Frumpy Old Bird Does Matalan

I went clothes shopping yesterday. It was only a trip to Matalan and I didn’t spend a fortune but as I’ve increased a size since last summer (this is a good thing) I really wouldn’t have very much to wear at all without adding considerably to my wardrobe. I had one pair of jeans that fit, I’d stained the last pair of trackie bottoms (I love the soft, baggy ones for slouching about in), one pair of cords, a pair of black trousers and a handful of tops that aren’t even all suitable for wearing on a casual day-to-day basis. With spring here and the, hopefully, warmer weather approaching, the situation was becoming dire. This was also the first time I'd bought brand new clothes for so long that I can't even remember the last time.

Originally LM was going to come with me but it was such a lovely day for a trip out today so, as she was working, I asked Richard if he’d come with me. Most men would balk at a clothes shopping trip with a female and that’s without being laden with the job of pushing the wheelchair around and carrying the basket that was getting heavier and heavier. And without the female in question getting herself just a tad stressed up (ok… a bit more than just a tad) because her arms hurt every time she tried to hold something up or reach for something that was just beyond how far she could comfortably stretch, but Richard didn’t complain. I did wheel myself for a while - I didn’t leave it all to him - but my arms aren’t strong enough yet for me to whiz round the way I once used to. I’m sure in many ways it was a frustrating experience for us both but I got a few things I liked and that would work with what I already have so was pleased.

I was even more pleased when Linn Marie had a look at what I’d bought though. Not only did my 20 year old daughter approve of everything I’d bought but two of the items - both summer jumpers - were met with “awww… you should have got me one of those”.

And there was me thinking I was a right old frump. Maybe there’s life in the old bird yet ;-)

Sharon xx

~~+~~

Starting As I Mean To Go On

Today I’ve been tidying my bedroom and chucking out stuff that’s just cluttering the place up. By chucking out I obviously don’t mean that I’ve put it all in the bin for the landfill, but generally banishing it from my life. Some of the stuff will be going to the charity shop, some of it will be going to the Salvation Army collection point at the recycling centre and some will be going on Freecycle. It took a while because I had to keep resting but it didn't half feel good to be getting on with it :)

My immediate problem now is my wardrobe. I don’t have a lot of clothes because I got rid of all my size 16 and 18s a while back when, as a size 10, I realised that there was no way I was ever going to use them again. I’m now a size 12 but my goal is a size 16 (20 kilos away I reckon so it’s gonna take some time) and while I do have some clothes that I’ve bought from charity shops and boot fairs, I’ve realised that I’ve just been buying any old thing just so’s I have something to wear and nothing really goes together. There’s no style over anything… what I wear these days says nothing about who I am. And let’s face it, our clothes are a kind of uniform that give signals to the rest of the world about who we are and where we stand. A woman in a power suit says something completely different to a woman in long flowing skirt, gypsy blouse and hair tied back with a velvet ribbon.

I couldn’t chuck out everything I don’t really feel is me because that’d just leave me with too little to wear but I am going to start switching things. Even though I’m going through temporary wardrobes at the moment I still need to feel at home in my clothes so I need to be more mindful when I visit charity shops and the likes. Hence, I’ve decided that I shall build up a wardrobe I’M HAPPY WITH using only second-hand clothes for each step towards my size 16 goal. Then, and only then, will I treat myself to something new.

Ok, so there will be new undies and probably some vest tops bought new along the way but nothing expensive or “this season”. I prefer clothes that will keep on going for years - in fact I still wear a jumper that a friend bought for me twenty odd years ago (remember the pink one with the dog on the front, Carol?).

I also love brooches so will be looking for more of those and I need to start wearing necklaces again. I’ve neglected my wardrobe for too long and when you feel comfortable in what you’re wearing, you feel happier. Well I do, anyway.

Sharon J xx

~~+~~

Moon River

Some of you already know that my dad’s very ill and isn’t going to get better. He’s been like it for a couple of years now and it’s a surprise to everybody that he’s still alive - alive but not living. Laying on a bed, not knowing where he is, who his wife is, who I am, or being able to feed himself or control his bowels is not living. Surviving yes, but not living.

