How we survived the weekend.

Well here I am on Monday afternoon; six days in to the frugal February (#frugalfeb for all you Twitterers) austerity challenge and, despite Hubby's little 'wobble' whilst doing the shopping on Friday, I think we are actually still on track to come in below our £25 budget for week 1.

We even made it through the weekend with a only a measly £3.44 remaining and much to our surprise we still have that £3.44 in our pockets...PLUS we actually made money!

So how did we do it?

Well, I was warned by a fellow blogger not to become a crazy coupon lady, so I have so far avoided all use of coupons. I also received many comments and emails from people advising me of some of the super scrimping ideas they had tried in the past. (I guarantee they will all feature in a future post, as some were just too ingenious to not share.) But for now it has all boiled down to the following:

• I still have enough 'ingredients' to add taste and variety to even the most boring of food stuffs; potatoes, rice, bread etc.

• I have surprised myself with the amount of freebies available to you if you are happy to blog/tweet/speak about your experiences after using said freebies. 

On Saturday Hubby and I drove in to town to attend a new art installation preview; details of which I found out about because I actually read the emails from groups/organisations/places that I subscribe to.

I have to say it always feels like a privilege to be one of the first to experience new art works and this particular installation was no different - absolutely stunning in fact.  Hubby is not a lover of 'modern' art, but what can I say? Even he was won over by the free coffee and cake on offer.

• About twice a year I have a clear-out and post some bits and pieces on EBay. I was a little bit earlier in the year than normal in doing this, but figured #frugalfeb was the ideal time, so why wait? Sunday evening rolled around and 7 items sold for a grand total of £173.25. Now, for all you cynics out there, I know I have to deduct my Paypal and final EBay fees from that amount, but I will not let you rain on my parade. I have final a 3 items still listed, so will let you know a grand (net) revenue once everything is sold, posted, deducted and banked.

Finally, a special mention must go to the weather, for on Sunday our village was carpetted so tremendously well that there was no need to pay for any other entertainment. The day was spent running about in the snow with the dog, snuggled up watching the neighbours children making snow men and having snow ball fights and then drinking hot chocolates as the sun went down and the winter wonderland re-gained it's icy chill.

One day remains of this week and we still have £3.44 remaining so surely we're through this initial phase home and dry? Mind you...I'm not looking forward to week 2 as store cupboard essentials start to run so low. Maybe the real challenge is only just about to start...

mwah x