This Week’s Thrifty Finds: Week Two, July 2018

 

I can’t believe we are still on countdown for the end of term here! My daughters don’t break up until 25 July and already they are tired, hot and bothered!

1. Last week I got round to ordering some Thank You cards for their teachers and assistants. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while you may know that I struggle with the expense and waste of the industry that is Teacher thank you gifts. The shops are crammed with mugs, photo frames and other trinkets for teachers and I do wonder how much of this ends up in a bottom drawer somewhere!

It’s not that I don’t appreciate what their teachers and TAs do. We are lucky to have such a caring and talented teaching staff at our village  school. To this end, I have ordered some personalised thank you cards for the girls to write their own messages of thanks. I also received a half price voucher as I was ordering from the website for the first time.

 

 

2. I got some money off using a supermarket voucher.

3. Despite my ‘no new clothing’ ban I did buy myself a much needed pair of very comfy sandals from the Clarks sale (reduced from £49 to £19).

4. However we went to a party on Saturday night and I wore my faithful black jumpsuit and accessorised with some new nail varnish.

5. I’m continuing with our ‘eat the store cupboard’ mission and made a lovely Greek salad using a jar of olives and a can of butter beans that we’d had for a few months (plus fresh tomatoes and cucumber). I also used up a half empty jar of Thai Curry Paste and a can of coconut milk for an easy Thai Curry, although I did need to buy some meat for that.

 

This Week’s Thrifty Finds: Week One July 2018

As I briefly mentioned in last week’s post we took a short break to Dorset, which is one of my Thriftiest Finds ever….

1. With the weather being sooo hot and my eldest now out of school as her exams are finished, we decided to take a last minute break to Poole in Dorset.

This isn’t something we’ve done before as we had to take the younger two out of school for three days (they are in years 5 & 6, aged nine and ten). They don’t break up until 25 July and the heat is really getting to them and they are really tired.

Anyway we booked a static caravan via Air BnB in a holiday park in Poole and spent three days swimming in the pools and playing at the beach. It was one of the best family holidays we have ever had! And as we took the girls out of school the accommodation was a fraction of the price 🙂 They have now gone back to school refreshed and ready for the  last few weeks of term.

2. On our way home from Poole we stopped in Shaftesbury (famous for Gold Hill and that Hovis advert). My husband and I used to live in Shaftesbury before we were married and we enjoyed showing the kids around. My youngest spotted the free to enter Gold Hill Museum and all five of us really enjoyed it. The girls particularly enjoyed the 20th Century artefacts including the rotary dial telephone and the manual typewriter:

3. While in Shastesbury we HAD to browse the charity shops and, despite my pledge to not buy any more clothes, I did pick up this top and dress for £10 in total from the Naomi Hospice Shop.

4. My daughter also picked up a pair of dungaree shorts from another charity shop.

5. Since coming home I’ve made a conscious effort to reduce our food waste. As we are away again at the beginning of August I’ve decided to ‘shop the cupboards’ ie see what we already have in the cupboards and freezer and cook from that. I took an inventory of everything we had and am now trying to create some meals so I only have to do one small food shop before the end of the month.

Hope your July is going well. I’d love to hear some of your Thrifty Finds 🙂

 

 

This Week’s Thrifty Finds: Week Five June 2018

 

 

Apologies for the late posting. We’re actually away on a mini break in Dorset (I’ll reveal more next week….)

In the meantime last week’s Thrifty Finds were:

1. I got another free coffee with my loyalty card and was given a couple of extra stamps for my reusable cup 🙂

2. Having looked at our budgets for July I’m going to have to reduce our clothing allowance for the month. So instead of buying a couple of new things for the summer (and this current heat) I’ll have to be inventive and ‘shop my wardrobe’.

3. I was given a PE kit for the secondary school that my daughter will be starting at in September.

4. World Cup fever has reached our village! The local pub was doing a fiver barbecue on Thursday. I couldn’t finish my side salads so I took the leftovers home and had them for lunch the next day. (I never normally take leftovers home: is this more of an American tradition? I need to start doing this more often).

5. We received free ice creams at work from our head of service 🍦🍦🍦🍦

How are you coping in this heat? Any tips for keeping cool?

