Getting Thrifty with Right on the Money

Soooo…

Tuesday morning I was on the tellybox. It was filmed back in January (hence the big bulky coats we wore during the programme), and was part of the series of money guides, Right on the Money. 

Every episode is centred around saving someone money – in this one, Angela a paramedic from Sheffield wanted to find a way to make things easier for herself and her son. They found her deals on her mortgage, life insurance, household bills. And my role?

Easy. Shopping.

I come from a family of six – four kids, two parents. My mum was a stay at home mum, my dad’s pay had to stretch to house, feed and clothe all of us. I left home at 21, and bought my own flat – having to cope on the princely sum of £11000 PA.

This has instilled a very definite thrifty leaning to my nature. I hate wasting food, I recycle and reuse as much as I can, I’m a lover of Freegle and Freecycle, and buy clothes, shoes, and accessories secondhand. 

That’s not to say I can’t splurge, but I have do it on stuff that will last. 

During the programme, I had a dig through Angela’s cupboards and then we headed to Tesco in Rotherham (I go to all the glamorous locations, me) to do some smart shopping. It’s all common sense, but it’s stuff that it’s easy to forget when you’re busy, in a rush or distracted. There are also a few sneaky marketing tricks that some places use to make you think you’re getting a good deal, or that draw you in to buying something more expensive. 

I’m not suddenly going to start covering money saving – there are plenty of bloggers who do that more expertly and in depth than I do. Miss Thrifty and A Thrifty Mrs (when she’s back with us) are fantastic at this. But I can give you some really good tips that might save you a few quid when you’re shopping. 

Make a list

This sounds really daft, but it works. Buy what you need. Try not to get distracted by the amazing offer on shower gel if you’ve already got more than enough to last you a month – it’ll come on offer again, I can pretty much guarantee it. Myself and Mr GFB even have a blackboard in the hall that as we run out of stuff, or it’s getting low, we write it on there. It’s easy to take a photo of with your phone as you head out the door, and it takes moment to write down toothpaste after you’ve squeezed the last bit from the tube.

Meal plan

This isn’t always doable, I’m dreadful for it as I’m out so much, but I try at the weekend to have an idea of what meals we’re eating and what will keep Mr GFB topped up if I’m out, or feed us both when I’m home. Batch cooking is also really useful, as it not only means you can have a freezer full of delicious food to eat as and when, but it also means you can keep your meals healthy. It’s easy to maintain a diet when you’ve got everything ready to go. 

Set a budget

OK, not always necessary, or possible, but how often have you walked into somewhere and walked out shaking your head at the bill. Once you start throwing extra bits and pieces here and there, it soon adds up. Ask the question Do I really need it?

Avoid waste where you can

Yes, even I’m guilty of forgetting about the tub of mushrooms I bought and are a week later trying to take over the fridge. But more often than not, there was ways to use up the odds and ends of fresh food.

Freezing is one – for fresh food such as carrots, beans, peas, cauliflower and broccoli, simply blanch in hot water, then cool down in ice cold, drain as much water off as possible and throw them in a back in the freezer.

Using egg yolks in a custard, but don’t need the whites? Freeze them, they’ll bulk out an omelette later.

Take your fresh veg out of the plastic bags and keep it dry – carrots, potatoes, cabbages and root veg will all keep better in a dry cool space, rather than the fridge. 

Buy a salad spinner. It stops it going slimy, and it’s easy to refresh it with ice cold water and another spin dry. 

Make soups, and sauces with leftovers. You can even pickle vegetables, or make jams if you’re really feeling creative. 

When in the supermarket

Try not to get distracted – is that BOGOF offer really useful? Or are you going to be stuck with a packet of naan bread you won’t eat for a month and it’ll go off quietly in the cupboard?

Look outside the eyeline. This one is in the programme, but it’s a goodie. Go and stand in the tin aisle. Look at your eyeline. What do you see? Big brands, family favourites? Look above and below, is it cheaper? A lot of home brand items are made by the big brands, they just don’t look as pretty. 

Bulk buy if it works out better. When shopping with Angela, she admitted she’d buy a 250g pack of lean beef mince. Per kilo this was £10. If she bought the 750g pack, she could almost halve that – and put two portions in the freezer. Don’t, however buy 750g if you’re not going to use it all. You can also freeze cheese, and milk, so if that vast block of Stilton on offer after Christmas catches your eye, divvy it up, wrap it up well, and put it in the freezer for later. 

Buy loose – when it comes to fruit and veg, check what you’re buying. You can often be paying a premium for someone to put it into a bag for you.  It’ll take you less than 30 seconds to put it in a bag and it could save you money. 

Is the convenience of pre-prepared worth it? Sometimes, yes, a bag of salad leaves or pre-chopped onion is worth it. Other times, you might need that extra few pence.

Buy frozen – frozen vegetables are often just as good for as you fresh. And if you do buy pre-prepared onions, or sliced mushrooms, or even peppers, look at frozen. Much more convenient, you can cook them straight from frozen and they don’t go off as quickly. Also, frozen vegetables, particularly out of season, will often be cheaper. 

I can’t promise to save you a fortune, but these are some of the little things I’ve learned, which held me in good stead for helping Angela.