If I’m honest, I’ve never had a good relationship with my dad. Without going into detail, I can say that he’s a been very selfish man, but it was only once I was old enough to understand certain things that I realised what he was really like. As a young girl, I thought he was great. Why? Because he was funny when he was drunk (which he was twice a day, every day) and he taught me to dance.

I used to love dancing with Dad. I can’t have been more than about four when he taught me to waltz at the social club we used to go to at weekends. Then came the foxtrot, the quick step and a few others, but the waltz was always ‘our’ dance. And even when I got older and ‘played out’ with the other kids rather than hanging in the club, I always made sure I was back in the hall for the last waltz because that belonged to me and Dad.

I don’t really have anything special that reminds me of dad but a week or so ago I came across this on eBay.




It’s the sheet music to ‘Moon River’, the song he taught me to waltz to and one I can remember dancing with him to on so many occasions, including at my wedding. I’m going to put it in a black frame and hang it on the living room wall because although we didn’t get along too well, those dances ARE good memories, and hearing the song nowadays makes me both smile and cry.

Sharon J xx

~~+~~

Market Murder

I’m afraid our local market may well die its death quite soon. The council have plans to ‘re-vamp’ the area where the market’s now held and spread the stalls all around the town instead, a plan I honestly can’t see working.

A market is traditionally a place where traders GATHER to sell their goods and where people know they can go to get either a bargain or something special that they can’t find elsewhere. It’s a place that should be bustling with young mums with pushchairs, men and their dogs, old ladies with pull along trolleys (yes, I know they can be annoying but give them a break, it can be hard to carry bags around when your arms and legs aren’t what they used to be) and housewives looking for fresh veg, meat and whatever else they can lay their hands on for the dinner table. It should be filled with the sounds of traders calling out “get your caulis here, darling” and there should be at least one greasy spoon where you can rest with a cup of tea and a bacon sarnie. What it shouldn’t be is a scattering of stalls dotted here and there around town. That has to be one of the daftest ideas I’ve heard in a long time.

Apparently the plan is to build new council offices on the site of the market but because there’s a bit of a financial problem with it along with the fact that our local council is being grouped together with a few others to make one big council area, nobody seems really sure as to what’s actually going to happen there. It seems they’re definitely going to do ‘something’ with it though.

If the powers that be in this town really want to keep the local community lively then surely the market’s an important part of that? I’d actually like to see more of them. On the days that the general market isn’t on, I’d like to see more guest markets. We had a French one visit a while back (a long while back) and there’s a Christmas market planned, but that’s it. And what’s more, the French one wasn’t where the market usually is and neither will the Christmas one be. We don't even have a monthly farmer's market - we have to go to Nantwich (the posh neighbour) for that.

One argument against the market has apparently been that a lot of the traders aren’t actually local (as in from the immediate Crewe area). Well that’s nothing new! Market traders have traditionally travelled from market to market, plying their goods, but they don’t exactly come from the other end of the country and they sure as heck don’t come from abroad (with the exception of visiting markets, of course). They’re still a darned sight more local than the owners of the chain shops that this town seems to be attracting more and more of.

I have fond memories of markets. As a kid I always went to Walthamstow market with mum every week. She knew exactly which fruit and veg stalls sold the best produce and we’d stop at the fish stall and buy kippers, winkles, cod fillets or whatever seafood Dad and I would be having for dinner that week (she wasn’t keen herself) and a plate of cockles for me to eat as we went along. She might look at the curtain material, buy some new linen, get herself a new pair of tights, buy me a pair of shoes or something else that I needed (getting a new winter coat was always the most exciting one) and during winter we’d stop at the sarsparilla stall for a mug of the steaming hot spicy brew.

When I lived in Norway I went to the fruit, veg & flower market on the square every week. I loved browsing the stalls, finding the best looking vegetables and juiciest fruit and a bunch of pretty flowers for the table. Then I’d sit at a pavement café and just watch the activity before getting the bus back home. Good times.

I shall be sad to see the market dispersed.

Sharon J

~~+~~

Image Credit: Burge5000

~~+~~

What’s More Important To You?

