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1. How to be a savvy saving mum

   Posted on 9:41am Monday 13th Feb 2017

   I often read the weekly 5 Fabulously Frugal Things I've Done This Week post from Emma at Mums Savvy Savings and whilst frugal is not usually something that my husband would describe me as, savvy is something that I do consider myself to be.

   I had my eldest daughters friend to stay over last weekend and we had a girlie day out shopping. She was amused to see me picking up different items from discounted Christmas Cards to random gifts and she asked me if I just buy things on a whim. To be honest, whilst I do have a bit of a shopping habit, I buy things on offer that I know we will need and whilst this might not be today or next week, I know that I will need to buy them so I may aswell buy them when they are on offer. 

   

   So in the spirit of Emma's Frugal Linky, I thought I would share my tips on how to be a savvy saving mum with my 5 Fabulously Frugal Things I've Done This Week.

   1. Despite fear of mentioning Christmas in February, I have to admit to buying Christmas cards. Boxes of Christmas Cards that have a RRP of £5 - I paid just £1.25. I do this every year as Christmas cards don't ever really go out of fashion, so they don't need to be "on trend", you just need to remember where you put them when you start looking to write them.
   2. Buying toothpaste in the Pound Shop. I genuinely do not know how high street or supermarkets can justify charging £2.50 for a tube of toothpaste when the pound shop charges just £1 and with the amount of toothpaste we use, this is a good saving over the year. 
   3. My friend and I have started book swapping to save buying so many books. I have to admit that I do enjoy reading on my tablet as it is easier to do this late at night when my husband wants to sleep but there is nothing like the feel of a good book and swapping paperback books means I am not buying them as often.
   4. Stocking up the present cupboard. Both of my girls are lucky enough to have a large circle of friends but this can get expensive when they have so many parties to go to. The sales are a great way of stocking up on present cupboard essentials, I always try and get "named" or "on trend" gifts while they are on offer meaning that the birthday child gets a great present, without the big price tag.
   5. Emma inpsired me a week or so ago to try and reduce the amount of toiletries we buy. I am terrible for buying shampoos, shower gels, creams, sprays nail varnish and frankly anything that takes my fancy so I am making a concerted effort not to buy new ones until the old ones are finished. Do you know what? My bathroom feels a lot less cluttered too!

   

   So while I may not necessarily be frugal, I am getting more and more savvy in terms of what we are spending .... although I just need to teach my girls to think the same way!

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2. How to afford Christmas without breaking the bank

   Posted on 10:24am Thursday 24th Nov 2016

   A month today is Christmas Eve ... how is that possible? 

   We are 11 months into the year and the children are keen to believe that the elves have been working hard all year, although I am still unsure as to how this actually works when the children only seem to write their lists in the last few weeks but I suppose that is all part of the magic isn't it?

   For many parents Christmas can be a mix of emotions from the excitement of sharing Christmas with the children to the stress of actually affording to pay for the gifts and festivities. 

   

   So how do you afford a magical and (financially) stress free Christmas? Here are our top tips.

   Make a list and check it twice.

   Having a plan is my top tip! This includes creating a list of everyone you need to buy for and setting a budget. You then know what you need and then don't deviate from it! If you can agree present budgets with friends and family that is even better because no one likes feeling awkward when your gift is significantly more expensive (or cheaper) than theirs.

   Budget, budget, budget

   I am not talking about finding a way to make your pay packet last all the way through December and I know it is easy to say now we are in November but putting away a little bit of money every month can make life a lot easier when it comes to present buying at Christmas time. I am acutely aware that a lot of families don't always have disposable income to put £50 in the savings account every month, especially when you get requests for school trips or the children need new shoes but there is always an option of playing a couple of pounds with games online. I was asked by Lottoland to take a look at their site and as I am usually a bit cynical about the lottery, I wanted to take a look. The interesting part is that you are not actually purchasing a lottery ticket, instead, you are betting on the outcome of the lottery. This was a totally new concept for me as it is a form of betting that gives you the opportunity to play along and bet on lotteries that are not normally accessible to us. There is the EuroMillions, Irish Lottery and Powerball which is the American lottery which had the £1 billion jackpot ealier this year! So even if you played this for £1 a week, the chances of adding more pennies to your Christmas savings pot definitely has better odds than sitting in your piggy bank.

   Shop online 

   Christmas shopping may be fun but it’s a lot more interesting and a lot less stressful when you don’t have to battle the crowds. Most people now shop online in order to obtain bargain prices on gifts but that’s not the only thing that can be purchased online. Stocking up on your entire Christmas food order online and having it delivered will definitely help eliminate the stress of Christmas supermarket shopping.

