Update And General Musings... I Think That's The Right Word?

A little update on the washing soap - 30 drops of Peppermint has worked much better for us and we get a hint of scent with the clean clothes :o)

Speaking of clothes, I don't think I've bought any new clothes this year at all - other than the warm gear for Sweden. That really surprises me as I used to buy waaaay too many new items, just because I liked them and not because I needed them. And of course, every item was cheap and a bargain, but still, I DID NOT NEED THEM. Once I realised this, I was able to stop buying new clothes. I'm working my way through the ones I already have. When something gets to the point of being totally unwearable and unfixable anymore I will just move onto other items that I already have and which will serve as a substitute.

I spend most of these cold days at home wearing comfy clothes, so I have 2 pairs of tracksuit bottoms, 2 pairs of velour-type trousers, 2 black fleece trousers and 1 pair of fleece skull and crossbones trousers. Even if I could no longer wear 2 of these trousers, I would still have 5 pairs which would last about 10 home days without washing - more days if I only wear them a few hours if I have a late shower and spend the morning in my jammies. If I go out into town, to see a friend etc I will usually wear a pair of skinny jeans of which I have 4 pairs (have been after a plain black pair for ages but can't find any that both fit nicely and are a decent price). I have a purple pair, grey and black leopard print, black and grey checked and a purpley-blue with a subtle black lace print. They look better than I can describe them lol! But again if I can no longer wear 1 or 2 pairs, I still have 2 or 3 left for going out, and I don't go out very often so... But even then I don't *have* to wear jeans; I have skirts and a couple of other trousers or jeans which I don't wear very often and leggings too. so even if ALL my jeans were to magically (and tragically, as I do love them!) disappear from my life, I would still have other clothes to wear in public. I have t-shirts by the tonne, so if one gets too shabby it's no big loss. I have a few dresses which I wear when going out-out and I don't mind wearing them time and time again, if my girlfriends don't like it - tough! Lol. But I'm sure they must know I'm a skinflint by now lol :-p I expect I'm the only person they know who only takes £10 on a night out and expects to come home with change! And to be proud of it too! Hehe :-p

The only thing I can see me buying in the next 6-12 months are bras because they're getting a little tatty. One is tearing apart and one has a hole in ont of the cups. Quite a few are starting to dig in with the underwires which isn't very comfortable! Also one has a bent underwire somehow which isn't pleasant either! Bras are the new shoes for me - when I was a kid it was a HUGE hassle finding me new school shoes. I have wide feet and a stubborn and fussy nature lol. I so feel sorry for my Mum, bless her, she must have despaired every time my feet grew! And now, it's bras. I can never find them to fit properly and at a decent price too. I managed to find some amazing ones from BHS a few years ago and loved them so much I would buy one whenever they had a sale and had some in my size. Sadly I don't recall seeing them in there anymore and the ones that I'm guessing replaced them aren't as good. I have a few, but I rarely wear them due to them being uncomfortable and they end up rubbing and digging in to my skin after a while :o( Oh well. I just need to sew up the centre strap on one of the good ones so it lasts a bit longer :oD I really don't wanna have to go bra shopping!!!! *Insert shocked, scared and traumatised face here*

Hmmm... What have I been buying lately? Did I tell you about my "new" Pyrex dish? No, I don't believe I did! Well, I went to my favourite charity shop the other week and saw a retro Pyrex casserole dish for £2. It's similar to the one below and has that design which I discovered is called Matchmaker.

Then the last trip I went into town I saw a couple of bowls which I just had to buy. One was a creamy colour with a brown retro pattern and is to replace one of the chipped cereal/pudding bowls. It was 20p too so I definitely couldn't leave it behind! The other was a bit of a naughty purchase as it was 50p and wasn't really needed. It's a small bowl and would be great for a dip or to put in carrot sticks or a handful of nuts or dried fruit as a snack. What really won me over was the colour. It was a purpley colour with black marbled type effect. If I remember to, I will take pics of these bowls so you can see them :oD I'm especially proud of the first one. Not only was it needed to replace a chipped bowl (them along with glasses get broken all the time in our house!) but it was only 20p and it was retro style :oD And of course, all the money went to charity which makes it a sweeter pill to swallow when spending money!