This Week’s Thrifty Finds: Week Two, June 2018

In last week’s post I mentioned that Tuesday 5 June was World Environment Day. This year’s theme was  #BeatPlasticPollution  and I thought I’d post how I got on my trip to London:

1. I took my new Stojo cup which had mixed results. It folds away beautifully and, as long as you have the sleeve securely attached, is fine to handle. Each time I handed it to a Barista I emphasised about holding it by the sleeve, as the rest of the cup is quite flimsy. However I couldn’t secure the lid without some of the hot liquid spilling out 😦 Thankfully I didn’t get burnt but my trousers did smell of coffee for the whole day! I was glad I’d packed my cotton hanky which meant I could mop up spillages. I’m going to work on tightening that lid and practising drinking out of the Stojo cup at home.                                        The trip to London was pretty waste free, though, and I avoided all single use plastic. I took my parents to an exhibition at the V&A and, while the Exhibition Road café only served out of disposable cups, the main café used proper plates and cutlery. Oh, and the exhibition was good too!

Ocean Liners: Speed and Style Exhibition, V&A Museum, London

2. I was able to get half price entry to the exhibition as I had previously purchased an Art Fund Pass. By buying it through my work (we are members of the Art Fund) I was able to get it for nearly a quarter of the full price! I’m going to make good use of the pass by planned trips to the Ashmolean in Oxford and a return trip to the V&A to see the Frida Kahlo exhibition in August.

3. On more plastic free news I managed to refill my BioD washing up liquid at the health food store in Bath. I also asked the assistant if I could bring any bottle to refill there and she enthusiastically said ‘yes’! I don’t know why the store in Corsham won’t accept any plastic bottle: surely it’s better to reuse what you’ve got instead of buying more plastic just so it matches the brand?

4. On Saturday we went to see the Degree Show at University of West of England (where my husband works). I did have a coffee cup fail as I picked up a free tea in a disposable cup (my Stojo was in my bag in another location) 😦 On a positive note I was pleased to see this bin offering up unused items from the Fabrication Dept:

5. On a final note, my middle daughter and I are still really suffering with hay fever (my daughter in particular). I’ve bought loads of medication and herbal drops for us and been following lots of advice. So, counter to my ‘green’ credentials, I’ve had to keep every window closed during this warm weather and am no longer hanging clothes out to dry on the line. It breaks my heart but the misery that this pollen is causing means I have to take these precautions 😦

Is anyone else suffering from hay fever? Any advice/cures would be greatly appreciated!

This week’s Thrifty Finds (1-7 January 2018)

 

 

 

Welcome to the first full week of Thrifty Finds in 2018!

This past week my Thrifty Finds were:

1. My biggest ever Thrifty Find was to spend just £1 in Debenhams and buy the following:

x2 single duvet sets

x 1 double duvet set plus fitted sheet

x 2 pillows

x 1 bathmat

x 4 towels

For the past couple of years I have used the cashback site Quidco when making purchases online. For every purchase you make you get a little cash back. This can range from a few pence to up to £50 (!). The money takes a few months to reach your account so it’s not a quick fix solution. However as I’m going to make the purchase anyway it makes sense to use the site and earn a little more. Last Christmas I used the money earned to buy Christmas presents from Amazon. This year, however, I decided to convert the rewards into a Debenhams voucher (for a higher rate) and buy some much needed bedding and towels at the value of £132 🙂

2. I also had a good sort out and donated some clothing and household items to a local charity shop. I still need to sort through our linen cupboard and my own clothes as part of a New Year declutter.

3. I also finally got round to mending a couple of items of clothing 🙂

4. We’ve been eating the last of the Christmas food and trying to put off a supermarket shop. I managed to make three extra meals from what we had left in the freezer and food cupboard.

5. With regards to Christmas food waste, so far we had to throw away:

1 lime

2 satsumas

1/2 a red cabbage

one portion of Brie (that had gone mouldy).

We still have a portion of turkey in the freezer and the Brandy Butter is floating around the fridge (I suspect it will have to be thrown out soon). I also have 1 1/2 jars of mincemeat to use up and some very brown bananas.

I need to make some banana cake with leftover bananas

How did you get on with Christmas leftovers?

 

 

 

I’d love to hear about your Thrifty Finds too! Please  share your Thrifty Finds on my facebook page, or use #thriftyfinds on Twitter or instagram

Festive Thrifty Finds (19 December- 1 January)

Happy New Year!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and aren’t feeling the side effects of last night!