   Give an IOU to your other half or best friend

   Instead of paying December prices, offer to take your partner or best friend shopping in the January sales. It means that you get a day out together at a fraction of the pre-Christmas cost. This is an especially good idea if you wanted to buy a joint present for the house (this does not mean a vacuum, in case my husband is reading this!!)

   Get cashback

   Whatever you are buying, make sure that you are getting cashback whether this is through an online site (there are so many to choose from) or with your own bank account. It makes total sense toget cashback on the gifts you are buying and you can start to put this into your 2017 Christmas fund!

    

   What are your top tips on affording Christmas?

    

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3. Make Up Tip for Glasses Wearing Mums

   Posted on 8:19am Sunday 29th May 2016

   I have worn glasses since the beginning of time (and have the bad glasses choices to prove it), so I have never really known how to do makeup for women who don't wear glasses. I was quite recently asked to do a friends make up for her wedding (no pressure there then) and she quite simply said, "I want you to do it as you just know what works". Quite a compliment I thought!

   After talking about glasses on the blog a few times and taking silly photos in my new frames, I got to thinking about how I accentuate my eyes and how I purposefully spend more time putting make up on my eyes than I do for the whole rest of my face. So I thought I would put my top tips together, especially those for busy mums who haven't got a spare half an hour every morning to do their eyemakeup.

   • Your glasses probably already dominate your face, so keep it simple and accentuate the good parts of your face. If you have killer cheekbones, you don't need eye popping make up around your eyes.

   • If you are going out and want to use eye shadow, the lighter and more neutral the color on the lid, the better, you can use bolder colours if you are wearing contact lenses.

   • Talking about lenses, it is important to keep your contact lenses hydrated as this will make your eyes look brighter and healthier with a product like 1 Day Acuvue Moist by FeelGoodContacts.

   • Keep control of your eyebrows, they frame your face and glasses will emphasise any stray eyebrow hairs above the arch. Get them threaded, waxed or plucked but keep them maintained!

   • Eyeliner is a great way to make your eyes brighter, especially if you have had a bad night with the children. Make up artists recommended using an eyeliner a shade or two lighter than your frames so that your liner doesn't get lost with your frames. The thickness of your liner should directly correlate to the thickness of your frames, meaning the thicker the frames, the thicker your eye liner.

    

   Finally, using a setting powder on your whole face once your makeup routine is complete is a great way to stop your foundation from coming off onto your glasses and will just help keep everything nicely in place. Good luck!

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4. 5 ways to create space in your small kitchen

   Posted on 4:36pm Thursday 24th Mar 2016

   Spring is in the air and spring cleaning always seems to be something we look at over the Easter break. We are presently updating our kitchen as part of my DIY project for this year but the kitchen is one of the rooms in your house that require a lot of storage space and getting the right balance of cupboards and space is important (and so I have enough space to hide away all my clutter). If you have a small kitchen, you might lack this ever important space; however, there are a few creative ways in which to create extra surfaces, or storage options. Below are just five easy ways that require very little cost or effort and can help you get that extra space that you need.

   1)    Get a rolling cart

   Although they do take up some space, a rolling cart is an excellent way of creating extra space if you do not have space for an island. Because they are on wheels, they can easily be moved around and they are smaller than an island. If they are not in use the whole time, they can be folded away out of sight, but can create a great deal of storage when required.

    

   2)    Over the sink chopping boards

   Over the sink chopping boards are perfect if you have very little counter space. You can have them made so that they fit comfortably over your sink, creating another surface area that you can use. It is also a useful storage area for the chopping board when the sink is not in use.   They look great, and are practical and very cost effective.

    

    3)    Have a clear out

   Although this is a fairly obvious one, clearing out anything you no longer require is an excellent way to make more space. You have to be brutal, and really sensible, throwing away anything that you no longer use, or are broken, and you will be surprised at the amount of space you achieve by doing this. Seeing you de-cluttered kitchen will be a good incentive for you not to buy more than you require as well.

    

    4)    Build shelves

   Building shelves is another excellent DIY solution. Put up shelves in spaces that are free and are not being used for anything else and you can create a lot of extra space for yourself. You will be surprised at just how much you can keep in a relatively small area with the addition of a few shelves. Think about the area between the worktop and the cupboards, or above the fridge and cupboards, as this is often valuable space that goes to waste. Put the items that you will use less frequently on the higher shelves for ease.

     

   5)    Make the most of your corners

   Corner cupboards often waste a lot of space, and can be inaccessible resulting in people not using them, wasting valuable space. So, instead, why not create an area that is easy to get to, and install a lazy Susan? This is essentially a spinning basket, allowing you to spin and clearly see the contents of your cupboard allowing you to make use of the space, and get to everything easily.

    

   Article provided by Lakestone UK

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