Your Cheapskates Club Newsletter: 46:14 Bright ideas to save you money
1. Cath's Corner
2. In the Tip Store - Learning to Cook is Easy, Moving House - Packing with the Linen Cupboard, Beautiful Bread with a Breadmaker
3. Submit Your Tip - You have to be in it to win it
4. Living Green in 2014 - How to Have a Green Christmas
5. On the Menu with Anne - Christmas Treats that make Great Gifts
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy - Snacks!
7. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
8. Member's Featured Blog - One Down, Three to Go!
9. Last Week's Question - Ideas needed for refreshing a driveway
10. This Week's Question - How can this family of six cut their grocery bill?
11. Join the Cheapskates Club
12. Gift Memberships
13. Frequently Asked Questions
14. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Welcome to another Bright ideas to save you money newsletter. I've had a wonderful week, pottering in my garden, spending time with my mother, tackling some chores around the house, working on the December Journal, putting this newsletter together and getting to spend the entire day with Wendy on Tuesday.
It was such a great day, with so much talking and laughing and sharing. Spending time with someone who understands how you think, who doesn't think you're "weird" or that your lifestyle is odd, who shares your enthusiasm for all things frugal and living the Cheapskates way is just wonderful. I came away (at 5pm!) so relaxed and refreshed that even the traffic on the freeway on the way home couldn't frazzle me!
Before I end for this week, I have some housekeeping to do. If you need to contact me please use the Contact Us form on the website. That form not only goes to my inbox but a copy is archived so I can find your email if for some reason the spam filter goes crazy and deletes it from the inbox. Please don't just reply to newsletters - I don't get them. Replies to newsletters (when you click on reply in your email account) are filtered off to a separate, unmonitored folder where they are scanned for spam and viruses and deleted. I don't see them so I don't get your message. The Contact Us form is the easiest way to do just that - contact us. But please remember, I'm just one person and while I do my best to get back to you quickly depending on what's going on it may take a few days.
Have a great week everyone, and remember: it's just six weeks until Christmas!
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
Learning to Cook is Easy
Forget buying magazines/books when wanting to learn how to cook or wanting to get some new recipes. Just go to You Tube and type in "cooking". You can watch some amazing tutorials which means you can hit the pause button once you have all your ingredients and do it at your own pace. This not only gives you confidence to cook more at home, but can you show how to cook what is even considered a takeaway food!
Contributed by Domenica Corrone
Moving House - Packing with the Linen Cupboard
My partner and I are moving house, and as dedicated Cheapskaters, we don't want to spend any (or as little as possible) money on preparing to move. We have used the tried and true method of collecting free boxes from grocers, fruit shop and supermarket. We were thinking about the disadvantages of wrapping our breakables in newspaper - print rubs off, need to wash everything when we unpack it, no stash of old newspapers handy. And we decided we'd save money, time and energy by wrapping our breakables in the contents of our linen closet. Our pots and pans, and large crockery we wrapped in towels. We wrapped glasses, mugs, bowls, photo frames and breakable knick knacks in our abundant supply of tea towels, and face washers. I keep my old towels (I have pets) and so we had an abundance of towels, as well as lots face-washers we purchased for our baby (flannels used for nappy changes). Towels can accommodate a few medium or small sized pots and pans or pot lids, face-washers are a great fit for single mugs or glasses, tea towels can be used for either, and a range of other crockery or knick knacks. It will save us washing our pots and pans when we unpack. We also anticipate we won't need to wash our old towels, tea-towels and face-washers as well. Its fantastic insulation, better than paper and costs us nothing. We haven't needed to, but if we ran out of towels, tea-towels and face-washers, we could continue wrapping in sheets. This also saves us in terms of the number of boxes we load into the removal van because linen is not boxed separately. So this is an additional saving from the removalist in terms of number of boxes or time spent packing and unpacking the van.