I thought I would let you know what my Thrifty Finds were over the festive season:

1. If you read my previous Festive Thrifty Finds post you’ll know that I was determined not to waste food this holiday season. I have been keeping a list of what we did throw away (half a red cabbage and a mouldy Brie so far) and notes on how we can improve quantities for next year.  I’ll keep you posted on the total later in the month.
2. I managed to stick to my present budget 🙂 We reduced the number of adults we were buying far which helped a lot. I didn’t buy as many second-hand presents as I had planned. I think I’m going to try to buy presents throughout the year in 2018 so that I can increase the number of pre-loved items I buy. I’ve been following @feegilfeather  on Twitter and love how she had posted all her presents bought from charity shops throughout the year.
3. However, I have already picked up a couple of decorations for Christmas next year. These ornaments were reduced to £1.35 in total  in Oxfam. I also bought some Christmas cards for next year.

4. I did go a little over the grocery budget but made some savings by cashing in all the 1ps and 2ps we save over the year and making use of my Nectar points.

5. We managed to keep to a budget for family activities, and reduce the amount we committed to. Highlights included:

attending the Crib Service at the village church then going onto friends for mince pies and cocktails;

having friends round for a Games Night;

going to the cheaper cinema in our local town to watch Jumanji (£18, instead of £32 at Bath Odeon!);

eating out at YoSushi, which was a first for us. I had 1/3 off the bill as I signed up to get a birthday discount;

spending New Year’s Eve at a friend’s house in the village. We cooked a dish and brought along the champagne we had picked up in France on our holiday.

6. I’m also really pleased that I did not buy something! Despite trawling the sales and charity shops for a New Year’s Eve outfit I decided that I actually had a choice of three outfits already at home (two of which were – of course- second-hand!). So I saved money and making a horrible last-minute impulse buy, which is something I would have definitely done in the past.

Looking to the future, I have many more second-hand and thrifty finds in store for 2018. May your 2018 prove to be a thrifty, peaceful and (maybe) second-hand one too xxx

 

 

 

Festive Thrifty Finds (11-18 December)

Are you ready for Christmas?

I still have quite a few things to get on my list but, having spent last weekend, travelling to visit family I feel ready to settle down and spend Christmas at home.

1. We visited family near London and my husband and I got to spend some time browsing the vintage shops of the capital on our own. I picked up this homemade 70s/80s style dress from the Rokit store in Soho for just £9! The material is quite thin but I plan to wear it over the Christmas holidays with layers and tights. I think it’s a really cheerful festive colour!

 

2. I’ve been given a couple of jars of homemade mincemeats from friends, so I need to start making those mince pies!

3. At work we took part in Christmas Jumper Day for Save the Children. My cardigan comes from a second-hand shop in Bath and was bought for me a few years ago by my family.

 

4. I also got to wear that new (to me) green top to our works’ Christmas meal last Friday.

5. Finally, I am really determined to reduce my food waste this Christmas. Lately, I have been throwing too much food away, despite meal planning. This time we have sat down and written a detailed list of all the meals we will be planning for and eating over the holidays. I found this US site here (courtesy of the Zero Waste Chef) really useful for estimating how much you need to cook for Christmas lunch. And I find the UK site LoveFood HateWaste really useful too when planning how to use leftovers.

What are your plans for feasting over Christmas? Do you stick to a meal plan or do you like to have lots of leftovers? (personally I think Boxing Day is the best day of the year for leftovers!)

Wishing you a wonderful, peaceful and merry Christmas!! xxxx

 

This week’s Thrifty Finds (16-22 October 2017)

 

How was your week? Last week we were on count down for the school holidays (the girls actually broke up on Wednesday and Thursday). This week I’m off with them so looking forward to spending time together, while watching the pennies.

Last week my Thrifty Finds were:

1. I went to a Vintage Fair with a friend. I’ve been to a few of these before but this was by far the best. I really enjoyed browsing, and people watching (some of the customers were dressed in the most beautiful period pieces). I was very restrained, though, and just came away with some hair pins and a brooch:

 

2. I took the kids swimming on Sunday – for free. During the school holidays, swimming is free for children in our local area 🙂 . So we took advantage of this and went to a ‘fun and floats’ session.

3. In preparation for the school holidays I did a load of baking to keep everyone fed. I made a huge batch of rock cakes, lemon cake and some cupcakes. I don’t think they’ll last the week though…

4. My clever husband has been landscaping the garden this summer. He finished off our new deck this weekend with reclaimed railway sleepers and re-using some old stone chipping which used to be in another part of our garden.

5. Not quite a personal Thrifty Find, but some thing I had to share. At the weekend I came across this Community Fridge in Frome, Somerset. It’s centrally located in the car park and the idea is that you drop off your unwanted food and leave it for others to help themselves (or the other way round). What a great way to reduce food waste!!

