Busy day.

I woke up this morning thinking I haven't got much to do today. Then Angela rang for a chat and I said why don't I come round and show you my new clothes I got from the charity shop yesterday. She said, yes come round. So we had a coffee and a natter. She was busy making apple pies and apple crumbles. 

When I came home it was time for lunch. Throw a few things in a small pan and make a stirfry. Mushrooms, spiralised carrot, spinach, frozen green beans, and some noodles. Add two spoons of sweet chilli sauce. Blooming lovely. 

Then I hung the new clothes on the hedge to take a photo. Eight items for £8. I do enjoy rummaging in the the bargain baskets. 

I set the other camera up inside and recorded a video, and left it downloading, or is that uploading, to yoootooob while I went for a walk. 

You may remember this bench that I often mention. I was saddened to see this today. I don't think Trevor has been to visit the bench in a long time. The grass has not been mown and there are no flowers in the vases, and there is no water for the dog bowl. This is a memorial bench for his wife who passed away a few years ago. I wonder why he hasn't been. Someone has been along in a tractor with a hedge cutting attachment on it. The tree has been butchered. The ground is scattered with broken branches. It looks a right mess. Very sad. I wonder why they did it. 

I got back home at 7pm, it was a two hour walk. Dinner was some rice with spinach and a fried egg. 

Now I must go outside and see if the hedgehog has been. Mayze is still out there so I will bring her in. 

Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Preparing for the future

Hello. It's a sunny Sunday morning, the weather looks promising. Best not to waste it. Here is a video I put out yesterday. Are you preparing for the future? Changes are a coming, prices of just about everything are rising. Get ready for the ride. 

Enjoy your Sunday. We will catch up later. Toodle pip.    ilona

Bottoms up

Oh heck, I'm down to my last pack of toilet rolls, must be careful with them, not to use too much. You know me and my mantra, two for a pee, three for a poo. When these are gone I will have to buy some more. 

I haven't bought any toilet rolls from a shop in years, always got them from a Cash and Carry in bulk. There are branches of JTF in Lincoln, Sheffield, and Leeds, I used to call in when passing.

Reading back through my blog, the numbers have fluctuated over the years, depending whether I have added to the stash or run them down a bit. In 2009 I had 144, in 2011 it was 240, in 2012 was 154, and down to 76 in 2018. It has been very nice not to have to lug them home with my regular shopping, much easier to sling a big pack of 40 in the car. I might have to check the prices at my local Cash and Carry to see if they will do a deal for a bulk purchase.

Much sewing going on here, made more lanterns, now making shopping bags.
Toodle pip.  ilona

No tears

I am so glad I bought three packs of chopped onions on yellow stickers a couple of weeks ago. They were 40p per pack. Ideal for freezing, I have nine portions for £1.20, ready to add to soups, stews, and anything else to bulk up a meal. I like onions, so versatile, they go with anything, and no weeping when I use these. 

Another early walk this morning, the sun came up but not as spectacular as yesterday. Looks like I can potter in the garden again today. I have huge white mushrooms in the flower beds. Think I will leave them there, they fill the gaps where some plants are dying off.
Toodle pip.  ilona

Needing to buy food.

I left it as long as I could. the freezer was almost empty, so was the fridge, only a few packets and tins left, and zilch fresh fruit and veg. What's a girl to do? Go shopping of course.

Bank first to pay my water bill and withdraw cash. Pick up a couple of boxes of cat food and a carton of Coffee Mate from B & M discount store, get petrol from the filling station near town, then off to M & S at the retail park. I want to spend the last £10 on the Birthday Gift Card I received from my bestie friend, in May. Not much in the way of yellow stickers here, maybe 4.45pm is too early, but I did find a bottle of toasted sesame seed oil. Was pleased about that, as it is hard to come by in other shops, and when I do see it, it's very expensive. In M & S it is £1.80 for a bigger bottle than I normally get. A few treats to use up the £10. Cauliflower, seeded farmhouse bread, grapes, pasta pot with spinach and pine kernels, and baby sprouts.

Then on to Tesco across the road. Spent a bit more here. There were quite a lot of yellow stickers, not the full 90% off because I was too early, but 50% off is still good.

So, what did I get. Teacakes, bread, diced onion, potato salad, broccoli, spinach, leafy salad, beetroot, pea & bean shoots, mini carrots, grapes, cucumber. All stocked up again. I don't need to be quite so keen on searching for yellow stickers, but if they are there I will have them. At one time, when I was skint, most of my food was reduced, now I can afford to relax a bit.

