Cost of living moan & WWYD if your outgoings exceeded your income?

[Queenie]

[Dr Spouse]

And I was offended by Queenie saying that if they couldn't sell the lobster they'd have to eat it :notatalloffendedsmilie:

[Jelly]

If anyone is thinking of using MusicMagipe to sell things, you get money back if you go through Quidco. I got an extra £4.43 on top of what they paid me

[HurdyGurdy]

And I was offended by Queenie saying that if they couldn't sell the lobster they'd have to eat it :notatalloffendedsmilie:

I did give a wry grin when reading that if times got really bad, they'd be reduced to eating lobster

queenie - hope that doesn't offend. I *totally* got what you were saying.

[frog]

We were in this position a few years ago- I wasn't working and DH got a few weeks' notice of losing his overtime, shift pay and allowances in one feel swoop so his wage halved. It was pretty scary to say the least. We had a few grand on credit cards because we'd just done the kitchen and our mortgage company refused to take them on because the company DH worked for publicised the fact it had cash flow problems and might not be able to pay the wages Enormous hugs to everyone in tight times, it's a seriously crappy place to be

We did most of the things on here- got rid of Sky and fancy mobiles, changed electricity supplier etc. We've only just had an Aldi open down here and I'm sure that would've helped enormously but I found doing online shopping with Asda was amazing- saved a blooming fortune as it removes those 'extras' that slide into your trolley and you can see how much it will be before you checkout so you can constantly monitor where you're up to. I think more people do food shopping online now so it's not really news! To start with I was a bit about using Asda (yes I know, I know) but I still use them now as I've found they're better than the other delivering supermarkets in this area

WRT luxuries, we used to love takeaways and as someone has already said life can be pretty darned joyless when you're skint so I scrounged a curry recipe book and made our own. Seriously- skint or not- this is definitely worth doing- homemade curries are less fatty, tastier and obviously a fraction of the cost. Alcohol is harder, we had to cut it out entirely save the very occasional bottle of cheap cider (teenage years all over ).

Sorry that's all waffly, I hope it's not completely pointless.

[bluekat]

About beans. I switched to Branston ones because they were £1 for a pack of 4 tins as opposed to the £2.50 or whatever for Heinz. I now cannot eat Heinz beans as they taste really synthetic compared to the lovely Branstons.

I didn't think I'd ever switch from Heinz, but the Branstons are definitely superior IMO.

[Chell]

About beans. I switched to Branston ones because they were £1 for a pack of 4 tins as opposed to the £2.50 or whatever for Heinz. I now cannot eat Heinz beans as they taste really synthetic compared to the lovely Branstons.

I didn't think I'd ever switch from Heinz, but the Branstons are definitely superior IMO.

I stock pile these beans when they are offer for £1. I once had 28 cans in the cupboard.

I don't tend to buy whats on offer unless it is something I really need. Branston beans are on offer so often that I totally grudge the full price.

[bluekat]

I stock pile these beans when they are offer for £1. I once had 28 cans in the cupboard.

.

Same, but I'm down to my last 7 cans just now (not a lot in the BK household) so getting twitchy

[mrsdunny207]

We love Branston beans too and I can't eat Heinz beans now either - I also like Branston ketchup

[cheeky_biscuit]

We're branston beans fans - they have them in poundstretcher type shops for £1 so we stock up too.
Other scrimping here is mixing basic museli 2 parts to 1 part fruit museli in a tuppaware and basic washing powder Half & half with fairy/persil/brand on offer.
Oh and when i ordered the name tags I ordered the name "DD1 DD2 Biscuit" so they'll both use them and if anything gets lost we'll get it back.