Getting your house ready for the season

Ohh Christmas is just here, are you ready?   Here are some final tips for these last few days to ensure that you are ready for whatever over the next few days! 

De-Clutter.

Take a look around each of your party rooms.   Is there something there that shouldn’t be there?  Yes, well put it away.  Get it out of your sight for the next few days.  If you don’t need to see it either does any of your guests that are popping over.

Remember also that if you have a clear coffee table it is easier for people to leave down their drinks and not ruin your carpet by leaving a glass there.

Once you have your party rooms done – take a look over every other room in the house.

Bathroom

When throwing a party it is always essential that you have your bathroom perfect.  Make sure you have enough toilet rolls visible for your guests should the original roll run out.  Ensure your hand towel is clean and fluffy. I remember going to one party where the towel was damp when I got there.  Ewww I wasn’t impressed.  If you have a cabinet in your bathroom leave another towel or two out so people can easily move to another towel if they are not happy.   Always remember to make sure you have enough hand soap – go out and treat yourself to some fancy soap for the occasion.

Clean as you go.

Ok so you have the mega cleaning done on your house. But every day you need to make an effort so that you house is ready for entertaining.   Make time during most days to take out the hoover and give a quick run around.   Don’t forget to get clean down the kitchen as you go along.

Do you have any tips?

S

Bagging a Bargain - be alittle thrifty.

I know that you are all like me and you want to find a bargain. But did you ever get the feeling that some people are better at getting bargains than you are.    If so, than read through the few little tips that I have picked up recently which will hopefully help you bag that bargain.

Follow your favourite stores on twitter

These stores may tweet discounts codes or give you an insight as to when the sale may start either online or in store.  

Compare prices

Compare the prices of your most used products whether it is in store or online.   I especially do this when it comes to make up.  I  can save up to 5euro a pop on my regular make up product by comparing the prices in the store and online.

Seek out discounts special

Remember if you are a student you can get student discounts.  It doesn’t matter if you are a mature student – these discounts will still apply.  Teachers get discounts also and some companies can sign up for group schemes where discounts apply.   So get up and talk to your boss – you never know what discounts that you can get.

Know what you are looking for.

Just because something is discounted doesn’t mean that it is going to be a bargain.  You have to ask yourself some questions:

• Does it fit ? i.e do you have spend more money on getting the item altered?
• Do you have accessories to go with it?  Do you need to spend more money buying some more items to go with it?
• Do you have shoes to go with it? Do you need to buy shoes to go with the dress or outfit that you are thinking of buying.
• Do you already have something like this in your wardrobe.  Knowing what you already have in the wardrobe is half the battle.

If you any of the answers from the above cause you to spend more money than really it is not a  bargain is it.

Shop off season 

Some people may shudder when I say this.  But if you are looking for those classic items that will never go out of fashion i.e. good denims, plain t-shirt and winter coats – than shopping off season will work best for you. 

What tips do you have for a bagging a bargain?  Leave a comment below and let us all know. 

S

Reading and Money Saving. Yes, two go hand in hand.

Did you ever think that the two can be simultaneously linked? Well they are.   Are you a person who buys and reads at least 5 books a month?  Are you a person who spends money on books and then fail to read to them for months on end.

 

If you recognise yourself in any one of these descriptions than you need to join the library! The what!!! Never heard of it!  Yes, the library.   My local library is a fountain of books, cds, reference material – you name it and it is there.     And you can access it all for 15euro per year.   ( discounted or free in some cases depending on your circumstances)  You can take a book out for three weeks at a time – you can extend your “rental” on the book.   You can take our CD’s and DVDs for one week.  

With online access to the library you can extend the length of time you have a book or CD etc.  And what is wonderful about this whole system is that you can reserve a book, and they will email you when it is ready to be collected.  You can check what books are in stock – reserve it !  I love this system for when I read a review or see a recommendation online for a book – I go straight to the website for my library and add this book to my list  ( books I want to read in the future ) or request the book to be reserved.    Book worms don’t you just love it.

Ok enough gushing over my local library.  In terms of money saving it really is simple. Imagine it – you spend 10euro on each book that you have bought and read – per month that is 50euro but yet for 15 euro you have access to more books.   Money saving instantly.     In terms of my annual time in the library – I have saved myself an absolute fortune.   I am the person who buys a book and fails to read it - yuck needlessly spending money.   