Ooh ooh! Guess what I did the other night? I actually made the first crochet square from the partworks magazines I get!! I know, I know, about bloody time right?! I was very proud of it too lol :oD I'll have to take a piccie of that as well... Ooh ooh! And I was a busy girl yesterday! I finally turned my Poundland tea towels into napkins!! YEY!!! We now have about 20 napkins which have been kind of neatly sewn up using my sewing machine which I realised I have had for about 10 years now! Think I got it for my 21st birthday and I turned 32 last month. Lol, I had to work that out - wasn't sure if I was 31 or 32 now!!! Oops! But yes, we have about 20 napkins all ready to be used and about 4 which have been washed prior to sewing up - not a good idea as they frayed - oops! Ah well. So we have 24 napkins, made from 12 tea towels which came in packs of 2 and were 3 packs for the price of 2. So 24 napkins - £4. Not bad even if I do say so myself :oD Definitely beats the 6 I bought at Christmas, from Poundland again but were actual napkins, packs of 2 which made them £3 for 6! If I were to buy 12 packs to equal the 24 I made, I'd have to spend £12!!!! A huuuuge difference to the £4 I did spend!

What else have I been doing? Ooh I started another cross stitch kit the other day - for myself, not a magazine for a change. I finished this one first:

Please excuse the pattern coming through from the bag underneath lol! Something else I think I got as a gift for my 21st birthday lol! Only taken me 11 years to complete!!! And now I have started this....

And a frugal tale? I bought this about 10 years ago from Trago Mills down Plymouth way. The price sticker says £17.50. The price online now? Around £45!!!!!! Yikes!!!! I don't think I'd ever pay that much for a cross stitch kit! It would have to be something extra special for sure! At the moment, I'm doing the white bit in the middle. I got so excited today as I got to add a little pale blue lol!!! It's quite a challenge as there are lots of whites and pale greys so far, and it's on evenweave which makes it more challenging! Give me aida any day!! But yes, a past time using stuff you have already accumulated instead of buying more! Love it! And because evenweave likes to fray, I decided to whizz round it with the sewing machine which led to me thinking I might as well finish off the napkins :o) something else I can tick off my to-do list :oD I'm hoping to get another project from the magazine folk tomorrow - she sent it today so fingers crossed there isn't a backlog at Royal Mail. I love receiving them in the post, opening it up and seeing what stitching I'll be doing :oD hehe.

Well, thank you for reading down to the bottom. I would love to know what amazing finds you've found at charity shops lately and what cross stitch project you're doing. Are you also doing the crochet or quilting blankets from the Hachette Partworks series? How are you finding it? Are you a model stitcher for magazines too? I would love to hear from you :o)

Hugs xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

On Using Homemade Washing Soap

Sorry I've been M.I.A. for a while. Sadly I've also not been quite as frugal as I had been previously either. Not spending a lot but still spending - some of it unnecessarily so.

I just wanted to let you know that we tried out the homemade soap for washing clothes, using the recipe I put up on here. I believe it was Frugal Tip #25. We've run out so we're gunna make another batch :o) Altho, this time we will add more than 20 drops of Peppermint Oil as we found it didn't give much of a smell. So maybe 30 drops this time. It could be different with other scents so always worth playing around with it. Oh, and it is also worth noting, that it is best to put the concoction on top of the clothes, near the back of the drum. A couple of times, we found undissolved soap caught between the window and the rubber seal...

Hope everyone is well and not spending beyond their means. I will try and write a bit more frequently... Fingers crossed!

Hugs to all xx

10 Countries

I'm really happy to announce that I have had page views from 10 different countries!! :oD

United Kingdom
United States
Germany
Ireland
Moldova
Australia
Brazil
France
Kazakhstan
Malaysia

I would love to have the whole world covered in green and would really appreciate it if you would say hi and tell me where you're from :o)

Hugs xx

My Free Night Out

Went out last night and spent a grand total of: £0!! Yep, didn't spend a penny :oD Here's how I managed it...

