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Sunday 8 September 2013

Sunday Morning Sewing and Bang on Budget Savings

I did my new style weekly shop but I have to 'fess up to going over the £10 self imposed limit.

The potatoes will last at least 3 weeks which brings the weekly cost to £1.17, take £2.33 off the spend = £11.06.

The cheese, shown here as non weigh deli, will last for at least 2 weeks, weekly cost £3, rounded up. Take £3 off the spend = £8.06.
The eggs may last 2 weeks but as I am now in the black to the sum of  £1.94  I  will not make an adjustment. 

Who,s a happy shopper then?

Just have a look at my Divi points £21.73, this total will be doubled in November which gives me 7 more weeks at least to increase it.
Double bubble.

Mummmfflee gulp chruuumphfflllegulp, cough choke swallow.

What on earth? I hear you thinking, has she finally been tipped over the edge by the price of tea?

No, that is the sound of me eating my words!

A while or three ago I finished a quilt using the QAYG method.



And I believe that I vowed that this was "The Way Forward " well time passed and the ideas seething round my mind pushed that statement into a dark little corner full of half baked ideas and cobwebs.
This morning I spent 1 1/2 hours on my knees layering and basting this.



I still have to find the rest of my basting pins, I could do with at least as many again. Still at least it is ready to start quilting later on.

Last night we had Jacket Potatoes filled with chorizo and grated cheddar and they were delicious, I picked up the idea from a blog, I have no idea which one, so if you are reading this, Thank you very much, with a pile of salad for Michael and I and baked beans for Francesca it made for a good dinner. The Chorizo and Cheese both came from the freezer and the beans were in the larder and of course the salad was free.

Today we are having Roast Lamb, one of the legs that I snaffled up from Mr T when they were not only on offer at less than half price but RTC. the one we are having today was £12.23 reduced down to £9.23 and then again down to £7.23. It weighs over 3 Kilo,s and will give us at least 3 meals plus some packed lunches for Francesca.

Reasons to be grateful.

1. 1 Quilt ready to be quilted.

2. A lovely sunny day.

3. Fluffy American style banana pancakes with maple syrup for breakfast.

4. Ben is back to his old self, and my heart sings.

5. A half shift at work last night and an easy one.

Francesca had pancakes as well but hers had a whole rasher of bacon in them. I have not made these for ages and as I did not bother to weigh the flour I am very pleased at the result. Sorry no photo, these bad boys will not wait they demand to be eaten the second the maple syrup starts to cascade over them.

Now that we are fully loaded Ben is in for a good walk with both of us, jeans are very unforgiving to extra weight and neither of us wants a muffin top.

Time has moved on at an alarming rate and I need to get a wiggle on. I do not intend to do housework today but I have the back for Tumbling Charms to finish.

I finished the band of green and inserted it but decided to add another narrower band further across the back to balance it. That band is sewn and pressed and ready to insert, a photo will follow tomorrow.

Later on when Michael goes to work and Francesca goes to bed I will start quilting, my fingers are itching.

Toodle pip, have a good Sunday doing whatever you do, or absolutely nothing if that is your thing.

                                          TTFN       Pam

11 comments:

  1. Hi Pam,

    I am fretting about my food bill. We seem to easily do £80 a week just for the two of us, not even any pets here. You seem to do really well. Do you do a big monthly shop? What sort of meal plans do you do over the week. Any tips gratefully received.