Another good reason to join the library is trying new stuff – read a new author, a new style.  It is definitely more freeing.  But why not even pick up one of those books how to ... for dummies.  Learn something!

Other items available at some libraries are:

·         Audio books,

·         Language books,

·         Books in different languages,

·         Internet access so much more.

Recently, I took out “The Great Gatsby” It is a wonderful book and so different from my usual style of reading – chick lit and true romance.  I have also taken out books on fashion and make up and reference books for work on tips and ideas and how too.

But other than the above, there is a whole social aspect to your local library.   My library has regular talks from noted speakers whether it is from food to yoga or whatever.  Guess what its free!   There is also regular book clubs in the library so that you can join up and discuss their latest book. 

This is all for 15euro per year.  I think you can all see how this is money saving.   Check out your local library.

Are you already a member?  Any good books you can recommend. Even leave a link in the comment section to your local library.

S

My Finances - Where the hell do I start?

This is something that everyone wants to do – but sometimes just doesn’t get quite around to sorting it out.  Read this article and take some time this week and look at it. It really is easy and not as stressful as you might think.  Trust me all your need is a spreadsheet and some envelopes! Yes it is that simple..... read on for more information.

Finances are hard thing to look at.   Sometimes we are all going from week to week in the hope that we get by.  Others we are determined to save and then we dip in to the savings.  It is so hard to try and start anywhere to organise your finances.  Whether you have a debt that needs to be paid off or you are just saving for that rainy day or upcoming events.

Over the years of trying to save my money I have come up with some ways which have been of use to me.   I am going to share these with you and I hope that you will find them beneficial.

Reviewing your monthly / weekly spend

Look at your weekly / monthly wage.  Review your money, where is it going, is it being wasted away on unnecessary items or is it going to worthy causes i.e food.    Perhaps you can make a budget spreadsheet.  Don’t reinvent the wheel take a look at Microsoft Word templates or I can send you mine if you are interested in it.

If at the end of the above task you are still unsure where the hell your money is going – download an app for your phone which will allow you to track each purchase in to a category as you buy it.  Don’t cheat it – you are only cheating yourself.

Where is your money going ?

Once you have established where your money is going – you can determine how much needs to go where.   Remember there are only a few items which are a necessity to your everyday life and these are:

Rent / Mortgage,

Utilities,

Child related expenses ( kids clubs, schools etc)

Loans / repayments

Food,

Car expenses, i.e petrol,

Then you have annual expenses,

Health Insurance

Car service,

School Fees,

If you can think of anything else add it to the above list as appropriate.    Next – put each of the above in a column of a spreadsheet and then mark the relevant month/weekly out.  So your spreadsheet will look like this. ( I get paid monthly )

	Jan-12	Feb-12	Mar-12	Apr-12	Etc
Wages	1200	1200	1200	1200
Rent / Mortgage,	250	250	250	250
Cable TV	150	150	150	150
Gas	50	50	50	50
Electric	50	50	50	50
Child related expenses	0	0	0	0
Loans / repayments	50	50	50	50
Food,	400	400	400	400
Car expenses, i.e petrol,	150	150	150	150
Total Required Per Month	1100.00	1100.00	1100.00	1100.00
Remaining each month	100	100	100	100

Ok so now you have broken down your expenses every month as the required expenses.  You may have more or your may have less – but notice you put your wages amount in the top row, list all your expenses, and minus from your wages total, you will get the amount you absolutely require each month.   Some expenses may vary and leave you with month left over. I will discuss that later.

Savings

You will notice under the required amount, there is a small section which shows the money that is surplus to your own requirements – immediately set up a bank account and arrange for that amount to be taken from your wages each month directly in to your savings account.

If you don’t have a savings account, set up one.  Take a look around at what has the best rates and how you can access this money – make sure it is an instant access unless you really want to see a return on your money.   With instant access to your cash, this means that if it is needed urgently you can access it no problem at all.  Take a look at your bank options, and other banks – look at credit unions and post office – what ever will work best for you is the one to go for but definitely research.

Paying bills

Dependent on how you pay your bills, it may online or a post office.   Get that money out straight away – pay your cable tv bill early so you don’t have to worry about it – same goes for gas and electric.  Why wait until the due date as you may end up forgetting about it and getting charged a late payment.  Keep an eye on these bills regularly as you may find that you have over paid and be able to leave a payment go for one month – whoo hoo extra money.

