Your Cheapskates Club Newsletter: 24:14 Bright ideas to save you money
1. Cath's Corner
2. In the Tip Store - Medicine with a Longer Expiry Date, Sparkling Spa Filters, Start Now to Build a Christmas Stockpile
3. Cheapskate's Winning Tip - The 52 Week Debt Reduction Plan
4. Submit Your Tip - Your best money, time and energy saver could be a winner!
5. Living Green in 2014 - Composting, a Great Way to Go Green
6. On the Menu with Anne - Australia's Favourite Cake
7. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy - Inventory Time
8. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
9. Member's Featured Blog - Responsibility by Bluebell234
10. Last Week's Question - Tips for Sticking to the $300 a Month Food Challenge when you work full time
11. This Week's Question - My citrus trees are sick!
12. Join the Cheapskates Club
13. Gift Memberships
14. Frequently Asked Questions
15. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
This week's newsletter is another big one. It seems the newsletter just gets bigger and bigger each week there is so much to share.
Enjoy your newsletter and have a wonderfully frugal week everyone.
PS: Love our site? We love referrals! Send a note to your favourite newspapers, magazines, radio stations, TV stations, friends and relatives, and tell them about us!
PPS: You can read this newsletter and past copies on the website in the Newsletter Archive.
2. From The Tip Store
Adapt Your Recipes to Use What You Have
Approximate $ Savings: $5.50
I have been quietly loving Moo Month, and made some Moo Sweetened Condensed Milk (SCM) - saving $3.63 each 330mls. I froze two batches for later use. After I defrosted one container of SCM I had 140gs leftover. Mmm what to do? This is the recipe I was using:
Ingredients:
500g butter
400g condensed milk
1-1/4 cup caster sugar
5 cups self raising flour
To adapt this recipe I divided the 140g I had by the 400g of SCM the recipe required. The answer was .35. With a calculator I could times each ingredient amount by .35 to get a new measurement. For examples 5 cups of SR Flour x .35 = 1.75 cups of SR Flour (1 and 3/4 cups). I was really happy not to throw that sweetened condensed milk out - or for that fact not to eat it myself just so it wouldn't be wasted!
Contributed by Sharon Sawers
Accommodation Savings
Approximate $ Savings: $500
Apart from checking the last minute accommodation websites or travel guide flyers for dates months in advance, to get an idea of prices. I then check the hotels own website for any specials. You need to check multiple dates as they don't always show the specials up front. I then match this to the best airfares I can find online for that time. I lucked out for the Sunshine Coast, one hotel offered me 50% off accommodation (it was a self-contained, resort style hotel with pool etc.) - I literally wiped $500 off my hotel bill. I needed to change my intended holiday dates (only by 1 week) and found the most reasonable airfares that coincided with that time.
Contributed by Sam Bowden
Buy Your Meat Direct from the Farm for Huge Savings
I live in a metro suburban area of SA but drive down to the country towns about 30 minutes away sometimes on weekends. There are a lot of farms around and we discovered that some farmers will sell whole, half or quarter cows and sheep to the public. We have been buying our meat this way for about 18 months now and I'm amazed at the difference. I personally am a vegetarian but my family raves about how much better the meat tastes and best of all it cost us $200 for half a cow fully prepared and ready to cook and $90 for a whole sheep, both of which last a good 6 months. Best of all as I previously used to spend roughly $75 a fortnight on meat and buying it this way works out to roughly $22 a fortnight it is a massive saving. I am now spending $685 less a year! This tip is useful even for those living in the heart of the city; look around and see what is available, you might be surprised.
Contributed by Shayli Anderson
There are more than 11,000 great tips in the Tip Store
3. Cheapskates Winning tip
This week's winning tip is from Janet Bedwell. Hannah and I love tea parties and often have afternoon tea with friends, especially during winter, and we always have it at home. Our teas are well-catered with scones and pikelets with lashings of jam and cream, strawberry tartlets, caramel slice, tiny sandwiches with the crusts cut off and of course the obligatory pots and pots of tea. High tea at a hotel can cost up to $90 per head - way out of our budget. Janet and her friends are enjoying the fun of a tea party together and saving a fortune. For submitting her winning tip Janet has won a one-year Platinum membership to the Cheapskates Club.