Went to a nightclub with free entry.
Didn't get suckered into buying 5 drinks vouchers for £10.
.... I was hoping to use old vouchers that I had left over from previous nights but saw they were a different colour so was unsure whether I could... BUT...
I found a voucher on the floor when my friend put her coat in the cloakroom :oD Freebie drink number 1!
I didn't bring a coat so saved £1.50 :oD
On the way to the loos I spotted another voucher on the floor! Freebie drink number 2!
A bit later on I found yet another voucher on the floor!!! Freebie drink number 3!!!
In between these drinks I had some well needed tap water from the bar - for free.
Afterwards, I didn't buy any chips or a kebab altho I did pinch a few of my friends chips :-p
We decided to leave early which was fine by me, especially this morning my body is thanking me for it as it doesn't ache as much as usual lol :-p

So, a free night out and free exercise :oD love it!!! Had a great time, didn't get wasted and didn't come home skint :-p I did borrow £10 from Mike just in case they wouldn't accept the old vouchers but I can give that money straight back to him which is brilliant :o) OH!! And bless him, he kindly played taxi for me so I didn't even have to walk or pay extortionate taxi fares :oD

Frugal tip: Besides the ones I mentioned in another post re clubbing? Keep your eyes peeled on the floor in clubs for vouchers and money. Especially as people get more and more drunk and unaware of whether they drop anything when paying for their drinks.

Noisy Neighbours Rant

I am so fed up with my neighbours being total inconsiderate you-know-whats. For several years now we have had to put up with their loud bass music, the smell of weed and barbecue smoke coming into our garden when we have washing on the line. They just don't seem to care about anyone but themselves. Thoughts of suicide come to mind but more often then not it's of homicide and long, painful torture of the self-centered audio space invaders. I just don't understand how some people can be so uncaring and inconsiderate of other people. Why are they like it? Bad parenting? Were they ok before they started smoking weed? Is there an arsehole chromosome yet to be discovered? It's no wonder I long to live in a remote location with no neighbours when I'm subjected to this all too often. It really puts a dampener on the idea of meeting new people and making new friends. I sooo wish I could move, I really hate it here. Another planet would be ideal but I'll settle for nearby just as long as there are decent people around. 

All I want is to be able to live peacefully in my own home without other people ruining it. Is that really too much to ask for???

Spend Month

Yep, my no spend month turned into a spend month and we're only 5 days in. I bought:

Pegs for 74p from Wilkinson's and;

Hairpins for £1.79 from Superdrug.

Both needed items so I don't feel so bad for spending this month after all. And as I was in town I had a nice chat to lovely guy from Greenpeace who also had dreads and his glasses only had one arm! He did want me to part with £8 a month so of course I declined but it was nice to sneakily admire his (much more formed than mine) dreads as we chatted about the Arctic region and fracking.

Got some free exercise as I walked into town and back but oh boy am I suffering for it already! It was a lovely day though :o) and I even managed to get 3 loads of washing done and out on the line :o) yey!

Also got a compliment on my bridge piercing which was nice too :o) I can't wait for my dreads to lock up more and be more tidy so hopefully I will get some compliments on them too!

I am currently stuffed with homemade chick pea curry - found the recipe online when I Googled for cheap recipes and thought I would give it a go :o) it was ok, Mike thoroughly enjoyed it, Ayse didn't like it and I was impartial to it but wouldn't rush to make it again. I do like the fact that it was cheap and all we had to buy was 2 tins of:

and a pack of:

Anyone got any cheap recipes, which you love, for me to try out?

Hugs to all xx

No More Ebay!!!

After having such a terrible experience with a seller on ebay I have decided to never use the site again.

I bought 3 thermal vests from a seller called ecksbiz (trading under Sockco) and as you can see they have loads of negative feedback but the good outweighed the bad so I thought it would be ok. But no. They sent 2 correct vests and one pair of thermal leggings instead. Finally they replied to my emails and I had to send it back with a note quoting what they told me to say which included that they would pay return p&p costs. After all it was their mistake not mine. I am now £2.05 out of pocket as they refuse to even acknowledge that they received the item! Thankfully I returned it using Royal Mail Recorded delivery so I have proof that it was received so I was (finally) able to get the product cost and initial p&p for the item refunded through Ebay themselves. Ebay don't want to help me further so I am in contact with the CAB for advice. It's only £2.05 but it's the principle of the matter and I don't like to be lied to or conned. The seller has until Friday to refund before I take the matter further. I have left them negative feedback which I hope will spur them to pay me back although I don't hold out much hope for an email response let alone payment or an actual apology!

In future I will probably just buy from the high street, even if it costs me more it will be money worth spending if I know I can return it easily or get help should I need it. I refuse to line the pockets of shady sellers who don't give a fig for their customers.

I really really don't like Ebay right now. Good bye Ebay = Good bye stress!

Hugs xx