I am frugal by nature and I always love a good deal. When you are broke, you either get into more debt or you find ways to make the little you have stretch as much as possible. I am the latter. We have managed to pay of £5000 worth of debt while taking a £20,000 pay cut and having 2 children. I just want to share a few frugal hacks that can help you save money weekly.

frugal hacks to save money

 

Frugal Hacks: I stopped buying Makeup and Perfume

I must admit, I am quite low maintenance so I am not a heavy makeup user. However, I made a decision to only use cosmetic samples in order to save money. I wear makeup on average 4 times a month. I got a free mascara from benefits, they are giving away free mascaras if you hand in an old mascara. It doesn’t have to be the benefits brand. For foundation, I head to the Lancome counter and ask for samples as I already know my shade. Not buying mascara or foundation has saved as £30.
Buying perfume has also been cut from our budget. I now go to perfume shops when I am out and about and ask for a sample. When I find a perfume I like, I go to other perfume store and request for more samples. Each sample is range between 1ml to 5ml, I only need between 6 – 30 samples to have a 30ml perfume. That has saved us £40.
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Frugal Hacks: Yellow sticker Food shopping

Buying reduced food has saved us £100’s over the last couple of months. I buy reduced food from supermarkets and freeze them. I made the decision to only buy products that are reduced by at least 60% for it to be worth it. Supermarkets have changed their strategy whereby they reduce their products a few days before expiry to push sales so the number of products available at a very low price has reduced significantly. This week, my yellow sticker shop saved a lot of money on our weekly food shop.

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Related Post:

5 ways to reduce your food bill forever
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Frugal Hacks: Reduce your Meat intake

Meat is expensive and when you are broke, going vegetarian or vegan can save you a lot of money. We have reduced our spending on food by having meat-free meals. For example, in one week, I made jacket potato with tuna, pasta bake and stewed pilchard with rice. Food substitution can also help you save a lot of money and eat better. For example, to make a bolognese sauce, I use lentils mixed with the mince to make a bigger batch which is also freezable. One big pot of minces can make cottage pie, spag bowl, chili and rice, and lasagna.

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Frugal Hacks: Complain about Products when you are not happy

Being broke makes you appreciate the little you have, I have no issue making a complaint if a product is faulty. I bought a box of baby wipes but when I opened the box, the bottom of every wipe package was open so I contacted the company and I was offered a refund. I also got to keep the wipes which were a bonus. That money went back towards our yellow sticker shopping.

Frugal Hacks: Collect and Use Clubcard Points

Tesco has a booster scheme whereby you can exchange your Clubcard vouchers for restaurant vouchers. I exchanged £5 worth of Tesco vouchers for £20 worth of restaurant vouchers which will go towards a birthday meal out with my husband. Most high street stores have some form of loyalty scheme. Take advantage. 

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Frugal Hacks: Buy frozen fruit and vegetables

I honestly buy most of my vegetables frozen. Benefits include, they are fresh, they are cheaper and they last longer which reduced food waste and saves a lot of money. Frozen foods I buy include sweet corn, mixed vegetable, spinach, kale, shredded cabbage, chopped onions, chopped peppers, frozen chargrilled peppers and anything I like the look of in Iceland. Do conduct your own research, it was recently presented in the news that some brands of frozen vegetables contain deadly bacteria.

frozen veg

BONUS FRUGAL HACKS:

Switch bank accounts: Other ways to save £100 is to make £100. A very quick way will be to switch banks. Many banks offer a

Scan your shopping receipts

Sell your old items online

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I share this to show you the little frugal things you can do to make your money stretch further. I amaze myself how we are able to be debt free while taking a 50% pay cut and having more expenses. If you learned something new then please comment and share to help others make frugal changes to save money.

survive when you are broke
frugal hacks when money is tight
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