pennies everywhere, when the other is squandering  it all away. That will only cause conflict.

If Christmas is important to you all well and good, go ahead, but do not go into DEBT for it. It is an annual event and there will be another one on the same date next year. It won't hurt to cut back on the spending for one year, or if you are like me, you might decide you can do away with it altogether.

I find it very liberating that I have chosen not to join in. My brain is not cluttered with the worry of getting the right presents, buying the right food, sending cards, and generally running around like a headless chicken trying to keep up. I can sit back and relax and watch everyone else getting their knickers in a twist. You will not see a furrowed brow on my face, you will see a wide grin from cheek to cheek.

No more lectures, do what you like, but don't come crying to me when the credit card bill lands on the door mat. I will just say, I told you so.

I had a lovely email from Amy of Hard up and Happy. She had difficulty commenting on my blog, so I will copy and paste it here.

 Hi Ilona,

I just want to say a huge thank you for your support and kind words on your blog - which is ace by the way. 

It means a lot when people are nice, as it's my philosophy to be as kind to others as I can, unfortunately this isn't always returned.

I won't concentrate on the negative Nellies though, as the positive comments are amazing. If I can help a few families be happy with what they have then that makes it worthwhile. I would have loved to have responded to each comment on your blog and my website, I'm afraid for some reason I can't? The comments plug in on mine is playing up. Anyway enough rambling I wanted to seek you out and say a great big thank you. You have made me very happy. From one thrfiter to another Merry Christmas!

Kind regards 

Amy 

Thank you Amy, lovely to hear from you. 

I'm beginning ramble now, it's lunch time, and I have things to do. An idea for another textile picture is creeping into my head, want to have a play with some fabric. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon. 

Toodle pip. 

Let's have a catch up.

Let's have a catch up.

arty stuff cats food free

Hello, I've been AWOL, apologies for my absence. Apart from not having much to say, I've been helping my friend Helen deliver her parish newsletters, and done some Bailey dog walks for Joyce, as she has needed to rest her leg. So all good stuff, lots of walking. 

I didn't see the super moon the other night, but last night there was very little cloud and it lit the back garden up nicely.

This morning it was at the front of the house at 7am, still visible, with a whisp of cloud floating by.

Hey, look what I found. Someone very kindly has bagged up all their spare apples and hung them on the railing for anyone to take. Thank you, I'll have one of those.

 Tonight I've made a big pan of broth and vegetables.

Soaked the Scotch Broth Mix overnight, and added carrots, potatoes, parsnips, an onion, the last bit of broccoli, and two apples. I used half the packet, which was as you can see 50p, it makes four large portions, or five not so large. This will put hairs on my chest, it's lovely, and very cheap. I will eat some more tomorrow, and freeze some.

I had a phone call from a local WI group, asking me to do a frugal money saving talk. I've booked them in for January. I haven't done one for ages, it will make a nice change.

Pussy cat rescue news. Someone contacted us about a stray kitten seen wandering at a caravan park. Sue and Janet went to have a look for it, and found it in a pond. The poor little might was half dead. The man who owned the place waded in and got it out. They had it checked at the vet. Luckily we had a spare pen for it, and now it is being looked after and making progress.

There are some new exhibitions starting soon at the Arts Centre, one of them sounds really good. It's called Radical Craft, Alternative ways of making. There is a tour with the Curator on Saturday, I'll go along to that. Someone has blogged about it here.

Has anyone found the videos by Graeme Stevenson on yoootooob?  He is an artist who travels around chatting to other artists about their work. Claire Bremner produces some stunning work, and demonstrates her techniques as she talks and paints. Have a look if you are an artist, or if you aren't. She makes it look so easy.



Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.

Healthy eating for one.

Healthy eating for one.

food healthy eating village life

Hello. It's been a week since I did that massive shop at Tesco. I was really low on food so had to stock up on almost everything. I still have lots left, mainly tins and frozen, but my fresh stuff is getting low again, so I went to Aldi today and did a small top up shop. I needed vegetables and salady stuff, and eggs, and bananas, and bread, and cheese, and more nuts, gotta have nuts. 

This is the lunch I had today. Mushrooms, tomato, cucumber, potato salad, pickled onions, brie cheese, Quorn sausage, and a cheese and onion crispy bake. Very nice it was too.

 Tonight was my usual steamed vegetables with a sprinkling of grated cheese. I could scoff broccoli every day, I love the taste of it. Still got some home grown beans in the freezer.

