This week’s blog of the week is from Intentionally Frugal who ponders the need for going to the shops at all.
A bit drastic or a brilliant bit of frugal planning we wonder..?
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If I don’t go into the shop…
…then I can’t spend the money, right?
I seem to have discovered a law of nature, something akin to the law of gravity. Ready? Here it is;
It is actually impossible to go into a shop for milk, and to come out with ONLY milk.
Maybe it’s just me, but whenever I pop into a shop, usually on my way home from work, to get the one item we are running out of (usually milk, but sometimes bread, sometimes loo roll, and more often than you would think, nail polish remover – I have a teenage daughter, remember) I never, ever leave the store with less than a bag full of other stuff. It’s almost always useful stuff, like reduced price fruit or veg, cheese on special offer, ice cream on sale, etc – but it’s stuff that I DID NOT intend to buy!
So here is my solution to this money draining law of nature;
Don’t go in the shop in the first place!
Not exactly rocket science, right? All I have to do is make sure that I plan ahead, and don’t run out of things like milk every other day. Hmm. Simple… Isn’t it??? I don’t usually go in for making New Year resolutions, but that sounds like a good one.
I went to Asda yesterday to do my monthly big shop, and I really went all out to stock up. I thought through the next few days, checked my cupboards, fridge and freezer, and hopefully I have enough of all the staples to last a good long while. My aim is to make it through to the weekend without spending a penny. I’m just one day in, but so far so good!
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Do you have any frugal tips for the new year? Be sure to let us know them or pop over to Frugal Living page on Netmums to find out lots more great budgeting tips.
Good Luck! I always go for the milk, come out with loads of other items (some that are in the cupboards!) and forget the milk! I have never done a monthly shop!? I always do weekly…can you give tips on monthly shops?! best buys etc?
i have have decided to do the same, i would go in the shop for milk and bread and come out with a dvd for the kids, ready made lasagna, bacon, sausages (that i already have in the freezer just not defrosted). i have bought a sencondhand freezer so i have pleanty of space and i can buy my meat in one big go at the market and freeze it i buy pleanty of bread and do the same, i buy the rest from aldi the only thing i need to got to the shop for is milk so i go to the corner shop beacuse they have nothing else i would buy. i also draw out just £20 a week cash to buy petrol and the milk so im not tempted to wip out my bank card and spend too much
hopefully it will work
Where I live we’re lucky to have Asda, tesco, morrisons, sainsburys, aldi, Iceland all within a few miles of each other. So I go to asda monthly for the brand names like Nescafé coffee, then I do my weekly shop in aldi as their 39p/69p veg deals are brill and their fruit/veg best quality and prices. Nip into morrisons/tescos/sainsburys occasionally just to stock up on bogofs, half price deals and Iceland for the frozen staples chips/veg. I found my shopping cheaper than just going to the local big name every wk and I threw out alot less food
get your mlik from the mlikman! it many not appear to be cheaper initially, BUT it will stop all these quick and expensive trips to the shops inbetween. I
This is something I already practise – because I always come out having spent £20-30 and it usually includes wine! There’s always stuff on offer and stuff I’d forgotten we needed ,,. It’s easier not to go and shop on line and go without – even without wine
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I used to monthly shop….. This was my down fall! I found that the popping to the shop for the ‘essentials’ had us coming out spending on average £25 on stuff we didn’t need! By changing to weekly shopping I don’t need to pop out for stuff and I reckon I have reduced the spend by over £200………………….