Contributed by Vanessa Hallum
Beautiful Bread with a Breadmaker
Approximate $ Savings: $500+ per year
In 1995, a loaf of bread was $2.50, and because of the ridiculously high price of a loaf bought my first breadmaker, the price of a Rye loaf in the supermarket this week was $3.75. Although bread can be made in the oven of course, over many years I believe it is cheaper to use a breadmaker, as you can also make wonderful pizza dough, and you can go to bed and the loaf will be ready the next morning, no need to wait up to turn the oven off (handy if you work). Bread mix is very cheap and a loaf of beautiful rye bread can be made for around $1, I can't quantify the amount of electricity, however it is still a wonderful saving. I have noticed breadmakers are available from the Salvos or St Vinnies second-hand very cheaply, and all recipes are online. It is truly worthwhile thinking about seriously, not to mention the satisfaction. I have now been through four breadmakers of different brands, and they all worked very well, lasting approximately five years each. A small proviso: in the beginning, you will need to tweak your mix to suit yourself. My first few were either not risen at all or too high, but keep at it, if you buy bread mix in bulk you can still afford to perfect your mix at a small cost. Perfect loaves are possible after a few tries.
Contributed by Janet Roberts
There are more than 11,000 great tips in the Tip Store
3. 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
4. Living Green in 2014
How to Have a Green Christmas
It's just six weeks until Christmas! You can help the environment have a Merry Christmas this year, too. With a few thoughtful, green steps, you can have a delightful Christmas and rest easy knowing you did your part to help save the earth’s resources.
If you’ve always purchased a live tree every year, you can still get a live tree and stay true to your green way of living. Just don’t buy a tree that’s been cut at all. Instead, pick out a tree with the roots still hanging on.
You’ll find trees like this with the roots wrapped carefully to preserve them or you’ll find them in a large container. They’ll be just a bit heavier, so watch your back when you lift them. Once the celebration is over, you can make the tree part of your landscaping. If that’s not an option for you, then look to buy a tree that's organically grown. You can find tree sellers that don’t promote the use of pesticides on their trees.
When you get the tree home and it’s time to put the lights on, decorate the tree with the LED lights that are now available. You can’t tell the difference in LED lights from traditional lights as far as looks go yet they are helping to conserve the earth’s energy by saving power. Use recycled ornaments on the tree. The kids can get involved by making ornaments out of objects you have around the house.
When it’s time to start on your Christmas list, for the items you do have to buy, make you carry the reusable shopping bags along and leave the plastic ones at the store. Make sure you buy gifts that don’t require extra accessories to be used.
For wrapping the gifts you did buy, don’t use retail purchased paper. Make your own paper instead. You can use the pages from last year’s calendar, brown paper bags decorated with cut out designs or you can use the colourful newspaper inserts. You can also skip paper wrapping altogether and wrap your Christmas gifts with fabric you’ve sewn together. Tie the top with a string of jute and a sprig of holly.
Not every gift has to be store bought. Some of the best gifts are homemade. Breads, jellies, crocheted blankets and hand knitted sweaters all make great gifts without contributing to landfill waste.
Even better than some homemade gifts are regifted ones. If you have a gift you didn’t want or can’t use, wrap it and pass it to someone who will use it and let it be known that you’d like regifted presents as well.
Forget the plastic dishes and utensils at parties and use real dishes instead. When it’s time to dine, light candles and turn off the electricity for an even better green Christmas. And go ahead and enjoy your outside Christmas displays, but be sure and use a timer that will turn the lights off at a prearranged time.
5. On the Menu with Anne
Christmas Treats that make Great Gifts
Here are two yummy treats that make great edible Christmas gifts. They both go really well in hampers or on their own on a pretty plate or in a box and wrapped with cellophane. You can buy the mini chocolate papers from department stores, supermarkets and specialty kitchen shops, but they'll be cheaper at the department store or supermarket. And at this time of year you can find pretty Christmas themes too.
