July Frugalities

Well, here are a few things I've done this month to save a bit of money.  I've been a lot more disciplined this month and virtually only spent money on food, toiletries and toiletry ingredients, household items, a small amount on revamping LB's bedroom and a couple of school items for LB for September.  All other non-essential purchases have been avoided completely by staying away from the shops and avoiding shopping online.

So, here's how I've  saved a few pounds this month.

1)  I dyed an old pair of shoes to create a spare pair of school/flat black shoes for LB or myself to wear.

2)  I revamped LB's bedroom using some white emulsion we already had.  I did have to buy one tin of coloured emulsion, which was just £12, but the results were definitely worth it.  LB painted up a couple of things herself to tie in with her new colour scheme, i.e. her bin, etc.  So once again, we made the most of what we had before rushing out to buy new.  This project also kept me out of the shops and off line in the last week or so of the month, when I didn't have much money left, so it was good from this point of view too.

3)  I used a few of online grocery shopping vouchers to get over £30 off three weekly shops this month and this has really helped me to stay within budget this month.

4)  I did a very mimimal shop in the last week of the month, fresh and essential foods only, and instead concentrated on using what was in the cupboards and freezer, amending my menu plan accordingly.

5)  I made some more cotton face pads out of an old brushed cotton baby sheet of LB's.

6)  I made some room accessories for LB's made over bedroom from fabric in my stash.  i.e. a new laundry hamper and a new cushion cover.

7)  I made some long denim shorts out of a pair of ridiculously wide legged jeans, that I couldn't otherwise wear. I'm now so much happier to wear them and finally get some use out of them.