The Lean Times

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Archive for the ‘Frugality’ category

September is Here,Time to Get Back to Business

May 7th, 2012

Am I the only person that gets excited when September rolls around? Perhaps it is the idea of going back to school, buying new stationery and of course new clothes. I feel the end of summer brings a chance of reinvention, like the chubby kid that comes back after the summer looking stunning as the result of a growth spurt.

I love the idea of getting back to business, no more lazing at the pub on a Sunday afternoon because the weather is too good to miss. Now is the time to make action plans for the last quarter of the year.

At The Lean Times, I am truly getting back to business: there will be a great Lean Review a month, Menu Monday and Friday Tip Day along with the regular Wednesday post. If there is anything you would like me to cover or figure out a solution to a specific problem please drop me a comment or get in touch here. I promise to get back to you personally.

What else you ask is on my back to business agenda? Well, I think it is a good time to re-evaluate my budget. When is the last time you had a look at yours? Every few months it is a good idea to give it a tweak, to make sure your money is working for you not the other way around.

There are a few areas that immediately come to mind for tweaking – the first is energy suppliers.Energy suppliers have raise prices so I am going to run over to USwitch to make sure I am getting the best deal possible. You may have to allocate a bit more of your budget to heating your home in the coming months so you are going to have to figure where you are going to get that money from.

I am also going to start my holiday shopping as soon as possible so it is spread over a few months instead of putting all the financial pressure on December and January. If you do it a bit at a time then it won’t be as painful. I am also going to attempt to make more gifts to lessen the load.

The other part of my budget that I am worried about is the food allocation. In the summer, fruit and vegetables are much cheaper and if we want to eat well we are going to have to be clever. I have my slow cooker at the ready for lots of stews and casseroles; you can use cheaper cuts of meat as they get more tender by slow cooking. I will also be putting a few more meat free meals on the menu.

What are you doing in preparation for the last quarter of 2011? Please get in touch if there is anything you would like to see covered on The Lean Times or if you have suggestions for readers about getting back to business.

Originally posted 2011-09-07 13:22:50. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Back to Business Back to School Book Reviews Budgets Christmas Shopping Holidays Meat Free Uswitch

I am NOT a hermit, just frugal

April 16th, 2012

hermit A colleague commented recently, she thought it was a bit strange that I don’t go out much and prefer to do my drinking at home usually with a meal that I prepared. She thinks I am a bit odd, perhaps I have a touch of agoraphobia outside the workplace, but no that is not the case.

OK here is the deal – I don’t go out to events or evenings in the pub that I don’t really want to. I don’t go out just because it is Friday night and that is what other people do. I am trying to get out of debt and looking at the BIG picture. I have come to the realization that if you want a better or different life, for me, that is one of more freedom away from debt or excessive worrying about money, you have to make some changes. Notice how I did not say sacrifices because for me an evening in the pub versus a new lipstick or half a pair of shoes, it is a no brainer. I would rather wake up in the morning feeling good and having money in my pocket.

Oh no, now you my lovely readers are thinking I am a bit strange. I do go out but not as a habit because once something becomes a habit; it loses its magic. I like to look at going out as an event not just that thing we do every Friday night. I see going out like ice cream if you eat too much your bank account will feel a bit sick.

Since I am not out and about, what am I doing then? I am not just sitting home in front of my computer or the television, I take a sewing class and I cook a lot. In the summer, I put a table out on my terrace, light candles and have romantic meals with my beloved. Since I did bring up my beloved, he still goes to the pub but with his mates, who enjoy it more than I do.

It is all about choices. My choices at the moment are to keep my eye on the prize to debt freedom while finding new ways to make life interesting. Have you cut out anything in particular while on your frugal adventure? And if you have, what are you replacing it with? Leave me a comment.

Originally posted 2010-04-22 22:42:39. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Debt Frugal Hermit Pub Spending

Lean Times Tools

March 23rd, 2012

Being Lean should not be difficult or time consuming. I have a few tools I keep around the house to make living Lean a bit easier. I have small spatulas in different parts of the house – one in the bathroom to every last bit of skin cream out of jars and one in the kitchen to get out that last drop of a condiment. I love this set of different coloured spatulas. You can nominate a colour for the job it does or the room it lives in.

My other little tool is child’s safety scissors to cut the end of toothpaste tubes, that very expensive Aveda conditioner or moisturizer. You would be surprised how much more is hidden in the nozzle at the end of a tube.

Make it as easy as possible to be Lean – it is always easier to open a new tube or jar then to go into a different room to get the spatula or scissors.