Host your own High Tea
Approximate $ Savings: $50+
Many of us have lovely tea services or just cups and saucers that were given as gifts. With my group of "besties" we are having our own "high Tea". Those of us talented in the dessert department are creating 'little' cakes, those of us talented in the savoury are creating 'little' savouries. Some who are talented are supplying a different tea blend. It is a lovely way to spend time with friends and making it extra special; now we have hit the big 50 we want to celebrate friendship. This would work for an older relative or even as a different type of 18th or 21st birthday party - you could make little quiches and sausage rolls ahead of time if you were catering for a large number of people or get a large number of people involved.
Congratulations Janet, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
4. Submit your tip
The Cheapskate's Club website is over 3,000 pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. Let's get together and make the Cheapskates Club Australia's largest online hint, tip and idea library. Share your favourite money saving, time saving or energy saving hint and be in the running to win a one-year membership to The Cheapskate Club. We publish a Winning Tip each Thursday, so enter your great money, time or energy saving idea now.
Share your favourite hint or tip that saves money, time and energy and be in the running to win a one-year subscription to The Cheapskate Journal.
Remember, you have to be in it to win it!
Submit your tip
5. Living Green in 2014
The 3 R's Can Save You Money - Part 1
Reduce, Re-use and Recycle means more than putting out the recycling bin. If you can reduce, we have less non-recyclable waste and less resources will be used in the process of recycling.
This applies to re-using. By re-using instead of buying something new, you are saving the resources that would have gone into that new product and saving money!
And recycling, well, that should be considered the second-to-last resort in the terms of putting an item in your recycling bin. It's great that some wastes are being recycled rather than going to landfill, but the recycling process itself uses a lot of energy and resources. Try to avoid landfill waste and keep as much as possible out of the recycling box too.
Here are a few ideas on how to do this:
Reduce
Buy in bulk! It sounds scary but it isn't. Bulk buying doesn't necessarily mean having 100 kilos of brown rice hanging around the house. If there is a product you use a lot of, you should look into buying it in the largest package possible, to cut down on packaging and (usually) at a cheaper overall cost to you. A lot of items are available in the bulk section of your supermarket and you can buy only as much as you want without the extra packaging. I buy spices in the bulk section, they area fraction of the cost of those expensive glass bottles and I just refill the bottles in my spice rack. Same goes for cocoa, dried fruits and nuts, cottage cheese, yoghurt, sour cream (you can buy this in great big reusable catering tubs, perfect for freezing stuff in), and LOTS of other stuff. For dedicated reducers - write the contents in marker on the plastic bag you bring the stuff home in and save the bag to take back to the shop to use next time you need that item.
Look for less packaging! This seems obvious but it's never the first thing on your mind at the supermarket. So many things are packed individually 'for your convenience', and at an outrageous price. Is it necessary? I don t think so. All that extra packaging costs money, and that cost is passed along to you. Juice boxes is one of my favourite pet peeves; for the price of those six little boxes, you can buy a large bottle of pure juice (or two bottles of cordial) and end up with at least twice as much juice. Buy some plastic drink bottles (they make a great starting school or kinder gift), a thermos, or re-use small plastic pop top bottles - and feel good about yourself for reducing your waste output!
Reduce your own packaging when it comes to packing lunches. Look for plastic sandwich boxes and snack size containers such at garage sales, pack snacks in rinsed out margarine or takeaway tubs, buy or make a reusable fabric lunch bag or lunch box. You'll save money by not buying sandwich bags, plastic wrap and paper lunch bags, and help the earth too! Put the lunches in an insulated lunch sack and they will stay cool and fresh all day. Kids these days are very environmentally conscious (environmental studies is a large part of their curriculum) and are usually really happy to have an earth friendly lunch. If for some reason you cannot follow these methods (say, on the day of a school excursion), use paper products only when possible - wax paper to wrap sandwiches in, a brown paper bag for the lunch itself. At least these things are biodegradable.
This one sounds more complicated than it is. If you can reduce the number of different ingredients you use in cooking and learn how to make more dishes using less varied ingredients, you will be using less packaging and saving money. Instead of having 20 different types of pasta all lined up in pretty jars, buy only 1 or 2 different types and see how they work in your favourite recipe (and how much money you'll save). Learn how to make a wide variety of dishes using basic nutritious ingredients.
6. On the Menu with Anne
Yorkshire Meat Pancakes
This is a recipe from the Recipe File and it's one of our favourites. It uses a very small amount of mince, just 250g, to make enough pancakes to feed four. I serve them with vegetables and gravy in winter or with salad and a tomato sauce in summer and I never, ever have leftovers when I make these.
Yorkshire Meat Pancakes
Ingredients:
4 eggs, separated
250g minced steak
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 small onion, very finely chopped
3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
6 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
9 teaspoons vegetable oil
Method:
In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks until pale and thick. Fold in the minced steak, salt, pepper, baking powder, onion, Worcestershire sauce, parsley and basil and stir until the ingredients are thoroughly combined. Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Using a metal spoon, gently fold them into the beef mixture. In a large frying pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Drop spoonfuls of the steak mixture into the hot oil and fry for 3 minutes or until the pancakes are puffed up and brown at the edges. Turn and fry for a further 2 to 3 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm while you fry the remaining steak mixture in the same way.
This week we will be eating:
Friday: Spaghetti and meatballs
Saturday: Tacos
Sunday: Roast lamb, baked vegetables, beans, mint sauce
Monday: Slowcooker chicken curry and rice
Tuesday: Sausage casserole, sweet potato mash, broccoli, corn
Wednesday: Fish pie
Thursday: Soup and toast
In the fruit bowl: oranges, kiwi fruit, apples
In the cake tin: Snickerdoodles, Thumbprints, Milo muffins
There are over 1,300 other great money saving meal ideas in the Recipe File
7. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy
Today I'm off to the football with my family. It's a once a year tradition on the Queen's birthday weekend. We go to see Melbourne v Collingwood at the MCG. My DH and two girls are Collingwood supporters while I'm a Carlton supporter. I just go for the family outing and the atmosphere at the game.
Going to the football can be an expensive outing. You have the train fares or parking costs and petrol. Then there are the entrance fees which seem to go up all the time. If you want to buy food to eat you'll be paying big time. Now you know why we only go once a year.
You can control the cost of food for a sporting event. Taking a thermos full of soup or hot water to make a cuppa will save you more than $10. Taking a salad roll each can save you $20 + for four people. Bottles of water will cost nothing to bring from home and could save you another $15 + for a family. Then if you want snacks you could be up for another $15 - $20, a piece of fruit or a box of Shapes biscuits from home will cost you about $2.
Each year we go to the football we bring all of our food. We do make allowances to buy a treat if we really want one. More often than not we don't buy as no one wants to leave their seat and miss part of the game.
How do you cut costs at a sporting event?
Have a great week and BE ENCOURAGED!!!!!!!
The $300 a Month Food Challenge
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?2026-300-a-month-food-challenge-10-06-13
The Post that Started it All
http://www.cheapskates.com.au/pages/default.cfm?page_id=44265
8.Cheapskates Buzz
This week's hot forum topics
A Lesson Learnt...Again
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?134-A-Lesson-Learnt...Again
MOO Cheese and Bacon Rolls - just like the Bought Ones!
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?1950-MOO-cheese-and-bacon-rolls-just-like-the-bought-ones!&highlight=keren
Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?1374-Chocolate-Self-Saucing-Pudding.&highlight=keren
Most popular blog posts this week
Laundry Soap and Bicarb Soda
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2011/02/laundry-soap-and-bicarb-soda.html
The No Waste Kitchen: 10 Good Ways to Re-use Tea Bags
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2013/07/the-no-waste-kitchen-10-good-ways-to-re.html
Pizza Quesadillas
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2012/01/pizza-quesadillas.html
9. Member's Featured Blog
Platinum Cheapskates Club members have their very own Cheapskating blogs, and they are wonderful and inspirational and encouraging and even funny. This week's featured blog is written by Margaret in Melbourne.
Backwards and Forwards...
As many of you who are regulars on the forum will now, we moved house recently. No, not in to a home of our own (unfortunately), but yet another rental. We didn't have to move, but a house came up for lease in a suburb I really love, on a street I adore, very close to the children's school, my work, and opposite a beautiful park. The kids are now all in walking distnace to a good friend, and my DH and I have all our new Melbourne friends close by too, which in summer means we can have a BBQ or a drink together and then walk home. Excellent.
But moving is expensive, and not only that, this house is more expensive than the one we were in before. I know that this is not in the CS spirit, and I should have either held steady, or moved somewhere cheaper. I am a little disappointed in myself about that, but I have reasons in my madness. My first reason is that the house we were in was ENOURMOUS. It had five bedrooms, three bathrooms and three living areas. While this meant each child had a room, plenty of space for guests from Sydney, and we weren't in each other's hair, it was also a lot to clean, to heat and to keep track of. Plus we will never be able to afford to buy a house this size, not in an area close enough to where we work. So the move to a smaller house should reduce our energy expenses, and also will be faster for me to clean. Plus the children and my DH and I can determine how much space we actually need. The new house has three bedrooms and one bathroom. We all have to share more, and get used to this, which is a good thing. The house is still quite large, in terms of room size and space, but more in keeping with what we might be able to buy (though definitely in a nicer area than what we can afford!).
The house is also double glazed, has radiated heating which is zoned, and has less halogen downlights than the old house. My electricity bill, even when accounting for extremely limited use of the dryer, and vigilant light patrol, was still around $700 a quarter. In the new house I am hoping to get this down to about $500 a quarter.
The kids and I can walk to school and work, which will save money on petrol, and give us some exercise as well. The kids don't really need anymore activity in their week, but I sure do, and I anticipate that my hours at work will need to increase over the next two years, so the closer the better.
My eldest daughter is able to develop some independence. She can walk on her own to school, usually meeting some friends from the area on the way. She is loving a little bit of freedom, and it helps her to develop responsibility.
But most importantly, I felt it necessary to move because of my DH. Our old house was literally five doors down from his place of work, and while this was convenient for coming home for lunch, it was also making him feel claustrophobic. He felt like he was always at work, and I noticed he wasn't leaving the house very much on weekends (it is a retail outlet open all weekend). He doesn't particularly like his work, and I was worried for his mental health and well being. He has not stopped talking about how much he loves the new house, even though he was reluctant at first. I am taking that as a good sign.
So all in all I know we are happier after the move, just a bit poorer. It cost us approximately $3,000 to move all up, and the new rent is $200 more per month. The old house had Foxtel (because there was no reception without a satellite), so that takes care of $90/month, and I conservatively estimate that my petrol expenditure will drop by $70 a month, due to less use of the car. I am planning on squeezing the grocery dollars a bit more to wring out that last difference of $40. As to the $3,000, well, I have asked around at work for some extra paid work, and I sold a few things on eBay before the move which brought in about $300. I have shaved about $1,000 from the Christmas budget, but there is more work to do until I recoup those savings. A little persistence, and I will be back on track in no time, I am positive.
The good news is my DH just got his annual pay rise...$235 per month more in the hand! Let me see, 1,700, divided by $235....
I LOVE my new, more expensive, smaller house!!!!!!
Login to read more Cheapskates Club member blogs
10. Last Week's Question
Last week's question was from Cass who wrote"I'd love to MOO scented drawer liners, like the paper ones you can buy. Does have any tips on the paper to use and how to fragrance it?"
Do you have a question that needs an answer?
Send us your question and receive the combined knowledge of your fellow Cheapskates to solve your problem!
Ask Your Question
11. This Week's Question
Roseanne writes
"The mid-year toy sales have started, and they seem to have bargains. I have gone to them in the past but there seems to be more hype than bargains. How do you get good deals at the mid-year toy sales and know they really are good deals? I hate getting to December and finding what I queued up to buy cheaper."
Do you have the answer?
If you are a mid-year toy sale expert and have a suggestion or idea for Roseanne, let us know. We'll enter your answer into our Tip of the Week competition, with a one-year membership to the Cheapskates Club as the prize too.
Send your answer
12. Join the Cheapskates Club
For just 10 cents a day you can join the Cheapskates Club and get exclusive access to the Cheapskate Journal, the monthly e-journal that shows you how to cut the costs of everyday living and still have fun.
Joining the Cheapskates Club gives you 24/7 access to the Members Centre with 1000's of money saving tips and articles.
Click here to join the Cheapskates Club today!
http://www.cheapskates.com.au/members/join_form.cfm?item_id=2271
13. Gift Memberships
Your family and friends will thank you for a whole year when you give them a Platinum Cheapskates Club membership as a gift.
It's so simple: just select the number of gift memberships required, click the Buy Now button and complete the Gift Membership order form (you must use this form to order gift memberships) and we'll get in touch with you to confirm the gift subscriptions.
Click here to order a gift membership right now!
14. Frequently Asked Questions
How do I change my email address?
This one is easy. Members can update their email address or any other details by clicking on "Edit Profile" directly under their membership number after they have logged in to the Member's Centre. Subscribers to our free newsletter can use the Change Your Address form (under Customer Service in the menu) and fill it out. Once you've filled it in click the send button and we'll do the rest. Please remember to include your old email address so we can find it in the list as well as the new one.
How do I know when my membership should be renewed?
When you login to the Member's Centre you will be told how many days of membership you have left once you have 30 days left. Just click on the link to renew and your membership will just continue on, uninterrupted.
What will you do with my email address?
We never rent, trade or sell our email list to anyone for any reason whatsoever. You'll never get an unsolicited email from a stranger as a result of joining this list.
Read our privacy policy
How Did You Get on Our List?
You signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member
15. Contact Details
The Cheapskates Club -
Showing you how to live life
debt free, cashed up and laughing!
PO Box 5077 Studfield Vic 3152
www.cheapskates.com.au
[email protected]
2. In the Tip Store - Medicine with a Longer Expiry Date, Sparkling Spa Filters, Start Now to Build a Christmas Stockpile
3. Cheapskate's Winning Tip - The 52 Week Debt Reduction Plan
4. Submit Your Tip - Your best money, time and energy saver could be a winner!
5. Living Green in 2014 - Composting, a Great Way to Go Green
6. On the Menu with Anne - Australia's Favourite Cake
7. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy - Inventory Time
8. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
9. Member's Featured Blog - Responsibility by Bluebell234
10. Last Week's Question - Tips for Sticking to the $300 a Month Food Challenge when you work full time
11. This Week's Question - My citrus trees are sick!
12. Join the Cheapskates Club
13. Gift Memberships
14. Frequently Asked Questions
15. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
This week's newsletter is another big one. It seems the newsletter just gets bigger and bigger each week there is so much to share.
Enjoy your newsletter and have a wonderfully frugal week everyone.
PS: Love our site? We love referrals! Send a note to your favourite newspapers, magazines, radio stations, TV stations, friends and relatives, and tell them about us!
PPS: You can read this newsletter and past copies on the website in the Newsletter Archive.
2. From The Tip Store
Adapt Your Recipes to Use What You Have
Approximate $ Savings: $5.50
I have been quietly loving Moo Month, and made some Moo Sweetened Condensed Milk (SCM) - saving $3.63 each 330mls. I froze two batches for later use. After I defrosted one container of SCM I had 140gs leftover. Mmm what to do? This is the recipe I was using:
Ingredients:
500g butter
400g condensed milk
1-1/4 cup caster sugar
5 cups self raising flour
To adapt this recipe I divided the 140g I had by the 400g of SCM the recipe required. The answer was .35. With a calculator I could times each ingredient amount by .35 to get a new measurement. For examples 5 cups of SR Flour x .35 = 1.75 cups of SR Flour (1 and 3/4 cups). I was really happy not to throw that sweetened condensed milk out - or for that fact not to eat it myself just so it wouldn't be wasted!
Contributed by Sharon Sawers
Accommodation Savings
Approximate $ Savings: $500
Apart from checking the last minute accommodation websites or travel guide flyers for dates months in advance, to get an idea of prices. I then check the hotels own website for any specials. You need to check multiple dates as they don't always show the specials up front. I then match this to the best airfares I can find online for that time. I lucked out for the Sunshine Coast, one hotel offered me 50% off accommodation (it was a self-contained, resort style hotel with pool etc.) - I literally wiped $500 off my hotel bill. I needed to change my intended holiday dates (only by 1 week) and found the most reasonable airfares that coincided with that time.
Contributed by Sam Bowden
Buy Your Meat Direct from the Farm for Huge Savings
I live in a metro suburban area of SA but drive down to the country towns about 30 minutes away sometimes on weekends. There are a lot of farms around and we discovered that some farmers will sell whole, half or quarter cows and sheep to the public. We have been buying our meat this way for about 18 months now and I'm amazed at the difference. I personally am a vegetarian but my family raves about how much better the meat tastes and best of all it cost us $200 for half a cow fully prepared and ready to cook and $90 for a whole sheep, both of which last a good 6 months. Best of all as I previously used to spend roughly $75 a fortnight on meat and buying it this way works out to roughly $22 a fortnight it is a massive saving. I am now spending $685 less a year! This tip is useful even for those living in the heart of the city; look around and see what is available, you might be surprised.
Contributed by Shayli Anderson
There are more than 11,000 great tips in the Tip Store
3. Cheapskates Winning tip
This week's winning tip is from Janet Bedwell. Hannah and I love tea parties and often have afternoon tea with friends, especially during winter, and we always have it at home. Our teas are well-catered with scones and pikelets with lashings of jam and cream, strawberry tartlets, caramel slice, tiny sandwiches with the crusts cut off and of course the obligatory pots and pots of tea. High tea at a hotel can cost up to $90 per head - way out of our budget. Janet and her friends are enjoying the fun of a tea party together and saving a fortune. For submitting her winning tip Janet has won a one-year Platinum membership to the Cheapskates Club.
Host your own High Tea
Approximate $ Savings: $50+
Many of us have lovely tea services or just cups and saucers that were given as gifts. With my group of "besties" we are having our own "high Tea". Those of us talented in the dessert department are creating 'little' cakes, those of us talented in the savoury are creating 'little' savouries. Some who are talented are supplying a different tea blend. It is a lovely way to spend time with friends and making it extra special; now we have hit the big 50 we want to celebrate friendship. This would work for an older relative or even as a different type of 18th or 21st birthday party - you could make little quiches and sausage rolls ahead of time if you were catering for a large number of people or get a large number of people involved.
Congratulations Janet, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
4. Submit your tip
The Cheapskate's Club website is over 3,000 pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. Let's get together and make the Cheapskates Club Australia's largest online hint, tip and idea library. Share your favourite money saving, time saving or energy saving hint and be in the running to win a one-year membership to The Cheapskate Club. We publish a Winning Tip each Thursday, so enter your great money, time or energy saving idea now.
Share your favourite hint or tip that saves money, time and energy and be in the running to win a one-year subscription to The Cheapskate Journal.
Remember, you have to be in it to win it!
Submit your tip
5. Living Green in 2014
The 3 R's Can Save You Money - Part 1
Reduce, Re-use and Recycle means more than putting out the recycling bin. If you can reduce, we have less non-recyclable waste and less resources will be used in the process of recycling.
This applies to re-using. By re-using instead of buying something new, you are saving the resources that would have gone into that new product and saving money!
And recycling, well, that should be considered the second-to-last resort in the terms of putting an item in your recycling bin. It's great that some wastes are being recycled rather than going to landfill, but the recycling process itself uses a lot of energy and resources. Try to avoid landfill waste and keep as much as possible out of the recycling box too.
Here are a few ideas on how to do this:
Reduce
Buy in bulk! It sounds scary but it isn't. Bulk buying doesn't necessarily mean having 100 kilos of brown rice hanging around the house. If there is a product you use a lot of, you should look into buying it in the largest package possible, to cut down on packaging and (usually) at a cheaper overall cost to you. A lot of items are available in the bulk section of your supermarket and you can buy only as much as you want without the extra packaging. I buy spices in the bulk section, they area fraction of the cost of those expensive glass bottles and I just refill the bottles in my spice rack. Same goes for cocoa, dried fruits and nuts, cottage cheese, yoghurt, sour cream (you can buy this in great big reusable catering tubs, perfect for freezing stuff in), and LOTS of other stuff. For dedicated reducers - write the contents in marker on the plastic bag you bring the stuff home in and save the bag to take back to the shop to use next time you need that item.
Look for less packaging! This seems obvious but it's never the first thing on your mind at the supermarket. So many things are packed individually 'for your convenience', and at an outrageous price. Is it necessary? I don t think so. All that extra packaging costs money, and that cost is passed along to you. Juice boxes is one of my favourite pet peeves; for the price of those six little boxes, you can buy a large bottle of pure juice (or two bottles of cordial) and end up with at least twice as much juice. Buy some plastic drink bottles (they make a great starting school or kinder gift), a thermos, or re-use small plastic pop top bottles - and feel good about yourself for reducing your waste output!
Reduce your own packaging when it comes to packing lunches. Look for plastic sandwich boxes and snack size containers such at garage sales, pack snacks in rinsed out margarine or takeaway tubs, buy or make a reusable fabric lunch bag or lunch box. You'll save money by not buying sandwich bags, plastic wrap and paper lunch bags, and help the earth too! Put the lunches in an insulated lunch sack and they will stay cool and fresh all day. Kids these days are very environmentally conscious (environmental studies is a large part of their curriculum) and are usually really happy to have an earth friendly lunch. If for some reason you cannot follow these methods (say, on the day of a school excursion), use paper products only when possible - wax paper to wrap sandwiches in, a brown paper bag for the lunch itself. At least these things are biodegradable.
This one sounds more complicated than it is. If you can reduce the number of different ingredients you use in cooking and learn how to make more dishes using less varied ingredients, you will be using less packaging and saving money. Instead of having 20 different types of pasta all lined up in pretty jars, buy only 1 or 2 different types and see how they work in your favourite recipe (and how much money you'll save). Learn how to make a wide variety of dishes using basic nutritious ingredients.
6. On the Menu with Anne
Yorkshire Meat Pancakes
This is a recipe from the Recipe File and it's one of our favourites. It uses a very small amount of mince, just 250g, to make enough pancakes to feed four. I serve them with vegetables and gravy in winter or with salad and a tomato sauce in summer and I never, ever have leftovers when I make these.
Yorkshire Meat Pancakes
Ingredients:
4 eggs, separated
250g minced steak
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 small onion, very finely chopped
3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
6 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
9 teaspoons vegetable oil
Method:
In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks until pale and thick. Fold in the minced steak, salt, pepper, baking powder, onion, Worcestershire sauce, parsley and basil and stir until the ingredients are thoroughly combined. Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Using a metal spoon, gently fold them into the beef mixture. In a large frying pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Drop spoonfuls of the steak mixture into the hot oil and fry for 3 minutes or until the pancakes are puffed up and brown at the edges. Turn and fry for a further 2 to 3 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm while you fry the remaining steak mixture in the same way.
This week we will be eating:
Friday: Spaghetti and meatballs
Saturday: Tacos
Sunday: Roast lamb, baked vegetables, beans, mint sauce
Monday: Slowcooker chicken curry and rice
Tuesday: Sausage casserole, sweet potato mash, broccoli, corn
Wednesday: Fish pie
Thursday: Soup and toast
In the fruit bowl: oranges, kiwi fruit, apples
In the cake tin: Snickerdoodles, Thumbprints, Milo muffins
There are over 1,300 other great money saving meal ideas in the Recipe File
7. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy
Today I'm off to the football with my family. It's a once a year tradition on the Queen's birthday weekend. We go to see Melbourne v Collingwood at the MCG. My DH and two girls are Collingwood supporters while I'm a Carlton supporter. I just go for the family outing and the atmosphere at the game.
Going to the football can be an expensive outing. You have the train fares or parking costs and petrol. Then there are the entrance fees which seem to go up all the time. If you want to buy food to eat you'll be paying big time. Now you know why we only go once a year.
You can control the cost of food for a sporting event. Taking a thermos full of soup or hot water to make a cuppa will save you more than $10. Taking a salad roll each can save you $20 + for four people. Bottles of water will cost nothing to bring from home and could save you another $15 + for a family. Then if you want snacks you could be up for another $15 - $20, a piece of fruit or a box of Shapes biscuits from home will cost you about $2.
Each year we go to the football we bring all of our food. We do make allowances to buy a treat if we really want one. More often than not we don't buy as no one wants to leave their seat and miss part of the game.
How do you cut costs at a sporting event?
Have a great week and BE ENCOURAGED!!!!!!!
The $300 a Month Food Challenge
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?2026-300-a-month-food-challenge-10-06-13
The Post that Started it All
http://www.cheapskates.com.au/pages/default.cfm?page_id=44265
8.Cheapskates Buzz
This week's hot forum topics
A Lesson Learnt...Again
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?134-A-Lesson-Learnt...Again
MOO Cheese and Bacon Rolls - just like the Bought Ones!
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?1950-MOO-cheese-and-bacon-rolls-just-like-the-bought-ones!&highlight=keren
Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?1374-Chocolate-Self-Saucing-Pudding.&highlight=keren
Most popular blog posts this week
Laundry Soap and Bicarb Soda
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2011/02/laundry-soap-and-bicarb-soda.html
The No Waste Kitchen: 10 Good Ways to Re-use Tea Bags
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2013/07/the-no-waste-kitchen-10-good-ways-to-re.html
Pizza Quesadillas
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2012/01/pizza-quesadillas.html
9. Member's Featured Blog
Platinum Cheapskates Club members have their very own Cheapskating blogs, and they are wonderful and inspirational and encouraging and even funny. This week's featured blog is written by Margaret in Melbourne.
Backwards and Forwards...
As many of you who are regulars on the forum will now, we moved house recently. No, not in to a home of our own (unfortunately), but yet another rental. We didn't have to move, but a house came up for lease in a suburb I really love, on a street I adore, very close to the children's school, my work, and opposite a beautiful park. The kids are now all in walking distnace to a good friend, and my DH and I have all our new Melbourne friends close by too, which in summer means we can have a BBQ or a drink together and then walk home. Excellent.
But moving is expensive, and not only that, this house is more expensive than the one we were in before. I know that this is not in the CS spirit, and I should have either held steady, or moved somewhere cheaper. I am a little disappointed in myself about that, but I have reasons in my madness. My first reason is that the house we were in was ENOURMOUS. It had five bedrooms, three bathrooms and three living areas. While this meant each child had a room, plenty of space for guests from Sydney, and we weren't in each other's hair, it was also a lot to clean, to heat and to keep track of. Plus we will never be able to afford to buy a house this size, not in an area close enough to where we work. So the move to a smaller house should reduce our energy expenses, and also will be faster for me to clean. Plus the children and my DH and I can determine how much space we actually need. The new house has three bedrooms and one bathroom. We all have to share more, and get used to this, which is a good thing. The house is still quite large, in terms of room size and space, but more in keeping with what we might be able to buy (though definitely in a nicer area than what we can afford!).
The house is also double glazed, has radiated heating which is zoned, and has less halogen downlights than the old house. My electricity bill, even when accounting for extremely limited use of the dryer, and vigilant light patrol, was still around $700 a quarter. In the new house I am hoping to get this down to about $500 a quarter.
The kids and I can walk to school and work, which will save money on petrol, and give us some exercise as well. The kids don't really need anymore activity in their week, but I sure do, and I anticipate that my hours at work will need to increase over the next two years, so the closer the better.
My eldest daughter is able to develop some independence. She can walk on her own to school, usually meeting some friends from the area on the way. She is loving a little bit of freedom, and it helps her to develop responsibility.
But most importantly, I felt it necessary to move because of my DH. Our old house was literally five doors down from his place of work, and while this was convenient for coming home for lunch, it was also making him feel claustrophobic. He felt like he was always at work, and I noticed he wasn't leaving the house very much on weekends (it is a retail outlet open all weekend). He doesn't particularly like his work, and I was worried for his mental health and well being. He has not stopped talking about how much he loves the new house, even though he was reluctant at first. I am taking that as a good sign.
So all in all I know we are happier after the move, just a bit poorer. It cost us approximately $3,000 to move all up, and the new rent is $200 more per month. The old house had Foxtel (because there was no reception without a satellite), so that takes care of $90/month, and I conservatively estimate that my petrol expenditure will drop by $70 a month, due to less use of the car. I am planning on squeezing the grocery dollars a bit more to wring out that last difference of $40. As to the $3,000, well, I have asked around at work for some extra paid work, and I sold a few things on eBay before the move which brought in about $300. I have shaved about $1,000 from the Christmas budget, but there is more work to do until I recoup those savings. A little persistence, and I will be back on track in no time, I am positive.
The good news is my DH just got his annual pay rise...$235 per month more in the hand! Let me see, 1,700, divided by $235....
I LOVE my new, more expensive, smaller house!!!!!!
Login to read more Cheapskates Club member blogs
10. Last Week's Question
Last week's question was from Cass who wrote"I'd love to MOO scented drawer liners, like the paper ones you can buy. Does have any tips on the paper to use and how to fragrance it?"
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11. This Week's Question
Roseanne writes
"The mid-year toy sales have started, and they seem to have bargains. I have gone to them in the past but there seems to be more hype than bargains. How do you get good deals at the mid-year toy sales and know they really are good deals? I hate getting to December and finding what I queued up to buy cheaper."
Do you have the answer?
If you are a mid-year toy sale expert and have a suggestion or idea for Roseanne, let us know. We'll enter your answer into our Tip of the Week competition, with a one-year membership to the Cheapskates Club as the prize too.
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