One month behind me and almost at the end of the second month! It really has flown by. Every week I have a new struggle or learn something new. I think the worst thing so far has been the feeling that I'm denying myself of simple pleasures as I am very aware that I only have this one life and really want to enjoy it as much as I possibly can!
One of the reasons why I'm doing this saving project is because I've cut down my hours at work to 4 days per week and I intend on using the ME day for training, coursework, plus personal and professional improvement which means I might not be earning money on my extra time for a while. Having said that, if you need any design work done or know of anyone looking, get in touch! Here's my LinkedIn page if you'd like to see some of the work I do: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/anaritamlopes. I'm in the process of finishing my online portfolio so I'll leave that for another post!
However, I have started to come round to the idea of saving as I have looked at what I've been able to save up so far and it's incredible, only a month and a half down the line and I've saved SO much already! Seeing such overwhelming results in such little time has made me feel like it's worth it.
Another struggle for me has been making time to write for the blog (as you might notice from the single blog post each month so far!). I've been away for a week back home in Portugal so have managed to save a lot as I have been catered for on just about everything. I've just returned and brought back a few bits to eat so that will keep costs down on this week's food shop.
Before I left, one of my friends mentioned a new ISA our bank is doing so I've started one! It may seem weird but I've really wanted one for a while, I just kept missing the dates!
I feel like I've crammed in a few blog posts worth into this one so I think I've caught up!
Wednesday, 25 March 2015
Sunday, 15 February 2015
The first two weeks
Well, the first two weeks are behind me, I feel like I've survived the initial shock.
However, I've started realising how hard keeping track of everything can be. Plus making time to introduce new routines!... Having said that, like everything in life, the more you do it, the better you get at it so I'm sure I'll pick up the pace! I'm interested to see how different I will be in three months time. I've decided I'll do a quarterly check on my progress, adaptation and overall savings.
In preparation for this project, I realised I was going to need some help. I turned to a platform that reaches plenty of people on my network of friends and asked everyone what their tips for saving money were. The result was overwhelming and I ended up with a plethora of answers, which were very much appreciated! From deciding which recipes you will cook for each week before you do your weekly shopping to setting a weekly budget and withdrawing the money to keep in an envelope and take out as you go along to cutting your own hair, there was a tip for nearly everything! I am devising a plan on when I will implement new changes and I've decided I will accumulate each previous change so I effectively alter my life to be more budget savvy even after the project is finished.
Today I accounted for my expenses from the week before I officially started this challenge through to the past to weeks until today. I have separated expenses by weekly, monthly and yearly but I have also added everything I spent on each week so I get a feeling of what my overall expenditures are throughout the month, which weeks are the most expensive and if there is anywhere I can make changes in order to save more.
Today I have decided to change my mobile provider as my current contract is coming up for renewal and my phone is still in good condition so I will change for a SIM only pay monthly, which will cut down my costs by more than half. So that’s my first big change. I can only change providers next month as I had to give 30 days notice but the decision has been made and I’m sticking to it.
I have also started looking for deals on food and thinking of 2 recipes per week. Loosely, as I’m not yet used to keeping to strict recipes. For example, I will do a weekly shop, keeping an eye out for any bargains or reduced items. I will then think of a couple of recipes based on the ingredients I have (could be a curry, wrap, pasta dish, etc) and I’ll go with that.
I have also stopped buying a hot chocolate per day at a café. Instead, I will look for deals on non-dairy milks (I'm dairy intolerant) and will make my own chocolate milk at home, which I then take with me and heat up at the office.
I haven’t missed buying clothes yet either, I’ve kept receiving the newsletters from the websites I have always bought clothes from as they give me ideas on how to adapt the clothes I already have if I want to have a change of look and I haven’t been tempted to buy anything yet.
I have a few clothes selling on the Depop app but no luck so far… I might put them on eBay.
And so this first official blog post is concluded. I will do updates roughly every couple of weeks of more frequently if there are enough insights or changes that take place.
Hope this has been helpful so far!
However, I've started realising how hard keeping track of everything can be. Plus making time to introduce new routines!... Having said that, like everything in life, the more you do it, the better you get at it so I'm sure I'll pick up the pace! I'm interested to see how different I will be in three months time. I've decided I'll do a quarterly check on my progress, adaptation and overall savings.
In preparation for this project, I realised I was going to need some help. I turned to a platform that reaches plenty of people on my network of friends and asked everyone what their tips for saving money were. The result was overwhelming and I ended up with a plethora of answers, which were very much appreciated! From deciding which recipes you will cook for each week before you do your weekly shopping to setting a weekly budget and withdrawing the money to keep in an envelope and take out as you go along to cutting your own hair, there was a tip for nearly everything! I am devising a plan on when I will implement new changes and I've decided I will accumulate each previous change so I effectively alter my life to be more budget savvy even after the project is finished.
