Cost of living. 5 Money saving tips.

Here in the UK the cost of living is becoming more and more of a problem so today i thought id try give some tips on how to cut the costs. A big thing to remember when committing to cutting costs is understanding you need to make a sacrifice of the luxuries you've become so comfortable with. Hopefully these tips will come in handy for all to use. A few of the obvious is to swap out single use items with reusable , layer up instead on putting on the heating and less take away food and coffees on the go!

Tip 1 - Subscriptions:

Subscriptions to steaming services , gym memberships that are barely used , monthly amazon prime for free delivery that isn't used every month, all these are not needed. I only have one subscription and that's for Xbox live because Xbox have a reward system that allows you to earn points for a free month of Xbox live and many other gift cards. Instead of being glued to the latest series on Netflix ill find other things to do OR for chill out watching something time i always opt for finding Youtuber's to watch because not only is it free to watch with great content you're also helping people around the world earn some money by watching their videos!

Tip 2 - Reward systems:

As mentioned above i use the Xbox reward system to earn free Xbox live and this isn't the only thing i use. Supermarket reward cards are a must , I currently have one with Tesco , Asda and Lidl. Another quick tip in regards to Tesco, when you are a club card member, if you use the self service check outs and always scan your card AND CLICK TO HAVE A RECEIPT occasionally a receipt will print out with free items on them. I've had women's sanitary pads FREE , Washing detergent FREE, Nappies FREE! but on top of this all three supermarkets I've mentioned will give you coupons to use too. Lidl gives you free coupons every week and every time you shop you get a online scratch card for a chance to win another randomised coupon , it also has a monthly reward scheme where for each target amount spent you get a coupon as a reward. Tesco is a earn points for every pound (£GBP) you spend and Asda is earn money back from star products , Spending certain amounts or completing tasks such as buying a certain amount of a particular product. Other types of reward systems i use include online surveys and play to earn , i currently use Qme for my surveys , and i use Mistplay for my play to earn. Both are safe I've been using both for around 3 years now. There are many more reward systems out there to look into depending on your needs!

Tip 3 - Gifts and Treats:

Over the years we as humans have become obsessed with giving and receiving the most quantity and most fanciest gifts. But its really not needed , for this i recommend going second hand , i know some might think second hand is grubby and gross but i promise you its not. I currently always check my local second hand shops for little gifts for people and also for nice clothes for myself , but i also highly recommend using sites like Vinted. I've managed to pick up BRAND NEW gift sets for half the price as someones received it as a unwanted gift and sold it on for cheaper , nothing grubby about that ! I also have 8 nieces and nephews and my own child to buy for for Christmas so i buy multi-pack's of chocolates and sweets to share between them all to bulk out the little gifts too. Another cost effective way of gifting treats is to actually make it yourself , even chocolates because buying a nice chocolate bar and then melting them into moulds such as little Christmas trees or little Easter bunnies just give it a added touch and cheaper than buying chocolate shaped like that in the shops. Remember to always add a note with the ingredients when gifting homemade treats for the sake of allergies and intolerance's .

Tip 4 - Making your own:

For those that can , starting yourself a little garden to grow your own food is one of the best ways to save money in the long run. growing food and learning how to preserve them is absolutely a recommended skill to have. you can grow herbs in empty yogurt pots , empty tin cans and to be honest some plants will grow in just about anything. Part of making your own also refers to fixing the things you have too. Hole in your favourite pair of leggings ? mend it instead of throwing them and buying new. Cooking home made meals also can be cost effective , especially when buying ingredients in bulk or using home grown ingredients. Freezing left overs or making sure to eat left overs the next day reduces waste and reduces costs. Up-cycling is another great way to cut costs. i refuse to buy myself a watering can as I've poked holes in the top of a milk bottle and use that , it works brilliantly and didn't cost me anything to make just the initial cost of the milk when i bought it. Crafts is another one for this section, i love to craft but costs can be too much at times , i check my local fabric shops to see if they have any fabric scraps they are getting rid of and then i sew them into handmade book marks, I cut out cute bits and pieces from my kids old magazines to make journal pages, little fridge magnets and key-ring's and i keep all the left over diamond studs from the diamond paintings i do to use to create my own mosaic art projects too. Leaves and other things in nature can be used for free in print painting , flowers can be picked and pressed for journals , there's so many options for very cheap or completely free crafting!

Tip 5 - Selling:

Selling crafted items is a great way to make a few bucks , selling your old items on vinted or similar sites , For the gardeners , having a honesty box may bring in a small income, the online survey sites and even here on vocal media where I'm writing can generate money , all these little side hustles are great for earning small amounts of money to help you get by.

There's many more extreme measures you can take to save money such as becoming completely self sufficient , black out hours (turning off all electric for periods of time to save money), Ditching your oven and cooking on open fire our in your garden and many more. Thanks for reading!

- Love from Sophie x -