Living on a pound a day
I read about a Lord this week who tried to live on a pound a day for food. He tried to do it for five days. That isn’t too difficult if you’re healthy and can eat anything. It’s only five days.
Frugal Food Ideas
Food prices keep going up and so we not only have to shop around and look for bargains, we have to do some frugal cooking. Egg and chips is one of my favourite meals. You can get eggs with the little lion on from most supermarkets for about 1.35 for 15. In Aldi, I buy those crinkle cut oven chips for 99p a bag. So I cook a meal for less than 50p.
Winter food
You don’t really need more food when it’s cold, but you need different foods to help you to keep warm. If money is short, what can you give your family to eat that’s frugal and will help keep out the cold? I have a few ideas…
Surviving the cuts
A lot of people are going to be struggling because of government cuts. The Welfare Benefits Uprating Bill, will keep benefit rises to 1% for three years from next April. This will hit a lot of people and save the government a couple of billion a year. That’s a lot of money. Not as much as the 12 billions the Olympics cost, but still a lot of money.
We are all in this together
The recession appears to be getting worse. I was watching a programme on television last night about people who become homeless. They get evicted from their homes, because they can’t pay their mortgage or rent. Is it their own fault because they got sick, lost their job or their business failed?
What does ‘price discrimination’ actually mean?
I just looked at chickens in Tesco, they are £4.00 each or 3 for £10. Why do you have to pay a 1/5 more if you only want one? Is this discrimination in favour of families or against single people?
Surviving the recession on benefits
The recession is affecting most people, but if you have lost your job then it’s even worse. In the UK cuts in all welfare payments and provision are hitting the least well off most. While the government panders to the rich who try to avoid taxes; the most vulnerable in society suffer. They are often thought of as scroungers who spend all their time drinking in the pub . The truth is very different.
How to preserve the wealth you have
You might not think of yourself as wealthy, but you own stuff. Right? The stuff you own is your wealth, however meagre and is worth preserving. If you don’t preserve your wealth, then you get poorer. That means looking after the things that you already own. They last longer and won’t need replacing so quickly.
There is more money, but are you getting your fair share?
News from over the pond in the USA this week was that the rich have increased their wealth by around 15% in the past year. That doesn’t surprise me, the rich are getting richer all over the world. Governments print more money and it disappears. Are you getting your share? Or are you even worse off?
Potatoes – frugal super-food
Potatoes are an important food and a staple food in many people’s diets. In the 1840’s crops around Europe were affected by potato blight leading to around a million people dying from starvation in Ireland and a similar number trying to escape the problems of poverty and hunger by emigrating. Potatoes contain starches, sugars, fibre and vitamins. They are low fat and contain vitamin C, Vitamin B6, potassium and manganese.
Frugal hobbies to save money
I like landscape photography, but my camera isn’t really suitable for photographing people or events. I did see a frugal wedding on TV where the wedding album was made up of photographs taken by guests with their cameras and phones; that’s not a bad idea. The quality won’t be as good as a professional photographer with a DSLR and all the equipment; but it’s a hell of a lot cheaper. Many amateur photographers using DSLRs and advanced photo editing software will get quite good photos though. You can share the photos on Facebook rather than doing printouts too.
Frugal summer update
It’s summer in England but we have had almost constant rain so far. It’s not over though is it? We still have half of August left and if previous years is anything to go by we could have quite a mild Autumn right up to December. We can’t take chances though and so get out and enjoy it while you can especially if you have children on holiday from school. Think about the future though, retailers are and they have stock to get rid of, before summer comes to an end.