Today I accounted for my expenses from the week before I officially started this challenge through to the past to weeks until today. I have separated expenses by weekly, monthly and yearly but I have also added everything I spent on each week so I get a feeling of what my overall expenditures are throughout the month, which weeks are the most expensive and if there is anywhere I can make changes in order to save more.
Today I have decided to change my mobile provider as my current contract is coming up for renewal and my phone is still in good condition so I will change for a SIM only pay monthly, which will cut down my costs by more than half. So that’s my first big change. I can only change providers next month as I had to give 30 days notice but the decision has been made and I’m sticking to it.
I have also started looking for deals on food and thinking of 2 recipes per week. Loosely, as I’m not yet used to keeping to strict recipes. For example, I will do a weekly shop, keeping an eye out for any bargains or reduced items. I will then think of a couple of recipes based on the ingredients I have (could be a curry, wrap, pasta dish, etc) and I’ll go with that.
I have also stopped buying a hot chocolate per day at a café. Instead, I will look for deals on non-dairy milks (I'm dairy intolerant) and will make my own chocolate milk at home, which I then take with me and heat up at the office.
I haven’t missed buying clothes yet either, I’ve kept receiving the newsletters from the websites I have always bought clothes from as they give me ideas on how to adapt the clothes I already have if I want to have a change of look and I haven’t been tempted to buy anything yet.
I have a few clothes selling on the Depop app but no luck so far… I might put them on eBay.
And so this first official blog post is concluded. I will do updates roughly every couple of weeks of more frequently if there are enough insights or changes that take place.
Hope this has been helpful so far!
Saturday, 24 January 2015
One year of saving up
I’ve been living in London since 2004 and it’s never been a cheap place but I used to be able to live somewhere relatively close to the city centre and not pay an extortionate amount of money. I won’t discuss the “if you want to live there you have to pay the price” argument as I have a lot to say on the matter but since reading last year’s news that London overtook Hong Kong as world’s most expensive city I started considering whether it’s worth staying or if I should move onto cheaper pastures…
I have to say that at the moment I have a love-hate relationship with London, but I’ve decided to give it another chance… By doing things differently.
I’ve never been one to do New Year resolutions, however, this January unwillingly became a month of reflection where I’ve come up with a few necessary and achievable goals, one of which is to save money.
I then began thinking there should be a time frame to help me get organised and be able to achieve something noticeable. The idea of one year appealed to me, people seem to make it work to the idea of the YEAR, with it's 12 months (monthly: long term), 52 weeks (weekly: mid term) and 365 days (daily: short term).
Last year I started reading a book called The Happiness Project, which I really recommend by the way. The author decided she would dedicate a year to feeling happier. She divided her project in 12 goals, accumulating each new goal as she went along.
A couple of years ago, one of my good friends decided she would go one year without buying new clothes. She would just wear what she already had in her wardrobe and would get creative in cutting and sewing (items she no longer liked nor wore) if she wanted a wardrobe refresh. She stuck to it and felt really happy whilst celebrating the end of that one year as she not only saved a lot of money but she also brought out a creative side she didn’t normally express.
The last person I will mention is a friend of a friend. I met her just as she was starting her project of living off exchanges for one whole year. She was quite successful and now hosts a facebook page where people swap things and has even written a book about her experience and life after that initial year.
So here I go, one year of actively, consciously saving money.
I have to say that at the moment I have a love-hate relationship with London, but I’ve decided to give it another chance… By doing things differently.
I’ve never been one to do New Year resolutions, however, this January unwillingly became a month of reflection where I’ve come up with a few necessary and achievable goals, one of which is to save money.
I then began thinking there should be a time frame to help me get organised and be able to achieve something noticeable. The idea of one year appealed to me, people seem to make it work to the idea of the YEAR, with it's 12 months (monthly: long term), 52 weeks (weekly: mid term) and 365 days (daily: short term).
Last year I started reading a book called The Happiness Project, which I really recommend by the way. The author decided she would dedicate a year to feeling happier. She divided her project in 12 goals, accumulating each new goal as she went along.
A couple of years ago, one of my good friends decided she would go one year without buying new clothes. She would just wear what she already had in her wardrobe and would get creative in cutting and sewing (items she no longer liked nor wore) if she wanted a wardrobe refresh. She stuck to it and felt really happy whilst celebrating the end of that one year as she not only saved a lot of money but she also brought out a creative side she didn’t normally express.
The last person I will mention is a friend of a friend. I met her just as she was starting her project of living off exchanges for one whole year. She was quite successful and now hosts a facebook page where people swap things and has even written a book about her experience and life after that initial year.
So here I go, one year of actively, consciously saving money.
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