Now back to the sewing table. Have a good weekend. Toodle pip.  ilona

Looking for bargains in Hull.

I've had a very nice day out today. After breakfast, and a bit of weaving, I loaded the car up with a pile of stuff for the Scrapstore. They were very pleased with it. Tracey was getting another room ready for a big sale they are having on Saturday. I managed to stop myself from buying anything there. The Scrapstore was busy with customers and it was too much hassle to squeeze past them. 

Afterwards I went to have a look round Hobbycraft. It's on a retail park in Hull with several other shops. No need to rush back so I had a browse. I bought some balls of green wool. For some reason I seem to use green more than any other colour.  

There is a new store opened, The Food Warehouse, worth a look I thought, just in case there were any food reductions. Lucky me, I found yellow stickers. They were hand written, 50% off. I added it up to £4.50 but when I went through the till they said £4.65. I paid, then checked the receipt before I left the store. Sure enough, he had misread two prices, so I asked for a 15p refund. Well it's the principle. The Food Warehouse is part of the Iceland group. 

I wanted a few things from Home Bargains, cat food of course, they had some Sheba offers. I now have to get Sheba for Oscar, he has gone off Felix and Whiskas. I got some wash-up brushes and scourers, and a few other bits and bobs.

I had a look round Sue Ryder charity shop, they had a sale, all skirts and trousers now £1. Couldn't find anything I fancied though. It was quite a big shop and a good place to look for anyone wanting to set up home. Some nice second hand furniture at reasonable prices.

Time to do my walk. I'll go now while it's still sunny. Toodle pip.  ilona

Can you afford a cat?

hi I wonder if i could ask a favour ? we are looking into getting a cat from a rehoming place and i wondered if you could do a blog post on frugal cat ownership for example is insurance worth it sort of tips as i know you are an experienced owner...your lovely readers might be able to chip in...i know your a busy lady thankyou Tessa

Hello. Tessa asks a question about frugal cat ownership. I'll jot a few notes down, and if anyone else has any frugal tips, please feel free to add your comments.

I am assuming you have already discussed this new addition with other family members, and the adoption might go ahead. The best place to get a cat is from a rescue/rehoming centre. You will have another mouth to feed so there is food to buy. Cats are fussy eaters, I have three and they all eat differently. I have dry food out 24/7 so they can graze when they like. Water next to it. I look for out of date cat food at the market, if I find it cheap I buy several bags at a time. At the moment they eat Whiskas dry and Perfect Fit dry. What I can't find in the market I get from the discount stores and look for offers. Home Bargains, B & M, Poundstretcher etc. It doesn't matter if they go off the dry food that you get, it can be put away for a while and brought out at a later date, in the hope that they might start eating it again.

Wilko's are generally more expensive except if they have an offer on. Supermarkets are expensive as well, unless on offer. I would never buy cat food from a small local shop, or small Co op, or any of the smaller convenience stores. Too expensive.

Wet food. The cheapest way is probably buy it in tins, but if you only have one cat the food will go off before you get to the bottom of the tin and you end up throwing it away. I don't buy tins for that reason. Pouches are more convenient, though not good for the environment. My cats won't touch the cheap own label pouches. Some cats will, though in the beginning it's trial and error.

Try your cat on the cheaper food first, all well and good if it eats it, but you might have to go up a level and get something better. There is a bit of snobbery around cat food, some people will only buy the most expensive. If you do that be prepared to pay more. My new boy Oscar is getting picky, he is turning away from Whiskas and Felix. I feed mine indoors so he has to come in for it. He sometimes sniffs at it and walks straight back outside again. He will do this several times until the food has gone off and I bring something else out. Sometimes I don't offer an alternative so if he is hungry he has to eat what is there.

Vet fees are expensive. Ask around for recommendations from friends. Some people routinely get their pets inoculated, I don't. I might have been lucky with the cats I have had but they rarely show signs of illness. Except of course Heidi, but her problem is under control and thankfully the tablets are not expensive.

The rescue should have neutered the cat you are getting. It will need flea treatment, again I don't do that routinely. It depends if your cat is going to roam around the neighbourhood, how likely is it going to come in contact with other cats who may have fleas. Shop bought flea treatment is not much good, the vet will have more up to date stuff. More expensive but it works. I do spot on, on the back of the neck, as and when I think they need it.