Image: Foto-Eye

A while back I put up a poll asking readers what was more important to them. The results were as follows:

Shopping Locally - 28%
Using Car Less - 34%
Cooking From Scratch - 35%
Green Cleaning - 23%
Growing Own Produce - 35%
Reusing & Recycling - 44%
Other - 1%

Of the 67 of you that answered, 44% of you thought reusing and recycling were the most important. I can’t tell you how many people that was as everybody could make multiple choices but I don’t suppose anybody’s surprised by that result. Reusing and recycling are easy things we can all do in our daily lives to help improve the chances of this planet sustaining life as we know it, if not forever (nothing’s forever) but at least for a while yet. A while, in universal terms, being a good few generations. I’m kind of hoping that my descendents will be able to celebrate the turn of another millennium, but maybe that’s too much to ask for. Still, reusing and recycling stuff instead of just tossing it on the landfill does and will make a difference but there’s still a long way to go. I still need to sort out my bin cupboard so that I can recycle more than I do at the moment and it’s really important that ONLY recyclable stuff goes in the recycling bins. If it’s contaminated, it can quite easily end up on a mountainous landfill in India. Just take a look at this post by Indian Earth for more on this. It’s really quite shocking.

Cooking from scratch was right up there alongside recycling so it’s clear that more people want to know exactly what’s going into their food these days. Or is it just that the blog attracts those who like good food and know how to prepare it? Perhaps a mix of both. I still see plenty of people filling their supermarkets trolleys with rubbish but a few of my friends who have never taken the time to learn to cook before have actually starting making an effort these days so the message is obviously spreading. I still use the odd packet sauce and have some tins and things in the cupboard for days when I simply can’t make a meal (when my energy is rock bottom) but in general our food is made from scratch and not only is it healthier that way, it’s cheaper too.

Related to cooking is growing your own produce, another one that was right at the top with 35%. I can’t say that comes as any surprise - allotments have flown out of the door around these parts and even a friend who I would never have thought would bother with anything even remotely related to growing vegetables asked me whether it’s possible to grow them in pots as he’d been thinking about giving it a go. I have to admit that, apart from herbs, I haven’t grown anything edible for years, but that’s going to change. I’m getting stronger all the time so all I need now is somebody to make a least part of my garden maintainable and I’ll be out there with my gardening gloves and watering can next year.

It’s good to see that using the car less is considered important with 34% of you. Y’know, I think I’ve even noticed that there aren’t quite as many cars on the roads around town these days. Whether that’s because of people’s ethical choices or because of the price of fuel at the moment I really don’t know but whatever it is, it’s a good thing. Now we just need to get through to those driving their whopping great 4x4s for no apparent reason.

I’d have thought, with so many cooking from scratch and growing their own, that more than 28% would have found shopping locally important, but obviously not. Perhaps some of you just don’t have any local shops that are easily accessible or that the choice just isn’t good enough to make the trek worthwhile. I know I have trouble finding everything I need in local shops and often have to weigh up the environmental cost of using the car to get to the farm shops against nipping to the supermarket but I do prefer to support local producers and retailers whenever I can. Even at the supermarket I look for UK produce and the closer to home the better. Asda are at least good at labelling their fruit and veg with not only the country of origin but, if it’s UK produced, the area. I also try to stick with seasonal produce because even though I can get most things all year round now, I don’t want to support the forced production of food in greenhouses that use huge amounts of energy.

I’m not perfect though, and yesterday I bought strawberries. Yes, strawberries in October! Only because LM is really fussy and won’t eat any other fruit than strawberries, raspberries and blueberries though and I really do want to get as much fruit and veg into her as I can.

What really surprised me was that so few found green cleaning important. Only 23%. In several posts I’ve written about the damage that chemicals do to the water, the creatures that live in it, the environment as a whole, not to mention what it does to us but still it’s right down at the bottom of the list. I really don’t understand that because green cleaning isn’t difficult, in fact it’s easier than using the plethora of cleaning agents that can be found under the sink in most homes. Just a few products will do most jobs around the house without polluting the planet. If you're interested in reading what I've already written, you can look here and here and here. Maybe I should write more about this.