White Christmas Cups
Ingredients:
2 cups rice bubbles
2 cups full cream powdered milk
1 cup desiccated coconut
1cup icing sugar
180g melted Copha
120g chopped glace cherries (use the mixed packet for colour)
200g block white chocolate, melted
Method:
Mix all the ingredients, except the white chocolate, together in a large bowl. Take teaspoonfuls and drop into mini foil chocolate cases. Set in fridge at least 30 minutes. Drizzle white chocolate over the top of each cup and put back into fridge to set.
Christmas Truffles
Ingredients:
1 heaped dessert spoon cocoa
180g copha, melted
1 egg, beaten
250g pure icing sugar
½ cup coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2 tablespoons rum essence
2 pkts chocolate slivers
Method:
Mix together dry ingredients. Melt copha, add vanilla essence. Add to dry ingredients and mix. Add beaten egg and mix well. Roll teaspoonfuls into balls and roll in chocolate slivers. Set in fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.
This week we will be eating:
Friday: Sausages and salad
Saturday: BBQ chops and salad
Sunday: Roast chicken, baked vegetables, cauliflower with cheese sauce, gravy
Monday: Corned beef, mash, cauliflower, peas, carrots, mustard sauce
Tuesday: Spaghetti bolognaise
Wednesday: Grilled chicken pieces, salad
Thursday: Rissoles, potato bake, broccoli, carrots
In the fruit bowl: mandarins, apples, bananas
In the cake tin: Cheese and chive muffins, pita chips, banana loaf
There are over 1,400 other great money saving meal ideas in the Recipe File
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy
We've come to the final topic of our series on saving extra money on the food budget. This week's topic is snacks. Snack foods seem to be everywhere don't they? You can buy them at the petrol station, department stores, discount stores, chemists, milk bars, schools, entertainment events as well as the supermarkets
Snacks look so good don't they? The packaging is brightly coloured to tempt you and catch your eye. We are bombarded with ads on TV and in magazines. At times it's hard to avoid them and can take a strong will to say no.
In the supermarket I have a strategy. If it's not on the list I don't buy it. If I can make it myself, I don't buy it. If it's overpriced, I don't buy it. If it's really unhealthy I don't buy it. If I can't afford it, I don't buy it. I have no trouble in saying no either to myself or my family members. No, I'm not mean. We have snacks, even the occasional store bought ones. We only have them as treats and they must be on a super duper special.
Chips are saved for birthdays or special occasions like a grand final day or Christmas Eve as we watch the Carols by Candlelight. Throughout the year we eat homemade pita chips instead and they are so yummy and quite healthy.
Lollies are rarely bought except for Christmas stockings.
I make all the biscuits my family eats. The only exception is chocolate coated biscuits or Lemon Crisp biscuits. I make lots of things but these types of biscuits are best left to the experts and saved as a treat.
We make popcorn ourselves for about 10 cents a serves and we pick what flavour (or not) to put on it.
When we go on a family outing, we take our own food and snacks. We might buy a small treat but it doesn't break the budget and we are not relying on the treat to fill us.
I hope this has given you some food for thought - literally!!! I hope this mini-series has given you the tools to cut your grocery budget without going hungry. I'd love to hear how you've cut unnecessary food items off your shopping list.
Have a great week and BE ENCOURAGED!!!!!
The $300 a Month Food Challenge
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?24-Take-up-the-challenge-!!!!
The Post that Started it All
http://www.cheapskates.com.au/pages/default.cfm?page_id=44265
7. Cheapskates Buzz
This week's hot forum topics
ALDI
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?2678-aldi&p=46181#post46181
SUPER CHEAP PRESENTS
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?1684-Super-cheap-presents
CABBAGE WHITE BUTTERFLY
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?2673-Cabbage-White-Butterfly
Most popular blog posts this week
AGE-OLD ADVICE FOR THE MODERN HOMEMAKER
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2013/07/age-old-advice-for-modern-homemaker.html
A HANDMADE CHRISTMAS: MAKE AHEAD EDIBLE GIFTS
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2013/07/a-handmade-christmas-make-ahead-edible.html
THE WORLD'S EASIEST AND YUMMIEST BROWNIES
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2011/04/worlds-easiest-and-yummiest-brownies.html
8. 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 Mumof2.