Originally posted 2008-07-16 11:36:43. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Tags: Frugal scissors Spatula Tools

Onwards and Upwards

March 5th, 2012

You have survived Christmas and the empties from your New Year’s Eve festivities are in the recycling bin so I guess it is the time to make our resolutions.

Here are a few of the bigger categories for me, not in any specific order.

SHOPPING – My first resolution is to plan ahead and to take advantage of every opportunity. The sales are on at the moment, so I am going to hit the shops to buy chocolates for Valentine’s Day. Chocolates usually don’t come in Christmas boxes and if they do then re-box them. 14th of February is only six weeks away and the prices will be much dearer.

I am also going to be on the look out for any inexpensive little gift items that I can have on hand such as high quality bath products, lip-glosses etc but only purchase items that are REALLY marked down.

The same goes for wrapping paper; lots of holiday paper can be used for other occasions. I try to buy one roll in white (good for wedding gifts) and one roll in an abstract motif. These will keep me going throughout the year. For girlie gifts, I wrap in little items in pages of old fashion magazines.

FOOD – Planning is the key to leading a lush Lean life in 2009; I will plan my meals around what is on offer and in season. I will visit the supermarket in the evening when food is marked down and stuff my freezer with said items.

When I roast a chicken, I will make stock to make soup and sauces.

CLOTHING – I will polish my shoes and boots regularly to extend their looks and life span. Repair and dry clean any clothing that needs it as soon as possible. Hand wash all knits on a regular basis as moths love soiled sweaters.

I will always wash my lingerie in a mesh lingerie bag such as this one from Muji. Lingerie bags extends the life of your lingerie which is very Lean.

GRATITUDE – I will appreciate how lucky I really am, regardless of my financial situation. I have a roof over my head, food in my freezer, the most wonderful man, lovely friends and family. Who cares about the new ‘it’ bag.

Knowing all this, I will try to give something back by going through my clothing at least twice a year and donating the items that are not Ebay worthy to my local charity shop.

Charity shops cannot take bras but BreastTalk does. They run a bra appeal that provides them to women, who can’t afford them around the world. For every kilo collected BCR Textiles pays £1, which goes directly to the Breast Cancer Campaign.

Well that is pretty much my big Lean resolutions for 2009. What are your big idea resolutions? I do have more specific resolutions such as put more money towards my credit card debt, more money into my savings account and learn a new craft in 2009 but those are for another post.

Originally posted 2009-01-03 12:58:15. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: BreastTalk Clothing Gifts Philosophy Planning Resolutions Tips

Frugality is getting me down.

January 27th, 2012

It has been a bit hard for me to get into the groove this year and I finally figured out why – too much frugality is getting me down. I have been doing the frugal thing for years but only intensely the past three and a bit. It is a tiring to always be looking for new places to save especially if you have embraced the frugal life fully.

I am doing all the right things: not buying coffees out, cooking from scratch nearly every night, keeping to my budget, hey I even paid off one of my credit cards a few months ago. I think I am tired of too much stick and not enough carrot.

This year, I am going to try to make deals with myself a bit, let myself have a bit more of a good time. If you have embraced the frugal way of living, it becomes a habit and once you have developed a habit it is difficult to break. Just try to quit smoking or ditch coffee completely; frugality has become part of my DNA.

By letting myself have more leeway in the spending department, I think it will make my life a bit more fun and with fun comes creativity and hopefully joie de vivre. There is only so much one can accomplish with being frugal. We all need to eat, wear clothes and have a shelter.

Being frugal is an admirable thing but it should not be the main focus of your life, if it is then you might be called a miser or cheapskate behind your back. As I said, frugality is now embedded in my DNA. I will not buy food in a box just because I can’t be bothered to cook or buy stuff for the heck of it.

I want to declutter even more and really try to live a more minimalistic life. There are definitely things I need to buy (new clothes, shoes, a cover for the sofa) but before I buy anything, I will get rid of something.

I think now is the time to work more on the earning side of my financial life. I am also going to try to find a side hustle or two to finance this more fun lifestyle I am planning or should I say designing? I think I like the idea of designing my life for 2012. Are you planning the grand design of your life? What are you adding or more importantly subtracting? Drop me a comment, I would love to hear about you.

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Life Design Resolutions Side Hustle

Fur Coat No Knickers

December 11th, 2011

Yes you read it correctly, but the definition I am using is – looking good on the outside without anything on the inside. I have been looking kind of ok on the outside but have been keeping it together with spit and gum. In what way you ask? I have been doing a bit too much living hand to mouth – I was made redundant from one of my more lucrative freelance gigs and have been surviving on a little more than half of what I was used to, for the past four months.