Sharon J

~~+~~

Supermarket Comparison

Image: Dominic's Pics

I recently found a site called MySupermarket and although it’s designed for those who do their shopping online, it’s also really handy for those wanting to compare prices between Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose (or Ocado, as the latter’s online shopping site is called).

I recently put my grocery list in, using Asda as my guide (because I knew they had a few things that I couldn’t get elsewhere) and would you believe that I saved the following:

Compared to:

Tesco - £9.42
Sainsbury’s - £12.27
Waitrose - £18.10

Now I realise that some of the products are no doubt better quality at Waitrose but having tried and tested everything on my list earlier, I knew I wouldn’t be getting ‘rubbish’ either. And quite honestly, the difference in quality just isn’t worth £18.10 to me, especially as my bill only came to £40.70 so not a HUGE shop really. I mean, at Waitrose I would have paid almost half of my bill again for more or less the same products (lots of fruit & veg, much of which is organic, a few tinned bits and pieces, some meat and dry cupboard stuff).

As much as I hate supermarkets and what they've done to the local economy, sometimes I just can’t do the many stores jaunt and will therefore definitely be using the site before I either head for the cavernous hole of capitalism or book my online shopping because you know what they say about a penny saved. I wonder what they’d say about eighteen quid saved? Or even just under a tenner?

Sharon J

~~+~~

The Problem With Plastic

Image: Mimi_K

I read quite a few simplicity and ‘green’ blogs and one thing that I’ve noticed is the number of people who are trying hard to eliminate any kind of plastic from their lives. I guess I must be the odd one out, because I don’t have a problem with plastic per se.

The way I see it is that plastic, polythene and other polymer based substances aren’t necessarily bad things - they have their place in our modern society and I’m perfectly happy to use my plastic watering-can, bucket, food storage boxes, garden trug and other bits and pieces and I realise that my telephone is made mostly of plastic, my laptop contains a good deal of it, as does my fridge and a whole host of other useful items. What I’m not happy with is the way in which so many people treat plastics.

It seems to me that the majority still view plastic as something that’s easily disposable. It’s cheap so they’re not losing much when they open the bin and dump it in. Every day,

Apparently, last year 17.5 billion plastic bags were given away by supermarkets here in the UK, equating to 290 bags per person or more than 5 ½ bags for each of us every single day. What on earth are we doing with all those bags?

Also, of the total amount of plastic produced here - around 4.7 million tonnes of it - 35% was produced for packaging alone! That’s more than 1.6 million tonnes of plastic packaging!

When you consider that only around 7% of that total was actually recycled, it’s no wonder our landfills are overflowing with the stuff, not to mention the amount of plastic that’s ‘disposed of’ in the countryside and on our streets.

Even our oceans aren’t free of the stuff. On a world basis, it’s estimated that around 46,000 plastic objects are floating within every square mile! Yepp, shocking isn’t it? Not only are our beaches being swamped with plastic debris washed up by the tides, but marine life is suffering through our selfish abuse of our own ability to create new substances. In fact, 170 different species of marine wildlife have been reported to have been fatally injured through mistaking plastic for food. Here in the UK an average of 2 plastic items can be found on every square meter of beach, either washed up or left behind by visitors.

Plastic’s durable because it doesn’t decompose quickly and therein lies the problem. Because it’s also cheap to produce and therefore acquire, it’s all too easy to just get rid of it again without a thought to where it’ll go or what will happen to it.

Thankfully, things are gradually improving. The government have given stores until next spring to reduce the number of plastic carrier bags they hand out by at least 70% or they’ll introduce a forced fee per bag with the income going to environmental projects (or so they say). Marks & Spencer have voluntarily introduced a 5p charge per bag and already the number of bags they’re handing out has been reduced by 80%, proving that if people have to part with their money for something, they’re more likely to think twice about it. Perhaps the problem with plastic is that it’s simply too cheap?

When you can buy a bucket for £1.99, it doesn’t hurt much to just ‘chuck it’ and buy a new one when the original’s looking past its best or no longer matches the décor, whereas if the same bucket cost £10, I’m sure far more people would think twice.

