Money Supermarket has given bloggers the task of finding thirty ways you can save a pound and sharing them with their followers. I figured this would definitely be a good thing for me to get involved in, since I have a serious spending addiction, and need to save every possible penny! So here are my top tips, that I'm about to start paying a little more attention to!
- If you are a student, get a student card and take advantage of it! Even just your college or university's cards can get you discounts in New Look, Topshop, it can even bag you a free cheeseburger in McDonalds, what's not to love about that?! So often I forget my student card when I go out, but if you add up all the savings you make, it can add up to quite a bit!
- Something I have started to do, is put away the money I save through student discounts, to save for a rainy day! This week already I've got a £3.50 saving from some new Topshop jeans, a pound from a cheeky McDonald's cheeseburger, and a massive £20 because of Ted Baker's bigger student discount during April!
- A lot of high-end beauty brands will offer samples of products if you buy something from them, for example, I recently got a perfume sample and some serum samples from YSL. This is a great way to stock up on minis for travelling, or handbag essentials! Also, most high end brands will give you a seven day foundation sample before you buy it, so you can make sure you like it before splurging! I like to have sample sized foundations to keep in my handbag for midday touchups! Also, places like Lush and The Body Shop will give you samples!
- TAKE YOUR OWN LUNCH! I added up how much I spent on food for THREE DAYS at uni this week, and it was over fifteen pounds. That's right, fifteen pounds. I should have just got a loaf of bread, a packet of ham, and a multipack of crisps from Tesco.
- If you live in London and use public transport, buy a monthly oyster pass, instead of topping up as you go, you'll be amazed at how much you save!
- Look for a broken product. I know this sounds a bit weird, but last week I ran out of deodorant, and managed to get a half price replacement from Superdrug, because the lid was missing. I also got a new Zara Jacket with ten pounds off, because a button was missing, and that's a two minute job.
- Check out charity shops, last month I found two coats and a cute pussy bow blouse all with the tags on, for less than a quarter of their original prices in Traid. Also, check them out in wealthier neighborhoods, they often have more expensive products!
- If you travel on the trains a lot, invest in a railcard. I now get a third off my trains back home, and considering the railcard only cost me £17.50, I'm saving a fortune!
- If you're going out for the evening, get your makeup done at a makeup counter. It's free, you'll have a pretty face, and pick up some tips!
- If you're going sale shopping, take a list of upcoming birthdays of your friends and family. You never know, even if you don't find something for yourself, you may be able to save a few pounds on the perfect gift for someone else!
- Stock up on things when they are in the sale or on offer. The woman in Boots gave me a bizarre look when I handed over a basket full of Tampax, but it was only a pound, and that stuff is expensive!
- If buying branded food products, shop at Tesco or Sainsburys, they'll give you a money off voucher for the difference, if your shop would have been cheaper elsewhere.
- Make it, don't buy it! I love Lola's cupcakes, but at £2.60 each, you could make an entire batch of cupcakes for that!
- If you're planning a trip involving a flight, delete your internet cookies whilst looking at flights. If you repeatedly look at flights, the prices will go up just for you!
- Going out for a fry up? Head to Ikea, where their full english, is only a pound! Even at Wetherspoons you'll pay a fiver!
- Check magazines for their freebies! You can often find goodies from Benefit, Cowshed, Ciate, Nails Inc, Percy and Reed and all sorts of others for free with magazines! If you'd buy them anyway, buy them in a magazine!
- Read a lot of books? Head to your local library, not only are libraries struggling at the moment, but you'll also save a ton of money, and the environment!
- Addicted to makeup? Check out your local market, I got L'Oreal's Telescopic mascara and Superliner, brand new for half price today. Bargain.
- Turn something old into something new. Ripped a pair of jeans? Cut off the legs and have a new pair of shorts. Jumper got a hole in? Turn it into a cushion cover! (my mum is an expert at that one, my parents' VW campervan has loads of scatter cushions made from old Animal hoodies, it looks so cool!)
- Find out if brands have any recycling schemes! Return five empty Lush pots, and they'll give you a free face mask, and the Back To MAC campaign means if you take back six empties, you can have a new lippie!
- If you often buy cans or bottled drinks when out, buy a multipack from your local supermarket instead, and take them with you. A six pack of Coke is currently half price in Tesco! Alternatively, you can fill up a water bottle with water or squash at home!
- Quit smoking! Even if you aren't bothered buy the health benefits, think of all the money you would save!
- Get store cards! I recently had enough on my Boots Card for a new YSL Rouge Volupte. Not bad at all! I also have cards for House Of Fraser, Debenhams, Tesco, Superdrug, Space NK, Liberty's, Ikea, and so many more, and the rewards you get will help you save more! Also, Tesco clubcard points are worth four times as much, if you use them for vouchers on days out, magazines, stuff like that.
- Fill up your car with petrol or diesel at a Tesco station, use your clubcard, and reap the rewards!
- When doing the food shopping, check out the reduced section. The boyfriend and I picked up a stash of microwave cottage pie and curry meals for 25p and 39p respectively. We froze them all and now when we need a quick meal, we get them out! They were originally £2.59 and £3.90, so we saved a fortune really!
- Turn off your lights and appliances when you aren't using them! Let's get those electricity bills down shall we?!
- Shop around before you buy. I once bought a very nice dress in Topshop for over £30, only to walk straight into Primark, and see the same thing for a fiver. Needless to say, that dress went back.
- Check Ebay. My boyfriend wanted a very expensive Vivienne Westwood ring, and last night I managed to win the same ring, brand new still in the pouch and box, for £8.
- Do your nails yourself. You can spend £30 on a shellac, or you can pick up a Topshop varnish for a fiver, and do it yourself whilst watching TV. I know what I'd rather do.
- And lastly, just really think about things before you buy them. I've noticed recently that I get way too much buyers remorse. So this week when I was in the queue at MAC clutching three new eyeshadows, I actually put them down and walked away. That's growth guys.
So I hope these tips can help you guys, I know I'm going to start trying to practice what I preach! Do you have any other tips for saving money?
Post a Comment