    Much love. X

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  2. I shop weekly for perishables, monthly for some dry goods and if I have to go into town I always check the supermarket for RTC, if there is anything that I will use and it is a good bargain I empty the shelf. Most of our shopping is bulk buys when good offers are on. We all like certain coffee and tea and both come on half price offer 2 or 3 times a year and I have never paid full price. I make all our bread, some by hand some in the breadmaker. I make all our biscuits and cakes. Every meal is made from scratch, unless I pick up a freebie from work or have the ready made curry that costa me 25 p per portion. I normally make a weekly meal plan but as part of my use it up challenge I dip into the freezer one day and what I come out with provides the meal for the next day. I have a large stock of dried goods, herbs and spices which I can call on. I have a garden and use whatever is ready. It helps that I was taught very early how to make my money go as far as possible. I love roast rib of beef but we have cheap cuts and I slow cook them or put them in my smoker. Meat loaf and meatballs figure every week. I make a big casserole, cut everything up fairly small, load in the veg, add pulses for protein and fibre. serve it with carbs and make it do 2 meals and leave some for a pie or pasties, just to up the ante a handful of grated cheese in the pastry mix turns a pasty into a feast. I use Approved Foods for dry mixes, their dumpling mix is very cheap and a packet makes enough patry for a good pie. We are having a massive joint of Rib of Beef on the bone for Christmas I bought it months ago in Tesco when it was on a half price offer and it was RTC. Not a morsel will be wasted and Ben will have the bones, after I have boiled them up for stock. Read Frugal Queen, her recipes are really very good. Chill out and relax, meals should be about pleasure not pain, you do not need more meat than what will cover the palm of your hand, half as much again in carbs and double or more of those in veg or salad.

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  3. Hi Pam, I had to chuckle over you eating your words about QAYG - I did warn you! I HATED my one and only experiment with that method, but I know some folks swear by it. (as opposed to swearing AT it!)

    I love your frugal shopping - you are certainly better than me, though I don't buy ready mixes, the Approved Foods thingy - I checked them out but there wasn't much there that we would use. I think you are right - there are some things you will always prefer, a decent brand of tea and coffee is something I won't compromise on. And yes, cheaper cuts taste better, and go further - just cook 'em for longer! Lx

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    1. The marinades and spice mixes are invaluable for when Francesca cooks, it keeps it simple for her. The cake mixes that I am trying for the first time are all to do with my use it up challenge, if I have to drive to Wisbech to buy baking ingredients I will buy extra bargains and use more petrol. It is not going to be as good as homemade but I am willing to try it out.

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  4. Love the quilt Pam. One day I will start quilting but not until I've finished all my other WIP's

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    1. Once you start you will be hooked, I even find myself looking at the clothes that people are wearing and thinking how good that blouse,skirt,shirt would look in a quilt or cushion cover.

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    2. Once you start you will be hooked, I even find myself looking at the clothes that people are wearing and thinking how good that blouse,skirt,shirt would look in a quilt or cushion cover.

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  5. Love your way of frugal shopping, I do something similar, I do keep looking at AF and can never find enough to make up an order, maybe I should try the ready mixes. We won't have any other tea or coffee than our favourites and like you we stock up when its on half price. We use cheaper cuts of meat and long slow cooking develops the flavour..good rib sticking stuff!!

    Fabulous quilting as ever.
    Enjoy your day
    Karen x

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    Replies
    1. I have had 3 AF orders in the last 17 months I have to wait until what interests me pops up.

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  6. I have been pinning a quilt too for a few days. My knees and back can't take too much at one time and as I pin out in my bedroom it means the bed is pushed into the corner for a few days and I have to tiptoe across the quilt to get into bed. Anyway mine is ready to quilt too but there is no rush as it is for my grandaughter's first bed and she is only just about to be one! Today i have made her a sweet little backpack with embroidery and applique on it for her birthday. I have also started a low volume coin quilt using scraps and it is so exciting. I have been cutting up 7.5 x 2.5" rectangles and squaring up my scraps at the same time. If you have squared up pieces it is much more likely that you will use them I think. Much better than a heap of pieces of all shapes.

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    1. I sort my scraps by light, bright, dark and neutral and then by size. I cut strips 1 1/2", 2 1/2", 4" and 5" I cut these into squares as and when I need them. Anything too small to be a strip or a square goes into my Random bag and that becomes my improv scrappy blocks and yardage.

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