One of my pet peeves is the amount of plastic that supermarkets use for packaging. I bought two small pork chops a few days ago that were packed in a relatively large plastic tray that was again covered with a sturdy plastic film. Now I realise that, unlike the local butcher, they need to pre-pack their meat while leaving the contents visible but the plastic tray was far larger than it needed to be; at least four, maybe even five, chops would have fitted into it. What a waste!

That’s the last time I buy ‘small’ from the supermarket. I prefer to buy my meat from the butcher anyway, but sometimes I have no choice. From now on, when the supermarket’s my only option I shall buy in bulk. Half a dozen chops, chicken breasts or pieces of steak packed in one piece of plastic has to be better than the same packed in three although I know I still won’t be entirely happy about opening it, dividing the contents for freezing, and then discarding the plastic. Some I can reuse to at least extend their life a little but not all of them. The butcher, on the other hand, wraps his meat in a small piece of plastic film and then greaseproof paper - very little packaging in comparison.

Any plastic carrier bags that come into the house are reused as bin liners - the council still prefers us to wrap our waste rather than dump it straight into the bin (health & safety) and I’m blowed if I’m buying special bin liners! I have a friend who only ever uses scented bin-liners but throws her carrier bags straight into the bin. What, I ask you, is the point?

As I said, plastic is here to stay and has its place in our lives - it’s the way in which we use it that I have a problem with.

Sharon J

~~+~~

Organic vs. Local vs. Imported vs. Fair Trade

Image: Mister Scratch

Gosh, hasn’t buying food become an ordeal these days? Should we choose organic over non-organic but locally produced produce, and what about when a fruit or vegetable’s out of season but still produced and available locally, should we choose that rather than an imported version?

With our own health, the health of the planet and the local economy to think about, just doing a grocery shop can be something of a challenge these days.

The way I see it is that each of the above - organic, local produce and imported produce - have their place on our tables and this is why.

Organic
According to the Food Standards Agency, "evidence does not show that organic food is any safer or more nutritious than conventionally produced food." I'm not entirely convinced though, so if I can find locally produced organic produce then that will generally be my first choice. Organic food may not be any more "safe or nutritious" for us but it's certainly better for wildlife and the soil in general as organic farming promotes crop-rotation rather than mono-agriculture (see my post on soil for more information about this).

However, if buying organic means leaving a large environmental footprint due to shipping and the petrochemicals involved, I'd rather choose locally produced, non-organic food.

Local Produce
Agriculture is an important part of the British economy and unless we support local farmers and small-scale producers, a lot of people will eventually be out of work and the countryside will go to pot. By sticking with food that’s produced locally we’re helping support the local economy as well as cutting back on the carbon miles that our meals are leaving behind them.

The best bet is to shop at farmers’ markets, farm shops, local independent grocers and the likes because their produce is likely to be local in the sense of coming from within a 20-30 mile radius hence having a lower pollution factor due to less transportation. Apparently, by buying food that’s genuinely locally produced, the country would save over £2 billion in environmental and congestion costs.

When it comes to meat, I always try to buy British and if we're talking beef, preferably grass fed.

If locally sourced produce isn’t available then buying British grown produce is the next best option. Usually.

Imported Produce
Whereas local produce is generally the better alternative, if a fruit or vegetable is out of season and being grown in heated greenhouses - often heated by fossil fuels - or kept in long-term cold storage in order to provide for market demands throughout the remainder of the year, an imported alternative can actually be better for the environment. Better, but not good.

Fair Trade
Of course, we can't forget the myriad fruits that simply don’t grow here. Oranges, bananas, mangos, pineapples and so the list goes on - all of which are good for us. If they're what I'm after I try to look for Fair Trade foods, preferably Fair Trade and organic but if I have to choose, I tend to go with Fair Trade. It’s important, I feel, that farmers and their workers in third world countries are also given the chance to develop a sustainable economy.

Having said that, I tend to go for a combination of Fair Trade and fruit supplied by local grocers, because most Fair Trade stuff tends to be found in supermarkets and I really don't like buying more than necessary at those places. Give me a farm shop over Tesco any day!


