Shopping Habits and a Truly Frugal Blog

I was reading in the weekend newspapers that apparently many people are changing the way they shop and splitting their weekly shop between various stores to get the best deals.  As a consequence, the notion of the weekly shop is becoming obsolete.  Whilst I can relate to this in a way, I still do do a weekly shop, but also supplement it with the a couple of orders per month from Approved Food for treats and non-food items and also with occasional shopping trips to other stores for extras I couldn't get from Lidl where I do my usual shop. 

I always do my weekly food shop on a Monday morning after attending a Brazilian dance class as there is a Lidl store just down the road from the gym and it usually tends to be reasonably quiet, although I have noticed that in recent years it has got much busier.  I usually take a list so that I don't end up buying lots of things I already have or don't need.  This week when I got there I had lost my list, but it didn't really matter as I'm a creature of habit and tend to buy the same tried and tested things week in week out.   In the absence of a list and as the store isn't huge, I tend to walk the whole length of each aisle and usually am reminded of what I need by seeing it on the shelf.

When I got to the till this week I had spent £47, which for a weekly shop for 3 of us, I don't think is too bad, although I'm sure there may be some people who might think it is a lot. In all honesty, there wasn't much meat in my trolley save some mince and some ham for sandwiches, as I'm trying to use up what I have in the freezer.  Neither was there too much in the way of non-food items, as I tend to buy a lot of things from Approved Food and have a cupboard full of cleaning products and toiletries so don't need to add any to the weekly shop for a good while.

I had one large reusable bag full of fruit and vegetables and one full of other food products.  Mainly tins, condiments, dairy products, juices, a few frozen food items and meat etc.  As I was on the way home I got to thinking how much the shop might have cost me if I'd gone to one of the big supermarkets.  Why is it that it seems all too easy to spend £100 upwards in their stores on a weekly shop?   I think I would struggle to spend over £100 in Lidl.  In fact in the five years or more that I've been shopping there, I don't think I've ever spent that much on a weekly shop.  Perhaps I should challenge myself to actually spending £100 in Lidl and see how much I could buy and how long it would last.  I'm sure I would end up with a freezer full of meat, cupboards full of dry and tinned foods and would need a few more reusable bags to carry it all home in.

If you've never shopped at Lidl, are feeling the pinch in the current financial climate, and there is a Lidl store near you, why don't you give it a go.  You might even be pleasantly suprised by the quality of the food they sell and the prices they sell it at.

Alternatively, you could take a look at a blog that was mentioned in an article in the same weekend newspaper this weekend, by a young mum called Jack who lives a truly frugal lifestyle. Unable to find a job since having to give up her job with the fire service after the birth of her son, she has had to live on a food budget of £10 per week for herself and her toddler son.  As a consequence of reading the article, I checked out her blog and found her truly inspirational. 

If you are looking for some seriously frugal but amazing recipes, many vegetarian due to the cost of meat, take a look at her blog at AGirlCalledJack.com.  Have a read around it too, especially the recent post about her finding a job.  It is truly heartwarming. She so deserves a chance as she is so resourceful, courageous and selfless in a very unassuming way.