Super scrimping ideas

[Elen Sentier]

There is another aspect to living cheaply - never buy things when you need them. ... shop when the conditions are right - not when you need the product. Shopping for consumables is one of the major expenses in a household - so use some savvy

Yes, we do the same. People don't seem to mind sharing the spare room with the stores , and all that "spare" space gets used too. Paul (hubby) buys washing stuff and such in bulk, I buy meat in bulk direct from farmer or hunter and it goes in the freezer. I wish we could have solar PV for that but it's not possible at the moment . I make extra when I cook soups or stews or pie-fillings and freeze them. I freeze bread so there's some if I "run out". The veg harvests get stored, or frozen and hopefully dried soon as I want a dryer. Gallons of petrol (and emissions) is saved too as we don't need to go shopping very often.

We find this gives us much more "choice" ... we choose when we need to go where and for what rather than being ruled by having run out of something. It seems to remove the "hassle" some of our friends say they feel about always having to do something, be at something/someone's beck and call rather than choosing because it's a thing they enjoy doing.

 

[Kepis]

Could you give me a link to the rip-stop fabric? got ideas ...

Good old Ebay Elen.

 

[salan]

At all our local butchers diced chicken is cheaper then chicken breasts, yet they just cut up chicken breasts to make the diced chicken! Often a pound cheaper!!
Alan

 

[Elen Sentier]

Here you go Elen - cat is optional

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25733

Ta muchley ... cat is "luxury", can't afford to render 'em down
Just been reminded of "Fight Club" ...

 

[John Fenna]

Make your own clothing and equipment - it is not as hard as it sounds!
I made a Swanni clone out of a Merino blanket for under £10 and had enough fabric left for a body warmer, hat, bootie/slippers and more, my favourite mug is a coconut shell and a scrap wood handle, my favourite spoon - hand carved wood from a skip (seasoned oak!) etc etc
Basic tools and a charity shop sewing machine will save you a fortune!

 

[Elen Sentier]

Reds cheap tip of the day. When your kettle furs up (or the shower head) fill with the cheapes cr** vinegar you can find and leave overnight. The fur is limescale, the acid in vinegar dissolves it - brings it up like new.

Yup, we do that as on own spring. The water is fantastic but I do the kettle and shower head every night, overnight, and we don't need to lime the cabages, just water them! Only probs are the washing machine and shower motors, so that's an expense we have to calculate in. I'm not wearing vinegar-scented cothes! Paul got us a "thingy" you strap round the water pipe which really helps.

 

[Swallow]

Not done it yet, but I have 2 O1 tool steel blanks on standby, came delivered with 2 pins and lanyard pins for £12 off ebay.

We also get rice wholesale in 25Kg bags.

 

[salan]

Yup, we do that as on own spring. The water is fantastic but I do the kettle and shower head every night, overnight, and we don't need to lime the cabages, just water them! Only probs are the washing machine and shower motors, so that's an expense we have to calculate in. I'm not wearing vinegar-scented cothes! Paul got us a "thingy" you strap round the water pipe which really helps.

Actually White vinegar can be used as a fabric conditioner and there is no smell. Works quite well actually!
Alan

 

[Zingmo]

Lose the comb-over and get a friend/other half to give you a buzz cut!

Z

 

[British Red]

Ahhh hair cuts is another one - I cut BBs hair and she cuts mine. She has got really good doing both hair and beard using graduated clippers and a set of blades. Clippers cost £20 in the sale a few years ago - goodness knows how much that has saved us

 

[mace242]

3) Make you own bread. Price it up. Flour, yeast etc. is way cheaper than shop bought bread....madly so. Plus bread smells great

Couldn't agree more. I bake every night using a bread maker. No time and half the price. I use posher flours too.

 

[British Red]

Just been reminded of "Fight Club" ...

For Gods sake woman - what's the first rule of fight club?

 

[British Red]

Sitting here eating a really gooey flapjack after working outside today. Scrimping tip - the ingredients in flap jacks are dirt cheap and last forever - even without refrigeration. Big pile of gooey flapjacks still warm from the oven - 50p

 

[John Fenna]

Lose the comb-over and get a friend/other half to give you a buzz cut!

Z

I cut my own hair with dog clippers - I wore one set out ... but they had lasted about 15 years and cost about £10 - the new ones cost £15!

 

[Outdoordude]

Sitting here eating a really gooey flapjack after working outside today. Scrimping tip - the ingredients in flap jacks are dirt cheap and last forever - even without refrigeration. Big pile of gooey flapjacks still warm from the oven - 50p

Can you post your secret recipe please red

 

[British Red]

Its not really very tricky - but I can do an ickle photo tutorial / recipe if you like? Dead easy to bake on a camfire too - and the "extras" beyond porridge oats are very small

 

[Elen Sentier]

I cut my own hair with dog clippers - I wore one set out ... but they had lasted about 15 years and cost about £10 - the new ones cost £15!

I cut my own hair too, with the proper hairdressing scissors ... no rubish comments when you meet me John, OK?

 

[Swallow]

Make your own Christmas crackers. Was our first time this year. The "snaps" we got from ebay for under £2. Empty toilet roll tubes for the body. The best bit is they aren't filled rubbish. The kids didn't like the idea leading up to it but now they are converts. The aim is kick it up a gear next (this?) year and use all foraged natural materials apart from the snaps.

Sandsnakes (a big believer in not shelling out a lot of money for gear) also found a waterproof & breathable jacket for £25 which can be seen (with a v. short review) on the London Pub Meet group pictures.

 

[rik_uk3]

When you see something you think you need STOP before you buy. Do some research, get your calculator out and do a cost break down and think hard on the quality of what you buy. Search for prices from different sources, take into account postage costs or travel costs to get the stuff. A gallon of washing up liquid for a couple of quid sounds cheap but in real use its probably cheaper to take advantage of a BOGOF on Fairy Liquid which really does last a long time. I love Asian supermarkets (and invariably buy a few things on impulse ) but is the 10Kg sack of rice any better in terms of quality than the 1Kg bags of long grain rice (40p) at Tesco.

So, Richards tip for bulk buying is do your homework and factor in costs and quality together with any real savings you may make over buying from the likes of Tesco. Take advantage of special offers from the big supermarkets and often they are way cheaper than bulk buying elsewhere. I'm sure we've all seen bidding/buying fever take hold on some items on ebay? So don't be a dumb schmuck and remember the old saying "Softly, softly catchee monkey;" you will find bargains if you have patience.

Vinegar has multiple uses, very good at cleaning brass prior to the brasso treatment, but don't soak too long.

 

[BeerHunter]

Make your own Christmas crackers.

I'll second this. The OH made ours for Xmas 2012. It was a really nice touch, and we got thoughtful gifts (mine was a 6 inch steel rule for the workshop) rather than plastic tat that ends up in landfill.