Cat litter. I have three trays in the house, in the winter they all get used. In the summer not so much because they spend time outdoors. I prefer the clay based clumping litter and get the cheapest from the supermarket Value or Basics range. I scoop out the poops, and scrape the clumps of pee stuck on the bottom and add a bit of fresh. Every so often I wash the whole tray outside in the garden and start afresh.

What are you going to do when you go on holiday? Check out cattery prices. If you are going to go down this route have a couple of short overnight stays first and see how the cat copes with it. Or make friends with your neighbour to come in and feed it.

Some people may prefer to take out an insurance to cover vet fees. My Bugsy was insured for 15 years of his 20 year life, I never needed to claim from it. I consider any years after 15 are a bonus, and if an illness is age related you have to make the decision about whether to treat, or not. Then quality of life comes into it. I now have no insurance for my three, I keep enough money aside to pay for any emergency. I know I would have to make a decision if one of mine were involved in an accident with a car. I will cross that bridge when I come to it. Hopefully will never have to. A cat across the road got run over it cost them £2000 for a broken leg. You just have to be aware that it might happen, and have a plan in place in case it does.

My carpets are ruined by cat scratching, all three do it. I have a scratching post but they don't use it. You have to live with a scruffy carpet, or contain your cat to only rooms where they will not do any damage. No need to spend money on fancy toys. Scrunched up balls of paper thrown about will amuse them. Drag a long piece of string along the floor and the cat will chase it. Be careful that you don't leave any string or thread lying about as they tend to chew on it and might swallow it.

That's all I can think of at the moment. If any readers have any more frugal tips for keeping a cat let us know in the comments. Thank you.

Throwing money away.

Now there's a thing. The coupons on the left arrived last month. Hmmm, £12 off when I spend £60 or more by 16th of June. I thought about it, not a bad saving, and I thought again. They were stuck to the boiler in the kitchen with a magnet, I thought should I use them? Is there anything I need to buy? Food most definitely, but £60's worth? I could stock up, ten boxes of bran flakes, ten tins of beans, ten cartons of soya milk. Possible I suppose. But no, can't find any enthusiasm for totting things up as I trundle around the store with my trolley. None of the coupons on the left were used. Couldn't be bothered. 

And so the next batch arrived, to be used in July. WHAT! Only £10 off a £70 shop. I don't think so Tesco. If I don't feel enthused to spend £60, how the heck am I going to spend £70. It aint going to happen. Why do these coupons never arrive when you actually need to buy something.

My baby loves me. This has become a night time ritual before bed time. I watch something on yooootoob at about 9pm ish, and Mayze wants a cuddle. She plonks her body on the desk, I have to pull my chair up close, and she crawls up my chest and tries to snuggle under my chin. I have to have one arm outstretched so she doesn't fall off. 

Thanks to the walking group members for checking in with their miles yesterday. If you haven't yet done so, you can go back to that page at any time.
Toodle pip.  ilona

Yellow stickers at M & S

Oh no, not another yellow sticker video. Aha, but this one is a bit different, I did my shopping at Marks and Spencer. No I haven't lost my marbles, you know I never set foot in there as their prices are not my kind of prices, cheap, ha ha.

I had a gift card from my best friend carol, for my birthday, so I thought it was about time to spend it. She gave me strict instructions to get myself a treat, something I normally wouldn't buy. I knew it would be impossible to do that if I wandered around the whole shop. There are plenty of nice things that everyone would consider a treat but I couldn't bring myself to buy them because I don't need them. So I stuck to the food hall. I definitely do need food.

The experience was quite fun actually. I was there ages perusing the fresh food chiller cabinets, following the ladies around as they were reducing the prices with a second sticker. There wasn't lots of bargains to be had, but I was determined to only buy yellow stickers. The food is expensive in the first place, and even with money off, it was still more than I would pay anyway. But never mind, I wasn't paying for it, this was my birthday treat from carol.

If you want to know what I bought check out the video. I didn't spend all the voucher, I still have £10 left for another time.



Toodle pip.  ilona

Using my freezer wisely.

How to get seven portions of chopped onions for 20p. First, buy two bags of yellow sticker onions, 10p each. Then divide them between plastic pots, any pots that you have, and put them in the freezer. This is how I save money. By buying going out of date food, and freezing it.