 

For others such as groceries and car expenses – take the money out of the bank and divide it in to envelopes with the title of what it is required for clearly marked.  So you will have envelope for car expenses with 150 in it, you will have an envelope for groceries.  Now, the important thing to remember is that once this money is gone.... it is gone.  You can’t rob money from one and put it in the other.    If at the end of the month you discover that hey I didn’t spend 150 on groceries this month – take that money out and do one of two things with it.

Put it straight in to your savings account, so you are building a nice little nest egg for those annual expenses or take some of it and buy a bottle of wine as a treat or put it towards a new top or dress that you have been looking at.

Annual Expenses

With your annual expenses, I would recommend sitting down now and discovering how much money you actually need to pay these expenses.  My health Insurance is over 1200euro annually so I have to budget to ensure that I have this money ready and available to me by August each year.  With this in mind, in my own monthly spreadsheet I have a column specifically for that – so I know each month how much goes in to this savings fund for that.  Any extra cash that I have left over at the end of each month goes in to my holiday savings account so that I have cash to spend when on holiday, or even enough to pay for my holiday.    I love my holidays each year so I have a column whereby I put a small amount away each month to pay for a  holiday.

People have different methods of what works for them – and the above really is only the basics that will get you started and thinking about budgeting and financial planning.

Financial budgeting and planning doesn’t need to be hard or stressful but you just need to start it and set your goals.  Set out what your monthly expenditure actually is – set out your annual expenses.

What works best for you with your budgeting and saving – leave a comment and share with other readers.

S

What are my beauty staples?

I am a self confessed beauty addict.  I will buy and try anything new – but in these times of recession that part of my life has stopped! I can’t afford to buy something new just to try it.  But looking at my cabinet full of lotions and potions do you know what I have discovered – that the majority of items in my cabinet are not the expensive lotion promising to do wonders for me – but they are over the counter supermarket bought items.

 

These are my trusted brands and no matter how much I have spent in the past on beauty bits and pieces these ones remain my go to guys.  

Nivea Daily Essentials facial wash   - this will cost approximately 4 / 5 euro depending on where you buy it but it is important to keep your eyes open as this tends to be on special in supermarkets and other chemists. 

It has a gel like texture which makes taking off make up quite easy and it leaves your skin feeling soft and clean.  It is not so great at taking off eyeliner and mascara and sometimes I end up needing to go back over again separately specifically on my eyes – but hey that’s not the end of the world.  The product doesn’t dry out my skin and leaves it feeling refreshingly clean.    

Nivea Visage Light day Moisturiser.     Price wise – as above, this is cheap and cheerful and watch out for special offers !

Firstly with moisturisers especially when you are going to apply make up afterwards  - don’t put loads on your face.  This is a non greasy moisturiser so just a small little piece will be enough to gently cover your face.  You don’t want to need to leave hours before you put on your make up while it dries do you?

Gently applying your moisturiser in upwards strokes is supposed to be good for your skin as it is moving the blood for your heart up to your face – or something crazy like that.    But needless to say I do it anyway – even if it is alittle cray cray !   

Astral All overMoisturiser

Remember above I said that I use two moisturisers, well this is my second one and my night one.  Baring in mind cost – this is another one which is fantastically priced – for approximately 7 euro I have a moisturiser that does everywhere!

This one is greasy, which is why I only use it as night so as to allow my face time to absorb it in without having to put make up on over it.    You don’t need to take loads of it and blob it on your skin but alittle for your face.  I also use this on my body, at night I take time to moisturise my legs and elbows as these are my spots which tend to dry out more often than not.

Another thing to note with this, I bring this one moisturiser on holidays with me.  I find that it is easier to pack one does all rather than bring mountains of lotions and potions.  Plus I find that the sun can dry out my skin so this one really does cover all bases for me.

 Vaseline 

come on I am not really telling you guys anything that you don’t already know.  How fantastic is this product. 

From moisturising  lips, giving sheen to your eyesbrows and checks and even on my feet in the night time I cannot tell you enough how great this product is.  Again, cheap as chips.

In the night time – before you go to bed – not every night, maybe once a week for Sunday pampering, rub some Vaseline on to your feet and put on some cosy socks and let the Vaseline work in and make your skin feel soft and supple.  Miracle product that works on the same premise as the more expensive Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream.  Why bother with expensive when you can have the same product at a fraction of the cost.

So all these products come in at under ten euro each – why on earth would anyone need an expensive product when these guys do exactly what they say on the tin. 

What products do you use?  Recommend some in the comments section below.

S