Frugal February: a low spend month

Well, January wasn’t a low-spend month for us. I often go for a no-spend start to the New Year, but I knew there were too many purchases we needed to make for it to be feasible. So, instead, I have been aiming for a frugal February!

The plan has been to spend as little as possible on groceries and to buy no inessential items. However, it won’t be a no-spend month as we are decorating the lounge and must buy paint. We are also using Justin’s Christmas present from me and heading into London for the evening to see the Tina Turner musical.  Having said that, the tickets and train fares are already paid for, but we will eat somewhere before the show and get a drink in the interval.

Other than those expenses, I am aiming to be super-frugal and to make as much money as I can with my various streams of income. With that in mind, here is the first of my frugal February ideas.

Buying at auction

I attended my first-ever auction early this month, and it was so much fun! There were so many bargains to be had, both for the house and my eBay business.

I will definitely go again in March. My Mum, who used to go to auctions for years with my late Dad, wants to come too. 

Among the lots I won was a modern, solid oak sideboard for £60. We looked up similar ones online and they cost upwards of £400, so this was a good find. I alway go a box of miscellaneous vintage china and glass for £8!

Eating from the stores

I only went shopping for groceries twice during January, and focussed on eating Christmas leftovers and food that had been hanging around in the freezer for a while. 

There isn’t too much left in the freezer, but there are things in the cupboards that need pushing to the front of my stores and using, such as flour, some pulses, a pancake mix and some other baking stuff. So I will build my shopping list and meal plans around those items.

I do like to keep a good store cupboard of non-perishables, however, so will add to that when possible.

Getting paid to walk the dog

I recently discovered an amazing little app called Biscuit, which pays you to walk your dog! I thought it sounded too good to be true, so checked out the reviews and asked on my Facebook group, and it seems a genuinely good concept.  

The idea is that you register your pet on the app and each time you take them out you map the walk. If you hit your exercise targets, which we do easily, you earn points. These points can be converted to vouchers for M&S, Tesco, Cafe Nero and other retailers or you can get money off with their partner companies. 

You earn more points by recording when you administer flea and worm treatments, as well. All things responsible dog owners do as a matter of course. 

The hardest part is remembering to turn the app on when you go out. I have a label on Archie’s lead to remind me, but I still forget sometimes! If you fancy giving Biscuit a try, click here to use my referral code. 

Decluttering

If you follow my YouTube channel, you will know that I have been on a decluttering mission since after Christmas. I have been going through each drawer and cupboard in the house clearing out things we no longer need or don’t use. I have donated about 15 bags of stuff to the charity shops and sold some bits on eBay and Vinted as well.

So, I will continue to do this with the aim of getting it completed by the end of frugal February. It feels so nice to have a bit of order and to know exactly where everything is! Plus, when you are tidy you use what you own and don’t buy unnecessary new items when you already have them.

So, that’s how my frugal February has been going so far. How about you?