Head for your reduced cabinets in your supermarket, see what you can find, buy it even though you are not going to eat it immediately, and freeze it for the future. ilona

Trying to save the planet

I've had a very busy weekend. Auntie has sold her house and it had to be emptied, a skip was ordered and I have been there to rescue anything which can be passed on. I now have two car loads of stuff in my house which needs sorting out and taking to charity shops, and given to people who want it. There's all kinds of stuff, too much to list here. I will find a good home for everything.

On the way back today I timed it right that I got to Tesco at 3.15pm, so I was able to get some yellow stickers. Whoooopeeee, lots of sprouts.

Salad leaves.

Posh roasted potato salad.

A large loaf, I will divide it up and put it in the freezer.

ilona

What!!! Only 50p.

I was out early today, needed to get to the dentist at 8.30am, an emergency appointment, I broke a back tooth on Saturday. The car was frosted up, I'm not used to this, scraping ice off the windows lark. I usually wait until the sun comes round and it melts naturally. Traffic was busy, got caught up with those going to work, just made it in time. 

The lovely Jim was ready for action, a repair should do it, but if that doesn't hold a crown might be needed later on. I shall do all I can to be gentle with this new filling, hopefully it will last a few years. Cost, £21. 

While I was there I went to the sewing shop and booked myself on three workshops. Patchwork similar to what I did before only a different design. Free motion machine embroidery, I missed the last one, and creative hand embroidery. Looking forward to those. 

While I was out and about I thought I would look for some bargains. Found these crackers in the bargain box at the Cash and Carry, 20p each.

Two cartons of Almond milk from Poundstretcher, 25p each.

Reduced salad in Morrisons. I thought surely the yellow sticker is a mistake, only 5p. It definitely  was only 5p, so a good bargain. I looked at lots of items while I was in the store, to compare prices, and found that the things I normally buy are a bit more expensive there. I don't go very often because it's the other side of town, even if it was nearer I doubt I would do much shopping there.

This has got to be the best money saver. Browsing Poundstretcher I came across this organic coconut sugar, it looks identical to what I bought the other day at Aldi, different label. There was no price ticket on the shelf so I asked an assistant. She came back and said 50p. I was amazed, what, only 50p! Yep, it went through the till at 50p. I bought six, maybe I should have got more. There is another store in the town so maybe I will see if they have it in.

On the way home I picked up some scrap vinyl and some wood from the two places I visit on the industrial estate. I'll deliver this to the Scrapstore tomorrow.   ilona

The secret of budgeting.

I have a mug of coffee every morning, sometimes I have a second mug around about lunchtime. I have got my sugar down from two spoons to one, but I just cannot get it any lower. Coffee is too bitter for me without any sugar. 

I read a book recently which said there are lots of different kinds of sugar, more natural ones which are better than the refined white sugar which is said to be deadly. I spotted this in Aldi and thought I would give it a try. It's made from the nectar of the coconut flower, it's unrefined and dehydrated. Ingredients ; organic coconut sugar. A 100% natural alternative to sugar. Worth a try I thought, but it's not cheap, £1.69 for 50 x 5g teaspoon servings. 

I put some in my coffee and it tastes just fine, I couldn't tell the difference. 

This is how you save £150.50, by not buying a TV licence. They send me a letter every two years asking me to confirm if my circumstances are still the same, or if there are any changes which mean I need to get a licence. I tell them I still don't watch live TV, still don't watch BBC iplayer, on any device. Don't watch programmes at all on a TV set, because I don't have one.

So, my new healthier sugar might cost more money than the conventional white stuff, but by not buying a TV licence, I can buy 89 bags of coconut sugar for the same price. A good deal I think. Swings and roundabouts, balance one off against the other. That is the secret of budgeting.  ilona

Super Scrimping is my game.

And the money saving continues. The Cash and Carry is conveniently placed in a little industrial unit, on the way to town. When I am passing and have ten minutes to spare, it's worth stopping for a look to see what they have in. Sometimes I am lucky, other times I am not. They buy up stock from the large supermarkets, usually when it is about to go out of date, or if they have over stocked and want to move it on. 

I like these Cheerios, not as a breakfast cereal, but as an evening snack when I feel a bit peckish. The normal price for these in Tesco is £3.30. They are on offer until the 27th of January for £1.65. I paid just 60p each. 