As I said earlier, making the ‘right’ choice isn’t always easy but I do feel that as much as our own health is important, if we don’t stop polluting the planet it won’t make much difference in the long run. In my opinion, buying a combination of organic food, local produce and Fair Trade imports is the way to go although I have to admit that sometimes my purse steers me in a direction I’d rather not have to take.

Sharon J


Other posts that may be of interest:

BBQs - An Eco Friendly Way of Preparing Food?
Tesco, Asda and The Others
Plenty More Fish in The Sea?
Baby Cows - Should We Eat Them?

~~+~~

Sales - Are They For The Frugally Minded?

“Offer must end soon” - “One day only” - “While stocks last!" - "Final Clearance"

I went into town a few days ago and there were sales everywhere. Huge stickers were plastered across windows full of items at what appeared to be hugely slashed prices. Clothes, furniture, cosmetics, curtains - you name it, it was on sale.

I didn't buy a thing other than what I went in for. Plastic beakers for our picnic that are good enough to last for years at 77p for four. I bought eight.

Sales are designed to separate us and our money. They tempt us into buying stuff NOW because if we wait, we’ll miss that fantastic bargain. They don’t want us to have a cooling off period while we think about how much we really want or need the item in question, they want us to flash that credit card and walk out of the store carrying with us what might, if we’re lucky, give us a few days of pleasure. If we’re really unlucky, it’ll give us a lot of regret when the credit card bill arrives and we’ve had time to realise that the new sofas didn’t quite fit in with our room design, or the dress that looked fantastic in the shop emphasises every lump and bump.

In order to make use of sales, you have to be very confident about what you need and whether or not this particular item is the right one. Unfortunately, few of us are actually that confident and most have experience of gadgets, clothes, ornaments etc that have spent most of their lives hiding away in the darkest corners of our cupboards. I know I have - I’ve chucked out enough of them during my de-cluttering process.

Luckily some of us learn not to fall for it, even if it's the hard way.

Sharon J

~~+~~

Other posts you may be interested in:

• Bargains - Be Warned!
• 50 Money Saving Tips
• Tightening The Belt - 12 Ways To Save Money

~~+~~

Tesco, Asda & The Others

Photo: Route79

I’ve just finished doing my online shopping with Tesco and once again I felt a bit saddened as I pressed the ‘order’ button. I really don’t like shopping with them, or any of the other supermarket giants for that matter, but needs must. I’m just not able to get around the shops easily enough to do my shopping at the market and in local, independent stores so Tesco it is.

Richard’s good. He goes to the local butcher to buy most of my meat and often dashes all over town looking for something in particular that I’ve asked for, but I can’t expect him to rush about doing my fortnightly shop that way. Or even send him off on a more regular basis, for that matter. He has his own life, too. And anyway, I couldn’t even get everything locally if I tried - there just aren’t enough independents left.

The trouble with Tesco, Sainsbury, Asda and the likes is that they’re ruining local economics. Farmers can barely afford to survive on the prices they’re paid and with the giants selling about 70% of food in the UK, they don’t have a lot of choice other than to sell to them on their terms. Local businesses are pressed out of the market leaving our towns filled with clothes shops, mobile phone shops, and other ‘chain stores’. There are few independent grocers, butchers, bakers, or candlestick makers left. And apparently, for every superstore that opens there’s a job loss of around 200-300 thanks to the small traders and their suppliers being put out of business. Is this really what we want? Has the convenience really been worth the consequences?

As well as their suppliers, they pay their floor staff a pittance. Let’s face it, the minimum wage is NOT a decent income. Whereas an independent store owner and his staff are merely making a living, the supermarket giants sweep up our money and pack it off to the shareholders, far away from the local community. How much money do the Walton family have? More than £100 billion, that’s how much! (In case you don’t know, they own Wal-mart, which Asda is part of). Just how selfish are these people?

Sure, they all like to be seen to be doing their bit for the environment. They offer to recycle our plastic bags and our local Tesco even has a wind turbine to provide the energy it uses but they still over package their products, and they still pay their suppliers and employees far too little. And they still import too much food. And they still deliver my shopping with some carrier bags containing just one item!

Apparently, Tesco are now considering removing their logo from their trailers because, with the rising price of fuel and the ever looming oil crisis, they don’t want to be seen on the roads too often. Crafty devils!

Still, my shopping will no doubt arrive safely and once again I’ll have been part of the problem rather than the solution. Sigh….

Sharon J

~~+~~

Grocery Shopping - 20 Money Saving Tips

Photo: thegourmetro

Since deciding that enough was enough and that I really had to pull in the purse strings, I’ve managed to cut the amount I spend on groceries by half, and what’s more, I know I can cut it back even further.

If you’re in the same boat as I was, generally finding yourself left with too much month at the end of the money, the following tips for saving money on grocery shopping may just help.

1. Use a list. As obvious as this may seem, take a look next time you’re at the supermarket and you’ll see just how few people actually use one. Keep a list handy and write down the things you need as and when they occur to you. By doing this you’ll find your weekly grocery shop will not only be cheaper, but easier too.
   
   
2. Check your stock. Check what you already have available. I find it’s easiest to keep a running list of everything I have and then tick it off once it's used, adding it to the list if I need more for the coming week or so. Staple supplies such as coffee, sugar, flour, yeast etc are always added as I start to get low.
   
   
3. Clear out your fridge. Do this before you make your final list. Get rid of anything that’s past its use-by date or that looks/smells as if it ought to be. Check these items off of your stock list and add what needs replacing to your shopping list.
   
   
4. Plan a menu. Using your stock list, plan a complete menu for the week ahead, adding to your list any items that you don’t have available. Browsing the aisles for meal ideas just leads to impulse buying and unnecessary doubling up on stock.
   
   
5. Use raw ingredients. It’s always cheaper to cook from scratch so try to avoid pre-prepared foods.
   
   
6. Keep a quick-meal stock. Sometimes life gets in the way of even the best laid plans so keep a stock of supplies that can be used to make a quick meal when the planned meal isn’t suitable. Far cheaper than nipping out to buy a frozen meal or a take-away.
   
   
7. Have a budget. Decide beforehand how much you intend to spend on your groceries and stick to it. Make a tally of your list and should the items needed for your menu bring you over budget, re-jig the menu.
   
   
8. Don’t shop while you’re hungry. We’ve all heard this but like many others, I did it and I paid the price every time. It’s just too easy to pick up a little something here and little something there because everything looks so darned delicious! And then there’s the snack for the journey home. Avoid it if you can.
   
   
9. Stockpile. The one and only time you should deviate from your list is if the store is offering a product you use regularly at a discounted price. Don’t buy discounted items just because they’re cheap though – you actually have to need them.
   
   
10. Keep receipts. I use a spreadsheet to keep account of the cost of every item on my grocery list. That way I can easily compare prices and check where I’m getting the best deal. One supermarket may say they’re cheaper than another, but that may not necessarily be the case for the products you’re buying.
    
    
11. Use less meat. Not only is meat production bad for the environment (see my earlier post on the subject here), it’s also expensive. If you eat meat every day, try to ration yourself to two or three times a week instead. Fish makes a healthy meal and there are plenty of veggie recipes around.
    
    
12. Stop making one-item trips. By planning ahead, those one-item trips should all but disappear. If you find yourself constantly heading to the shops for more milk, consider having a milkman deliver instead. Few people actually buy just one item once they’re inside the store. I know I rarely did.
    
    
13. Watch the till. Cashiers regularly make mistakes so keep an eye on what’s being rung up. If you see a mistake being made, catch it. Why should you give your money away? They're making enough profit as it is.
    
    
14. Use your freezer. Contrary to what many believe, freezers aren’t just for storing shop-bought frozen meals, ice-cream, and bags of chips. Use the space to store freezable items that are on offer and home made food like pasta sauce which works out much cheaper than buying it ready made.
    
    
15. Don’t take the kids. Not one I need to worry about any more, granted, but I remember it well. When children are with you, they pester for the latest cereals, turkey shapes, ice-lollies and goodness knows what else until you finally relent and buy something to keep them quiet.
    
    
16. Make comparisons. One jar of mayonnaise may appear cheaper than another but packaging can be deceiving. Check the volume/weight to make sure you really are getting the better deal.
    
    
17. Use cloth bags. Once again, this is better for the environment but now that stores are gradually starting to introduce payment for plastic carriers, it makes economic sense too.
    
    
18. Use club cards. Remember that those club card points are already built into the store's prices so you may as well get them back. Don’t use the money-off vouchers on products you wouldn’t normally buy though.
    
    
19. Shop around. You don't necessarily have to buy everything at the supermarket. If you have time, visit your local market, farm shops, or Asian stores (particularly good for rice, pulses, spices and the likes) and similar.
    
    
20. Shop online. Although it’ll cost you between £3-5 extra for delivery depending on where you shop, if you really aren’t able to stick to a list once the lure of shelves lined with every mouth-watering delight under the sun meets you, it might be worth shopping online instead.
    
    

Once upon a time, Richard used to be in charge of the household grocery shop and did it on a more or less daily basis. It was his ‘alone’ time, he said. I could understand he needed to get out on his own, but I’m sure it was costing us much more in the long run than by sticking with a plan, and him popping down the pub for a swift one and a game of darts instead ;)

It took a while for me to get back into any kind of shopping routine but I got there in the end. I’m still trying to keep some kind of check on my dry goods but with the lack of storage we have at the moment, it isn’t easy when things are piled on top of one another and kept in various parts of the kitchen. But as I’ve said before – I’ve done it before and I’ll do it again. I have saved money, but I’ll save even more.

Sharon J

~~+~~

Bargains - Be Warned!

Photo: Welshwitch

I love a good bargain and if you’re a thrifty kind of person, I’ll bet my Sunday hat that you do too.

Scouring charity shops, boot markets, eBay, closing down sales, collectors fairs and antiques shops is something I get a whole lot more pleasure from than browsing the rails in designer outlets or even lazing on the beach in some exotic, far off location. Yepp, that's true. And even when I am away on holiday I find myself looking for equivalent places there, too!

But all this bargain hunting can have a downside, especially if you’re just starting out on your journey towards a simpler way of living. It can become an addiction. I know, because it happened to me. Thankfully, I’ve learned my lesson.

Suddenly you find yourself buying stuff just because it’s cheap. I had an all-singing, all-dancing food processor that I very rarely used because it was so damned complicated that it was easier to just do things by hand, but it was heavily marked down in a sale so I bought because it was a ‘bargain’. I had clothes I never wore, books I never read, CDs I never listened to, films I never watched, pictures that were never hung, yarn that was never knitted up, and… well, need I say more? My house was bursting at the seams with ‘bargains’.

This is one of the things that those who are just starting to build a more simple, frugal lifestyle need to be aware of. It’s easy to become so preoccupied with bargain hunting that anything that’s cheap seems to shout ‘buy me’ in much the same way more expensive things did before. The urge to spend is still there – it takes a while for your mind to adjust to your new situation - you just use your money on ‘bargains’ instead.

No matter how cheap something is, it’s only a bargain if you actually need it. If you have a perfectly serviceable vacuum cleaner, the one in the shop that’s marked down by 50% isn’t a bargain; you’ll still be spending money unnecessarily, money that you could spend on something you really do need, or add to your savings. And while stockpiling food is a good idea, those packs of cereal on BOGOF aren’t a bargain if you’ve never tried them and may not even like them.

Being thrifty with your money is as much about thinking about why you’re spending your money as it is about what you’re spending it on. Before parting with your cash – or handing over your plastic – always ask yourself “do I really need this?” and be honest with yourself when you answer. With so much media pressure around us it’s easy to confuse needs and wants, but deep down inside us we all know the difference.

As I said, I’ve made these mistakes and would hate for others who are just starting to change their lives around to do the same. It just makes things so much more difficult. Please try to be aware of your spending and don’t let bargain hunting become an obsession. It’s simply part of your new lifestyle, not the be all and end all to it.

Sharon J

~~+~~