One Down, Three to Go!
I love paydays...so great when you see the debt decrease each fortnight...so happy though we have paid one bill off this week so only 3 more to go (includes HECS debt) already paid off 20% of our debt in last month so happy about that...feeling positive I know we will have another paid beginning of December but the next one is a little bigger and will take more time...especially if we do air conditioning...still waiting to hear from the landlord...hopefully they won't take long 38 here tomorrow.
Feeling exhausted today and was going to go through budget so that will just have to wait till tomorrow....so happy to finally get rid of one of them!!
Login to read more Cheapskates Club member blogs
9. Last Week's Question
Last week's question was from Susan who wrote
"Any suggestions for sprucing up the appearance of a faded concrete driveway without making it slippery? It's stamped concrete and used to be a terracotta colour. I know we could paint it but it's fairly steep and I'm concerned that paint would make it slippery when wet. Any ideas?"
Pam Strange answered
Berger make a Non Slip Paving Paint called Jet Dry. It conforms to the Australian Standard for Slip Resistance. It is oil based and suitable for driveways. Make sure you read all the instructions on the can prior to use.
Linda Saad answered
If you go to your nearest paint shop you can purchase a sand like substance which you sprinkle generously when you are applying the paint or sealant and that stops it from being slippery. I also worry about slipping so I got my husband to apply a lot and made sure we covered every inch and you won't have any problems and your driveway will look as good as new.
Les Ariansen answered
I found we had same problem with our porch. What I did was mix sand in the paint and it worked a treat even in the top clear coat. No slipping.
Do you have a question that needs an answer?
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Ask Your Question
10. This Week's Question
Matt writes
"As a family of six living in a country area, we're moving toward eating more fresh fruit, vegetables, and nuts, meat/eggs diet with no grains, sugar or processed food. We have a large veggie patch and chooks and are trying to find ways to keep our grocery bills down but we can't seem to spend less than $250 a week on groceries. We need some help - any ideas?"
Do you have the answer?
If you have a suggestion or idea for Matt 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
11. 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
12. 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!
13. 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.
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14. 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 - Learning to Cook is Easy, Moving House - Packing with the Linen Cupboard, Beautiful Bread with a Breadmaker
3. Submit Your Tip - You have to be in it to win it
4. Living Green in 2014 - How to Have a Green Christmas
5. On the Menu with Anne - Christmas Treats that make Great Gifts
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy - Snacks!
7. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
8. Member's Featured Blog - One Down, Three to Go!
9. Last Week's Question - Ideas needed for refreshing a driveway
10. This Week's Question - How can this family of six cut their grocery bill?
11. Join the Cheapskates Club
12. Gift Memberships
13. Frequently Asked Questions
14. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Welcome to another Bright ideas to save you money newsletter. I've had a wonderful week, pottering in my garden, spending time with my mother, tackling some chores around the house, working on the December Journal, putting this newsletter together and getting to spend the entire day with Wendy on Tuesday.
It was such a great day, with so much talking and laughing and sharing. Spending time with someone who understands how you think, who doesn't think you're "weird" or that your lifestyle is odd, who shares your enthusiasm for all things frugal and living the Cheapskates way is just wonderful. I came away (at 5pm!) so relaxed and refreshed that even the traffic on the freeway on the way home couldn't frazzle me!
Before I end for this week, I have some housekeeping to do. If you need to contact me please use the Contact Us form on the website. That form not only goes to my inbox but a copy is archived so I can find your email if for some reason the spam filter goes crazy and deletes it from the inbox. Please don't just reply to newsletters - I don't get them. Replies to newsletters (when you click on reply in your email account) are filtered off to a separate, unmonitored folder where they are scanned for spam and viruses and deleted. I don't see them so I don't get your message. The Contact Us form is the easiest way to do just that - contact us. But please remember, I'm just one person and while I do my best to get back to you quickly depending on what's going on it may take a few days.
Have a great week everyone, and remember: it's just six weeks until Christmas!