Cheddars are normally £1.29 at Tesco, on offer at 90p until the 27th of January. I paid just 25p per packet, 4 for £1.

 Amoy medium noodles. At Tesco, £1.80 for a bag of two packets. Not on offer at the moment. I paid £1 for three bags. So, 33p a bag, two packets in each, which I will get four portions out of. Add some veg and a super cheap meal.

I buy my food from lots of different places. Haven't been to Tesco for a while, I will pick up in Aldi if I am in town, as it's in a convenient location. Always on the look out for reductions, in virtually every shop I go into. Even the £1 shops sell things at 50p. Meanqueen is the name, Super Scrimping is my game  :o)   ilona

Oooooh.....that smells better

Heidi's poos are puke inducing if not removed from the litter box pretty soon after she dispatches them. In the time it takes for her to cover them the obnoxious smell has drifted throughout the house. Some means of masking the pong with another fragrance would help, so I bought this reed diffuser kit. It was £3 from Dunelm. They have got a good selection in there, I chose a cheaper one

In the box is a slimline bottle of perfumed oil, and on the outside are seven reeds. I had visions of the bottle getting knocked over or just falling over. What it needs is a wider base. 

I have a few of these round mayo jars, washed and put in the cupboard in case they might come in useful. Put the slim bottle inside, and pack the space out with an unraveled body scrub, luckily it is a lavender colour. Then I got six beads and threaded them on wire and pushed them into the top to keep the body scrub in place. 

Perfect, a more solid, heavier base which shouldn't topple over. If you wanted to do this you could fill out the space with sand, shredded fabric, buttons, beads, wool, or anything else which might look decorative. 

I had a look in at the Cash and Carry on the way to town. Found a few things. Mini oatcakes, made in Orkney, 20p a packet.

This is something to add to soups and stews, sauces, rice, pasta, gravy, and any meals. I've just opened it, its in granule form and smells nice. Worth a try at 20p.

Two boxes of granola, 60p each. I put a spoon of this in my mini chopper with the nuts and seeds, to bulk it out a bit. These two boxes will last ages.

It's very windy and freezing cold today. I've been out for my walk, in case I don't get chance later if it deteriorates further. I've brought a big jacket which is thick and heavy, with a furry hood, out of the wardrobe. I need extra protection from the bitterly cold wind. The weather changes from day to day, it was sunny yesterday. Oscar is snoozing on his chair, Heidi is on top of the microwave, have no idea why she likes it there, and Mayze has burrowed her way under the top cover on the bed. I'm doing some arty stuff.  ilona

Poundworld is closing down.

I couldn't resist a look in Poundworld today, as I was in town for the bank. The store is closing down and they have been gradually lowering their prices as they run down their stock. Most of it started at 20% off, now it is 50 and 70% off. I wonder how long it will be before everything is reduced to 10p. 

Up and down the aisles I went, I thought if there is anything I want maybe now is the time to get it. Who knows how much longer the store will be open. I chose a few items which I thought my come in useful for crafting projects. You can't have too much sellotape, three rolls with the dispenser, 50p. Foam stickers, and strips of diamante crystals, pink and gold which can be stitched onto anything. Tiny framed canvases, and some green Easter Grass. I thought this could be incorporated into a landscape picture either by machine stitching or gluing it on. 

I shall keep my eye on Poundworld, just in case they reduce things further. Bye for now.

Food shopping - questions and answers

Hello. A couple of questions have come up on the Yellow Sticker shopping post. I have answered them, but I will also copy and paste them into this new post. From time to time the same questions are asked, how do you eat all the food before it goes off, and when is the best time to go to the supermarket. 

This is the breakfast I ate yesterday. Usual bran flakes and seeds and nuts mix in the mini chopper. Topped with strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, soya milk, and a spoon of Greek style yogurt. 

Breakfast this morning. Same in the bottom of the bowl, with strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, kiwi fruit, and melon.  Some of my fresh fruit will be frozen, I will check it today.

Right, the questions......

Margaret asks....
Hello, Ilona. Wonderful bargains there. However, a lot of those items have a short shelf-life, such as strawberries, houmous, etc, and yet you say that means no more shopping for a week or two. Do you freeze things such as houmous? (I've not tried that, by the way.) I know we can extend Use By dates a little, using common sense, and Best Before dates are often a nonsense, but I do wonder how you can eat all this before it's gorn orf, as they say. 
Margaret P

My reply......
Hi. I check the food in the fridge two or three times a day, and eat things in the order they are going to go off. Soft fruits first, prepared vegetables before whole vegetables. I usually manage to get through it without freezing, but if I find I can't I will freeze, or cook into stews then freeze. 

