Auction Power Guide

I swear by my extra freezer – I got it cheap off ebay and it now lives in our garage. Now I can buy food that’s on offer and stock up. I also cook batches of soups and sauces to freeze, much cheaper than the store bought stuff and nicer too. I can buy large packs of meat from Costco and seperate it all into bags for the freezer.
Try to cut down on your food waste, use tupperware tubs to keep leftovers as fresh as you can until using them, try to keep fruit in the fridge in this hot weather so that it lasts longer. Shop sensibly, remember that shops put the stuff they really want to sell the most (with the highest profit margin) at eye level, so learn to look around for better value products. Consider some more shop brand products, try various ones to find out what you like. Use the vouchers that you find for money off – cut them out and put them in your bag/purse when you see them so you don’t get to the checkout then suddenly realise that you left them at home (i do that frequently…) Try loyalty schemes like Tesco clubcard, nectar points, Boots advantage card. Remember that Boots have a booth just inside every store that will offer you new deals every time you shop – pop your card in every time you visit the store to see what they have – their advantage card is actually the most value when you use it well.
Would you be interested in trying cloth nappies? I use them now after never trying them with my first baby and I’m hooked. Aside from the environmental benefits, they’re also better for baby’s skin and I’ve saved a LOT of money. I understand that Aimee’s a bit older now so you don’t want to splash out for ones that you won’t use for long – you could always try this site…
https://www.usednappies.co.uk/members_area.php

You can buy used cloth nappies there for a fraction of the price – boil wash them if you’re concerned about hygiene, then as long as they’re kept in good condition, you can re-sell for as much as you spent.
(adding as I go along, lol)
Remember to switch off all electrical appliances when you’re not using them. Try to cut down how much you do use by drying clothes on a clothes line instead of a tumble drier, switch off lights during the day, turn off the tv for some puzzles or story time instead.
Find cheaper days out – kids are delighted with the park or a good garden. Invite friends round for kids’ play time and swap turns at each other’s houses. Buy kids clothes in the end of season sales – remembering what age group to buy for next summer so that at the start of next summer, you don’t have to spend a fortune on clothes they’ll be selling for half the price in a few weeks. If you watch a lot of films, try a cheap dvd rental rather than buying new ones (Tesco rental is quite good). If you go to the cinema, Orange wednesday is really good and while technically you have to be an Orange customer, you can just ask someone who’s with orange and not using it that day to get the discount code for you, then you use it at the cinema.
See if you can save money on energy by switching companies. try uswitch.com, they’ll find the best deal for you and it is quick and easy (i should know, I’ve switched several times!). Energy companies are constantly changing their prices and offering new deals, it’s best to keep an eye out for where you can save.
Review your driving, are you over-reving and wasting fuel? Think about how to drive the economical way. Try to use your air con as little as you can, that’s a real drain on the tank! Did you know that petrol stations change their prices through the week? Tuesday and Wednesday are the cheapest days to fill up. Look for deals on petrol – such as Tesco offering 5p off a litre when you spend more then £50 in store (every now and then). I’v found Asda to have the cheapest fuel in our area.
Wash your own car rather than pay for it – get Aimee in her messy clothes and give her a cloth, it’s actually really good fun for kids! My 3 year old soaked herself on Saturday this way and she had a great time.
Also, try these sites for great tips on how to save money;
http://www.frugal.org.uk/index.html
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/
ETA – Just found this;
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/orange-wednesday#free
You can get a free orange sim card with £5 top up and use it for orange wednesday! I’m going to do that now…
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Think of what you buy on a weekly basis and on a monthly basis.

Go on to Tesco.com and write a weekly and monthly shopping list. Every week, have your shopping delivered to you instead of going shopping for it,we found that when we went shopping we would leave wih an exra 20 quids worth of crap.

By doing it on the internet, we don’t get tempted by the aisles.

Also, making big portions of food, with fresh veg that has been on offer, this will last longer and can be frozen and used at a later date.

Don’t buy lots of something just because it is on offer, if you can use it then fine, but don’t just buy something because it is cheaper than usual but going to go off tomorrow lol.

Buy things like toilet roll, washing powder, baby wipes etc in bulk.

I’ll let you know if I think of anything else x
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Coupons, coupons, coupons.
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Well firstly Aimee is now old enough for you to make a start at potty training, my daughter was fully toilet trained by 18 months. So you can save money when you no longer need nappies.

Also get rid of any unnecessary extra expenses such as sky tv or other subscription to things.

Always cook from scratch it will save so much money, you can make Shepard’s pie, bologaise and casseroles in advance and freeze them.
You can also make homemade ice cream or cakes for pudding.

Buy fruit and vegetables from vegetable shops and meat from cheap shops like Morrison’s.

Get a money box ad put ALL change in there, when you do a big shop you can take it to those money machines (usually in Asdas) and it will give you a receipt which then takes that amount of your shopping.

We do this once a month, Every bit of change we have that is less then 50p, so all 20ps,5ps,10ps ect go in the money box and we use it for our next shopping trip.

Take a long time shopping, look at prices and quantities and buy the best for your money, don’t just pick up them first thing or thing which is cheapest.

ALL of you should eat the same including Aimee (unless it’s like a vinderloo lol!) and make sure you always have the basic ingredients to put things together, such as pasta, flour,eggs,margarine,milk, spices ect.

I also buy those coleman packet mixes, so i always have a meal ideal.

xx
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Make food in bulk. Like soups, sauces, pies etc anything really and freeze it into family size portions so you can just warm it up and eat it. It’ll save you time and money!

Shop around for the cheapest gas and electricity provider. I find scottish power the cheapest in my area.

Shop at places like Netto & Home Bargains. Go through all your junk mail and see which shops have the best deals so you can buy the cheapest.

Buy second hand clothes from markets or charity shops. Expecially for Aimee, you can use the second hand clothes for when she is playing outside, that way if they get ruined it hasn’t cost you a fortune.

You could try cloth nappies. They’re cheaper and very cost effective.

Buy toilet roll and baby wipes etc in bulk.

Turn off all your appliences as the plug when you go to bed.

Use the library instead of buying books.

Make your own bread. And don’t be afraid to buy homebrand items – they tend to be made in the same factory as the expensive stuff, so they taste exactly the same.

Take advantage of store points systems – tesco club card and boots advantage card etc.

When the weather gets cooler put your boiler on a timer, so instead of having your heating on all day set it to come on for 15mins and then of for 15 mins etc

That’s all I can think of at the moment!
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I have a few tips

Make food in bulk and then freeze it in meal sized portions as well as freezing any meats you will not be using in the next few days in the freezer

Store bread in your fridge – it lasts far longer than bread stored outside the fridge

When you need to buy your daughter clothes/toys then try looking around your local car boot sale. You can always find good bargains there as long as you are prepared to rummage. I got my son a lovely dolls house with accessories for £1.50 as opposed to £50+ i would have spent buying one new. It also makes a nice day out!

If you need to buy new clothes then buy them in the sale taking into mind the age the child would be when it would wear the clothes (i always buy clothes in the sales for next year)

Don’t use tumble dryers to dry your clothes – instead put them outside in good weather and on indoor airers in bad weather

Don’t turn on radiators – if you’re feeling cold then put on a clothes that cover all your skin (i remember last winter i actually put 2 sleep-suits on my son at night time – a cotton one under a fleece one and layered all his clothes)

If you don’t want to switch to cloth nappies then put your baby in baby-dry or night time nappies – these are the most absorbent type and can go 4-6 hours before needing to be changed during the day

Bathe your child in a baby bath instead of in a big bath – you use less water this way and take showers yourself – you could even shower your baby with you if you feel comfortable doing so.

Play groups are good cheap days out with your baby and will also help with her social skills (most cost no more than £1)

Buy things like nappies and wipes when they are on special offer and in bulk though if buying very large quantities of nappies remember to also buy some in the next size up as well as her current size.

Buy own brands – i always find they are just as good quality as the name brands.

Buy vegetables from markets and meat from butchers – i always find it to be far cheaper than the supermarkets.

That’s all i can think of for now – i use all these tips in my day to day life and manage to live comfortably on a low income (sorry its a bit of an essay).
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Thrifty living mummy to a 16 month old

Use coupons

Stock up on things when they are on sale

Buy clothes and other things at yard sales (you can find like new things at awesome prices….use an anitbacterial spray to disinfect)

Wait until movies come out on DVD and rent them instead of going to the movies

Don’t eat out unless you have to

Those are a few of the things I have done, and we live quite comfortably and our kids look just as fashionable as anyone else.
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Consider consignment shops for toys and clothes. Babies grow so fast that they don’t really wear out clothes. The nights out should be a special occasion not a regular occurrence. Getting store brands is always cheaper than brand names. Cut coupons, look for deals and buy in bulk when you can. Find a spot where you can put the extra canned goods. Pasta can be kept for months in a dry spot. Life in the military teaches you fast.
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Retired Military Dad of 7

There are many ways to save:

– buy generic brands instead of premium (from bread to toilet paper)
– use coupons
– cook instead of eating out
– look for cheaper plans on cable tv, internet, home and cell phones.
– buy used, you can find many great things you want used (amazon, craigslist, ebay, etc.)
– try out swagbucks.com/refer/sugardawg47 (you can earn prizes simply by searching the internet like you would google. After two or three weeks you can get amazon gift cards and more, it may not seem like much, but heck, you never know when you’ll need that extra few bucks. Plus, if you’re gonna search the internet anyways, why not earn something for it?

Hope I helped 🙂
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