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
Learning to Cook is Easy
Forget buying magazines/books when wanting to learn how to cook or wanting to get some new recipes. Just go to You Tube and type in "cooking". You can watch some amazing tutorials which means you can hit the pause button once you have all your ingredients and do it at your own pace. This not only gives you confidence to cook more at home, but can you show how to cook what is even considered a takeaway food!
Contributed by Domenica Corrone
Moving House - Packing with the Linen Cupboard
My partner and I are moving house, and as dedicated Cheapskaters, we don't want to spend any (or as little as possible) money on preparing to move. We have used the tried and true method of collecting free boxes from grocers, fruit shop and supermarket. We were thinking about the disadvantages of wrapping our breakables in newspaper - print rubs off, need to wash everything when we unpack it, no stash of old newspapers handy. And we decided we'd save money, time and energy by wrapping our breakables in the contents of our linen closet. Our pots and pans, and large crockery we wrapped in towels. We wrapped glasses, mugs, bowls, photo frames and breakable knick knacks in our abundant supply of tea towels, and face washers. I keep my old towels (I have pets) and so we had an abundance of towels, as well as lots face-washers we purchased for our baby (flannels used for nappy changes). Towels can accommodate a few medium or small sized pots and pans or pot lids, face-washers are a great fit for single mugs or glasses, tea towels can be used for either, and a range of other crockery or knick knacks. It will save us washing our pots and pans when we unpack. We also anticipate we won't need to wash our old towels, tea-towels and face-washers as well. Its fantastic insulation, better than paper and costs us nothing. We haven't needed to, but if we ran out of towels, tea-towels and face-washers, we could continue wrapping in sheets. This also saves us in terms of the number of boxes we load into the removal van because linen is not boxed separately. So this is an additional saving from the removalist in terms of number of boxes or time spent packing and unpacking the van.
Contributed by Vanessa Hallum
Beautiful Bread with a Breadmaker
Approximate $ Savings: $500+ per year
In 1995, a loaf of bread was $2.50, and because of the ridiculously high price of a loaf bought my first breadmaker, the price of a Rye loaf in the supermarket this week was $3.75. Although bread can be made in the oven of course, over many years I believe it is cheaper to use a breadmaker, as you can also make wonderful pizza dough, and you can go to bed and the loaf will be ready the next morning, no need to wait up to turn the oven off (handy if you work). Bread mix is very cheap and a loaf of beautiful rye bread can be made for around $1, I can't quantify the amount of electricity, however it is still a wonderful saving. I have noticed breadmakers are available from the Salvos or St Vinnies second-hand very cheaply, and all recipes are online. It is truly worthwhile thinking about seriously, not to mention the satisfaction. I have now been through four breadmakers of different brands, and they all worked very well, lasting approximately five years each. A small proviso: in the beginning, you will need to tweak your mix to suit yourself. My first few were either not risen at all or too high, but keep at it, if you buy bread mix in bulk you can still afford to perfect your mix at a small cost. Perfect loaves are possible after a few tries.
Contributed by Janet Roberts
There are more than 11,000 great tips in the Tip Store
3. 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
4. Living Green in 2014
How to Have a Green Christmas
It's just six weeks until Christmas! You can help the environment have a Merry Christmas this year, too. With a few thoughtful, green steps, you can have a delightful Christmas and rest easy knowing you did your part to help save the earth’s resources.
If you’ve always purchased a live tree every year, you can still get a live tree and stay true to your green way of living. Just don’t buy a tree that’s been cut at all. Instead, pick out a tree with the roots still hanging on.
You’ll find trees like this with the roots wrapped carefully to preserve them or you’ll find them in a large container. They’ll be just a bit heavier, so watch your back when you lift them. Once the celebration is over, you can make the tree part of your landscaping. If that’s not an option for you, then look to buy a tree that's organically grown. You can find tree sellers that don’t promote the use of pesticides on their trees.