A leaflet came through the door the other day, from the church. It is a thank you card to show their appreciation for the support they get from the parishioners, and has a list of services for the following weeks. . Everyone gets one regardless of whether they go to church or not. A large part of the leaflet is taken up with a list of ten churchyard rules which go into great detail about what is and isn't acceptable regarding the decoration of graves. I think quite a few people will be upset by this because such a lot of things are not allowed. There is a detailed list, plastic flowers, pot plants, statues, garden ornaments, lights, windmills, pottery and glass, are just a few of the things.

I can't see the harm in a few plastic flowers, people can't afford to put expensive fresh flowers on their grave all the time, and if the relative is not able to visit on a regular basis, plastic flowers would be ideal. There are some people that have gone right over the top though, with their decorations. They are going to be mighty upset if they have to remove everything. I do think it is a bit harsh of the church, some of the rules are a bit over the top, there should be some wiggle room in some cases. There is a grave alongside the wall on the edge of the graveyard which is a small child. The mother has been coming almost every week for years to tend it. She takes the soft toys away for washing and brings them back, she adds cards for the child's birthday and Christmas, and swaps the old toys for new ones. I shall be very sad to see this go.

It's the weekend again, the weeks are flying by and it's getting colder. Nowt else to tell you so I'll buzz off. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.

How much! Chuffin heck!

How much! Chuffin heck!

food shopping

Hello. My computer is having a wobbly. When I walk away from it and it goes into sleep mode, the screen doesn't just go black, it goes all colours, keeps changing every few seconds, bright neon colours. Then when I shut down, the computer switches itself off but the colours carry on and there is no response when I press the off button. I have to switch off at the wall, which I always do anyway. I think the monitor may be on it's way out. I'll wait until it stops working altogether. This computer is quite old. The red colour is very bright. Very strange.

I had to go shopping this afternoon, I had virtually no food left in the house apart from three cans of peaches, a jar of pickled onions, pasta, noodles and rice, nothing in the fridge, and a few things in the freezer. The postie brought me a letter from Tesco, there was a voucher for £7 off a £50 spend, I never spend that much. I put it in my pocket anyway. As I was walking round, I thought I might as well buy a few extra things, then I won't have to bother with a big shop for a month or so. There were offers on the cat food as well so I stocked up on that.

As she was scanning it I watched the numbers creep up and up. Chuffin heck, £72 chuffin quid, and that was with a few yellow stickers as well. The extras I bought were seeds and nuts, several kinds of canned beans, a bottle of wine, tuna fish, frozen white fish, and cooked chicken for the cats, sesame seed oil, frozen veggie burgers, plus all the usual stuff. So I did get to use the £7 off voucher. My stocks were very low, it was almost like starting from scratch. Gotta eat something.

I bought a cheese and onion pasty because I was hungry, I ate it on the way home. It was supposed to be for my dinner. So tonight I have had the rest of it, a plate of spinach and rocket with a little grated cheese and some pea and mint dip.

I must keep an eye on the time, I can't have anything to eat or drink after 9pm tonight. Tomorrow morning at ten past nine I'm at the medical centre for the first part of my free health check. They take a sample of blood, and I go back the week after for the rest of the check. I think I'll get a drink now, so I'll sign off.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
toodle pip

What can you do with a tin of peas

What can you do with a tin of peas

food make a bag sewing vegetarian

Hello. There are some days when I don't mind what I eat, as long as it's cheap and fills me up. Saying that, you won't find any meat or fish in my fridge, unless it's cheap white fish for the cats, I no longer buy ready meals either. I will sometimes splash out a bit more dosh for something extra delicious, but not very often because I can make tasty food from scratch myself. So, I buy my food on price. My meals don't always look appetizing, my aim is to eat it, not to step back and admire my handiwork. 

A while ago I picked up a dented tin of mushy peas from Tesco, maybe I ought it eat it. 

My lunch yesterday was a spud in the microwave and half of the peas. Scoff scoff, it filled my tum, and at only 15p, it was a bargain. Bags of spuds are in season and cheap at the moment.

Dinner last night was steamed sprouts, broccoli, potatoes, and an onion, topped with the other half of the peas. Another tum filler at possibly 40p, a wild guess.

This is ten shopping bags waiting to be assembled. I had a fabric sample book from the Scrapstore and took it apart. The pieces weren't big enough to make a complete bag and handles, so I have used other fabric for the handles. I don't think it will matter, the two sides will be different anyway because there is only one sample of each. Best get on with it then. Need them for the Christmas Fair.  

Thanks for all your comments on the previous post, it's good to hear that we are all on the same wavelength. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Mix and Match

Mix and Match

cheap food food

Hello. We've had a rotten morning weatherwise, piddling it down, but now the sun is out so I am tempted to go outside. Before I do I'll post this. Every morning I use my mini chopper to prepare my breakfast. Nuts, seeds, and fruit all go in there to be smashed to bits, then added to my branflakes, with a banana on top, and strawberries if I have some.  