I’d love to hear about your Thrifty Finds too! Please  share your Thrifty Finds on my facebook page, or use #thriftyfinds on Twitter or instagram

This week’s Thrifty Finds (16-23 July)

 

How was your week? The kids broke up for the summer on Friday and, beforehand, I was really busy finishing off my end of school year jobs list. However I did manage to find some time to myself and go on a very successful Thrifty Finds shopping trip:

1. I bought a few more items on my summer holidays clothes list: a pair of navy shorts and khaki vest top for just £1.99 each from the British Heart Foundation shop; this brand new blue dress for £8.49 from the same shop:

I think I will wear this to work with leggings, as well as taking on holiday.

I also fell in love with this Henry Holland/Debenhams print dress, which was £8.50 from the Julian House shop:

You know when you see something on a rail and you have to have it? This was how I felt about this dress. Every so often on my secondhand shopping trips I get a real emotional response to an item of clothing and am reminded why I love charity shopping: amidst all the ill fitting Primark and Tesco cast offs there will be a unique outfit that I know no one else will be wearing. What I love about this dress is the style (Tea Dress, just above the knee so perfect for holidays), and the 80s style pattern: geometric blocks and – for some reason – horses and carriages!

2. As well as my successful clothing haul I also found some activity books for the kids to take on holiday. I’m not a big fan of comic books (especially when they have plastic tat stuck to the covers). I often find unused activity books in charity shops which are a cheaper alternative.

3.The children broke up from school on Friday and I completely failed at bringing in any Thank You presents. Instead, the Teachers and Teaching Assistants received personalised thank you cards from the girls.

4. My husband and I went on a weekend trip to London to catch up with old university friends. It wasn’t particularly cheap but I did reduce our train fare costs by buying single, instead of return tickets.

5. I also took my trusty zero waste essentials with me – reusable coffee cup and water bottle. However, once more I failed on the plastic straw front. I didn’t even think to ask for ‘no straw’ when ordering a glass of lemonade at a restaurant. However I did refuse their disposable handwipes.

 

 

I’d love to hear about your Thrifty Finds too! Please  share your Thrifty Finds on my facebook page, or use #thriftyfinds on Twitter or instagram

This week’s Thrifty Finds (19-26 June)

 

How was last week? Have you cooled down since our mini heatwave here in the UK?

Here are some of my Thrifty Finds from last week:

1. The weather was really hot here! It got up to 30C plus which is hard to live in when you don’t have air conditioning and life has to go on as normal. I located our two portable fans from the loft and we got by on closing windows, drawing curtains and staying inside (our stone cottage stays lovely and cool downstairs; upstairs is a different story though). We also did things differently: at the beginning of the week I took the girls to the play park at 7.30pm because it had only just started to cool down then! I also said ‘no’ to a picnic lunch at work because it was too hot to go out.
2. When the weather cooled down towards the end of the week I did go out on my lunchbreak for some charity shop browsing, which I hadn’t done in a while. While I resisted a couple of dresses (see my Instagram feed) I bought a pile of books (total £4.60)

Two of the books are for my holiday reading pile. I thought this one was particularly prescient, given the recent heatwave (and hottest day since June 1976!)

3. These two books were for a friend who had a nasty horseriding accident and has suffered a badly broken leg 😦

Shell be immobile for most of the summer; I thought a couple of good books might help her to get through it. I’m just so relieved the accident wasn’t more serious.

4. Friends came round for a meal on Saturday night and we ended up with some leftover pudding (which they kindly made).

5. We survived to payday with very little food in the house and ended up eating the last of the freezer meals on Sunday. However this past month has been rather chaotic, shopping wise. I usually place one large supermarket order to last the  month, and then top up with regular veg box delivery/trips to the greengrocer in Corsham, plus doorstep milk delivery. This past month, however, I did a smaller online delivery and, as a result, we have been spending a small fortune each week on ‘top up shops’ and have gone way over budget! So it’s back to one large monthly shop for July and if we don’t have it, we don’t buy it (apart from fruit and veg).

By the way if you are a UK reader have you been watching the latest series of Eat Well for Less ? It’s a really informative series that tries to help families who are overspending on, and throwing away, a lot of the food they buy. Every episode I find I am picking up some useful tips (and recipes), even if I think I am quite organised when it comes to meal planning and shopping.

What are your tips when it comes to food shopping? I’d love to hear about all your Thrifty Finds. Please  share them on my facebook page, or use #thriftyfinds on Twitter or instagram