When you get the tree home and it’s time to put the lights on, decorate the tree with the LED lights that are now available. You can’t tell the difference in LED lights from traditional lights as far as looks go yet they are helping to conserve the earth’s energy by saving power. Use recycled ornaments on the tree. The kids can get involved by making ornaments out of objects you have around the house.
When it’s time to start on your Christmas list, for the items you do have to buy, make you carry the reusable shopping bags along and leave the plastic ones at the store. Make sure you buy gifts that don’t require extra accessories to be used.
For wrapping the gifts you did buy, don’t use retail purchased paper. Make your own paper instead. You can use the pages from last year’s calendar, brown paper bags decorated with cut out designs or you can use the colourful newspaper inserts. You can also skip paper wrapping altogether and wrap your Christmas gifts with fabric you’ve sewn together. Tie the top with a string of jute and a sprig of holly.
Not every gift has to be store bought. Some of the best gifts are homemade. Breads, jellies, crocheted blankets and hand knitted sweaters all make great gifts without contributing to landfill waste.
Even better than some homemade gifts are regifted ones. If you have a gift you didn’t want or can’t use, wrap it and pass it to someone who will use it and let it be known that you’d like regifted presents as well.
Forget the plastic dishes and utensils at parties and use real dishes instead. When it’s time to dine, light candles and turn off the electricity for an even better green Christmas. And go ahead and enjoy your outside Christmas displays, but be sure and use a timer that will turn the lights off at a prearranged time.
5. On the Menu with Anne
Christmas Treats that make Great Gifts
Here are two yummy treats that make great edible Christmas gifts. They both go really well in hampers or on their own on a pretty plate or in a box and wrapped with cellophane. You can buy the mini chocolate papers from department stores, supermarkets and specialty kitchen shops, but they'll be cheaper at the department store or supermarket. And at this time of year you can find pretty Christmas themes too.
White Christmas Cups
Ingredients:
2 cups rice bubbles
2 cups full cream powdered milk
1 cup desiccated coconut
1cup icing sugar
180g melted Copha
120g chopped glace cherries (use the mixed packet for colour)
200g block white chocolate, melted
Method:
Mix all the ingredients, except the white chocolate, together in a large bowl. Take teaspoonfuls and drop into mini foil chocolate cases. Set in fridge at least 30 minutes. Drizzle white chocolate over the top of each cup and put back into fridge to set.
Christmas Truffles
Ingredients:
1 heaped dessert spoon cocoa
180g copha, melted
1 egg, beaten
250g pure icing sugar
½ cup coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2 tablespoons rum essence
2 pkts chocolate slivers
Method:
Mix together dry ingredients. Melt copha, add vanilla essence. Add to dry ingredients and mix. Add beaten egg and mix well. Roll teaspoonfuls into balls and roll in chocolate slivers. Set in fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.
This week we will be eating:
Friday: Sausages and salad
Saturday: BBQ chops and salad
Sunday: Roast chicken, baked vegetables, cauliflower with cheese sauce, gravy
Monday: Corned beef, mash, cauliflower, peas, carrots, mustard sauce
Tuesday: Spaghetti bolognaise
Wednesday: Grilled chicken pieces, salad
Thursday: Rissoles, potato bake, broccoli, carrots
In the fruit bowl: mandarins, apples, bananas
In the cake tin: Cheese and chive muffins, pita chips, banana loaf
There are over 1,400 other great money saving meal ideas in the Recipe File
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge with Wendy
We've come to the final topic of our series on saving extra money on the food budget. This week's topic is snacks. Snack foods seem to be everywhere don't they? You can buy them at the petrol station, department stores, discount stores, chemists, milk bars, schools, entertainment events as well as the supermarkets
Snacks look so good don't they? The packaging is brightly coloured to tempt you and catch your eye. We are bombarded with ads on TV and in magazines. At times it's hard to avoid them and can take a strong will to say no.
In the supermarket I have a strategy. If it's not on the list I don't buy it. If I can make it myself, I don't buy it. If it's overpriced, I don't buy it. If it's really unhealthy I don't buy it. If I can't afford it, I don't buy it. I have no trouble in saying no either to myself or my family members. No, I'm not mean. We have snacks, even the occasional store bought ones. We only have them as treats and they must be on a super duper special.
