The Frugality Thread

[cyberknight]

My daughter is just getting into 'Vinted' for selling her old clothes. Generally lists quite cheap, and the buyer pays for the postage slip, seller prints and pops it into an Evri collection point.

Be pointless me selling old clothes, they are usually worn to distruction, or covered in oil/chain ring marks. Old T-shirts become chain rags.

indeed seems like it only worth it if you have nearly new fashion stuff to flog, of course if your being frugal you wouldnt have bought that stuff in the 1st place

 

[winjim]

We've been selling the kids' old clothes via vinted and it's working out alright. A fiver here, a fiver there, it's been adding up. The second hand Scandi clothes market isn't what it was a few years ago unfortunately but most of our stuff was bought used in the first place so NBD. Sold off the reusable nappies as well which were a great investment and saw us through both children.

 

[BoldonLad]

nowt is ever even remotely free, even as a fond illusion, with Thames Water.
(except free running water - leaks - down the road.

True, that is why I put Free in quotes.

 

[oldwheels]

I love beansprouts, but unless you buy frozen, they're the sort of thing that you have to use up within a day or two of purchase. So I don't buy them terribly often.

Otherwise, I've just fried a 500g pack of organic beef mince bought on YS the other day for £1.14 - will use half to make a cottage pie tomorrow along with onion, carrot, celery and green lentils, and the other half will get used to make a chilli after the weekend, with black beans, extra veg and a sauce from home grown tomatoes.

You can buy the beans and sprout them yourself. Not difficult as we used to do it regularly but I have not thought about it for a long time till you mentioned it.
Probably get instructions on line somewhere so must give it a try again. Can do any amount required and time the crop to suit.

 

[Fab Foodie]

I think somewhere on Foxes Afloat (two gay chaps cruising the UK on a narrowboat - search Youtube) the chubbier of the pair swears by a similar device - maybe the very same - there is even I think an episode dedicated to demonstrating it - let me know if you should find it.

edit - this may be the episode.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8Yn-UvzmEQ


same as yours?

may take another look at myself.

Exactly the same :-)

 

[Fab Foodie]

Another low cost cooker that's amazingly versatile and cheap to run is the Remoska:

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/brands/r...Ul-lUM9OHCiAKXU0uK4aAqNcEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[slowmotion]

It was like that initially, but has moved forward considerably since the "Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland)" Bill came into play fully in August this year. See https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-51629880 .

Yes, they have been available in schools, colleges, Universities and public buildings for a while. But the list is expanding - Libraries, sports centres, food banks, community larders, and all sorts of community organisations. Most councils also do a "mail order" service as well, where you can get a 3 month supply. "Freely available to all. Not means tested."

I have a personal interest - a family member was part of the service delivery team that set up this initiative.

Have you got round to giving blokes razors and shaving foam yet?

 

[slowmotion]

The shave is much better. You need to allow time for multiple passes, I use three, and have a very light hand. It does take some getting used to and I'm not gonna say you won't nick yourself in the beginning, but once you get the technique down it'll give you as smooth a shave as you could want.

Do replace your blades regularly and try a few different brands out though, some people find that certain types nick and pull a bit on their faces, it can be a bit personal. A good brush and plenty of prep with a decent soap helps as well.

There are whole forums and YouTube channels dedicated to this if you want to take a deep dive...

I have a friend in Herefordshire who keeps his razor blade under a glass pyramid and swears it never needs replacing. He says it's something to do with living on a ley line.

 

[Reynard]

The ASDA in Bolton used to do some really odd yellow sticker stuff many years ago. Very often included non food items.

I remember getting a telephone call from my then girlfriend, now my wife, to say they had a Sony midi system for £20 and did I want one. She'd bought the exact same thing a year before for £199.

I've picked up crockery, art materials and even a George Foreman grilly thing for £10 on yellow sticker in Tesco.

Wilko also has good clearance bargains - recently acquired a pair of insulated metal water bottles for £2 a pop.

 

[winjim]

I have a friend in Herefordshire who keeps his razor blade under a glass pyramid and swears it never needs replacing. He says it's something to do with living on a ley line.

I've tried various blade and soap combinations and found that some of them definitely seem to cut and/or irritate my skin more than others. Now there may or may not be any scientific basis for that observation, but in this case I'm prepared to sacrifice notions of objectivity in favour of doing what makes me feel good, and confident, and sets me up for the day. I get precious little time to myself so that little half hour in the morning is mine for a brief respite and period of self care.

 

[winjim]

Before, during and after, about a ten minute job. Leg meat in the freezer, crown to roast tonight, remainder going in the pressure cooker for stock. Easy peasy.

 

[Reynard]

I remember doing that to a turkey early doors on Christmas morning... I'd bought it on YS the night before, but to my dismay, the only way I was going to get it into the freezer was to de-bone it...

Had a gammon that year, and threw the turkey bones into the stock left from the gammon, and let that simmer for a bit. Made the best soup... EVER.

 

[winjim]

I remember doing that to a turkey early doors on Christmas morning... I'd bought it on YS the night before, but to my dismay, the only way I was going to get it into the freezer was to de-bone it...

Had a gammon that year, and threw the turkey bones into the stock left from the gammon, and let that simmer for a bit. Made the best soup... EVER.

Honestly when I figured out how to do it, it was transformative. It enables us to buy a higher welfare bird, which has more and better meat on it anyway, in the knowledge that none of it will go to waste. Roast dinner tonight then the rest of the roast crown in a pie tomorrow with maybe enough left over for a chicken salad. Then we've got the leg meat in the freezer which will probably go in a curry. There' no need to buy chicken in parts which is more expensive overall, when you can just do it yourself.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

Before, during and after, about a ten minute job. Leg meat in the freezer, crown to roast tonight, remainder going in the pressure cooker for stock. Easy peasy.

View attachment 662301

View attachment 662302

View attachment 662305

Nice chopping board! I like a splash of colour in the kitchen.

 

[Reynard]

Honestly when I figured out how to do it, it was transformative. It enables us to buy a higher welfare bird, which has more and better meat on it anyway, in the knowledge that none of it will go to waste. Roast dinner tonight then the rest of the roast crown in a pie tomorrow with maybe enough left over for a chicken salad. Then we've got the leg meat in the freezer which will probably go in a curry. There' no need to buy chicken in parts which is more expensive overall, when you can just do it yourself.

It's one of those "lost" kitchen skills that every housewife would've known how to do back in the day, but now so much comes packaged and oven ready, that there seems to be no need. And then there's the "squick factor" for some people too... As a country girl with a mate who goes shooting, I'm used to handling rabbit and pheasant that way. Really, it's just a matter of knowing where to stick the knife in - not just to take the meat off, but to "pop" the joints free.

I'm another one who tends to prefer the higher welfare birds - they taste so much nicer too. But while I will occasionally buy them full price, I much prefer to snap them up on yellow sticker.