Your Cheapskates Club Newsletter 31:20
In This Newsletter
1. Cath's Corner
2. From the Tip Store - The Secret to Dressing Teenage Girls on a Budget
3. Tip of the Week - The Lazy Cheapskates Way to More Than $300 Month Groceries
4. Share Your Tips
5. On the Menu - MOO Pizza
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge - Fakeaway v Takeaway
7. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
9. Ask A Question - Have a question? Ask it here
10. Join the Cheapskates Club -$25 for the first year!
11. Frequently Asked Questions
12. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
Great news - our new website is up and running. If you haven't visited the Cheapskates Club this week, please do. It looks great and over the next few days the fine tweaks will continue to get it exactly as it should be, so check back often to see what's new and what's changed.
Economically, as a country, things are still grim. So, as I promised, new memberships are still just $25 for the first year. Just so you know, that won't change until the "new normal" is back to our real normal.
Have a great week everyone.
Happy Cheapskating,
Cath
2. From The Tip Store
The Secret to Dressing Teenage Girls on a Budget
I thought I would pass on our strategy for dealing with teenage girls and their want for clothes.
First some background. My mother would not let me pick out my own clothes until I was 15, very embarrassing. I swore that I would never do that to my kids. Kids must be allowed to explore their individuality within reason and must learn to budget (something my mother still can't do). So when my daughters turned 12 we started giving them a clothing allowance on top of their pocket money.
The rules are we pay for basic underwear, uniform, socks, pjs, shoes and school hair ties, they pay the rest. So we pay for a skin coloured bra for under their white school shirt and one coloured one for other days; one multi pack of undies; one multi pack of school socks and other socks; one pair each of runners, school shoes, summer shoes, thongs; two pairs of summer and two pairs of winter pjs; two sets each of school uniforms (as much second hand as possible due to amazing growth spurts at this age) and enough hair ties and clips for the year (note: I use them as stocking stuffers when we are having a thrifty Christmas). They buy their other clothes.
We taught them to take an inventory each season to work out what they need and want as so often clothes go missing under beds etc. (and it makes them do a proper room clean). We have set a rule of no super short skirts or low cleavage etc.
They get an extra $5 a week and they can choose to only buy the basics and put the left over money to something else or to go overboard and spend their pocket money too. I have taught them the value of shopping for clothes at the end of season sales since the stores stock each season ahead of time. And the value of Op Shops; they know which ones get the best gear and where that gear gets put in those stores.
My nearly 15 year old would rather shop at St Vinnies than Street and Beach, I am so proud of that. She has a wardrobe full of brand name gear and has never gone over her clothing budget for the year (she has borrowed from me when she needed a dress for a school dance but paid it back asap). She keeps a book of what she has paid for each item and then when she grows out of them she offers them to her sister for half that price, if her sister doesn't want them she sells them on eBay (this is what normally happens as her sister is a tomboy and she is as girly as they come). Also now that she has grown into one size down from me I have dug out my pre-last baby clothes and she has bought some off me.
The girls also use Freecycle to look for clothes and offer ones that aren't brand name and so won't sell on eBay. My almost 15 year old often buys her clothes in bulk on eBay if she can't find what she wants at the op shop and then sells what she doesn't want or sends them to charity or freecycle. I hope this will be of help to someone.
Note: I started teaching them to bargain hunt at age 3 or 4 when they got their first birthday money. I took them to the shop and they grabbed what they wanted, then I showed them something similar and explained it would leave them enough money to get (and would grab a toy or book I knew they would like). This taught them to always look at ways to get the most bang for their buck. I started this last year with Master 5 Tomorrow.
Contributed by Raelene
Add a Tip
3. This Week's Winning Tip
This week's winning tip is from Lee English. Lee has won a one year Platinum Cheapskates Club membership for submitting her winning tip.
The Lazy Cheapskates Way to More Than $300 Month GroceriesEach week I receive an email from Coles, Woolworths and Aldi so I know what the half price specials are. I then plan which ones that I am going to purchase. So, each week I purchase half price specials like coffee, toiletries, toilet paper, and any bread, milk, meat or vegetables needed and things that don't change in price such as home brand flour. My pantry is always well stocked, I can meal prep if I want and it saves me a lot of time. I find the "lazy" way very effective and it saves me hundreds of dollars. Really, I am just spending the "slush money" each week. The hardest part is starting off, if you haven't got a lot of money. Once you start off, there is a snowball effect!
Contributed by Lee English
Congratulations Lee, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
The Cheapskate's Club website is thousands of pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. There are over 12,000 tips to save you money, time and energy; 1,600 budget and family friendly recipes, hundreds of printable tip sheets and ebooks.
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.
4. Share Your Tips
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!
Share Your Tip
5. On The Menu
Penny Pinching Pizza
We have pizza every Thursday night. Tom makes them for everyone, using their favourite toppings scrounged from whatever is in the fridge. Easy! We get three large pizzas for around the price of one delivered, sometimes less. And they taste so much better and the base is made exactly the way everyone likes.
The base is a yeast dough. Don't panic, it's really easy. I double the recipe and mix it in the food processor, saves my hands and makes it super quick.
We have pizza stones to bake them, but any baking tray will do just as well. I like to sprinkle the stones/trays with polenta before I put the dough down. It gives a nice crispiness to the bottom, but It's entirely optional.
Penny Pinching Pizza Base
Ingredients:
2 cups plain flour – 35c
2 tbsp olive oil – 30c
1 cup warm water
1 tbsp dry yeast – 5c
1 tsp sugar – 1c
Method:
Dissolve the sugar in ¼ cup of the warm water and then add the yeast. Put aside to ferment – about 5 minutes.
Process the flour and oil for a few seconds until it becomes crumbly. Add the yeast mixture and process. Slowly pour in the remaining ¾ cup water. Process until a dough ball forms. Continue processing for 30 seconds.
Turn the dough out onto a floured board, cover with a damp tea towel and let it sit for 10 minutes.
At this point you can freeze the dough in a ball to use later on or cover with a damp tea towel and let it sit for 10 minutes before pressing into a Swiss roll tin, using the palm of your hand. Try not to roll it with a rolling pin (or Marmite jar) as it toughens the dough.
Top with your favourite pizza toppings (we love tomato sauce, oregano and grated cheese and tomato sauce, slice mushrooms, pineapple pieces, sliced onion and olives topped with grated cheese). Bake in a hot oven for 15 – 20 minutes until the base is browned and the topping is bubbling nicely.
Suggested toppings
Tomato sauce, oregano and grated cheese – 25c, 1c, 90c
Tomato sauce, sliced mushrooms, sliced capsicum, pineapple pieces, sliced onions, slice olives and grated cheese
Tomato sauce, shredded chicken, pineapple and cheese
Tomato sauce, shredded ham and beaten egg
Sweet toppings
200ml cottage cheese, 1 tbsp honey, ½ cup crushed pineapple and crushed mint
Cottage cheese topped with apricot halves and covered with a mix of sour cream and a beaten egg. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Yummo.
Next week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Chicken
Monday: French Steak, potato bake, veggies
Tuesday: Refrigerator Lasagne
Wednesday: Pot Roast with potato, carrot, onion, parsnip
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Meat pie, mash, veg, gravy
Saturday: Freezer Meals
In the fruit bowl: oranges, mandarins, limes
There are over 1,700 budget and family friendly recipes in the Cheapskates Club Recipe File, all contributed by your fellow Cheapskates, so you know they're good.
Add A Recipe
Recipe File Index
6. The $300 A Month Food Challenge
Fakeaway v Takeaway
Let's face it, we all enjoy a night off from cooking. A simple dinner we can just sit down and eat. And right now, with all the craziness that is social distancing and lockdows and staying home, takeaway can seem like a great choice. It appeals to the need in us at the end of a long, tiring day, to just eat. But we all know takeaway comes at a huge cost, especially if you're on a tight grocery budget.
So fake it. Create your own versions at home. In Tuesday nights show I mentioned how the cost of just one hamburger with the lot from our local takeaway is $15 - and it's no gourmet place, just a regular fish'n'chip shop.
I can make burgers for all of us, with more filling for less than the price of one takeaway burger. Honestly, they are quicker than buying them too. While the eggs and patties are cooking (or the steak or the chicken or fish fillet) the buns are toasting, the lettuce, tomato and onion are being sliced. The pineapple and beetroot are draining. The cheese is being sliced. If eggs are running low, I cheat by whisking two eggs with a tablespoon of water and pouring it into a pan to cook. Then I cut the omelette into pieces for the burgers.
So what else can you fake? Here are some of our favourites:
Fish'n'chips - use frozen fish and MOO chips or wedges. If you have a lemon, cut it into wedges and put on the side. I usually serve either a green salad or coleslaw with this meal to round it out.
Curry and rice - make your favourite curry, steam some rice and serve with MOO naan.
Sweet'n'sour chicken
Fried rice
Kebabs
Pies and sausage rolls
Subs
Parma and chips
Pizza
The $300 a Month Food Challenge Forum
The Post that Started it All
7. Cheapskates Buzz
From The Article Archive
Beating the Can't be Bothered Dinnertime Blues
Holiday Headstart
Portion Control and Free Meals
This Week's Hot Forum Topics
Building a Year’s Stockpile
Self Care - what special things do you like to do just for you?
MOO Golden Syrup
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
Join Cath and Hannah live Tuesdays on You Tube at 7.30pm AET
Join us live on YouTube every Tuesday and see how we are living debt free, cashed up and laughing - and find out how you can too!
Show ScheduleTuesday: Around the Kitchen Table - join Cath and Hannah for a cuppa and a chat around the kitchen table as they talk about living the Cheapskates way.
Thursday: Cheapskates in the Kitchen - want to know how to cook delicious, healthy and cheap meals? Watch Cath and Hannah as they create cheapskates style cuisine and share their favourite recipes.
Latest Shows
1. Cath's Corner
2. From the Tip Store - The Secret to Dressing Teenage Girls on a Budget
3. Tip of the Week - The Lazy Cheapskates Way to More Than $300 Month Groceries
4. Share Your Tips
5. On the Menu - MOO Pizza
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge - Fakeaway v Takeaway
7. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
9. Ask A Question - Have a question? Ask it here
10. Join the Cheapskates Club -$25 for the first year!
11. Frequently Asked Questions
12. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
Great news - our new website is up and running. If you haven't visited the Cheapskates Club this week, please do. It looks great and over the next few days the fine tweaks will continue to get it exactly as it should be, so check back often to see what's new and what's changed.
Economically, as a country, things are still grim. So, as I promised, new memberships are still just $25 for the first year. Just so you know, that won't change until the "new normal" is back to our real normal.
Have a great week everyone.
Happy Cheapskating,
Cath
2. From The Tip Store
The Secret to Dressing Teenage Girls on a Budget
I thought I would pass on our strategy for dealing with teenage girls and their want for clothes.
First some background. My mother would not let me pick out my own clothes until I was 15, very embarrassing. I swore that I would never do that to my kids. Kids must be allowed to explore their individuality within reason and must learn to budget (something my mother still can't do). So when my daughters turned 12 we started giving them a clothing allowance on top of their pocket money.
The rules are we pay for basic underwear, uniform, socks, pjs, shoes and school hair ties, they pay the rest. So we pay for a skin coloured bra for under their white school shirt and one coloured one for other days; one multi pack of undies; one multi pack of school socks and other socks; one pair each of runners, school shoes, summer shoes, thongs; two pairs of summer and two pairs of winter pjs; two sets each of school uniforms (as much second hand as possible due to amazing growth spurts at this age) and enough hair ties and clips for the year (note: I use them as stocking stuffers when we are having a thrifty Christmas). They buy their other clothes.
We taught them to take an inventory each season to work out what they need and want as so often clothes go missing under beds etc. (and it makes them do a proper room clean). We have set a rule of no super short skirts or low cleavage etc.
They get an extra $5 a week and they can choose to only buy the basics and put the left over money to something else or to go overboard and spend their pocket money too. I have taught them the value of shopping for clothes at the end of season sales since the stores stock each season ahead of time. And the value of Op Shops; they know which ones get the best gear and where that gear gets put in those stores.
My nearly 15 year old would rather shop at St Vinnies than Street and Beach, I am so proud of that. She has a wardrobe full of brand name gear and has never gone over her clothing budget for the year (she has borrowed from me when she needed a dress for a school dance but paid it back asap). She keeps a book of what she has paid for each item and then when she grows out of them she offers them to her sister for half that price, if her sister doesn't want them she sells them on eBay (this is what normally happens as her sister is a tomboy and she is as girly as they come). Also now that she has grown into one size down from me I have dug out my pre-last baby clothes and she has bought some off me.
The girls also use Freecycle to look for clothes and offer ones that aren't brand name and so won't sell on eBay. My almost 15 year old often buys her clothes in bulk on eBay if she can't find what she wants at the op shop and then sells what she doesn't want or sends them to charity or freecycle. I hope this will be of help to someone.
Note: I started teaching them to bargain hunt at age 3 or 4 when they got their first birthday money. I took them to the shop and they grabbed what they wanted, then I showed them something similar and explained it would leave them enough money to get (and would grab a toy or book I knew they would like). This taught them to always look at ways to get the most bang for their buck. I started this last year with Master 5 Tomorrow.
Contributed by Raelene
Add a Tip
3. This Week's Winning Tip
This week's winning tip is from Lee English. Lee has won a one year Platinum Cheapskates Club membership for submitting her winning tip.
The Lazy Cheapskates Way to More Than $300 Month GroceriesEach week I receive an email from Coles, Woolworths and Aldi so I know what the half price specials are. I then plan which ones that I am going to purchase. So, each week I purchase half price specials like coffee, toiletries, toilet paper, and any bread, milk, meat or vegetables needed and things that don't change in price such as home brand flour. My pantry is always well stocked, I can meal prep if I want and it saves me a lot of time. I find the "lazy" way very effective and it saves me hundreds of dollars. Really, I am just spending the "slush money" each week. The hardest part is starting off, if you haven't got a lot of money. Once you start off, there is a snowball effect!
Contributed by Lee English
Congratulations Lee, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
The Cheapskate's Club website is thousands of pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. There are over 12,000 tips to save you money, time and energy; 1,600 budget and family friendly recipes, hundreds of printable tip sheets and ebooks.
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.
4. Share Your Tips
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!
Share Your Tip
5. On The Menu
Penny Pinching Pizza
We have pizza every Thursday night. Tom makes them for everyone, using their favourite toppings scrounged from whatever is in the fridge. Easy! We get three large pizzas for around the price of one delivered, sometimes less. And they taste so much better and the base is made exactly the way everyone likes.
The base is a yeast dough. Don't panic, it's really easy. I double the recipe and mix it in the food processor, saves my hands and makes it super quick.
We have pizza stones to bake them, but any baking tray will do just as well. I like to sprinkle the stones/trays with polenta before I put the dough down. It gives a nice crispiness to the bottom, but It's entirely optional.
Penny Pinching Pizza Base
Ingredients:
2 cups plain flour – 35c
2 tbsp olive oil – 30c
1 cup warm water
1 tbsp dry yeast – 5c
1 tsp sugar – 1c
Method:
Dissolve the sugar in ¼ cup of the warm water and then add the yeast. Put aside to ferment – about 5 minutes.
Process the flour and oil for a few seconds until it becomes crumbly. Add the yeast mixture and process. Slowly pour in the remaining ¾ cup water. Process until a dough ball forms. Continue processing for 30 seconds.
Turn the dough out onto a floured board, cover with a damp tea towel and let it sit for 10 minutes.
At this point you can freeze the dough in a ball to use later on or cover with a damp tea towel and let it sit for 10 minutes before pressing into a Swiss roll tin, using the palm of your hand. Try not to roll it with a rolling pin (or Marmite jar) as it toughens the dough.
Top with your favourite pizza toppings (we love tomato sauce, oregano and grated cheese and tomato sauce, slice mushrooms, pineapple pieces, sliced onion and olives topped with grated cheese). Bake in a hot oven for 15 – 20 minutes until the base is browned and the topping is bubbling nicely.
Suggested toppings
Tomato sauce, oregano and grated cheese – 25c, 1c, 90c
Tomato sauce, sliced mushrooms, sliced capsicum, pineapple pieces, sliced onions, slice olives and grated cheese
Tomato sauce, shredded chicken, pineapple and cheese
Tomato sauce, shredded ham and beaten egg
Sweet toppings
200ml cottage cheese, 1 tbsp honey, ½ cup crushed pineapple and crushed mint
Cottage cheese topped with apricot halves and covered with a mix of sour cream and a beaten egg. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Yummo.
Next week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Chicken
Monday: French Steak, potato bake, veggies
Tuesday: Refrigerator Lasagne
Wednesday: Pot Roast with potato, carrot, onion, parsnip
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Meat pie, mash, veg, gravy
Saturday: Freezer Meals
In the fruit bowl: oranges, mandarins, limes
There are over 1,700 budget and family friendly recipes in the Cheapskates Club Recipe File, all contributed by your fellow Cheapskates, so you know they're good.
Add A Recipe
Recipe File Index
6. The $300 A Month Food Challenge
Fakeaway v Takeaway
Let's face it, we all enjoy a night off from cooking. A simple dinner we can just sit down and eat. And right now, with all the craziness that is social distancing and lockdows and staying home, takeaway can seem like a great choice. It appeals to the need in us at the end of a long, tiring day, to just eat. But we all know takeaway comes at a huge cost, especially if you're on a tight grocery budget.
So fake it. Create your own versions at home. In Tuesday nights show I mentioned how the cost of just one hamburger with the lot from our local takeaway is $15 - and it's no gourmet place, just a regular fish'n'chip shop.
I can make burgers for all of us, with more filling for less than the price of one takeaway burger. Honestly, they are quicker than buying them too. While the eggs and patties are cooking (or the steak or the chicken or fish fillet) the buns are toasting, the lettuce, tomato and onion are being sliced. The pineapple and beetroot are draining. The cheese is being sliced. If eggs are running low, I cheat by whisking two eggs with a tablespoon of water and pouring it into a pan to cook. Then I cut the omelette into pieces for the burgers.
So what else can you fake? Here are some of our favourites:
Fish'n'chips - use frozen fish and MOO chips or wedges. If you have a lemon, cut it into wedges and put on the side. I usually serve either a green salad or coleslaw with this meal to round it out.
Curry and rice - make your favourite curry, steam some rice and serve with MOO naan.
Sweet'n'sour chicken
Fried rice
Kebabs
Pies and sausage rolls
Subs
Parma and chips
Pizza
The $300 a Month Food Challenge Forum
The Post that Started it All
7. Cheapskates Buzz
From The Article Archive
Beating the Can't be Bothered Dinnertime Blues
Holiday Headstart
Portion Control and Free Meals
This Week's Hot Forum Topics
Building a Year’s Stockpile
Self Care - what special things do you like to do just for you?
MOO Golden Syrup
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
Join Cath and Hannah live Tuesdays on You Tube at 7.30pm AET
Join us live on YouTube every Tuesday and see how we are living debt free, cashed up and laughing - and find out how you can too!
Show ScheduleTuesday: Around the Kitchen Table - join Cath and Hannah for a cuppa and a chat around the kitchen table as they talk about living the Cheapskates way.
Thursday: Cheapskates in the Kitchen - want to know how to cook delicious, healthy and cheap meals? Watch Cath and Hannah as they create cheapskates style cuisine and share their favourite recipes.
Latest Shows
9. Ask A Question
We have lots of resources to help you as you live the Cheapskates way but if you didn't find the answer to your question in our extensive archives please just drop me a note with your question.
I read and answer all questions, either in an email to you, in my weekly newsletter, the monthly Journal or by creating blog posts and other resources to help you (and other Cheapskaters).
Ask Your Question
10. Join The Cheapskates Club
For just $25 the first year, 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!
11. Frequently Asked Questions
How do I change my email address?
This one is easy. When you login to the Member's Centre just click on your name at the top of the page to go straight to your profile page where you can update your details, change your password and find your subscription details.
Not a Cheapskates Club member? Then please use the Changing Details form found here to update your email address.
How do I know when my membership should be renewed?
Memberships are active for one year from the date of joining. You will be sent a renewal reminder before your subscription is due to renew. You can also find your membership expiry date on your profile page.
When you login to the Member's Centre just click on your name to go straight to your profile page where you can will find your join date and your expiry date.
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.
How did I get on this list?
The only way you can get onto our newsletter mailing list is to subscribe yourself. You signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member.
12. Contact Cheapskates
The Cheapskates Club -
Showing you how to live life
debt free, cashed up and laughing!
PO Box 5077 Studfield Vic 3152
Contact Cheapskates