Chips are saved for birthdays or special occasions like a grand final day or Christmas Eve as we watch the Carols by Candlelight. Throughout the year we eat homemade pita chips instead and they are so yummy and quite healthy.
Lollies are rarely bought except for Christmas stockings.
I make all the biscuits my family eats. The only exception is chocolate coated biscuits or Lemon Crisp biscuits. I make lots of things but these types of biscuits are best left to the experts and saved as a treat.
We make popcorn ourselves for about 10 cents a serves and we pick what flavour (or not) to put on it.
When we go on a family outing, we take our own food and snacks. We might buy a small treat but it doesn't break the budget and we are not relying on the treat to fill us.
I hope this has given you some food for thought - literally!!! I hope this mini-series has given you the tools to cut your grocery budget without going hungry. I'd love to hear how you've cut unnecessary food items off your shopping list.
Have a great week and BE ENCOURAGED!!!!!
The $300 a Month Food Challenge
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?24-Take-up-the-challenge-!!!!
The Post that Started it All
http://www.cheapskates.com.au/pages/default.cfm?page_id=44265
7. Cheapskates Buzz
This week's hot forum topics
ALDI
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?2678-aldi&p=46181#post46181
SUPER CHEAP PRESENTS
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?1684-Super-cheap-presents
CABBAGE WHITE BUTTERFLY
http://www.cheapskatesclub.com.au/memberforum/showthread.php?2673-Cabbage-White-Butterfly
Most popular blog posts this week
AGE-OLD ADVICE FOR THE MODERN HOMEMAKER
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2013/07/age-old-advice-for-modern-homemaker.html
A HANDMADE CHRISTMAS: MAKE AHEAD EDIBLE GIFTS
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2013/07/a-handmade-christmas-make-ahead-edible.html
THE WORLD'S EASIEST AND YUMMIEST BROWNIES
http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au/2011/04/worlds-easiest-and-yummiest-brownies.html
8. 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 Mumof2.
One Down, Three to Go!
I love paydays...so great when you see the debt decrease each fortnight...so happy though we have paid one bill off this week so only 3 more to go (includes HECS debt) already paid off 20% of our debt in last month so happy about that...feeling positive I know we will have another paid beginning of December but the next one is a little bigger and will take more time...especially if we do air conditioning...still waiting to hear from the landlord...hopefully they won't take long 38 here tomorrow.
Feeling exhausted today and was going to go through budget so that will just have to wait till tomorrow....so happy to finally get rid of one of them!!
Login to read more Cheapskates Club member blogs
9. Last Week's Question
Last week's question was from Susan who wrote
"Any suggestions for sprucing up the appearance of a faded concrete driveway without making it slippery? It's stamped concrete and used to be a terracotta colour. I know we could paint it but it's fairly steep and I'm concerned that paint would make it slippery when wet. Any ideas?"
Pam Strange answered
Berger make a Non Slip Paving Paint called Jet Dry. It conforms to the Australian Standard for Slip Resistance. It is oil based and suitable for driveways. Make sure you read all the instructions on the can prior to use.
Linda Saad answered
If you go to your nearest paint shop you can purchase a sand like substance which you sprinkle generously when you are applying the paint or sealant and that stops it from being slippery. I also worry about slipping so I got my husband to apply a lot and made sure we covered every inch and you won't have any problems and your driveway will look as good as new.
Les Ariansen answered
I found we had same problem with our porch. What I did was mix sand in the paint and it worked a treat even in the top clear coat. No slipping.
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10. This Week's Question
Matt writes
"As a family of six living in a country area, we're moving toward eating more fresh fruit, vegetables, and nuts, meat/eggs diet with no grains, sugar or processed food. We have a large veggie patch and chooks and are trying to find ways to keep our grocery bills down but we can't seem to spend less than $250 a week on groceries. We need some help - any ideas?"
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