Now that I am in full time employment, at least for the time being (ah the freelance life), I am noticing how much I have been making due. I am more that delighted to live on a tight budget but after receiving a few decent pay packets and getting ahead on some bills, I have realized how much my standards have lowered.

I am very lucky to have worked in fashion for enough years that I have a few good items, even though by now most of them are considered vintage. But hey, vintage is cool and if you buy good stuff, take care of it , it will last. So I am looking sort of alright in my new freelance position at a fashion magazine. I supplemented my basics with a few new GAP t shirts and accessorize like crazy.

But if you look underneath – I have not bought any new underwear in about three years, I buy really strong opague tights that usually three pairs will last me an entire season with washing them in rotation. I take good care of my shoes; I have had the same pair of boots for six years. I actually have two of the same exact style because I loved them so much, I hunted down another pair on Ebay.

It is in my flat where life is really making due. My beloved and I only have two plates, yes two, so we can’t have anyone over for dinner. We did have more but alas they have all gone to plate heaven. We also are down to one and a half sets of sheets, not ideal if you have to wait for the sheets to dry before getting to make the bed.

Why am I telling you all this? Well it is quite interesting how you can get used to a situation. I didn’t really think about not having enough dishes until we met a couple that we really wanted to have over for dinner. I was used to not buying myself clothes and making due. And the sheet thing, I have asked for some for Xmas and bought the missing component sheet on eBay.

Have you ever realized how hand to mouth you were living in hindsight? Please drop me a comment and tell me about your situation.

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Extreme Frugality Frugality Hand to Mouth Thrift

Scary Frugal Things about Me

December 1st, 2011

After last week’s sad post, I thought I would tell you some of my frugal quirks. I hope I am not the only person out there with strange frugal habits and fears. My beloved even sometimes thinks I am weird but I will let you be the judge of my weirdness.

1. I can’t throw away a tube of lipstick until I dig the last drop out with a brush.

2. I hoard beauty products. I buy more than I need when they are on offer or I am in the States. I fear not being able to afford them if times get tough.

3. I also buy extra underwear and socks when visiting my mother in NY but do not allow myself to use them until the ones I am wearing truly bite the dust.

4. When I need to buy most anything, I look at the shops first then look at eBay for a cheaper price.

5. I get nervous if there is not a least two unopened large packages of toilet roll in the flat. Did I mention there are only two of in the flat?

6. I feel a bit sick if when I buy myself anything. In the past two years I have bought only replacement items. Nothing exciting or goodness forbid extravagant.

7. I sometimes mix Lidl cat food with preminum. For more frugal cat tips see this.

8. I only will eat out at restaurants that serve food I can’t make. You will not see me eating pasta in a restaurant. Actually we only go out to eat about once every couple of months if that.

Do you have any scary frugal habits? Please leave me a comment so I know I am not a lone freak.

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Cats Facts Lidl Restaurants

More Frugal Confessions

October 12th, 2011

Here comes another frugal confession, I miss the finances of the past. This past weekend, I lost a very good friend in an accident, when something like this happens of course, you are flooded with memories.

I have fond reminiscences of spending Saturday afternoons browsing the shops and when you wanted to buy something that is over your budget you would put the item on Layaway. If you are not familiar with Layaway, it is when you put a deposit on an item and physically make payments until you own it out right.

The anticipation of getting your desired item made saving the money even easier. A girl would forgo meat, take out coffees and even public transportation to pay off that the coveted something, which usually in my case was a pair of shoes.Years ago we did not rely on credit cards, they were just for emergencies and buying a pair of shoes was never considered an emergency.

Super fast fashion did not exist so there was not the urgency in buying something because it might be gone in a week or two. That was when fashion only had two real seasons Spring and Autumn and the clothing in the shops corresponded much more with the weather outside.

I like to feel we were more innocent in some ways. We did not yearn for designer gear as it was out of our price range. We were more interested in having great style and the idea of going into debt for fashion just was not the way we rolled.

Modern times have brought designer clothing and accessories to the masses and more debt. The cult of celebrity has a lot to answer for. Us regular folk do not have the resources to live the celebrity lifestyle but everyday we hear about young people, mostly young women, getting deeper and deeper into debt to look like their idols.

I say we should say no to the cult of celebrity and say yes to bringing back Layaway. Rant over thanks for reading.

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Celebrity Credit Cards Cult of Celebrity Debt Fashion Layaway Shopping

My Frugal Confession(s) Part 1

August 20th, 2011

The time has come lovely readers to tell you the truth, I am a fake. Yup, I don’t always walk the frugal walk. I have tried my best to be a good frugalista but there are some things that I am just not good at.

Here is my frugal confession and please don’t hate me.