Bread goes in the freezer. I don't freeze houmous because it is ok up to a week later, maybe even longer.

My meals from now on will be only from the yellow stickers in the fridge. I won't be using tins, packets, or frozen. Priority is to eat what needs eating first, that will be salads, fruit, steamed prepared vegetables. I am strict with that, there is no, what do I fancy today. Looking at my list, I will eat mushrooms every day, either raw in salads, or cooked with egg on toast. I will eat houmous with every meal, salads and steamed veg, and on sandwiches. Hard root vegetables will be eaten last because they last longer. 

A lot of my cooked meals are just steamed veg, I will have six different ones on my plate. 

When all the yellow stickers have gone I eat from the cupboards and freezer for a week or so, until I feel like shopping in Tesco. Then the whole cycle begins again.

And Margaret's reply to me.....
Thank you, Ilona, for such a detailed account of how you eat, and I agree with you - eat what you have that will go off first, not what you fancy today. It's good and if its nourishing and well cooked, it will be tasty regardless of what it is. Yes, we will eat the same things a couple of days running to finish something rather than wasting it. 
All good wishes,
Margaret P


Jane asks........
Hi Ilona
I never know what time to go to get the best bargains. I’m either too early with just 20 p off or too late and there’s nothing left! How do you judge it?
Thanks
Jane

My reply......
Hi Jane. It's always the luck of the draw. One day they might have over stocked and have loads of reductions, other days they might have nothing because it has all sold at normal price. I always get to the store for 7pm because I know that is the time the third ticket is due to go on. They might have done it early if they had a staff member to do it, so I find there is not much left. Or the staff might be too busy to deal with it and are late with the stickering, in that case I have to wait. 

I like the 75% off (3rd sticker) but others may be happy with 50% off so that might not leave much left. I might not get exactly what I want, so I am flexible with my eating and will try most things except meat and fish, as an alternative. It pays not to be too fussy. 

I use Tesco because it is the nearest store to me. Asda always has plenty of reductions in the evening but the store is too far out to take a chance on there being anything I want. 

I suggest you ask the staff at your store what times do they mark down, on the departments where you want to buy, fruit and veg, or meat, or chiller/dairy cabinet, or bakery. Get to know the exact locations so you can go there first when you enter the store. Most stores have dedicated shelves or trollies where the reductions are all together. 

It's a case of getting to know your store, making yourself known to the staff, chatting to them, and it's a good idea to dress down, casual or even scruffy clothes are best. Other shoppers get a bit huffy if a well dressed person scoops up the reductions ahead of them. Look as though you need to buy cheap food. 

Yellow sticker shopping is a habit, I used to go once every ten days, now I leave it 2 - 3 weeks. I get some things in Aldi which are cheaper there. Also shop in discount stores, but then I have to time to do that. It's a trade off between time and money. Invest time in seeking out the bargains and you will save money. Or go to work to earn more money to pay for the food at normal prices because you haven't got time to check different shops. 

Copy and pasting will save me time, and as this is not a forum other people might be asking the same two questions but won't go back to the previous post. Feel free to reply with any of your fantastic food reductions you have found. What time did you go shopping, where can you find your best bargains? How do you use up all the food you buy before it goes off? Time to share your foodie tips. 

It's a Bank Holiday weekend, enjoy yourself whatever you are doing. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.

Toodle pip 

Plenty of cheap food tonight.

Hello. I'm a bit late tonight, my fridge was empty so I did a yellow sticker shop at Tesco. There was a lot of waiting as the young man put the third and last sticker on. He had such a lot to get through, but he was very quick on the machine. I was in the shop for two hours, worth the wait though, with 75% off. It was all very friendly, not many people in the shop, and plenty for everyone. 

Down the other end of the shop they were putting  more reduced out into the chiller cabinet. I went to have a look to see what there was. Nothing much of interest to me, meat and convenience foods mainly. There was a bit of a scrum there as well, I went back to the fruit and veg where it was more sedate. 