Finance Friday | luck of the draw
Next Friday there is a Euro-millions draw and although the odds of winning the jackpot are over 100 million to one; we have a better chance in the UK Millionaire raffle. That will be creating 100 new millionaires next week and the odds are better. I think I will buy a ticket for that! I might be lucky! (more…)
Feeding a family on a budget
I read an article some time ago about feeding a family of four on 60 pounds a week. I thought, I can do better than that! The eggs, chips and peas in the picture cost about 50p to cook. If every meal was as frugal as that, it would be easy! The big problem is that kids can be so fussy and so you do have to present the food in an attractive way for the children. My eggs and chips are multi-coloured; white, yellow, green and red makes it look quite attractive! (more…)
Frugal Friday | Eat out or in
Many families go for a takeaway meal on a Friday in the UK and a favourite is fish and chips. Many fish and chips shops dip the chips in batter so they will look more appetising and are cheaper to cook. They then encourage you to buy a medium sized portion that contains enough chips for 2 people. You end up with a meal that is over 600 calories and loaded with fat. This is the Friday treat for many families and can work out quite expensive. I tend to be frugal on a Friday and try to save on meals, so I can enjoy something a little more special for Sunday lunch. Egg and chips is a favourite for dinner on a Friday. (more…)
Frugal Friday | Only 99p
I went to Aldi last night and did a little shopping, getting fresh vegetables and things before the Bank Holiday weekend starts. The prices of most of the items on my bill, ended in in 99p. Are these bargains? Not really! I have a bottle of soft drink that has 99p all around the top of the label to make it sound cheap. I think they would sell less if it said 99% water! Soft drinks are 99% water, but we often pay through the nose for them and so prices ending in 99, aren’t at all cheap. (more…)
Frugal Friday | Grow your own
It looks very much like the Great British Summer is here, but how long will it last? I think there is time to germinate a few seeds. Runner beans are easy to grow and I am always amazed at how well they crop. I also intend to start some lettuce seed and tomato seeds off later today. I bought some French beans seeds from Aldi, but need some runner bean seed and so I’ll pop out and buy some later. I mentioned how getting your 5 fruit and vegetables a day can prevent some nasty diseases in yesterday’s thrifty blog. You can save money and stay healthy by growing your own. (more…)
Finance Friday | Quality
I read this morning that Ikea the Swedish store here in the UK is one of the most popular stores. It certainly seems that way on Bank Holidays when they clog up the road system by having a sale. I wanted some photo frames a few years ago and Ikea had some for £12, but there were some virtually the same in Poundland. I can spot quality and I can also spot overpriced imported crap. I might frame my watercolour; pictured above. It’s better than a lot of the street art that I saw on TV this week. Talk about the emperor’s new clothes, they need to keep those pictures away from small children… (more…)
Finance Friday | Frugal skills
I made a shepherd’s pie this week (pictured) and that was nice. We have to try to cook frugal meals now. It looks a little burnt around the edge just it wasn’t. That was the reason for the foil tray to stop the edges burning. It is a good idea to pop in under the grill to brown the top a little. They are easy to make, a meal in themselves and can be frozen. (more…)
Finance | When to borrow
I went in Matalan yesterday and looked at the clothes. I was going to buy a straw hat for the summer but they weren’t quite what I wanted. They had the hats and sunglasses on offer, both for £8.00. I can’t wear the sunglasses though because mine are prescription. I didn’t buy anything in the end but we were out of the rain and using their heating and not mine! I do know some people who would have bought a lot of clothes they don’t need and paid with their credit card. This is essentially borrowing money to buy stuff that you don’t need. (more…)
Frugal Friday | Grow your own
Grow your own
It seems a little early for thinking about growing your own in the garden, but you can at least prepare and plan. I have seen seeds for growing salad and root vegetables on offer for just 39p a packet at Aldi and Poundland have offers too. Getting our 5 portions of fruit and veg a day is getting more expensive. We can look for the bargains, the carrots are just 39p a kilo at Aldi this weekend and ideal for winter soups, stews and casseroles. They are still worth growing though! (more…)
Frugal | Internet Freebies
Fotosketcher
I took the above the photograph and then converted it to look like a sketch with Fotosketcher. You can click the above link to go to the Fotosketcher website or click here and download it from Download.com. Download.com also have a lot of other programs that are freeware to download. You can also get Smoothdraw a powerful picture editing and drawing program that works with a graphic tablet from Download.com. (more…)
Frugal Friday | Nostalgia
You might have to double click this picture to see the two guys fishing. This is the ‘Sanna’ in Moorcroft Wood; so called because there used to be a sanatorium nearby; it was used as an isolation hospital mainly for smallpox. That horrible disease seems to be gone for ever, but the ‘Sanna’ remains. Behind those trees is the canal but over the years the arms off the canal have been filled in and many pools too. This photograph was taken last April, which explains the winter colours. (more…)
Frugal Friday | Saving for a better future
I think most people in the UK could manage to save £100 a month but struggle to do so and struggle to make it to the end of the month because they waste money. You can live for today, but if you are thrifty and frugal now and save for the future, you can have extra money to spend for a few decades. (more…)
