Monthly Budget Roundup

I can't quite believe how quickly September has whizzed past. Although it's not strictly the end of the month yet, I've just done my last weekly shop of the month, so I can post about how this month's budget has gone, as I shouldn't be spending hardly any more money this week, save for perhaps some travel expenses, that I will claim back in any case.

September was the first month that I started to implement my new budget plan, whereby all expenditure was allocated to a specific budget.

The categories, which I've mentioned before, were as follows:

Food

Household/Pet/Garden/Toiletries

Home

LB

Personal

Misc

Direct Debit Commitments

Savings

I won't share the exact amount I allocate to each budget, as this is a bit too revealing, but I will attempt to let you know how I've fared in each category.

The Food budget fared pretty well this month.  I was over, by £35, but compared to my overspend of £58 last month, this is a definite improvement.

The Household budget came in under budget again, for the second month running, which is great news.  I had £18.58 left in this budget in September, compared to £5.88 last month, meaning another improvement.

The only other budget that came under was the Home budget which had over £25 left in it, compared to a £17 under spend last month.  I needed very little in this category this month, which was just as well, as a couple of my other categories were well over budget.

The first big budget I busted this month was my Personal budget, which despite promising to rein myself in, was over by £45.  This was due to placing an order with ASOS for some heeled ankle boots for the winter and some new t-shirts, as many of mine are getting very old and scruffy.  I really like the boots though and they will look a bit more dressy than my flat Chelsea boots, which incidentally are a bit slippery when it rains, as they don't have much grip.

I had a nasty slip in these on a rainy day, when we were on holiday in Wales and injured myself, so I'm a bit wary of them. I'll still be wearing them a lot, but may relegate them to wearing to work at the CS this winter.

I didn't manage to get my hair cut this month, mainly due to not having the time to go, so this will need to come out of next month's personal budget.

The second budget that I busted pretty badly this month, was the Miscellaneous budget.  As it is the first time that I've had this budget, I'm going to be pretty forgiving to myself about my £30 overspend here.

It was mainly caused by having £130 worth of dental treatment this month, but I also bought a few presents through the month, some for Christmas, some for birthday/leaving gifts, etc. The other main item in this category was school lunches for LB, which came back into play this month and took care of a fifth of this budget.

Finally, the last budget that went over was LB's budget, on account of buying some more uniform items for her return to school, getting her hair cut and a few other bits that I needed to get her.  This budget went over by just over £30 too.

There's nothing I could do here though, as all of the items were necessary. Unfortunately, some months of the year are just a little more expensive than others, especially near the start of a new school year.

On the plus side this month, I did manage to put another £100 into my savings account. By transferring this at the beginning of the month, it ensures that I make the effort to save. In all though, it's been an okay month.  I could have done better, if I'd been a bit stricter with myself.

Next month, my sister should be visiting from Australia, so I expect to go on a few shopping trips with her and may overindulge a little. I'm hoping to mainly restrict spending to Christmas gifts for her family, small items that I need, plus some lunches and days out here and there.

As it's my birthday, I will probably get enough treats to not need to buy anything for myself, which should help my budget.  Food may go a little over budget again, due to having a visitor and to buying food for home and food for my sister and I whilst we are away at the cottage, simultaneously.

On the plus side, as I should be away from the CS for two weeks, I won't be tempted by the occasional not to be missed item that I come across there.  The only additional expense I will have in October is my annual allotment rental fee, which is due and should be around £30 and there are a couple of regularly used makeup items that I need to re-purchase, as I am running out.

I aren't, however, going to scrimp with regard to my sister's visit, as she's spending a lot of money and coming a long way to visit us, and may not make the journey again for a good number of years, so whatever I need to spend I will and worry about it later. Some things in life, such as enjoying time with a loved one, are more important than worrying about going over budget a little.

What's your budget been like this month?