I always keep my eyes open for other cereals when they are reduced. The Cash and Carry is good for this, and I have also found some in Poundstretcher as well. I usually put a few of these in the mini chopper as and when I need them, but I am concerned that I may be expecting it to do too much, because the lumps are pretty hard. I don't want it to conk out through excessive wear and tear, so this morning I decided to zap two whole packets in the big Kenwood, then it will be ready to use.

These were 50p each from the Cash and Carry. They are like small fruity Shreddies.

I have double bagged them to keep them dry. Two spoons in my fruit, nut, and seed mix will be enough.

This is the rest of my breakfast ingredients, I mix and match any of these. Three types of nuts, sultanas, linseeds, and porridge oats, plus whatever fresh fruit I have, bananas, strawberries, nectarines. If I see any other types of nuts and seeds at a good price I will buy them. This is what starts my day most mornings, though now the weather is getting a bit cooler I won't be using as much soya milk, I will start making hot porridge, with all the rest added.

What's your favourite breakfast? Any good ideas that don't cost a lot of money and take only a short time to prepare it. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Happy with my bills

Happy with my bills

cats cooking decluttering food money saving

Hello me hearties. I haven't got any fresh veg left because I want to eat out of the cupboard and freezer for a few more days. I have plenty in the freezer to keep me going, seems daft to leave it in there forever and a day, it's got to be eaten sometime, might as well be now. 

Frozen chips indeed. Yes I bought a bag of these as something different, can't remember when I last bought them, that long ago I have forgotten. Yes, a bag of potatoes would have been cheaper, but I don't make real chips in a pan at home, I don't have a chip pan, and I'm certainly not doing them in a frying pan on the hob with all that oil spitting all over the place. These oven chips are cooked under the grill, turn once. Half a tin of spag hoops, and two scrambled eggs, my dinner tonight. I just fancied this and it was very nice. 

I am sorting out my spare room, aka the fabric store, plus all manner of stuff I collect because it might come in useful. It's going really well. The ladies at crafty club took some of my excess off me this morning, things I knew I was unlikely to get round to using. I've found some bits for the charity shop as well.

Three bills dropped through my door last week which will be paid tomorrow. I'm not too bothered by regular bills because I know more or less how much money they want from me. I email my gas and electricity readings in monthly, and they use these to calculate an amount. I last emailed on 25th September and the bills were dated 5th October, so there is a bit of a gap there. I see they have estimated what I have used during that gap, and they are pretty close so I am happy to pay them.

I get both gas and electricity from SSE, they are the suppliers, but my account is with Ebico, a not for profit organisation. I have no penalties for paying quarterly, and I have no standing charges. Everyone pays the same price per kwh. So, my gas bill is for £4.04, and my electricity bill is for £36.75. My electricity bill is always more than gas, probably because I have this computer on a lot. It rises slightly in the winter due to lights going on earlier.

My gas bill is obviously low in the summer months because I don't have any heating on. It will go up a bit in the winter. I think it is so low because I have been having a lot of meals which require little or no cooking. A lot of salads, and one pan meals, the shorter the cooking time the cheaper the meals are. Even a pan of veg stew made with fresh veg only takes about ten minutes on the hob, and if I use a big pan to make four portions, three of those will get heated in the microwave.

I only heat a tank of water if I am going to have a bath, why do I need to have a tank permanently full of hot water? I can boil a kettle to wash a few pots in the sink or wash my hair.

The other bill I have received is for £28.10 payable to Severn Trent Water. This covers the period from April to October, and is for surface water drainage. I will get another bill shortly from Anglia Water, it will be around £37, that's for clean water into the house, and a small amount of that will be sent on to Severn Trent for removal of dirty water through the sewers. Being on a water meter works best for me because I am in control of how much I use.

All cats are in for the night, they don't seem to want to go out much these days. Mayze spends a lot of time on my bed, she loves snuggling under the top cover, I often find a bump in the bed when I get in. Heidi is due for a vet visit later this week, we are getting to the end of her tablets. Best let the vet check her over and get some more. Bugsy is still camped out on the living room table right next to me. Boy does he yowl when I don't serve up the right food. Today they got a treat, I buy bags of cheap frozen white fish and microwave it for them. They love it.

Right, I'm off now. It's not yet 7pm and dark already. I still have to go and do my walk. I could have a day or two off but I don't want to drop behind. The extra I did last week has boosted my total, I will finish October over the target. Hope you are all keeping it up, no slacking now the weather is getting cooler. A good fast walk will keep you warm.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip