March Money Matters

This month seems to have disappeared in the blink of an eye.  I've been pretty good really, not going over my budget.  I did however, have the major expense of getting my hair done, but it had been 8 months since I'd been to the hairdresser's, so it was long overdue.  I  got it coloured and cut for £85 which was half the normal cost and didn't require the usual 50 mile round trip.

I also got some lenses put in my new glasses frames too, which cost me £80, but I really needed a new pair as I need to start wearing them more and give my eyes a rest from contacts, on the orders of my optician.  Who am I to argue.  I have been wearing them quite a bit though, at least a couple of days per week so it has definitely been worth it. 

I paid quite a large sum off one of my credit cards this month and I paid more than the minimum off my other credit card this month too, but there's still a bit of a way to go to pay them off completely.

Spending on these credit cards was mostly limited to Approved Food orders once again (of which I placed two) and few other purchases.  One of these was some parking vouchers for the car park at the gym, which works out at 30p per visit if I order them on-line, or £1 per visit otherwise, so they do save me quite a bit of money.  Another was a shoe dye I bought on eBay to dye a pair of shoes navy, so I can wear them this summer.  (More in another post).  The last were a couple of on-line purchases of some new wellington boots for my daughter, as she had outgrown hers and a rain mac for me for the spring.  A bit of an indulgence, but a necessary one.  The wellies were reduced in the Joules sale, and the continuing bad weather this month meant that I couldn't put off buying her some until next year, as she needed some weatherproof footwear.  The rain mac for me was bought in the Boden sale and is necessary for when I'm walking the dog as carrying an umbrella is not really practical.  Too many things to hold on to - lead, dog bags, treats, ball, etc.  I'm hoping it will be useful if we get any rainy weather this spring or summer.  Not that I'm trying to tempt fate or anything.

Aside from the above expenditure, I did treat myself and my daughter to a few inexpensive items of clothing for the spring from this month, a new handbag, plus a few other bits and pieces over the month, including some charity shop buys.  I did, however, save myself some money on clothes, by making a skirt or two for spring/summer, each of which didn't cost more than a few pounds.  I also made a new laundry basket for my daughter's bedroom which cost nothing but a couple of hours of my time.

My No Spend Days total currently stands at 22, so I am still well on target for my 50 for the year.  How was your March?  Did you manage to stick to your budget?