So what did I get with 75% off. Broccoli florets 32p. Loose broccoli 4p. Potatoes 50p. Houmous x 4 @ 30p each. Baby sprouts 25p. Baby sweet corn 25p. Fruit salad 50p. Mushrooms x 2 @ 24p each. Chestnut mushrooms 25p. Blueberries x 2 @ 50p each. Tomatoes 38p. Raspberries 50p. Bananas 35p. Spinach 25p. Bag salad leaves x 2 @ 25p each. Strawberries 25p. Bananas 22p. Bread 40p. Green beans 21p. Seeded bread 2 @ 28p each. Blueberry muffins 28p. Sliced loaf 22p.

Other items I bought at normal price. Frozen vegetable patties 2 boxes @ £1 a box of six. Cat food £2.25. Mayonnaise 60p. Tartare sauce 55p. Butter £1.60p. Milkshakes 3 @ 50p each. Fresh milk 50p. Almond drink £1. Carton fruit juice 2 @ 65p each. Gloucester cheese £1.55. Soft cheese 50p. Leerdammer cheese £1. Eggs 89p. Chicken 78p.

I prefer shopping at night because I like to open the fridge door the next morning and see that it's full. Hooray, no more shopping for a week or two.

A bit tired now. Thank you for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.

Wot i did yesterday

Hello. I had a trip across town yesterday to pick up flea treatment at the vet. On the way back I called in at Morrisons, a place I don't shop very often. I have noticed that some of the regular things I buy are a bit more expensive there. However, as I was passing the door I thought it might be worth a look for some yellow stickers as it was about 5pm. 

I found a few. Would anybody pay £1.92 for 20 blackberries? Not me, but I would pay 20p. Ten on my porridge this morning, and the rest for tomorrow.  

Lucky find, asparagus 20p, mushrooms 10p.

A sweet treat, 25p and 10p, perfect.

Other items I found were milk 13p, courgettes 12p, teacakes 25p, cheesey sandwich filler 35p, pancakes filled with cottage cheese 39p, wholemeal loaf 25p. That will save a few bob, don't need to go to Aldi now.

I took my scrap wood to the tip, there was a man on duty who I haven't seen before so I had a chat. I put some plastics in the general waste skip and said oooh, look at this, and held up a pink piece of fabric, it looks like a childs clothes rail cover. I said what a shame to throw this away. He said I could have it. I said what about the cameras, I don't want to get into trouble. He said, they won't be bothered about that, take it, so I did. Isn't it pretty.

I called in at a little garden centre yesterday as well, not a big fancy one, but a small family business. I have bought a few plants that now need re potting or putting into the beds. So that's the next job to do.

Carol at Crafty Club was asking about the vinyl I sometimes use, have I got any more, and can I get some. I paid a visit to the man who makes covers for market stalls to see if there were any offcuts. He dived in the bin for me and got some out. Not a lot, mainly orange and black, but he said I could go back again for more.

I've been to town this morning a few things I wanted to do. I had a look at the new refurbished library and I must say I didn't like it much. Had to ask where the arts and crafts books were because there are no labels above the shelves. The building has also been taken over by other organisations, community groups and suchlike. The books are now all on one floor where as before it was fiction downstairs and non fiction upstairs. There are lots of small interview rooms on the ground floor, and big open spaces in the library. Not impressed, I filled out the comment form.

Anyway, I'm off outside now to re pot the plants and mow the lawns. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

I've been stickered

Hello. Mission accomplished. I've been to Tesco tonight for the yellow stickers, haven't been for ages, thought it was about time I did. Got a good haul, this little lot was £7.46. The rest of the shopping was £13.95, making a total of £21.41.

So, a brief breakdown, they all had the third sticker on so it was a 75% reduction. This will keep me going for a while.

Cooked chicken for the cats 50p
Cous Cous 56p
Melon Medley 50p
Doughnuts 16p
Yoghurt 26p
Cheesecake 12p
Bananas 6p
Veg selection 32p
Seasonal veg 50p
Bread 40p
ourgettes 17p
Brussels sprouts 38p
Brassica veg 25p
Small potatoes 44p
Crispy potato slices 40p
Noodles 31p
Mushrooms 22p
Mangetout peas 25p
Salad leaves 38p

This is what I had for lunch today. Iceberg lettuce, salad leaves, avocado, spud in the microwave, and an egg.

Where's the best place to look if you can't find your cat? On the top of the fridge of course. Heidi can be a little madam sometimes. The cats have been bored today because it's been raining and they haven't been able to go out.

I'm off to bed, thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.