The first part of my confession is that I am a rotten gardener. I have a kitchen garden allotment that was given to me by my local council as part of a scheme to get residents to eat more vegetables. I loved the idea of growing my own veg but unfortunately my plot does not get enough sun to grow the vegetables, we like to eat and I don’t really like to get my hands dirty.

It also comes down to the time versus money dilemma – I live near a very good market and it is cheaper on my time to buy vegetables. I know I am not getting the satisfaction of having grown my own food but I do get more time to play with people on Twitter and Facebook. (By the way do you follow me?)

I have more frugal confessions but I think that is enough for one session. Please don’t hate me dear reader.

Do you have a frugal confession? Step into the confessional and leave a comment.

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Confessions Frugal Living Gardening Grow your own Veg

Can You Be Too Frugal For Your Own Good?

August 5th, 2011

This week, I had a debate with myself. I was in desperate need of a visit to the hairdresser, it had been months and I was way past being able to fake it. I was given the name of a hairdresser that is cheaper than my lovely one that I have been going to for years. I did not know if I should risk it and spend less but might have a hair nightmare for a few months or to suck up the expense and know that I would have fab hair for months.

I felt a bit like a miser, trying to get cut priced haircare when the person I go to already rewards my loyalty with a discount. Sometimes you have to weigh up how your frugality will effect you in the end. If I did go to the cheaper hairdresser, I could have ended up with an unflattering hair style for a while and if you are a woman that has ever had a bad hair experience, you know those months of waiting for it to grow can seem like years.

There are some things in life that work out better if you pay a little more. Sometimes being too frugal can bite you in the bum. Here is a little list of fashion and beauty items that I think it is better not to cut corners too much.

1. Hair – you wear your head everyday, your hair is one of the first things people look at when they meet you. It is not really a matter of price but if you find someone that can tame your tresses like no one else, treasure them. I did go to my hairdresser in the end and of course have fabulous hair.

2. Skin – another basic thing for the same premise. Take care of your skin and it will take care of you. It is not a matter of how much you spend on skin cream but that you use it on a regular basis.

3. Winter coat and boots – in both these items, it is a matter of quality not quantity. One well made, classic winter coat can last you for years as opposed to a cheap one that probably won’t keep you warm and look shabby in a month. The same goes for boots.

Those are the crucial items on my list, what are yours? I would add a good handbag but unless you are nearing the light at the end of your tunnel, but if not, you can probably wait on one of those.

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Posted in Frugality

Tags: Boots Cheap Frugal Hair dresser Miser Skin Care

Lean Tips – Clever Shopping on eBay

July 22nd, 2011

Friday is tip day, here at The Lean Times, today’s topic is how to save money with eBay.

1. Many of the items on eBay are new. They may be from stores liquidating or just having overstock.

2. Know your prices in store then check eBay before buying anything. I use eBay for items like audio accessories, beauty products, clothing, shoes, DVDs, actually just about anything that is not perishable.

3. Always check the shipping. Shipping costs are getting more and more expensive so make sure you figure out your total before placing a bid. Also beware of paying import duty when buying items from abroad. It is illegal not to declare the value of the item but often the duty will make the item stupidly expensive therefore making the whole process null and void.

4. Know what size you are – if you are buying shoes or clothing try to try something on of the same brand so you are more likely to get the correct fit.

5. Check your sellers’s feedback record – make sure the person you are doing business with is reputable. In general, I try not to deal with people with a score less than ten but if it is a low cost item, I try to give the seller a break. We all started with zero feedback once.

6. Use the Saved Searches feature – if you like a certain fashion designer you might be able to grab a vintage bargain. I got a Dolce e Gabbana leopard cardigan for £80, when it was originally, gasp, £600. Be specific in your saved searches and remember to tick the Include Description box to get even more options. When you use Saved Searches, you can opt to get emails when an item that matches you request is listed. This is a great tool if you are looking for something specific.

7. When buying furniture – look for items in your local area that needs to be collected, these will usually be cheaper as most people do not want the hassle of arranging a mover.

8. Hunt for you item by looking for possible misspelt titles, these will have a lot less people finding them and you might be able to get a bigger bargain.

9. Don’t be afraid to use a sniper – these a programs that will put you bid in for you with incredible, timely precision and can really aid you in getting your lusted after item. You can program it to put you bid in mere seconds from the end of the auction.

10. Most importantly – do not get carried away with the excitement of the auction. We have all had a moment when the item gets even more desirable when you know there is someone else that wants it too. Know how much you can spend on it then never go over that amount.

I hope you have found this post useful. If you have any topics that you would like to see covered in The Lean Times, please drop me a comment.